@Thunder Falcon

Coruscant:A serpent amongst the rainbows.


As they entered the grand hall of the former Presidential palace, the Jedi turned prelate said nothing. Merely leaving the blind one in meditative peace. It was time for the former cripple to think, not speak, earlier the prelate had gently prodded the edges of the other females psyche. She'd done this to show the woman what it was like to immerse ones awareness in the force, to harness the raw material around your conscience and to draw it into yourself. To use it as fuel for your inner forge, to sharpen senses and open the doorways to higher awareness. As they crossed along a soft, carpet, wind blew through the palace lifting tapestries that were as immense as some buildings. "That one" She gestured towards an old banner, nearly twenty two hundred years of age now and neglected by that pathetic Sith Emperor and his fool predecessors. "It commemorates the fall of the Ubba system, the Sith had taken those worlds as a bastion. The ubese, degenerate reprobate, scum that they are. Accommodated those heretical vermin. This was early in the war" she paused, taking a breath, around her the force seemed to constrict, the air grew cold as her cloak hugged onto armor that might have begun to creak had she not regained her thoughts. "I suppose, I should clarify, There have been many wars in the near nineteen hundred years since that banner was laid down. The New Sith Wars as we called it, the Thousand years war as your history books call it now" Many called her an imposter, doubting that she was who she said she was. Others called her lunatic, after Endor, all would know the truth and the great crusade would be one step closer to becoming more than an aspiration. "I took that wretched system and tore through their infantile defenses, I slew the Sith lord Garrisoning that world and I killed his idiot son" Her voice brimmed, not with venom but with conviction. "I drowned his infant grandson as well" she remarked as an aside, giving the confession no greater consideration than as if she was speaking of swatting a fly or envenomating a womprat. For that's what the bawling infant was, crimson skinned, verminous, a relic of a damned species of worthless heretics.

She killed the precious few that were left, she consecrated the new path in their blood. "I retook the sector within the week. That banner commorerates my victory" the last part was spat out, hissing in an almost barely contained manner as if the inner animal was about to tear loose. "The Jedi council abandoned that system and the whole sector was retaken weeks later" That had been one of the moments perhaps one of the final nails in the proverbial coffin that sealed the fate of the Jedi as well, when she decided it was time to bring down both sides of that great apostasy. She flicked her wrist, the force surged around her and the immense tapestry began to flutter, metal hinges that had held to a grav suspensor for near two millennia shuddered. "Sith, Jedi, pathetic, voyeuristic! Fetishists who perverted the sanctity of sentience by deifying aspects of the force! One cloistered in a tomb that was their High temple and the other? Fell upon each other like rodents until at least, weakened and discordant they fought to their own extinction..to be replaced by simpleton conjurers, merchants and schemers, low born filth grasping in the dark" slowly she raised a hand and the immense tapestry ruptured, tearing down the middle until it's great metal hangar splintered and it all came crashing down. The interior of the palace shook, candelabras and stained transparsteel windows trembled and synth marble rumbled below their feet as an ocean of fabric large enough to crush them both to death washed around them, breaking about the Miralukan and her apprentice in waves. the woman took a breath and her mask of certitude and imperiousness reappeared, as though the emotional outburst was intentional designed to show Jidith that Miryia like her was a creature of flesh and bound by limitations that she tore apart at great cost. Perhaps it was merely a momentary lapse and not a trick to intrigue and inspire the girl, not false vulnerability but the real deal, or perhaps she was simply illustrating her philosophy and removing an eyesore.

"The Jedi Council, much of it any way. Was assassinated by the Sith later that year" Or so the official story went, by that point it had long become clear what needed to be done. As soldiers, slaves and droids rushed to inquire as to what the thunderous noise was, rushing to defend their leader, the woman stopped them with a gesture. "This one is to be bathed and provided with new clothing, she is to be given a meal and some intravenous fluids while she bathes, let her sleep until nightfall and have her meet me in the north tower"

There, amongst the stars her second lesson would begin. "I allowed myself to be visible through the force, you saw how I commanded that power, reflect upon it as you convalesce and come to me, less ignorant then, than you are now"

She waited, indeed and the woman's words were honored, a meal easy on a starving stomach, hearty but soft was presented after the woman was bathed and given enough electrolytes and nutrients to compensate for her ordeals. The stench of destitution and abandonment was washed away, fresh clothing was laid out on a large bed. A tunic of silver and crimson with traces of Imperial black and purple forming a small symbol on the right breast, that of the Galactic Empire and at the center of her chest, the symbol of the Jedi Order, made flamelike, with the Phoenix wings blazing, instead of passive and cool. In its "talons" and beak, the blade it wielded that was in ancient times pointed defensely ahead of a starburst was instead thrusting into it.

The symbol not of Luke's New Jedi Order, but the Imperial Knights of the Pontifex Invictus. The Twi'lik twins lead the Miraluka silently, up an enormous sequence of stairs rising nearly eight hundred meters through labyrinthian halls, cavernous courtyards and indoor solariums and banquet halls that likely hadn't been used by any head of state in thousands of years. beyond the windows, the imperial palace of Emperor Palpatine and the Castle of Darth Vader rose above them, dark and vile mountains that cast an eerie shimmer in the starlight and the flickering lights from edifices and speeders. The Miralukan was lead at last down a hall where the carpet was indigo, the lights flickered in a silver color and within an enormous room was a vast series of shelves, telescopes and holographic projectors centered around a cool floor that seemed to be made of the finest transparasteel, below was a black abyss that suddenly came alive with starlight.

At the center of it all, by a window, gazing out into the night stood Invictus Janus, her calculating eyes gazing defiantly at the Sith castle. -In the end, all heretics shall fall-

She turned, slowly, her back "uncoiling" then her neck and head as she turned inclining her features ever so lightly. Around her, the room radiated through the force, a barrage of colors, as dark, light and the living force met in this tower of power, designed eons ago by Jedi architects for some forgotten Supreme Chancellor. A room, perfect for instruction, for training in the "new" ways of the force.

"Can you see yet Miralukan? Have you learned that to see, is to be blind? That with each new wave on the spectrum of light you gain access too, more await you?" Her right index and middle finger twitched and the force wrapped around the projectors, altering their vision until the whole of the known universe appeared below their feet.

"Your first lesson was how to form a circle around yourself, you learned that well in your trials. Your second, was to learn to see not the power but the mechanics of that power. You have seen me move great objects with my mind, you have seen me compel smaller objects..Here, in this nexus, you will learn how to move yourself, how to enhance muscle and bone, how to increase the speeds of your neurons and their discharges, how to regulate blood and oxygen, how to command your heart to slow, to accelerate, how to repair and mend scars. To master yourself is to master the universe"

She'd told Phanius that once, when he was a boy. A pang of guilt, flickered in her heart as it had when she'd imparted this lesson to Aladar, yet as with her other broken thing, the woman pushed it aside.

The age of Ruin had ended, the age of enlightenment by the sword, of crusade would begin.

-All is, as justice wills it..All is..as I will it-

Yavin IV: Congregates

@Lotrix Molick

"Defender Tasaia then" Luke remarked suppressing an amused laugh at the look Mara Jade suddenly sported when the Farghul offered to play a game of strip Dejarik, he was grateful for that for it served to defuse Mara from her -why don't we just assassinate the crazy fraud on Coru- rant that he knew was building up inside despite her agreement with Hamner's vehemence that assassinations be avoided unless there was no other choice. That was Mara, someone who often contradicted herself, yet remained steadfast in her own convictions. She was pained, she was chequered, she held her own grief tight and yet, was probably the most enthusiastic of his Jedi. It was probably what drew them together, that solidity in spirit. He'd found himself starting to feel for her, the sentiment was mutual but he'd gained so many new followers in the last two months that he'd hardly had time to stop and think on it, much less everything else. "Kale should be returning soon, you'll find him interesting"

Hamner had to nod in assent, a smuggler and mercenary who'd been self taught and much like Kenth brought insights to the order that were invaluable as "outside perspective". "Strip Dejarik sounds fun, but I say we hustle these two out of their clothes and credits as well" Mara beamed causing Kenth to shake his head as Luke lead them further through the immense temple. "You've given us all much to think on Defender Straka" Hamner remarked, his hands were folded behind his back and compared to Mara who had an arm around the Farghul's shoulders like a drunk giving salutations to an old buddy and Luke who just strolled leisurely with the typical nonchalance of a field hand, Hamner was really the only one who looked the part of a Jedi.

He did his best to maintain that distinction as well, for it allowed him to act more like a Jedi of old and manage the politics so Luke didn't have to get his hands dirty. "Yeah the whole, this place might literally be haunted is the part that surprises me" Mara put to words that Kenth was thinking and what Tasaia inferred. Around them, lights began to bend around shadows as the force seemed to surge through the hall as they made their way towards a stairwell up to the rooms that served as the Council's meeting chambers. "The Emperor was obsessed with finding a way to cheat death, but he never did. I didn't even think it was possible for Sith"

"It doesn't surprise me in the least" Luke admitted, but he also didn't think the presence here was solely Sith, there were other things too, some dark and twisted and some gentle and kind a menagerie of the dead, of their antecedents and while it seemed to spook Hamner and many of the Republic soldiers, it was oddly comforting to him. "Master Yoda and Ben found a way to survive in death, it doesn't surprise me the greatest enemies of the old order would also find their own ways. Though, the people who built this temple seemed to be far more mystically inclined than the man I faced in the second Deathstar"

Palpatine was a dangerous wizard in the force, Luke thought, but his traditions felt, secular, almost a copy, a funhouse mirrors rendition of the knowledge and devotion, the power that came before. Deadlier, perhaps, greater in raw might maybe, but different. Less overt, more pragmatic and subtle but far less refined than what he felt here.

"This place is a place of power, its like..a monument to a culture built on hubris and independence. The Sith Lord I faced made such a monument of his own flesh"

"You think these ghosts are what we felt last week" Hamner asked. Mara laughed "He means the force seemed to have a mini seizure, don't know if you sensed it too"

Luke shook his head emphatically. "What I sensed last week, reminded me of what I felt when the Emperor died, as if something choking the lightside of the force was suddenly removed. The light came roaring back, but last week it felt violent..unnatural not like the last time when it felt like a correction over Endor"

"there's something to be said, that we're asking these questions of you" Hamner remarked to Tasaia which made Luke laugh. "Right we lack tradition and we're trying to build that and a knowledge base as well, it's kinda like, trying to ring water out of sand. So I am glad you offered your help, we need it bad"

"Zsinj and his Star dreadnaught?" Kenth asked and Luke shook his head. "No, not really, Jerec though..his power is growing, its getting stronger every day, it's immense. And the one on Coruscant, I can't sense her, just everything around her and I can see less and less every day" He didn't even know if that one was a threat, the other "blank" presence, certainly wasn't. It was doing its own thing, generally being peaceful. Good things happened around it, Luke didn't realize he was struggling to sense them both because they were wielding more than one aspect of the force, he hadn't been trained to sense "the gray". But both seemed content to be stationary for a time, the question was, which one would move first and how?

"My name is Dremmick, and this is Eira. We appreciate the hospitality, Krayt. If you don't mind, I'd like to make a military landing, see what we can do about joining. I have a bone to pick with the Zann Consortium, but progress is slow on my own, want to hit them harder. The Nexu isn't the hardest hitting vessel, but you won't find many that can outrun her. If you could use a ship like that and two extra members, I'd gladly like to offer my capabilities to the Republic," Dremmick finished, hoping his answer was satisfactory.

Eira on the other hand was a bit offended at the man's critique of her piloting. "I wouldn't have run us into anyone, he's just surprised his radar couldn't pick us up till I turned off the sonar dampeners," she mumbled.

"Not now Eira, you can show off the ship after we land. I'm starting to feel cramped in here," Dremmick said, waving a hand and trying to get her not to interrupt.

Yavin IV

Kale and Lahana had landed on the moon minutes ago, choosing to come back to the temple for a number of reasons. Before searching for Aren in earnest, Kale needed to have maintenance done on his ship. The last thing they needed in an emergency was engine failure. While Kale spoke to a mechanic Lahana walked through the temple. She stopped by a training room and saw the droid she'd broken had been fixed.

Her hands clenched, and her breathing quickened. It reminded her of Alara, and Alara reminded her of... She let out a sharp breath and walked off. The other reason they were here was because of something her Master had felt. A disturbance in the force, and an ominous presence that called for his attention. She hadn't felt a thing, like always. Some Jedi she was.

So here they were, ready to defend the temple if need be, or go off moon to battle whatever force they needed to. She stopped to sit on a bench overlooking a fountain, hoping the shaking in her hands would cease soon.

Kale meanwhile called Luke's com-link. "Do you mind if the two of us talk, alone?"

With Mara coming so close and basically hanging off the Farghul, Tasaia responded surprisingly well. She bumped her hip lightly to Jade's and rested her clawed gauntlet on the opposite hip as they walked. "Mmmm, yes, well let's not empty the Order's coffers or clothing inventory. We could find a few political fatcats to get some...donations to our cause if that's how you want to play it." She let out a surprisingly girly giggle, throwing a few nearby people for a loop given her imposing armor and stance.

As the three others began to discuss some more important matters, Mara could feel Tasaia's fingers press into her hip some as the woman thought deeply about the situation. Once they spoke of it all and their concerns, the Farghul felt she had the floor enough to speak. "Yes, well, some grounding in traditions will help us gain a foothold to become better than our predecessors. However, the more pressing concern is that presence in the Force. Regardless of these larger forces at work, we need to figure out our local issue before it consumes us. One cannot deal with outside interference before internal issues are resolved, after all. The surge was not natural. It sent some of the local animals into a frenzy and made others spooked to the point of hiding for days, even the predators. There have been a few more minor pulses over the years I have been here, but the one last week strikes me as the harbinger of more powerful aftershocks."

Tasaia took a pause to sigh heavily and close her eyes, feeling the Force again. The presence was growing ever more oppressive. She opened her eyes, a grim expression on her face. "We should be wary and ready for a fight on our hands. This arrogance is destructive, pride driven beyond human limits. I want at least some focus upon this before we begin training in earnest. Young Force users training in an atmosphere such as this are far more likely to accidentally delve into powers that corrupt, whether they intend to or not. I would rather not risk our fledgling group for the sake of showing off to the bureaucrats that we can begin training right now."

Tarisian Blood Baths: Conclusion

@countlessinsect@Honesty Crow @Wildling

Rheanessya Aladar remained calm, her tall figure a mask of stoicism as she watched The droid who might have been the progenitor of the whole High-Singer line, massacre its way through the assorted thugs. Rivers of blood began to mesh with the Tarisian streets and her eyes remained gemstones without emotion. Internally it was another matter, she disliked how much joy the High Singer droid seemed to get out of butchering Felinoids. Oh, it was enjoying itself in general, the droid was created by to be an artifice of war for a master of the force from an era of ceaseless war and the millennia hadn't soften either it's master nor the droid itself. But there was something oddly, mirthful about the contempt it seemed to feel towards the Felinoids it was butchering and the joy it seemed to gain from it was akin to a release. As though it long it had been since he'd slaughtered them. "I'll never understand the hatred some sentients have for anthroid species" Granted they could be really smug sometimes and cavaliere about their nature, or play up to certain stereotypes but she'd seen far worse both as a Padawan and later as a sex slave and far worse still as an Inquisitor. Once High-Singer was done Aladar leaped from the building, allowing for a controlled descent by gently slowing her "fall" using the force, gliding gracefully down until she landed on the balls of her feet.

The world was still in the death throes of a riot that was finally in its terminus, buildings burned around them but she heard none of it. She merely allowed herself a nostalgic smile. It had been, almost twenty years since her connection to the force was strong enough to do that and it felt good to allow the power to flow through her again. The light warmed her flesh as it passed through her being into her inner forge. As Highsinger finished his massacre she reached out with a hand and pulled the Comm device from its corpse. A police officer finally managed to fight through the rioting and began to command her to deactivate her droid. Aladar turned, she was not graceful like her master, but she was tall, beautiful and wild enough in her motions it caught most people off guard. "Knight business officer, we'll take it from here"

"oh, you're one of the New Jedi?" The officer who asked was a Zabrak who was immense enough in height that he was almost a head taller than her (which meant he was just slightly taller than Phasma.), idly Aladar waved her hand towards Phasma as if to say don't shoot him I've got this. Though she wanted to make the gesture as mundane as possible to keep the officer from growing too suspicious. She inclined her head, technically The Imperial Knights were "the New Jedi" from a certain point of view. -Master would be offended- she thought, but she also knew Invictus Janus trusted her enough to make such calumnies in the service of a great cause without punishing her. Then again, her master never really punished her. physically, she would be pushed to the breaking point, beyond it and require her master's sorcery to heal from but it was always during a lesson. "Dense not dumb" she repeated to herself, those had been honestly some of the kindest words she'd ever heard.

As the officer turned to leave the woman Held the comm aloft, her features grew stoic once again, her eyes narrowed. "This was an invitation, one I suggest you honor, or the next time the four of us meet will be the end of you" Aladar made a point of discounting all the men they killed, recognizing that the Chiss likely same them as resources denied and not as brothers in arms killed. "buried within the entrails of your Rodian is the location of an old Imperial storehouse, in an asteroid field. There you'll fine a thousand tons of spice and enough Aurodium to devalue Tyber Zaan's money laundering operations. I speak on behalf of Head of State Bertoff Hissa and Invictus Janus, grand master of the order of Imperial Knights...The Empire, my supreme pontiff has need of your skills, consider the storehouse compensation for your lost men. Understand this, we give that to you freely, we do not expect anything from that. Your attendance however, is not voluntary"

With that she tossed the comm aside and let out a breath "Well, I remember reading about the Rhakguls that used to plague Taris and how their dens, which were always flooded with a layer of drying blood were called "Tarisian Bathhouses" At their feet, a thick black liquid, sweet and rancid in its stench began to run towards the storm drains, the combined blood from everyone they killed here today.

"We should probably leave this planet before they realize we revived the tradition"

Beyond that...They had a war to start.

Yavin IV: Jedi Temple

The First Council

@Lotrix Molick@Piercing Light

"Y'know? I don't even think we have coffers at the moment" Mara muttered making a melodramatic disappointed sigh before she broke contact with the Felinoid and walked forward towards Luke. The stair wars taking a sort of pale blue color as sensors ignited the wall lights that clung to the ancient stone in place of the torches that would have given off a pale light in their time. "Hamner, tell me you're not funding us" Mara queried back giving the man an impish grin. She knew the man was a master at logistics but he lacked the average quartermaster's appetite for graft which made her wonder just how much of the family fortune he burned through amassing his collection of Jedi artifacts (unless he pillaged for that, then maybe she had underestimated the book keeper who looked like he belonged in an action holo about the old Jedi Order). Hamner for his part let out a raspy laugh "I'm rich but I'm not that rich, no about seventy percent of the funding is coming out of the military budget"

A sore spot for Luke he knew, feeling that the Jedi Order should have been funded by a combination of donations and the same civic budgets the New Republic operated for management and upkeep. They were servants of the denizens of the Galaxy, keepers of the peace and agents of the sort of order the force seemed to crave and the New Republic advanced but they weren't soldier's to be ordered by the Republic Joint Chiefs or the Alliance council. Garm Bel Iblis convinced him once to lie to his Knights, it would never happen again, not unless he made the call without any external pressure. "The other thirty percent?"

Hamner grinned and for a second looked like a pirate. "Why from the personal wealth of the Imperial flag officers we've captured and the Republic has tried or executed"

Luke turned giving him a stare that seemed to be a mix of shock and outrage "I thought we weren't doing that?" he asked alarmed. Hamner sighed seemingly like he shared Luke's aprehension on at least some level. "The alternative is that we're stuck between Mothma and Iblis and their war for control of the Council and the government..." He seemed to want to add more but Mara gave him a look that said the less Luke knew about their little alliance of mutual benefit with Borsk of Clan Failure (as Mara Jade disparagingly called him), the better. Thankfully, Tasaia broke up that conversation to remind them that while they all had big old Galactic concerns and someone doing the "Drunken Hutt in a titty bar" to the force every few days they had a much more pressing concern here. "She's right you know, whatever we felt coming off Coruscant made the presence here angry"

"It made me angry" Hamner muttered, it had felt like blasphemy, deep down in his core. "Yeah but you're not the ghost of a dead Sith Lord for which we have no idea how to address or how powerful he or she might have been"

"Assuming it's just one" Hamner remarked eying Luke. "Do you have any notions?"

"About how to deal with it?" Luke blinked "I didn't even know what it was until Tasaia confirmed my suspicions. And it wasn't a threat before, I guess it might be now, the force feels..I don't know. Like it's waking up, ever since Palpatine's death and this? Whatever happened the other night only hastened it, but I don't think it's capable of affecting us overtly"

"Yeah but the kids? We've got some teenagers here Luke and Kale's apprentice is case study in post traumatic stress disorder in a species that isn't capable of conventional articulation" Hamner murmured, figuring it wouldn't matter since Tasaia would run into those two sooner or later and if she was to be part of this new council, she needed to know. She had a better understanding than anyone here, except maybe Luke as he didn't think Palpatine bothered to teach Mara how to handle those problems while being a force user.

Luke chuckled, understanding why he broached the topic. "I don't think she's that bad Knight Hamner, but you make a good point. I remember hearing stories as a kid about Jedi Knights of old who learned how to banish malevolent spirits, but it came from traders and even if it's not a child's fable, I'm not comfortable playing around with a soul. At least not yet, I can figure something out, but"

Jade laughed "Are we really talking about exorcisms? Even the Emperor didn't touch upon this subject, this is surreal. Are we Jedi or Pais Dei crusaders?"

"THE POWER OF THE LIGHT COMPELS YOU!" Hamner shouted only to grow suddenly silent as he realized, that might have really been a part of some ancient ritual..Since..it was part of other abilities. "Maybe we can"

Luke's comm device came on and the voice of the smuggler turned Jedi, turned one of the first members of Luke's praxeum echoed through the stairwell. For a moment he seemed about to tell Kale that it would have to wait, but to join him any way only to catch the look in Mara's eyes. "Tasaia, Kenth and myself can keep the discussion going about what to do about our local problems, we'll touch base with you when we've got a concrete plan"

"Besides, they haven't finished putting in the dehumidifiers and cooling systems, I'd much rather have this conversation outside in the open air where there's at least a breeze"

"misty as it might be" Mara added back "Surprised the Farghul here hasn't been wandering around like a furball, I've been to jungle worlds, fought in 'em but Yavin is punishing"

Rolling his eyes Luke set aside the fact that as the only person from a desert planet, he should be suffering more than everyone else but found that he rather enjoyed the climate to answer Kale. "I'll be in the reception chamber on the last level of the temple. Come find me there"

"Right then" Jade added turning to head down the stairs. "Let's go talk about how we're supposed to deal with dead people"

Orbit over Yavin IV


Arrival

@Jollan

Captain Argus went from amused but questioning their sanity to convinced of their insanity while doing his best to keep himself from laughing out loud. The Mon Cal's goggled eyes began to dart about the bridge of his Recusant class Starship as the Captain of the Nexu happily proclaimed his desire to help them make war on the Zaan Consortium. Something, the Fishman wasn't even certain they were doing, but probably should. Everyone was so focused on either Zsinj or the Empire around Coruscant, but there were hundreds of minor warlords with their picket fleets out there and the fact that two warring organized crime syndicates had the power to unify them all (To say nothing of how dangerous Jerec and Kaine were). Always disturbed Captain Argus, the fact that the Alliance was content to ignore two powerful, syndicates that somehow managed to conquer Hutt space seemed even more insane.

The Captain of the Nexu and his funny little crewmate presented an opportunity for his benefactor, but the Bothan was busy with bigger fish to fry at the moment. The Mon Cal leaned forward, thinking as the room around him flashed in holoreels and visuals of various starships which were either waiting in "line" to dock on Yavin or one of the space stations in its orbit or bored sector patrol vessels inquiring if Captain Argus needed assistance, something his communications officers were repeatedly shooting down. Large, bowl like eyes narrowed as if he was considering when the decision had already been made.

"Very well, Nexu, prepare for a fighter escort from my vessel to escort you to a landing base near the Lunar equator, from there you'll be escorted to the main Alliance settlement. Krayt out"

The group observed the Stasis pod shaking violently, Hirog decided now was the best time to act on his ambitions.

"The pods going to explode it's an imperial trick gaurds!"

The guards took the clone trooper aside and tossed him to the ground

Earen noticed something off in Hirogs urgency however

"Kriff was that Hirog!"

"As Admaral Ackbars aide I outrank you merc. Keep your nose out of my business I need to get this to fleet command stat."

Hah and that fool captain of this ship was his former crewmen...my position and cunning make Hiromi control absolute!

"Ill be taking this personally as you good soldiers deal with this...vat grown automaton."

As soon as Carter hits the deck his training kicks in and he rolls back to his feet and into a fighting stance. He’d take these people on non-lethally, he decided, for now at least. One of the guards charge him, so Carter simply takes a step diagonally forward and decks them, flipping them to the floor. The next raises his rifle which the clone bats to the side before delivering a swift uppercut to floor them too. “These are the fighting forces nowadays?” He asks to nobody in particular as he draws his blaster pistol “laughable.”

The bolt dings harmlessly off the metal of the stasis pod, mere centimetres from Hirog’s head “I don’t take kindly to liars and cheats. Try that again and the next one will be in your head. Understood?”

“AHHHH HELP!” Hirog begged as he sped off on top of the grav loader at top speed with the clone trooper chasing right after him and firing blaster bolts at the retreating Hiromi.

“Oh dammit….Holdo you better kriffing pay me EXTRA for this!” The Mercenary began to give chase.

“Wait get back here! Has everyone on this ship gone mad?”

After assuming he lost his pursuer Hirog began to plan to make it to his ship for his hasty getaway.

Heheheh with this Sith Artifact in the hands of the Hiromi Empire the New Republic and Empire will be forced to bow before Hiromi Might! I am a true genius!

Unfortunately the Hiromi spy failed to notice that he was still moving at a fast pace and reached a wall.

“Nonononono!” Hirog shouted as he fruitlessly tried to take the controls but it wasn't enough to decelerate and both the Hiromi spy and his prize bashed into the hallway wall of the ship.

“Hirog what the hell are you doing! We were talking sense to that clone before….why is that pod broken?” Holdo began scolding her peer but was immediately disterbed by the imminent threat she witnessed from the fact...the pod had a large hole in it.

“Oooooh my thorax….wait that's not supposed to be there!” Hirog began to gulp as he noticed two humanoid hands began to make the hole larger...somehow the occupant inside the pod possessed unnatural strength in defiance against its Humanlike appearance.
“Oh….I woke it up..” Hirog immediately began to hide behind Holdo.

“Oh yeah, I forgot to mention she was biomechanically enhanced a bit.” Carter says, quickly bullshitting an excuse to explain away the superhuman strength “Not much mind you, just enough that she can protect herself in case of… Oh I dunno, a Hiromi kidnapping her?”

He steps forward to the pod, awaiting his target to step outside. “Miss Vehia?”

The being that exited the pod had humanoid qualities but pale skin with a reddish hue and strange and primitive clothing. Rather then answering the Clone it picked him up by the throat one handedly and tossed him into the Vice Admiral and the cowering Hiromi.

"Ack! Ow, okay…" Carter slowly stands up. "Heck of a way to greet me ma'am, could you please calm down a little? We mean you no harm, I was assigned to be your bodyguard…"

<Where is my Lord? What world do I inhabit? Answer me!> She spoke in an inhuman tongue, a language of a race long since dead 4 millennia ago.

'So the chance I'm going to just have to murder everyone here to keep her secret keeps going up and up…' carter thinks with an internal sigh

Suddenly New Republic soldiers began to arrive with Earhen in tow.

“Alright clone drop the the-. Why is the Pod broken?”

He turned to see the strange pinkish red tinted woman and took a step back.

He had only been told the basics of the Sith’s hisstory due to his proximity with the Empire’s masters but he knew enough that the Sith were a race at one point...and red skin was a feature. That pod was in a Sith Temple on a Sith world; it didn't take an expert to deduce what was going on.

“Ohhhh Kriff.”

The Woman turned her Scarlet eyes on Earen.

<The Force...it does not reveal your mind to me...or your presence. Curious only our greatest Assassins knew this method of deceit.>

“Uh..hello?”

<Silence...where am I? Who or what are you? Where is Exar Kun?>

“Look… I have no idea what you are saying...we can get you food or a hologame or…”

<This is no game! Where have my enemies taken me? Where is the Brotherhood's fleet Assassin?”> She was not in the mood to be placated, there was an usurper to her Masters Rule.

“...can someone get a translation droid?”

The Pink skinned woman noticed the Human could not comprehend her...her grasp of basic was shaky but she could tell that much now.

“Assassin where is place??”

“On a ship its a long story…”

“Want off need travel home. You will take me or die!”

“Uh that's a lot of conditions for someone who just showed up here!”

She ignored his comment and sized Earhen and bulldozed past the Republic soldiers.

“Heeeeelp!” he screamed as she dragged him away.

“Wait I need her to come with me!” Hirog shouted

“Take me to ship need leave.”

“I didn't get paid yet lady.”

“Not caring”

“Stang you wookiee woman! I need my credits!”

“What is stang? Never minding take me to ship or die!”

To say that Vice Admiral Amalyn Holdo’s day had gone from mundane, to annoying, to bad, to worst was the mother of all understatements. -I should have just stayed home, listened to slam poetry and drank bean milk tea prepared by male attendees. Why did I ever decide to join the Republic Navy. Oh, right because the Empire bombarded one of our colonies on system poetry month and outlawed the scarves and hairstyles everyone wore. She suspected the Emperor didn’t actually do that, but the planetary governor did it to be petty. And when Endor happened the private militias of the wealthy got merged into the Navy and part of her compensation was being made an Admiral. Borsk Fey’la was so progressive, she could never understand why everyone else in the navy was so mistrusting of him. He certainly had better sense than that misogynist Iblis and the privileged Mothma. Perhaps it was more problematic pro human bigotry? Maybe she’d blog about it after she finished her duties this evening. At eighteen, she was the youngest Admiral in the Republic Navy, agism was a real thing she had to deal with but with this war heating up, perhaps she’d have a chance to show them all. Those thoughts of course were interrupted by the enhanced female who rose out of the pod, speaking Sithari.

Who promptly proceeded to lord her presence over the deck of the taller woman’s cruiser and then began taking hostages. She wasn’t bothered by that, it was Sith culture and as a quasi artificial being she was entitled to practice it to a degree. Her problem was when the girl demanded to know the whereabouts of Exar Kun and began acting as her social status entitled her to act superior to the sentients around her. The young aristocrat who bought her commission found that deeply problematic. Social virtue was important, culture was important but couldn’t the being understand she was interfering in a reformers quest! Thus the Galaxy’s loudest hypocrite promptly stormed over to the irate female.

<Excuse, I am flying sky chief Holdo of Novice law land> Holdo was always told her Sith was masterful. Perhaps it was time to put it to use? <Forgive as to not assume you are sexual eunuch made to look like female> She did her best to articulate “not to assume your gender gentle being” <But Exar Kun has, passed into story, he was made shame by high prostitute of Jedi governance and this was three thousand years from tomorrow>

The Woman turned to Holdo and leered angrily at her butchery of even the simplified version High Sith tongue her people spoke. Even more at the implication...she was some manner of eunuch from this...neon haired dandy. Even more insulting was the implication her God King could be slain by the weakling Jedi.

<You speak words of lies and treachery fluorescent haired reprobate, Exar Kun should have escaped to do battle again I was told this! He defeated the great Wyrm no being could best him in combat, no mortal!>

Why was her grammar all wrong? Holdo blinked, as the apparent female began speaking all the teenaged Admiral could hear were the incorrect babble of someone who claimed to speak Sith but sounded like she’d gotten it off an old holonet translation matrix. -Why is she asking me about rainbows and meats?- Holdo blinked, was this augmented woman merely a product of mad science by the emperor programmed to think she was Sith? Or had the intolerant Jedi deceived them into internalizing anti-Sith bigotry until they lost their own language? <You mouth like slave cleaning of many houses, but eat not, flying sky chief Holdo will coerce you, of proper Bith mouthing, not like rabid cows with blinking lights and hateful Jee’dai>

“I….I..if I may Admiral” One of the Republic protocol droids finally approached the scene of confusion, sensing the hostility in the body language of the disoriented female. “The poor thing had her entire language defiled” Holdo murmured ruefully, it was almost too good to be true. Not only did she get to make contact with a displaced tribe but she could help this person discover her true heritage like her tutors on her mother’s estate used to wax nostalgically about. The droid was an interloper, but she reasoned it was probably “safer” not wanting to trigger the newly awakened victim of old core imperialism. “Very well droid”

The Protocol unit turned, it’s burgundy colored chasi catching light as it bowed. <I am C3-4P, my mistress is Amylin Holdo, Admiral of the New Republic Navy, incredulous as that may appear given her age and..ermm..faculties. But I assure you, Exar Kun was repulsed and driven to Yavin 4 where he ultimately killed himself rather than face the Justice of Nomi Sunrider who was given dominion over the Jedi Order. Much has changed since you went into your long sleep my lady. The Sith as a species met their final end during the New Sith Wars, a great conflagration that spanned a millennium. Exterminated to the last child by a Jedi from the House of Janus, since then your legacy was carried by a sect of heretics who met their end over a moon called Endor. There is none left, you are the last of your kind even your spiritual successors would have been seen as apostates by your lord Exar Kun, as they had neither his blessing nor the benediction of the spirit of Rangos. There is none left, even the Jedi who destroyed your people are now extinct> It left out, of course, that an impersonator claimed to be the artifice of her species' destruction and that the son of the man who destroyed the Jedi and Sith lived. Proclaiming himself Jedi and he had followers.

“Why were you speaking to her about Wookies and Dewbacks?” Quarried Holdo annoyed, this droid was clearly as defective as the Sith was lost. “Merely speaking her language mistress” “Don’t, its colonalist”

If the Droid could sigh, it would have. <I am instructed to speak to you, in the illiterate variant of the Sith tongue that has been passed on among the elite, forgive me, you will have to interpret what I say to you from now on or she’ll have my personality wiped>

<Automaton I will believe the proof of Kuns defeat myself when I see it, as for you neon hair…> with her free hand the woman waved it in a comical gesture but Holdo was sent face first into the ground and slid backwards like she was being propelled by an unseen power.

She continued to her objective with the captive mercenary in tow.

“Awwwww Sithspit you aren't just something they made you have the force too.”

<Why wouldn’t I be forceful Assassin? Is he this ignorant of my standing in the Brotherhood?>

“Where is hanger?” she said i basic

“Will you let me go if I tell you?”

“No you need to pilot for me I cannot go in ship without being shot down.”

“Will you let me go after?”

“Tell me where hanger is damn you!” She lifted the mercenary off the cuff of his jacket with one arm.

“Ok ok just keep going straight!”

When Holdo was knocked along the floor, the first thing she did was evaluate why the Sith woman was so violent towards her? All the Admiral was trying to do was to help her make sense of her own culture! The second thing she did was rise and immediately begin discharging blaster fire. The third thing she did was reach into her tunic and grab one of her comm signals. “Attention all personnel we have a renegade force user onboard, avoid but seal off all hangar bays and disable any transports that can be used to get off this ship!”

Turning she grabbed the nearest security officer “Stun her, as many times as you need too, kill the clone if you must and inform Earhen that his new assignment is to help me to deliver that...Thing...to the Jedi Order”

Luke Skywalker could have her, to keep or kill.

Perplexed at his commander and how the teenager went from docile to -everything must die- he gulped and ran, Holdo’s eyes were wild and unhinged as she ordered the bridge to make a blind jump into hyperspace then exit it and immediately set course and jump again to Yavin IV.

She’d heard what happened to the Imperial Captain dumb enough to wake up the last person claiming to be an ancient force user. She would not be blamed for this one running wild. “I don’t care if you have to drop our cruiser on top of the temple itself”

“Ma’am what about the rest of the fleet”

“THEY CAN MEET US THERE..JUMP..JUMP...JUMP...NOOOWWWW”

Why did men always think they could question her.

“Holdo! What the hell are you doing? This wasn’t part of my orders!” Hirog complained.

This fruit flavored idiot was going to ruin everything! If he could convince that Force user to come with him, Hiromi would have the means to challenge all the other major factions of the Galaxy!

The Woman and her captive were beset by Republic Troopers, each heavily armed at Holdos command. With a simple gesture of her free hand all of them were on the ground gasping for air as their blasterfire harmlessly deflected off of her protection bubble.

Again with her free hand she punched through the plasteel shutters cutting off the entrance to the hanger. That Neon haired wench would face her masters wrath soon...she began to notice the ship had begun moving. Damn that whores eyes, by the Left handed god she would rip her heart out.

“Can you let me go now?”

“No I still need answers from you, and I must make ugly woman with odd hair suffer.”

She began to ominously approach a wall of guards that surrounded Holdo.

As the odd pair began to approach The Vice Admiral and her honor guard the vessel suddenly lurched, exiting hyperspace as soon as it had entered it. Around them klaxons roared off, lights began to flicker off and on and the whistling protestations of Astromech droids could be heard as they were flung from the various levels of the hangar bay. Holdo was once again dropped onto her backside and flung across the deck, nearly being crushed to death by a Y-Wing that came loose from its moorings to roll around her and her guards, narrowly avoiding the golem and her hostage.

“Command! What the Kriff was that!”

“We..We did a microjump”

Holdo blinked, when had she ordered a micro-jump?! Everyone knew you never risked one of those, the momentum carried between entering hyperspace would combined with the inertia one gained from leaving it to disastrous results. The kinetics alone, were capable of snapping ships in half and fortunately, her vessel was spared that fate. But they must have hesitated, for they’d jumped only a half a lightyear and came out to a dead stop in an ultra-thick nebula, crashing into one gigantic column of methane, or at least she suspected it was methane and not helium and some other substance. The vessel’s engines ignited the column and harmless multi-colored flames passed over the windows harmlessly. -huh the flames match my hair, this must be a sign- Or perhaps the Sith would take it as such? She appeared to have been marching towards her ominously before any of this was attempted. “Plotting course to Yavin now ma’am”

“No..wai”

She spoke, too late. They made a second jump, the Y-wing shuddered and then bounced, dragging along the floor until it made a natural barrier between her and the would be Sith Assassin.

The vessel had sufficient time to warn the rest of the fleet that it would be heading to Endor, not Yavin.

Which was perhaps the will of the force, for under the duress and strain of the microjump, the sensors scrambled and Vice Admiral Amalyin Holdo, her Recusant class vessel and several billion tons of flaming nebula were all yanked through hyperspace, coming out right on top of the Republic fleet over the Sanctuary moon, the flaming gas and ionized particles smashed into their defense satellites and scrambling their early warning systems.

The recusant shuddered, dead in space.

At the heart of a burning storm, that quickly spread out across the moons orbit.

To Admiral Firmus Naantz and General Han Solo, who were having lunch together, the scene unfolding before their eyes, only meant one thing.

Somebody kriffed up.

As the rest of the fleet arrived it was confirmed.

Someone kriffed up bad.

When Zsinj was finished with the young padawan he had coerced into his service, the boy was sent down to Serenno where he was thrown in a prison cell. For weeks he was left there to rot. The boy had served his purpose and Zsinj failed to fulfill his promise. He had betrayed the Jedi, his friends, and even his Master all for the sake of saving his family. A family, he now thought, had probably been killed by Zsinj. Some days, he would cry for hours and hours. He also refused to eat the scraps fed to him by the guards, who didn't seem to care whether he died or not. Recently, Aren had been dreaming about a voice in the dark calling out his name. For days now, the voice haunted his dreams. It would speak from a void of darkness that brought nothing but feelings of dread and in an indescribable amount of power. It was an odd yet terrifying combination. One night, Aren began to meditate in an effort to find out more about his dreams. A technique taught to him by his Jedi Master Kale. It involved reaching out using the Force to “see” things more clearly. It did not take long for the boy to sense something. A powerful dark presence in his cell. Opening his eyes, the young man saw nothing but concrete walls and the laser barrier keeping him inside the cell.

“Who are you? What do you want from me?” Aren asked as he looked around in an attempt to find the source of the voice. Nothing. Waiting for a few seconds, he expected to hear something back, but it never came. He breathed a sigh of relief, perhaps he was overreacting to what was only his imagination. As he was about to give up, he heard the voice again. It was but a mere ghostly whisper that seemed to echo inside of his head. The sound sent a shiver down his spine and he frantically began to look around his cell. “Who’s there!?” He demanded.

“A benefactor.” The voice answered, making Aren spin around, expecting to see someone behind him. But all he found was the concrete slab he used as a bed. “I can help you find your family. Give you the power to save them from their cruel fate.”
Aren tightened his fists, as he erratically searched his cell to find the source of the voice.
“How do you know that? Show yourself!” Aren’s demands were met with silence. Whatever he was facing, it was nothing like he had ever felt before. It was strong in the Force and powerful as well.
“Does it matter? I have the means to assist you.”
Whatever this thing was, spoke with an aura that made it hard to ignore. What it was offering made Aren rethink his stance. Did he have a choice? The alternative would be to stay here and die. Could he truly stay here knowing that his family was in danger? No. The boy timidly nodded, still looking around searching for the source of the whisper. “How will you help me?”

“Observe.” Everything went quiet once more. Aren felt the presence move away from his cell and into the hallway. It walked toward the control center where two guards sat in front of the control panels, bored and eagerly awaiting for their next break. The boy heard the guards cry out and soon their voices went silent. Whatever surveillance system was monitoring the area only managed to pick up a shadow disintegrating the guards into mere ash. Soon, the barrier holding Aren inside opened and he cautiously stepped outside.

“Move. Now.” The voice urged Aren, once again sounding like a voice inside his head. Aren wasted no time and ran over to the control panel. Using his instincts, he quickly found the override controls for the entire block and opened every cell, triggering an alarm. Prisoners from humans to aliens emerged from their prisons and began attacking guards that attempted to put down the ensuing prison break. In the chaos, Aren slipped out and reached an armory near the entrance to the prison. When he was first brought in, he made a mental note of where Zsinj’s men had placed his lightsaber. Retrieving it, Aren managed to escape the prison building and hop on a speeder away from the compound which was quickly falling into chaos. As he sped away, he glanced back seeing columns of black smoke emerge over the horizon. Breathing a sigh of relief, he steadied himself.

“What now?” He asked, fearing that the voice had left him.
"A ship awaits us beyond. Use it and we will leave this planet."
Aren didn't question why or how. At this point, if this ethereal presence could help him rescue his family from the clutches of Zsinj, then he would follow it to the very ends of the galaxy. All he wanted was to his mother, his father and his sisters again.

After driving for over an hour, Aren encountered a remote outpost. Stopping his speeder by the entrance he looked around, searching for guards. However, the place was deserted save for an Imperial Lambda-class shuttle. He approached the shuttle and stepped up the ramp. The lights of the main cabin flickered on as he entered. Aren froze in his tracks as he laid eyes upon something he thought he would never see again. Sitting atop a crate was the Sith holocron Zsinj had ordered him to retrieve.

"B-but how…?" Aren was overcome with fear once more. How was this even possible? He overheard the guards once say that Zsinj had ordered the holocron to be placed deep within the vault of his palace in Serenno, yet, here it was.

"This is the power I offer, young one. I will make you more powerful than your former master. You will wield the tools to save your family and take revenge on Zsinj." Said the voice, this time coming from the holocron itself.

"That's all I want." Aren replied, placing his lightsaber on his belt and walking over to the cockpit. "Where do I go now?"

The voice spoke again, this time with a more gleeful tone. "Follow the coordinates in the navigation computer. It will tell you where to go."
Without so much as a second thought, Aren turned on the ship and soon he was off. As he entered hyperspace, he made a silent pledge to never return to the Jedi Order. Now, with the aid of this being he would no longer need them. Soon, he would see his family again. That is all he cared about.

Interlude

"I shall be the first man!" - Jedi Master Awdrysta Pina 24,500 BBY as recounted in "The Thirteenth knight"

-I can do this- The woman's green eyes flickered with a mix of nervousness and an emotional high that came from being told by the woman who'd been your savior (if a rather harsh teacher). Her mind wandered back to the moments of haze and hurt mixed with a profound sense of destiny and relief (That their army was indeed growing, for they'd taken in numerous force potentials but the Master had refused to teach any of them just yet). And then a feeling of shame at the realization that she'd felt as if her master, the Pontifex had betrayed her by taking another student and refusing to attend the war council to focus on the first lessons of her training. jealousy is beneath you apprentice and misplaced. It always struck her, how maternal Invictus Janus could sound, how disappointed yet lacked any of the vicious contempt she reserved for others. I do not need to explain myself to the Admiralty, nor to Hissa, when I have you to do that, from anyone else it would have sounded dismissive, as if she was fit merely to relay messages but Aladar caught the look in her eyes and the words spoken prior...misplaced jealousy, beneath me? A hand gripped her chin, Miryia was tall, she was nearing six feet but Aladar like Phasma was taller still and she felt her head pulled down to meet the eyes of a woman who'd terrified her mere months ago. -You are more than a member of my legions. This armless acrobat shall be the first of my legion..But you, shall stand by my side, you shall have a part in all that I plan, all that I do and all that I implement. Your destiny, is bound inexorably to mine. Together, we will bring the light of civilization back to these diseased stars. The Empire shall be our vehicle and Shoma our sister in arms, she shall fight beside you, she shall bleed beside you, but she is not your equal, nor...your replacement-

It was odd, how a woman in her thirties could feel like a child in that moment, one whose emotions were cut through to the center of the problem. -You have only ever abandoned yourself- that bit crushed her as much as it liberated her and then the ceremony began.

She was made to kneel in the water garden, Phasma and Shoma and the Highsinger stood witness.

She was made to kneel naked, something that would have shamed her due to the scars from suicide attempts, from beatings, from battles that were both victories and defeats, faded stretchmarks, memories of a body to small to bear life. But those had begun to fade, as had the few streaks of gray in her hair. Aladar felt ten years younger, she was growing stronger every day, her connection to the force..her..inner forge as the Pontifex said it.

Blazed.

She was made to recite an oath before her peers. To be a sword in the dark, to stand between barbarism and the light of civilization, to wield the force in service to that light. To be a slave of none, but shelter the weak who would be strong, to lay low heretics, traitors, thieves and usurpers. To punish the guilty and vindicate the innocent, to serve the Imperial throne and not the one seated upon it (That last bit had been inspired by one of the Bothan spymasters many manic rants about the proper truth of power being perception). In her heart she added one more verse, to serve Janus forever. A starburst pattern in the shame of their order was burned into her left bright, the pain was intense but it lacked any of the ravaging sensations of Sith lightning. "Let that be the brand you ever receive, let that be the last wound you take unanswered"

The end of the ceremony was a child of twelve being brought in on a litter, she was in the end stages of an organ ravages STD that was all too common in the Coruscanti underworld. One that could be easily cured in its early stages but was almost always fatal by this point, at least above ground. Down there, it was a death sentence, unless you knew someone or were willing to slowly replace every organ that failed with something artificial. Death houses were filled with discarded whores like this child, waiting for an end that was painful and sad.

A fat woman was brought in, she stunk of drugs, there was a familial resemblance, her grandmother perhaps?

The final moment of her initiation into Knighthood was a ritual even Jerec struggled to master, the rite of transference. To pull the life from one and imbue it into another, to restore, revitalize. She'd been learning this but was still nervous, Aladar couldn't be that strong, she'd experienced it. Her master had used the ability to return to her the eye she'd lost and she felt it kickstart an inner awareness that gradually allowed her cells to begin to rejuvenate and repair themselves. Had she learned it on an instinctive level to restore herself? To hold back age? If so, could she do it externally?

Her only real fear was that she would kill the child accidentally.

Perhaps it was that selflessness that allowed it to go as well as it had. The woman withered to a husk, the child lived and was taken below, she would serve the Invictus, cook, clean and receive an education. In time she would join the imperial military, or should she show potential in the force, their own order. Hers would be a life of service, but never servitude.

Rheanessya Aladar was clothed in the same dark blue armor as her master and robes with the colors of the order. She was presented with a new lightsaber, to replace her old Inquisitors blade, one that she could sense had a crystal within that had been grown, cultivated off her own emotions and actions these last few weeks. The blade was smooth and curved, the blade of a duelist one studied in Makashi and Juyo -she knows where my talents lie- Aladar thought, but it had been so long since she practiced the second form that it would require her to study it again.

The prospect wasn't daunting though and maybe she'd take Phasma up on her offer to spar one day soon. For now, duty called.

.................................

Coruscant



War Master's Council

@Honesty Crow@Guy of Z@countlessinsect

The Imperial palace remained the immense mountain that it always was, rising into the "Night" sky as their hemisphere of the world city shifted into its evening phase. The palace itself was lit, shining in the night which was a stark contrast to the Emperor and Sate Pestage who kept the immense structure dark.

The difference between them and Grand Vizier Hissa, who favored opulence and vitality to conceal his inner dark.

Though, from what she understood, the Grand Vizier refused to be part of the meeting when he realized that the Pontifex was not coming, instead sending Supreme Commander (Who was going to attend any way) Gilad Pellaeon and Grand Admiral Rae Sloane, his attendants and his biggest supporters (Who were also, oddly allied to her master). A political display, one not borne of malice but a not so subtle reminder to the Pontifex that they were equals and while she may have "crowned" Hissa, it was by his leave that the 501st wasn't ordered to blow her palace up and killer her knights...Or so Hissa believed. The once legendary legion seemed far more loyal to the woman who handed them their first victory in years than to a moff who barely addressed them. Not that either side was willing to test that theory, the remnant had been reorganized to weed out the disloyal, not foster them.

Captain Phasma, Highsinger and newly minted Knight Aladar made their way up steps that were so vast and wide they almost looked like the base of a mountain. At the entrance, she could see the aids of General Derricote and one of the other Moff's who managed to parlay themselves onto the council in the chaos following Pestage's murder. "We're meeting in the night garden"

"Of course we are" Aladar remarked, she'd anticipated this and brought some seed packets from the water garden in the Invictus palace, the new bastion of the Knights. She knew both Gilad and Derricote were avid enthusiasts for gardening and she also knew they were probably going to spend more time surveying the Emperor's night gardens after the meeting. This way, at least, she could make a gesture of mutual respect. The cultivation of plants was a hobby her former Jedi teacher shared as well, though Aladar lacked the knack for it until recently. "Has Director Raveem arrived yet?" She added, stepping through the grand doorways, taking the lead in the group and reminding herself she spoke now with the voice of her master and was going into a den of starved Hutts.

"He arrived five minutes before you did Inqui.." the aid corrected himself "Knight Aladar"

"And who else is in attendance, Carvin, Grand and I believe one of the surviving Grand Admirals the Bothan and your master didn't kill" the fact that he couldn't name him was rather annoying. "Admiral Karius, General Veers and Cardinal, a young Star Destroyer Captain named Canaday" "The solicitudes Captain?" Aladar asked surprised, the Solicitude was part of the Queilli oversector fleet, she was sent out there to track down a rogue Inquisitor once and spent a week shipboard the solicitude. Canaday was a competent commander, but he didn't stand out to her at the time.

"He arrived with a dozen ISD battlegroups after Endor, something about refusing to take orders from Mando scum and mommas boys"

"ah"

"We shouldn't be fighting the Republic yet, we should be invading Zsinj's space and clearing that trash out"

"It wouldn't be that easy, those two are always dismissed as dandies, the starlanes between Sereno and Dathomir are littered with the bones of the ones who do that" She warned, to her surprise the aid actually listened nodding his head in concession. -Things are different now- she thought.

A table had been set out, in one of the courtyards in the immense night garden, Serving droids were laying out tea and various cakes on a secondary table off to the side. The gathering looked at once informal and yet, comprised of the most serious of men and women in the Empire and Grand Admiral Sloane.

As she suspected, Gilad Pellaeon and Evir Derricote were returning from a stroll in the gardens as her group arrived, Moden Canaday was sipping tea and snacking on something in the corner with Grand Admiral Grant, whose attendance hardly needed to be noted. As commander of the Home Fleet, it was mandatory. -Canaday is ambitious, but not stupid- she thought, he was only drinking or taking a bite, after Grand did the same from his own plate. Not out of a sense of sycophancy but due to understanding how serious Grand took his nobility and lineage, General Veers and Admiral Karius were both seated beside Raveem who looked like he was napping both of them looked like they were debating who to strangle first, Raveem for napping, Admiral Sloane for her..views on proper tactics or Aladar for not arriving before everyone else did.

Which was as she intended, she wanted to arrive late to see how the attendees arranged themselves, which groups stuck with which and who was at odds with the others.

"Knight Aladar, congratulations on your promotion!" It sounded genuine and probably was, it was really hard to hate Gilad Pellaeon, he was a sailors, sailor. A true Naval commander and a loyal subordinate who fought for the same values she now found herself fighting and he was well liked by all. Treachery against him was rare, he wasn't as stupid as people thought he was and he inspired a kind of loyalty that meant those who did betray his trust were often butchered by his own men long before they got anywhere near him. "And you as well!" she added enthusiastically, before producing a small box, handing one to him and the other to the aid of General Derricote who presented it to the master of biological warfare.

"The seal of the Jedi Agricorps?"

"from eight thousand years ago, I found them in stasis pods in our groundskeeping level"

Gilad almost gasped when he opened them and saw the crimson seeds. "Alsakan orchids" he mouthed, they were among the greatest oxygen producers in the known universe, instrumental in terraforming before the pias dei crusaders wiped them out. "We've begun planting some in the gardens at our palace, I hope you find a good home for them"

"My gardens are not properly equipped for this sadly, but we're looking for a new place one that I could make a home for these in. My regards both to you and your master"

"Byth Cacti for you" Aladar motioned to Derricote, another rare plant but one that was legendary for turning rad burnt hellholes into water rich paradises if given enough time.

"Yes, yes, fascinating..now tell us why your master decided to call us here" Carvin broke in, he had absolutely no patience for the obsession with gardening his colleagues held. To him, it was the work of slaves and servants, unseemly for men of power and he could barely stand the former inquisitor who attached herself like a barnacle to a lunatic.

"As you wish" she offered a slight inclination of her head, sarcastically before offering a diplomatic smile. "Gentlemen, ladies, our respective leaders believe the Empire has been idol, too long"

That was something everyone could agree with. "So we're finally going to pick off some warlords?"

"No, we're going to do something more brazen than provincial territory grabs" She answered, her eyes narrowing with resolve. "The Pontifex Invictus: Janus and Imperial Grand Vizier Bertoff Hissa believe it is time hit the Republic in its heart"

Everyone seemed to grow quiet focusing now on what the woman had to say. Gilad's eyes flickered to a droid that entered, a small astromech that was flanked by four floating holoprojectors, each one igniting to show intendem with the astromechs projector a small moon, orbiting a gas giant.

"Endor" She added stating the obvious and in doing so silencing everyone.

The place where it all went wrong.

Rather than explain why her armor had inbuilt temperature and humidity controls, Tasaia took the chance and plopped her helmet over Jade's head. Despite not being sealed or fitted properly, it still obviously was trying to regulate the temperature to a comfortable cool and keep the humidity in a moderate range. "My armor does most of the work, darling. I just groom myself in my ship otherwise. The sanisteam feels amazing when you get out of this muggy jungle for the day."

She let go of the helmet, figuring Jade would take it off when she felt the effects. Looking to Luke and her other companions, she planted her hands on her hips. "I am not versed in dealing with spirits like this. I can try to contact some of my peers, but an exorcism is very new to me. If my skills can be used elsewhere in the meantime, we should focus my energies there." She gave one last look to the temple, grimacing somewhat as she could still detect pangs of that spirit. "It bothers me to be so near it. It prickles my fur."

Yavin IV: Master's Council, filtration of realpolitik.

As Kale walked through the temple with his padawan he noticed a change in her demeanor, one he saw often. "Something interesting about the floor, Lahana?" He said. She blinked and looked at him.

"Huh? Oh, sorry. I was just thinking, we really are about to go to war, aren't we?" She asked. "I guess there's nothing we can do to stop it."

"I'd like to say we can but... That's right. The pieces falling into place are too obvious. But we'll get through this." Kale said as he entered the reception chamber. There was Luke waiting for him, as he said. "Master Luke. He greeted with a slight head nod. "I trust you have felt it as well? An ominous premonition if there ever was one."

The Skywalker Youth sat in the center, his eyes were closed but his vision spanned the length of the chamber. He was starting to come here so often Mara joked that he should move in, but it made the ability to sense things over vast distances easier. And it took every ounce of focus he even amplified by the chamber to crack the veil of one of the two "blind spots" in the force. He'd cracked it ever so lightly when Kale and Lahana entered. Their talk about war, grounding him and shaking him out of his drive to see that which made no sense to him. "We've been at war for a while haven't?" Luke asked, his tone chiding them. Jedi weren't supposed to look for a fight, only finish them. Though it seemed as if his reprimanding tone wasn't directed at Master nor apprentice but at the alliance itself. "I'm not a big student of history, which is embarrassing, I really should be given what we're trying to do" he admitted, life on Tatooine was life spent focusing on farming, if your education wasn't in useful things then you were either water rich or wasting your time. "But the Republic was founded twenty five thousand years ago, it took almost eleven thousand years for it to unite much of the inner rim and core and another nine thousand to unite the rest of the galaxy. At least that's what I remember, we may be pursuing Galactic unity wrong. You're right, war is coming, something feral harnessed the light in a way I didn't think was possible and then there's Jerec whose power is now as great as my father's" Luke admitted that, it meant any confrontation between him and the blind former Darksider was going to be a toss up on the best of days. "Everyone wants to focus on the Remnant, but the danger I sense is other territories, it's a mistake to pursue our traditional enemy now when we have so many newer, smarter enemies"

Of course, the choice was not theirs to make.
"Welcome back from your journey Lahana, Kale, I trust it was productive if you're coming here in a bad mood" He offered a smile, but the light shimmered eerily over the runes and Luke thought he could hear a whisper in the dark. Tasaia was right, the spirits here were reacting to the storm in the force, feeding off it.

Kale let out a tired huff of air. "Yeah, I'll just cut to the chase. The holocron we're after is Sith. Rouge Squadron just confirmed it. On top of that fanatical imperials attacked that Star Destroyer turned entertainment district, disabling it's primary weapon. But honestly, the holocron has me worried. The right hands, the wrong hands, whoever has it, nothing good will come of it."

"You sure it was fanatical imperials?" Luke asked with a frown, though his eyes didn't reveal any skepticism. He agreed, but Republic intel was making a lot of noise about it being the handiwork of Tyber Zaan while the smuggler King Talon Karrde and the ships Captain seemed to think the New Republic itself did it. Which all smacked of a frame job, so he didn't doubt it. Especially when some claimed General Veers had been on the Venture. The confirmation that it was indeed a genuine Sith holocron made him raise an eyebrow, the voices hissing throughout the room seemed to grow in intensity. "So we were right, what I sent Aren to retrieve" the man shook his head. "Do you know anything else about the nature of this relic? More importantly, where our errant Padawan is?"

There were other things to discuss, Kale was right, war was coming whether they wished for it or not.

"Aren..." It was difficult to bring himself to say what he had to, as if speaking it would will it to be. "I've heard he's somewhere in Zsinj's territory. Though with the knowledge that the holocron is Sith... There's a reason we haven't heard anything from him, why he isn't being used as a bargaining chip, why I can no longer feel his existence through the force. This is only conjecture, but whatever is inside that holocron, whoever, Aren may be used as a vessel for it."

Luke's eyes flickered around the room as the whispers came close to growing into mocking laughter before they were silenced just as swiftly. "I believe you, Kale the Sith of old were a different sort compared to the ones I faced. They're more primitive, true but far stronger and more savage. Palpatine was the product of a millennia learning to hide in the shadows to strike, the being that may be within the Holocron was used to be out in the sun. But I'm not willing to rule out Aren yet, we may not have completely lost our padawan" Here Luke reached out to lay his hand on the runes. "I had a vision of blood on the forest floor of Endor, of heads on pikes, of a lost sister returning to the light in the shadow of a great serpent. I saw a stag sneering while two old stones broke themselves." Luke let out a laugh "I really hate it when the force sends me allegory instead of cold hard fact...But I think you're right. We're heading to war and it will be soon"

"Yeah..." Kale narrowed his eyes and looked around the room. "We need to come up with a plan of... action- So are we ignoring the voices in this room?"

Lahana tilted her head and followed her master's eyes, she didn't hear anything.

"We are for the present" Luke said, offering him a sympathetic smile. "If I'm being honest, I've been hearing them for a month. They're not just in this room, they're everywhere. Thousands of them, but that one? The one you just heard, is the strongest. If I'm being honest with myself, the voice is an echo of a power I can't really put my head around..He..At least I think it was a he. Was probably stronger than the Emperor in life, Jedi forced him to commit suicide, he hates me for that. But he's also bound here" Luke didn't even think he could imagine a Jedi powerful enough to make a monster like the one he sensed behind the chains consider suicide as a better alternative. Though the name Sunrider kept popping into his head. "A force user from another sect offered to join us, she says she may have some idea on how to address the Spirits. But its a nerve wracking prospect, I don't even like trying to heal damaged minds I can't even imagine the risks involved in dealing with souls"

Luke grinned at Lahana "You've never been touched by the more ethereal aspects of the force have you?" he let out a good natured laugh, she was blessed in that sense. "They're not a threat to us directly, but they can make the wildlife here hostile, whatever storm is coming our way is causing them a lot of pain, but it's also allowing them more..I guess wiggle room around their chains is the right phrase?"

"I guess it's more like I can't. The uh, not so physical parts of the force are hard for me to get." Lahana said., still straining to hear the voices the two masters were talking about. The mention of wild beasts only made her realize that she was getting hungry. It was a shame she wasn't allowed to go hunting in the wild anymore.

Kale meanwhile rubbed his temples before rolling his shoulders and adjusting his focus. "There's a lot on our table then if malevolent spirits in the temple are the least of our worries. So, if Endor is to be where there will be bloodshed, how should we act? I don't very much enjoy the idea of acting as a simple soldier for the Republic, but what must be must be done."

"Our duty is as peacekeepers, the Jedi originally worked in tandem with the Judicial fleets in the old Republic. They commanded armies in wars only when those wars threatened to overrun the entire galaxy" Luke responded, his eyes narrowing in thought, it wasn't quite an answer but it had been the closest he could get to one. He too shared dislike at the idea of acting as part of the Republic military, yet when the enemies were malevolent force users. "The galaxy was already overrun before either of us were born, The Republic controls a few thousand systems on its better day and I honestly don't know if its our duty to help them expand beyond that. We should be minding the story, not looking to set up an expansion. But at the same time, if trouble comes to Endor it's a big deal" Endor was special, it had been where the Emperor fell, where his father died, where the alliance militia finally became a proper navy when it defeated the Imperial armada at Endor. To fail to properly respond there, might invite calamity. "But at the same time, what happens if we drop the ball at Endor?" he asked before eying Lahana. "Some force users are meant to draw the force inward, to use it as a source of strength. But for what its worth I'm glad you have trouble with it, I worry about these things influencing some of your peers if they manage to grow strong enough to get louder"

"What will happen? That's an interesting question." Kale turned to his padawan. "Lahana, do you know why we will be fighting for Endor?"

Lahana stopped trying to hear ghosts and looked to her master. She squinted her eyes and cupped her chin in thought. "That's the forest planet with the annoying furballs, right? Does the Empire need a lot of wood or something?" She glanced to Luke. "You said it's a big deal, I'm guessing there's something important there?"

"Not something exactly, but an important event." Kale said. Lahana nodded, listening. "The death of Darth Vader, of The Emperor." Lahana nodded. "It has a lot of meaning to the Rebel Alliance as a historic victory against tyranny."

"Okay?" Lahana nodded once more, waiting for the other shoe to drop. Kale looked to Luke.

"Perhaps you could enlighten her, it isn't the most intuitive reason."

Watching the education exchange between Lahana and her master Luke smiled, in many ways it reminded him of the glimpses he caught of Qui Gon Jin and Obiwan. Yoda had been a harsh task master, but Luke could hardly complain. Ben taught him by instruction, discussion and experience, Yoda by relentlessly drilling him and letting him figure out on his own why a thing worked after it had been hammered into his head long enough. Kale, seemed to be more in line with the style of the more gray Jin and his student. Lamplights flickered, something hissed and Luke smirked, it was being ignored now and it didn't like being ignored. Somehow that comforted him and made it seem more grounded in flesh and perhaps more petty and less abstract and omnipresent. "Endor doesn't have much strategic value, except that the hyperlanes around it, mean that if war with Zsinj or Tyber Zaan came tomorrow we could quickly turn that sector into a refueling, repair and rallying point. But militarily there are far better planets to do that with. Endor is important because symbolism matters, we lost Yavin after we destroyed the first Deathstar. The Empire hunted us relentlessly and our loss of the moon over which the power of the Empire met its end made it look like a fluke. Basically, we lost members, worlds that were once pro Republic showed us the door, militias that were supposed to reinforce us began to fight us just as viscously as they fought the Empire. Senator Iblis even threatened war with us when he ran his own faction of rebel systems." Luke paced the room, he imagined the loss of Yavin had done much of the same for the Sith cause, shattered them morally and spiritually more than it shattered them physically.

"The Alliance, well the New Republic now, is overextended. Thousands of systems have joined us, all of them expect mutual defense against warlords, pirates, gangsters and the major renegade powers. The Imperial remnant especially, but only a few hundred systems have actually pledged military support and out of them only one hundred are contributing anything except money to the Navy. The rest are just waiting it out, to see if they can extort us for more benefits, subsidies or protection, or they're waiting to see if we can deliver on our promise to bring peace. Losing Endor, would make us look like we're all talk." Turning to the pair Luke gestured to walls "They're thinking the same way these dad guys are..Basically"

At that he laughed. "Regardless, attacking Endor wouldn't be easy, The Imperial remnant stands the most to gain from making us look bad but Endor is way outside their supply lines. It would be a serious risk, whoever did it would have to rely on luck and they would need to commit something like a quarter of a million Storm Troopers and at least four times that number in regular army, it would need a fleet of hundreds of ships. It would be an undertaking that would open them up to attack from their own enemies...Unless" a gloved hand touched his chin.."Well..No..that isn't possible"

Taking the subject back to why a loss at Endor would be catastrophic Luke continued "So you see why Kale is so nervous Lahana? There are plenty of more logical targets..but logic sadly doesn't always apply to war or politics"

There was another aspect that Luke left out. One that he'd danced around in silent contemplation before sighing and added with a tired smile "Lord Vader was my father, he was a Jedi of the clone wars a hero even, named Anakin Skywalker. He fell..he..chose to become a servant of the Sith, eventually he began to regret it all. The Jedi, the Knight in him broke forth at the end. The Emperor he..He was torturing me to death because I refused to kill my own father. Sith Lightning is..terrible, its a power so dark its like being drowned in the darkside. I still have muscle spasms...The power of the Emperor was way more than I could have imagined, it was all I could do to hold on. My father..Knight Skywalker grabbed the Emperor, I beat him...I cut one one of his hands, for a second I hate him..." Luke's tone seemed filled with guilt...As if that moment's savagery still horrified him, even if Darth Vader was a mass murdering tyrant."I risked it all, the entire rebellion on the goodness in him that might not have existed anymore. If I had failed, The Emperor with his battle meditation would have ground the Rebellion to dust, but there was I lay helpless, spasming in agony , my father remembered who he was and with the last of his strength hurled the Emperor down a reactor shaft" Luke left out the part where the Emperor turned all of his terrible power on Vader, how his life support system began to fail as his father's lungs incinerated and his flesh crackled. How the backlash of darkside energies released when the Emperors burn incinerated ravaged both their bodies and Luke was still recovering from that.

"Endor is important to us too Lahana, the last Jedi of the Old Order died saving the first Jedi of the New in the skies above Endor. He died so that we could live"

"I see... So it means a lot to you specifically." Lahana pressed in her knuckles, Her joints popping as her expression turned sour. All of the reasons she'd been forced to fight as a slave surfaced in her mind. The people she'd killed for reasons she either didn't understand or refused to confront. She'd spent so long killing for the whims of people that apparently knew better than her.

"So, people are going to die just to satisfy a few's arbitrary emotions. The Republic's pride, the Empire's wrath and greed... Your lingering regret." She grit her teeth and moved her right hand to the scarred part of her face, under her hair. It stung, as if the memory of how it happened was enough to bring her back to the moment. "I'm sick of this..."

"My lingering regret?" Luke shook his head, even if he did feel regret about the outcome of Endor, he never would have allowed anyone to die because of it, much less tens of thousands of soldiers, most of which were people he'd known for years. The thought sickened him but he kept his outward features calm, Lahana hadn't meant to accuse him of being a murderer by proxy and if she had, she wasn't thinking straight. "you're reading my emotions without context, and so you are projecting your own trauma and doubt onto them. Center yourself and focus, I regret that I lost composure, that in a moment of panic and anger I beat on a broken man, but I don't regret what happened at Endor, no one should. I certainly wouldn't ask you to die to soothe my conscience if I did, apprentice." Luke paused, allowing himself to reach into the force, to let the cool waters of the light help him calm his mind.

"Consider this, if we lose Endor, whether a few prideful or predatory politicians are moving us into harms way or not, They're actions will effect half a trillion sentients Would you have me refuse to participate because of their short sightedness? The Jedi aren't vigilantes we don't walk around dictating policy, all we can do is serve the light and the people of the Galaxy. What do you think will happen if hundreds of systems leave the Republic? Or if Borsk Fey'lya calls for a recall election of Garm Bel Iblis or worse? Chief of State Mothma and the alliance council which is already being attacked for not heading the provisional senate decides they won't permit a recall due to the state of war? What do you think will happen then? What do you think Zsinj or Tyber Zaan will do when they see the Republic in the middle of internal strife? Or Jerec? Have you ever faced a Dark sider Lahana? I have, he could potentially bring dozens of them with him"
"What do you think he'll do to slaves? To the defenseless of the Republic while we're dispersed, spread thin across a territory too large for us to manage as we are now? Do you want to see your fellow apprentices die before their time? Kale and Mara will fight, are you prepared to lose him? Or yourself?" Luke shook his head. "I don't like this anymore than you do, but whether we like it or not, perception can sometimes trump reality. So here we are, preparing to respond to a what if...that may not come, because the alternative is worse, but neither is ideal and we're tearing each other apart. Because of that which we can't control" Luke laughed, four years ago he'd have rolled his eyes and called himself a fool, he agreed with her, this wasn't right but things were what they were.

"To be Jedi is to serve, sometimes that means doing things we find idiotic because not doing them will cause something even dumber and more destructive to happen, your fury is understandable, but try not to accuse me of being no better than a Sith lord huh? Last I checked, we're all a family here."

"I'm not blaming you, Master Luke. You aren't the one that wants to attack a planet just to prove a point. And you aren't some politician playing games with people's lives." She looked at her master for a moment before looking back to Luke. "I don't know why I thought things would be that much different here. No matter where you go all they care about is power." She shook her head and lowered her shoulders. "I understand. I'll fight. It's the only thing I'm good at anyway."

"About power?" It was an oddly cynical take for one so young, granted she'd been a slave, but it seemed to be a bit of projection. He couldn't disagree with her though, this was about perception and morale but those weren't necessarily bad things either. "There's no shame in dying for an idea, the Republic is the Galaxy's best chance for protracted peace, even if it means we make peace with the empire." It was hard to ignore the Bantha in the room, that even the peace at any price faction wanted to take the core. Something Luke didn't believe they would be ready for, not in a long time. Conversely the old Republic used commerce and stability to assimilate as much as it used war, it was entirely possible within a century the remnant would end up needing to join the Republic as a member state. Isolated as it would invariably become as the larger more expansive powers began to deny them vital resources the massively populated core needed. "The inner rim and the core may be the wealthiest regions in the known universe, but they're also the most resource hungry, they haven't been able to feed themselves in tens of thousands of years. Most of the agriworlds are in our hands or in the hands of Tyber Zaan. I think, after this storm passes it may be prudent to just sit here and wait them out. Even if it takes a generation, Bartoff Hissa and his Jedi can't hold seventy trillion sentients in bondage by hoping the Zaan Consortium is nice enough not to extort them for food and water" No one on the council would like that answer though.

"Things are different here" Luke decided setting his robotic hand on Lahana's shoulder "Because if your master and I are right, I won't let you fight out there alone. No, I'll be right beside you come what may. I will bleed with you Lahana, as long as you help me keep the very dumb from ruining this galaxy?" he offered with a confident smile

Lahana prepared to flinch as Luke set his metallic hand on her, but in spite of what she expected, she didn't. Maybe cold steel wasn't enough to set off her disinclination for physical touch. "You aren't the first to promise something like that. But you are the first Jedi master to promise it I guess."

"We can do much more after this war is over padawan. Until then, we must do all we can to prevent the Empire's rise." Kale said. Lahana simply nodded lethargically.

"Understood."

Order of the Free Force base,
Tython

After being gone for over a week, Mi'la finally heard the familiar whirring of Ja'Karr's Fury-class approach the main hangar. As she tinkered with one of their salvaged TIE fighters. Slowly, the ship landed and from it emerged Bix, followed by Ja'Karr and Eli. Bix, the re-programmed CIS assassin droid made his way to Mi'la as usual and hugged her.

"We're back!" Said the droid with its exagerated accent and usual enthusiasm. "We didn't find anything. But we have returned nonetheless."

Ja'Karr walked off deeper into the base without a single word. That was out of character, even for the reserved Force user. Usually he'd wave or ask her how things had been, but this time he simply dissapeared through the temple doors. Eli remained near the ramp, looking a bit shaken. While she couldn't see his facial expressions under the mask she could sense his troubles through the Force.

"Bix!" Mi'la shouted as she rushed over to the droid and hugged it back. Metal or not, He was just as much a friend to her as any other person here. "I am just glad everyone made it back safe. Have you two eaten anything... yet...," Mi'la trailed off as Ja'Karr continued walking away without a word or even a greeting gesture. Mi'la's smile faded quickly as she took her working gloves off and wrung them in her hands a bit worriedly. "W-whats wrong? Did something happen?" She asked turning to Eli as he came down as well. She could feel it. No, this wasn't simply them not finding anything, something went wrong. "Eli?" she called to him, getting closer to where she had to slightly look up to him to see his face.

Eli gave a small shake of his head as he tried to formulate a sentence. She couldn't see behind the mask, but he was very clearly perturbed. He looked down. "Ja'Karr used some sort of.. dark side ability. I'd never seen anything like it before, it.. It made me nauseous." He said, his voice almost shaky at times, though hard to detect through the mask's filter. "But you, have you been doing alright?" He asked, looking back up to the Twi'lek.

Mi'la tilted her head, a look of concern on her face. She sighed slightly as he tried to turn the subject on to her, "I have been fine, I just finished repairing the wing pylon and two of its solar arrays, but the sensor array is still shot...," she mentioned a bit perturbed that she didn't have any parts for it, "YOU, however, are not fine..." She gently reached up and pushed back Eli's hood, and with both hands, unclasped his mask with short a hissing sound as the seal released. She held the mask close to her with both arms as she looked up to him trying to gauge his thoughts. "Even Ja'Karr can have his struggles, nobody is perfect, Eli. Was it the force or the experience that made you uneasy? Maybe you should take a rest and I can bring you something to drink and we can talk about it?" she offered.

The hyaenid looked rather downcast, but her motion did give him a little smile. He took a second to get used to the air pressure of this familiar environment again. "It just, didn't feel right." He said, voice warmer without the mask filtering it. "I'm not sure.. But a drink sounds nice." He relaxed his shoulders, his armor now feeling much more weighty, now that he allowed himself to be tired. Yes, a drink, and then some relaxing. That sounds good.

Bix chuckled, giving Eli a small bump in the arm.
"On the bright side, you two get to actually drink. I just have to sit here and oil my extremeties. And-" The droid cut himself off as his photoreceptors caught something in the distance. He pointed toward the entrance of the hangar and tilted his head.
"Who's that?"

When Eli and Mi'la turned to see, they spotted a human male in a black shirt, trousers and boots. On his belt were two lightsabers. When Mi'la looked at his face, he looked... familiar, too familiar to he a coincidence. The white mark on his hair confirmed her suspicions. It was Zylas... Somehow, the man who had made her life bearable when she had been held enslaved by the Black Sun was here.

"Well then, you go and settle down and I will see to bringing som- Hmm?" Mi'la hummed when Bix called their attention to something. Mi'la gasped as if she had seen a ghost, nearly dropping Eli's mask, catching it, just before it hit the ground. She shakily set it on a toolbox before breathing his name, "Z-Zylas?" She was almost to stunned to move, but she forced herself anyway, just into his path as her eyes were locked on his. "It's you? Here? Wh-h-how? W-wait, Xizor, he's not here is he!?" She stopped him with a hand lightly on his chest, trying to get him to stop for her. Something was wrong, she felt something burning in him, but she couldn't contain herself. Was he finally free too, just like he always wanted? "How did you get here?"

There was a moment of silence as she Mi'la walked up to Zylas and stopped him. She seemed to have momentarily paused the dark urge that had brought him here in the first place. His eyes widened the moment he realized it was Mi'la. Standing a foot taller than her, he looked down seeing her stare back with a mix of concern and astonishment.

"I escaped." He murmured as one of his gloved hands tightened into a fist. If only she knew how far he had to go to get here. Zylas had abandoned everything he knew just to get here. To do one single thing. That reminded him of his mission.
"Where is Ja'karr?"

Bix adjusted his monacle and walked forward, standing right behind Mi'la. "Look, man. I don't know who you are. But you can just waltz in here and ask for the boss, you know? Though..." He rubbed his metal chin, looking up at the ceiling for a moment. "Mi'la did recognize you. Um, who are you again?"

"Ja'karr? How do you know... why do you-" Mi'la started to question as she backed away for a moment, but it all started forming together. There was a feeling of dread that came over her. The way he spoke, his aura, it reeked of hate, but not aimed at her. "I... I don't think you need to know that...," she said, a pained worried tone wavering in her voice.

She looked to Bix briefly, "Zylas helped me keep some sense of sanity when I was a slave...," she answered before looking back at Zylas. "Please..," she pleaded. She didn't want to see eiter of them hurt if he came here meaning to fight like she felt he did. She didn't know why, but the intent was obvious.

Eli approached the two from behind Mi'la with a concerned look. He could sense the stranger didn't mean good, and was possibly a threat to the Twi'lek. He came up behind her in an embrace, eying up Zylas. "What do you need Ja'Karr for?" He asked, fearing the worst.

Zylas took a deep shaky breath, whatever it was that had brought him here was starting to boil to the surface. He glared at them both, gritting his teeth as he tried to contain it all.
"I won't ask again. I don't want to hurt you. Your... 'Master' is a fraud. Tell me where he's gone and get out of my way."

Eli could feel that Mi'la was shaking when he embraced her. This couldn't be real, she thought. It had to be a dream. Things don't just happen like this, people from your past didn't just show up like this. It didn't feel real to her, Zylas felt so distant. How have the last three years changed him. "I.... I can't...," Mi'la finally admitted, "you wish to fight with him... I can't bare the thought. Please just tell me why."

Zylas sighed, sounding more frustrated by the minute. He reached for his belt, drawing his two lightsabers and igniting them almost simultaneously. The two crimson blades hummed menancingly as he pointed one toward Eli and Mi'la.

"I don't want to hurt you. I just want-" Before he could complete his sentence, Mi'la and Eli heard the sound of a blaster and Zylas screaming as he held his midsection, dropping his lightsabers to the floor. Bix chuckled, raising one of his blaster pistols to his voice module.

"But I want to!" As the droid walked forward to check on Zylas, he looked up his eyes turning yellow as he outstretched both hands and Force pushed all three of them away from him. He tossed them far enough for Mi'la to fall on top of Eli as they were thrown across the hangar. The assassin droid didn't fair any better. The attack was potent enough to practically disassemble him. Zylas stumbled to his feet, grabbing his lightsaber as stood up. At that moment, Ja'Karr finally entered the hangar and ran over to check on Eli and Mi'la who had been thrown several meters away.

"You!" Zylas shouted, igniting his lightsaber again. The human glared at Ja'karr with piercing yellow eyes as he slowly approached. Ja'Karr could feel it, that injury had given him enough drive to precipitate his fall to the Dark Side. Vengeance was driving him and the Dark Side was fueling his desires.

"You're a fraud. You left the Jedi and stole their relics. And when my father was sent to retrieve them, you murdered him in cold blood!" In a fit of anger, he cut a nearby crate with his lightsaber, destroying it and the contents within as he approached. "He was doing his duty and you killed him! You're a thief and a filthy murderer!."

"That's not what happened, son." Ja'Karr said softly, as he turned to face the young man. "Put your weapons away. Whatever lies were fed to you. It's not worth your life."

Mi'la was surprised by the sudden feeling of being thrown through the air. Luckily for her, she landed on Eli, though he probably wouldn't say the same, and she rolled off of him and looked to make sure he was fine. "Are you alri-,"she had started to ask but was stopped in her tracks when she looked up to see Bix in pieces across the hangar. "BIX, NO!" She cried out in horror as she scrambled to make sure his memory components were still intact. If those were destroyed... He could never be rebuilt. "Zylas, please, don't do this!" she begged.

Eli grunted as the wind got knocked out of him, being thrown through the air and onto his back
He tried to make sure Mi'la landed on him, and when she got up he didn't have time to respond. He got to his feet as quickly as he could, rushing to stand near where the Twi'lek was, in the way of Zylas. He drew his lightsaber hilt from his cloak and ignited it, going to the starting stance of Form III. He was shaking very slightly, nervous as to what was going to happen.

"I'll kill you!" Zylas leaped from where he was, making a frontflip in the air as he fell on Ja'Karr in an attempt to cut him down with one swift strike. A pair of lightsabers emerged from Ja'Karr's cloak, igniting themselves in a position to deflect Zyla's strike. He jumped back after being repulsed and charged at Ja'Karr, but was repulsed time and time again by Ja'Karr's floating lightsabers. Every time Zylas got too close, Ja'Karr dashed back placing considerable distance betweem the two while directing his lightsabers in between tnem. Zylas's attacks became more and more agressive as he grew frustrated. For a few moments, all Eli and Mi'la saw was Zylas attempting to chase Ja'Karr down while the Free Force Master kept his distance by dodging attacks and using his telekinesis controlled lightsabers to deflect incoming lightsaber strikes. In the middle of the battle one of the lightsabers cut Zylas in the outer thigh and another on the shoulder before retreating back to Ja'Karr's hands. Zylas shrieked as he dropped his own lightsabers to the ground, holding his fresh wounds.

"There's no need for this. You were lied to. Whoever sent you here, they sent you to your death. And I won't be the one to deliver it to you..." Ja'Karr slowly walked toward Zylas, extending a hand to help him to his feet. "Mi'la can take care of you. I can feel your pain. Let us help you."

Zylas sitting on his knees on the floor, with his gaze focused downward. Before Ja'Karr could say more, Zylas assaulted him with a blinding stream of Force lightning which Ja'Karr proceeded to counter by using Force absorption. Zylas stood up, pushing back the Free Force Master as the two battled for control.

There was a struggle between Zylas, who was determined to kill him and Ja'Karr who was doing his best to not hurt him. However, holding back was causing Ja'Karr to lose in their Force tug of war. Eventually, one of them had to give in. Taking a deep breath, Ja'Karr sought to end the fight once and for all. Pushing forward, he was able to break the hold creating an explosion that blew Zylas backward. Zylas shrieked as he was burned by his own Force lightning and tossed to the floor. The explosion was enough to push him several feet away from where he was standing. An eerie silence fell over the room, as Ja'Karr sighed. He walked over to the young man, crouching next to him to check his pulse. At least... he was still alive.

"Mi'la, Eli." He called out, sounding a little out of breath. "Let's take him to the medical bay. I'll decide what to do with him later."

Mi'la slowly picked up the memory core for Bix, which luckily didn't sustain any damage from the attack, so they would just need to rebuild his body. She was relieved, but still rattled by the whole ordeal. She kept Bix's memory core close as she approached the unconscious Zylas. She shook her head, still not believing what she was seeing. Why was Zylas here now after so long. What happened after she was taken away? "I have... so many questions. I just don't understand.... I can take im to the med bay if you don't mind carrying him for me," she said now looking over to Eli. She then turned to Ja'karr, "Are you alright?" He could probably tell her mind was a mess between the confusion and the stress, but she seemed to be holding together well enough now that the two weren't fighting. "He didn't hurt you did he?"

Between the three of them, they managed to carry an unconcious Zylas to the medical bay. In ancient times, this room had been used by the Jedi to heal their fellows. Since then, however, Ja'Karr had used his considerable wealth to outfit the place with modern medical equipment and even a droid to help Mi'la.

This medical room had come in handy on a few ocassions. Particularly when Eli had been wounded after a fight with a Darksider. While the Hyenid's wounds were ugly, Mi'la and the droid managed to patch him up really well and after spending a few days in a bacta tank, he made a full recovery. Now, the room would serve the same purpose for a person who had tried to kill them. The 2-1B medical droid, usually known as Bee activated the moment the group entered and placed Zylas on one of the medical beds. The droid shuffled from his position across the room and brought another one of the medical droids with him.

After they settled him in one of the beds, Ja'Karr told Bee to keep a close eye on Zylas and for Mi'la to administer whatever treatment he needed quickly. And, when she was done he needed to be tied down until he could decide what to do with him. It was cold, to say the least. Leaving Zylas' fate vague might have scared Mi'la, but Ja'Karr had no choice. He was dangerous, and while he believed in the possibility of redemption, he also knew of the power of vegeance and how that could corrupt the soul.

Once Mi'la finished patching up Zylas' injuries, mostly consisting of low level burns and a few bruises, along with a cuncussion Ja'Kard and Eli left. Ja'Karr thought it best to leave Mi'la with Zylas. Have him wake up to a familiar face, rather than the person he had nust fought. He had warned the Twi'lek to tread carefully around him and call for him should anything go wrong. With that agreed upon, Ja'Karr and Eli finally departed. For a few hours, all Mi'la had as company were the beeps of one of the surgeon droids and the idle chatter of Bee. It made her miss Bix's witty remarks...

The monote atmosphere was suddenly interrupted by a light rattle coming from Zylas' bed. As he began to wake up, he struggled against the metallic cuffs keeping him from escaping. Exausted from the previous fight, Zylas' pointless struggle against the cuffs soon ceased. He looked around, spotting Mi'la out of the corner of his eyes.

"Mi'la" He said, still panting from the earlier struggle. "Let me go. You don't know what you're doing... Who you're working for!"

Mi'la had fallen asleep curled up in a chair that she had found and placed next to Zylas, the passing hours and stress making her tired. When Zylas started struggling, she woke with a start, looking to him like she was surprised he was there once again. After all, it still seemed impossible to her. "Zylas..." she started in a calm voice before she took a deep breathe. She looked him n the eyes for a moment, seeing them overtaken in an amber hue, marking the corruption of the dark side. "When... well... last I saw you, it was right before I was sent on a ship to accompany Xizor's men for... their entertainment. It was going to be quite far, and I never thought I would see you again. The man that I am studying under, not working for, had saved my life, freeing me of the chains I once wore. I have learned so much in these last years, enjoyed things that I had never dreamt of, I have finally been able to become my own person! ...Something my mother had always prayed would come to be...," she said, her eyes looking down. "I know who saved my life, but I do not know who has done this to you. Ja'karr did not want to harm you, and I would be crushed if either of you had died. For a moment, I thought i had lost a close friend... He may have just been a droid to you... but... he means so much more to me, to all of us here." She was silent for a few minutes, her ramblings reminiscent of the thoughts buzzing around inn her mind.

"If you had ben successful... I would have been left with nothing once again... and it would have been taken by one of the few people I would have sworn I could trust for all my days. Have you even seen yourself? You have let darkness creep into your heart, and listened to its poison. Your eyes... they aren't those beautiful pools of green I'd get lost in to find my comfort like I had used to. They have taken on shades of amber. I don't know what path someone is trying to lead you down, but I would be fearful of their intent...," she finished.

She stood up and checked a few monitors to see how he was doing. "Ja'karr wanted me to help heal you alongside the medical droids, not that he would have to ask, though I did need Eli to carry you here. You also owe Bix a new body.... a more durable one preferably," she said as she sat back down. From his perspective, she did look a lot healthier than what she had used to, stronger too, maybe even filled out a little more as well. He could even feel a bit of the force within her, could it be that she used the force to help heal him?

"I..." Zylas swalled back tears that had inexplicably made their way to his eyes. Soon, that familiar green hue returned to them. At least, he didn't have that terrifying stare in his eyes anymore. Mi'la's words made Zylas think about everything that had transpired. From his escape to his arrival here. He hadn't realized just how much he had hurt his old friend. He couldn't help but feel ashamed...

"I'm sorry, Mi'la. I just... I don't know who to believe anynore." Zylas felt that rage boil up again. He growled, pulling on the metal cuffs again. Like before, he soon gave up glancing away from Mi'la as his mind raced. He was so sure that he was right...

Mi'la got up and stood over him, gently taking her ad and brushing it against his cheek to turn him to her, meeting her eye to eye. "There they are, just as I remembered," she said with a soft smile, referring to his eyes. "You can always believe in me. I may not always be right, but I will always be honest with you. You have always been there for me, now let me return that favor."

Eli sat in his room, a small but comfortable space. He was at the edge of his bed, face in hands. This hadn't been a good day, and his head was swimming with thoughts. Who was Zylas? Why did he try and kill his master? Why hadn't he seen him when they rescued Mi'la? Was Ja'Karr really bad?
He leaned back in his seat, scooting backwards to prop himself against the wall adjacent to his bed. He needed to listen to some music, perhaps. Some music, and maybe a drink.

While Mi'la did not have the experience or proper study to pick apart someone's emotions, her connection to Zylas was enough where she could at least sense the inner conflict within him. He was confused, angry and regretful all at the same time. The Twi'lek could also sense the Dark Side within him, even if the initial drug-like effects were gone he was still being influence by it. When their eyes met, Zylas couldn't bear to look at her. He turned away the first chance he got. Part of him wanted to believe her, she had no reason to lie to him. Unless...

"Mi'la..." He began, taking a deep breath while avoiding her concerned yet confident gaze. "That man who saved you. He's a killer, a thief, and he betrayed the Jedi Order for his own gain." Zylas glanced at her again. Those green eyes which once gave her comfort, had been turned into something else. They were filled with hate and glassy from tears Zylas was holding back. "How much do you really know about him? How much has he really told you...?"

Mi'la paced around a bit, thinking back. "I remember that he was born on Sereno to a wealthy family, and spent years in Corasant with the jedi order before leaving for some disagreement.... Not everyone is without a a skeleton in the closet, true, but some shose to seperate from what they were. The least i can say is that he has done nothing to wrong me, and has helped me recover from my past, never instructing me to seek vengence, but to build myself stronger. He has never told me I should go slay someone for revenge.... What has your master veen teaching you? To hate? To spill blood to satisfy your anger? Anyone with the force knows whatbthe dark side is capable of, what it can do if not careful, the poisonous thoughts it can put in your mind. You have been encouraged to soak in this poison to bring you strength, haven't you? It is.... all too tempting... but it is not right. It destroys you from the inside, corrupting everything to the point where tou are willing to hurt even the ones you care about to slake that thirst. I will have no part in it. The only thing i have in this life are the people closest to me, I can't sacrifice them for my own thoughts of revenge for what happened to me. I'd suggest the same for you." She sat back down beside him looking back into his eyes. "I'm sure Ja'karr would like to speak to you as well when you aren't trying to lop his head off. If you have something you must tell me, please, don't keep secrets from me. Let us help you. Let me help you."

Two days had passed since Zylas arrived. Ever since their brief conversation, Mi'la's friend had refused to speak to her. Ja'karr had tried speaking with him a few times, though that always ended in Zylas shouting at the Grandmaster to leave him alone. It didn't do well for his condition. Medically, Mi'la and the medical droid saw that Zylas showed symptoms that were commonly seen in addicts. Shakes, paranoia, delusions, and night terrors. He was like a death sticks addict on withdrawal. In the evening, Mi'la had gone over to Ja'karr to ask him about it. He was surprisingly vague about it.

"It is what happens to people who fully embrace the Dark Side. It Corrupts them." He said. "He was desperate and inexperienced. But there is still hope."
At the very least, Mi'la had a chance to possibly redeem him.

A few hours later, Ja'karr called for Eli and Mi'la to meet him in the archives room. The room in the old Jedi temple in Tython was filled with tomes and other relics Ja'karr had collected throughout the years. It was extensive, at least for Mi'la and Eli, who had never seen the splendor and magnitude of the Jedi Archives on Coruscant before the Purge. What Ja'Karr had here was dwarfed by the Archives by a considerable margin. Nevertheless, the tomes here had been one of the main teaching tools for the two Force-users. Meeting Ja'karr at the center of the chamber, they stood around a holoprojector table in the middle.

"I have been doing some research on the Holocron we were looking for in Onderon." He began, turning on the projector to show a planet. The hologram showed a volcanic planet with a starbase orbiting its axis. "My contacts have tracked to this planet. Mustafar."

"Mustafar? That place is dreadful...," Mi'la commented, despite never being there, the place was not one of the planets Mi'la ever wanted to visit. Much less under the pressure of a mission. "Where on the planet is it though? I don't suppose the ones who have it are willing to just hand it to us."

Ja'karr sighed as he stared at the hologram. "This is the last place I would ever want to send you. Mustafar lies deep within the territory of the Black Sun syndicate. It serves as their base of operations." He explained, pointing at the starbase orbiting the planet. "However, we are runming out of time. That holocron cannot fall into the wrong hands."

Ja'karr was starting to grow desperate. The longer that holocron remained out in the galaxy, the longer they could be in danger. Who knows what kind of things had been locked inside? Neither Luke's Jedi Order nor the Empire could get a hold of the holocron. The only place where it could be safe-guarded and kept away from fanatics was here.

"Mi'la." He spoke softly as he approached the Twi'lek. "You've been training non-stop for over a year. You're strong in the Force and determined. I know you can do this... The fate of the galaxy could be resting on this. We must safeguard the holocron."

Ja'karr sighed as he stared at the hologram. "This is the last place I would ever want to send you. Mustafar lies deep within the territory of the Black Sun syndicate. It serves as their base of operations." He explained, pointing at the starbase orbiting the planet. "However, we are runming out of time. That holocron cannot fall into the wrong hands."

Ja'karr was starting to grow desperate. The longer that holocron remained out in the galaxy, the longer they could be in danger. Who knows what kind of things had been locked inside? Neither Luke's Jedi Order nor the Empire could get a hold of the holocron. The only place where it could be safe-guarded and kept away from fanatics was here.

"Mi'la." He spoke softly as he approached the Twi'lek. "You've been training non-stop for over a year. You're strong in the Force and determined. I know you can do this... The fate of the galaxy could be resting on this. We must safeguard the holocron."

"But I...," Mi'la started, though her gaze broke from Ja'karr as she looked to the ground. "What if I'm not.... strong enough?" she asked uncertainly. "I'm not like Eli, you, or even Zylas. My force powers are not focused on combat. What if someone finds me?"

While Ja'karr couldn't see her due to his blindness, he could sense her uncertainty. "You are undetestimating yourself, young one. Your dominance of the Force, coupled with your defensive lightsaber skills... you are more powerful than you realize."
Ja'karr smiled, something he rarely did. "If I knew you couldn't do this, I wouldn't have thought about sending you."

His words made her feel a bit proud of what she had achieved, and thankful for his recognition, but despite that, she still felt inadequate and wondered if he was just trying to give her a moral boost. She took a deep breath befoer nodding to him. "I will do my best to not dissapoint you..... but...I'm not going alone.... am I?" she asked warily.

"No. Zylas will accompany you." Ja'karr didn't like the idea of sending her along with Zylas. But the two held a deep connection. If there was someone here who could help him, it was Mi'la.
"I can sense your concern for him. He's a dear friend to you and you're afraid of what might happen to him."
Said Ja'karr as he walked up to Mi'la. "There is still some of his old self within him. No matter what he says, he still cares about you."

"I really hope so... he seemed so.... distant. Like he could see and hear me, but not enough to listen. I got through to him for a brief momentand the... he just semed to stop talking to me. Its... painful, to a degree. I've wanted to see him again for so long, and now that he is here it just feels... well... empty." She said as she looked to the ground uncomfortably once more. She desperately wanted the Zylas she knew back, but something in him changed, and she as worried that whatever bond they had was holding on by a string in his mind. A feint connection of time gone by, though only a few years ago. What happened to him?

Mi'la shook her head to clear her thoughts and try to press on with the briefing. "You think he would agree to do something for us? Even if it is with me... How would we convince him to do the mission for you? And once we are there, what are we supposed to do then?"

"My sources say that the space station orbiting the planet houses the information on the location of the holocron."
Said Ja'Karr, his eyes drifting away to look at nowhere in particular. Even when Mi'la knew he was blind, Ja'karr seemed to have a good idea of where everything was. He once explained to her that he could 'see', just not how normal people would be able to.
"The station is one of Prince Xizor's pleasure palaces. It is one of the most important too. My contact has assured me that he won't be there, so you and Zylas will have an easier time getting there."

Zylas would admittedly be difficult to covince, but there was one way Mi'la could try and get him on board. "Appeal to his desire for revenge. Against me... and Xizor. Deep inside, he wants to protect you. I know he won't let you go alone."

Mi'la was already uncomfortable with where they were going, but now that one of Xizor's palaces were mentioned, she was even more unsure. If she was captured.... no, she couldn't think like that. It would start down a dark road in her mind she didn't want to traverse again.

When Ja'karr spoke of convincing Zylas, she couldn't help but think it was a little backhanded of a way to get him to help. "I'm not one to manipulate the minds of my friends, master... It wouldn't be right. I will try to convince him, but, the right way," she said, though with how Zylas was acting, she didn't know if he woud listen to her.

Ja'karr smiled. If there was something that defined Mi'la, it was her kindness and her honesty. Her faith to her friends, both Eli and now Zylas made her a reliable and trustworthy person. She would have made a fine Jedi...

"I know you would. He'll never forget your kindness." Walking back to the hologram, he turned off the display. "Keep in touch. If anything happens, return right away. As significant as the holocron is, I don't want you to give your life or Zylas' for it." Turning his head to look at her, he smiled. "May the Force be with you, Mi'la."

Ja'karr walked off into an adjacent room. His famed 'office'. It was a chamber that neither Mi'la nor Eli had ever been inside of. When they first met, Ja'karr had made it clear that they were free to roam the temple, with the exception to that one room.

Yavin IV

Interludes, examinations and new guests.

"We Keep the peace, sometimes at the end of a lightsaber, most of the time with the power of our word, for it is like law to the uninitiated"-Jorus C'boath 44 BBY

@Jollan



As the Nexu began to approach the atmosphere a group of A Wing fighters began to flank it, with one buzzing over the top, its pilot, a Twi'lik female in her mid twenties rotated the fighter so that cockpit was "pressed" to the viewing port of the Nexu before giving their guest a salute, but also a look that said -try any funny business and you'll be kissing atmosphere as space trash- before she accelerated ahead. "Nexu, this is Commander Shay'aera Chan; Orange Wing, we'll escorting you to a military port some klicks away from the main settlement and facilities, where you're to hold position inside your vessel until a pair of Jedi arrive to vet you. No offense, but there's been a lot of craziness in the galaxy lately and the Admiralty ain't taking any chances"

"Sit tight, once you're cleared we'll be able to welcome you to Yavin. Orange One out"

Though graffiti and call signs were customary for pilots to decorate their vessels with. Most of these having rather amusingly juvenile (But par for the course for space jockeys), things like a half naked Twi'lik and the words "lady killer" below, a drunken Gammorian face deep in a barrel of ale and "Porkin's revenge" and other such things. One pilot called her ship "the spiced out hutt" and her call sign was "Hound", each one bore several badges that were universal amongst the fighters. One signifying sector patrol, but the others? The Battle of Yavin, the Battle of Endor and one from the Clone Wars.

The Battle of Malastare.

Their history might have been eclipsed by Rogue and Gold Squadrons, but they were no less proud in their tradition.

@Lotrix Molick



What amused Kenth Hamner about tasaia more than anything, was that the animal life around the temple was starting to react to her presence as if she had only just arrived. He could sense it in the force, observe it in how the birds, which had grown accustomed to the presence of the Jedi (And occasionally came down to sing with Hamner when he played his flute, or trained the youngest initiates when Master Luke or Jade were too busy). But they tended to regard the Republic soldier's as guests in their domain and not as part of the environment. Their reaction to the Farghul was fascinating in that it seemed as though they'd accepted her presence as mere background noise and yet, were just now becoming aware that they had.

As though, her illusory abilities were sophisticated enough to semi hypnotise the world around her, to convince it she had always been there and was thus not worthy of remark. -If she had come here to assassinate any one of us- he thought bitterly.

Only Mara and Luke had sniffed her out, but she could have killed anyone else she wanted. He prayed others of her order didn't decide the New Republic was as bad as the old one had been, a war with an enemy that can convince you they're just a lamp, or air, or empty space was a more daunting prospect then a blow out with Jerec.

As they approached the exterior obelisks in the water gardens Straka placed her helm onto Mara Jade's head and Hamner had to stop himself from laughing. Mara was going to regret breaking into the Farghuls personal space earlier, with how cavalier she'd been in return. Then again, Mara seemed to actually like the force using vigilante, which was odd, she was usually the more paranoid and protective of the two, with Hamner being more observant and slow to mistrust, but slower still to trust. Here, it seemed like she found a kindred spirit or something -Maybe I should be more worried about that, then if she wanted to kill the woman- he thought.

For her part Jade eyed the interior of the helm, and took in a breath of fresh air "untainted" by jungle heat and humidity and she grinned. "You did an amazing job mixing alchemy with technology here Straka, the Sith kept trying to do both but it was a clusterkriff of epic proportions. We had a Prophet who ended up irradiating himself trying what you've achieved so easily" she was impressed, both by the comfort inside, the efficiency of the systems and how it didn't feel like armor, as if it was just part of her skin.

"Do you mind showing me some of the forging techniques?" she muttered, she wasn't exactly skilled with force alchemy, much as Hamner pretended he wasn't a peer, much as he insisted he was still just a learner, he possessed the aptitude for that stuff, whereas she was much more of a fighter. Still, it wouldn't hurt to start learning and maybe she could convince the modest moron to join in. As Tasaia answered them about her familiarity or lack thereof with spirits Mara Jade nodded her head, removing the helm and handing it back. "Really? I admit, its starting to creep me out now, as its starting to become more obvious to me what it is"

"Funny how that works, we're sitting around afraid of ghosts" Hamner moved to take a seat on the steps of one of the obelisk like monuments, resting against marble that always seemed to be cold, no matter how hot the day became. "See, wh" he stopped as both his and Mara Jade's com devices rang out. "This is Knight Hamner, is there a problem?"

"Kenth! It's me"

"Shay! all well?"

"Yeah, just bored flying sector patrol, we're escorting a POI to a space port near the falls, this one was weird, came in odd, almost rammed a recusant"

"Holdo's?" Mara asked with a look in her eyes that was almost hopeful.

"Negative Master Jade"

Blast it all.

"Is the Captain dangerous?"

"Command doesn't think so, just a guy whose been in space too long, Ship's called the Nexu, ever heard of it?"

Hamner shook his head, it wasn't one of his relic hunters. "No, want us to play interrogator?"

"Command asks, we relay" the voice on the comm said adopting her best Twi'lik servant girl voice which caused Hamner to roll his eyes. "We'll be on the way"

"Well so much for an easy day thinking about ghosts" he muttered.

Jade smirked "Come on Farghul, ride with us. We're supposed to be keeping an eye on you..I mean showing you around any way, wanna play detective with us as well? Or do y'wanna go back into the temple and talk to ghosts".

From beyond the gardens, their voices carried through the wind, their scents and the aura in the force to a pair of large eyes that watched, lazily. Perhaps, it thought...perhaps it was time for its exile to end at last.

@TheWatchDog
"Alright, that wasn't so bad. You really could have woke me earlier though, Eira," Dremmick said as they made their way to the atmosphere. He trusted Eira's piloting capabilities, bu the way she maneuvered the craft as an extension of her own body made some of the ships movements look more like daredevil stunts than actual flying. She would take maneuvers that other pilots wouldn't risk, even making Dremmick fearful of her when she flew despite nothing bad ever coming from it.

"I really wouldn't have crashed us though, you know that," she started defiantly with her arms crossed, "It's not my fault they weren't paying attention to know we were all safe."

"It's not that they think they weren't safe, its getting shot out of the sky for popping up out of nowhere I would like to avoid," Dremmick lightly reprimanded. It was soon after than another craft pulled up over theirs to look into their cabin. He returned the salute with a lazy and somewhat playful one, "Roger that, we'll follow."

"OH! Look at that ship Drem! Can I race them to the port?" Eira chirped in.

"Wha-n-no you can't race them to port! I don't think they are in the mood for games," Dremmick snapped at her, taking control of the ship from her in the process in case the temptation became to great.

"Fiiiiiine, ... such a killjoy...," Eira complained as she looked around at their escort. She had to get out of her seat a bit and look out the cockpit since Dremmick took the control from her. Partially leaning over Dremmick she pointed to some of the ships. "Hey, look at all the neat art on their ships! We should do that for the Nexu!" she said, nearly hopping with anticipation to try it out.

They continued to fly with the escort with Eira talking about ideas for a paintjob on the Nexu, unaware that the whole time she had forgotten to cut off their communications form nearby ships. The escort was able to hear the ramblings of the girl as Dremmick tried to be patient with her, then seeing that the comms line was still on and scrambling to shut it off. When they arrived to port, they followed any directions given to where they should land and f they needed to exit the ship while they waited for the jedi. Dremmick was a bit unsure what to think about meeting actual Jedi after posing as one for a while. He wondered what they would actually be like, though at the same time he wanted to avoid them whenever he could. He needed to information from the republic first and foremost to find more artifacts, but he didn't mind helping them if need be, as long as they weren't corrupt themselves. Power always seems to have a way to do that, no mater how noble the cause.

@TheWatchDog
Jade's surprise at her armor was comforting on some level. Tasaia was an above average smith for her previous order but was not any of the most masterful they had. Her work was beautiful and effective, but it was nowhere near as intricate as the most seasoned the Jensaarai had. "I am glad you enjoy my craftsmanship. There are far better than I among the Jensaarai, but mine is still above the average. Perhaps it is good the Sith could not properly work the alchemy and machining. It gives us a bit of an edge against those that would seek only to destroy." She thought it was almost comical that her old order had found a means to meld technology and alchemy so easily while the Sith, the original alchemists, floundered and hurt themselves. "I must say, though, it is funny that the most esteemed Sith cannot even do what a Jensaarai apprentice does to become a full fledged defender. Our armor and the systems inherent are modifications and hand crafting done to ascend from what would be your Padawans into what would be your Knights. I had not considered it anything but simple work to be done, yet out here people flounder and marvel at it."

She then heard Hamner's comms go off. His conversation led her to realize they had some duties to the New Republic, as expected given their funding source. Luckily, it was nothing that would be aggressive. Jade offered for her to come along, and the Farghul nodded, sweeping her hair back before taking her helmet from Jade and putting it back on. "I do prefer the living as I can manage them easier. Let's warn them about my...techniques for private conversations, though. I will be weaving an illusion in the chamber much like I did for us earlier." She took a step closer to Jade, leaning in for a whisper. "If you want to learn, I can teach. If we get the materials, I am happy to help you craft your own special set of armor. However, there is more ceremony to this than just practical armor. Your armor is an extension of you, just like your saber. We can discuss this more when we have a bit more time to breathe, though I'd prefer in my ship as it has air conditioning."

She raised her brace and flipped it open, revealing a more advanced comm unit than most. She called her ship, her servant droid answering.

"Yes, Mistress?"

Tasaia rolled her eyes under helmet at the feminine voice's insistence at calling her Mistress. Some habits die hard. "I will be home late and possibly with guests. please make sure the guest quarters are nice and tidy and the sanisteams are online and working." The voice responded within moments.

"No need, Mistress. I have already done so as I ran out of cleaning duties and had nothing interesting to read or draw. If it pleases you, I will brush up on my game techniques to entertain any guests."

The Farghul giggled at that. "You can play any time without asking permission. My ship is your home as well and you deserve some fun. See you later." She closed the comm before shaking her head. "That girl is sweet but her programming still hasn't developed far enough beyond the subservience yet."

Welcome to the Jungle!



@Jollan

-This is interesting, she looks organic and yet I'm unable to sense a life force?- The creature, which to prying eyes would have looked like a rather odd rabbit (Were there any eyes to pry) sat lazily on a tree branch, it took a rather lazy posture as it watched with growing interest in the two new creatures that had come and landed on the planet. Was that a droid? Slowly, it extended its awareness outward and indeed did sense a spark of life, the soulful nature of a creature that wasn't just sentient but truly aware. -Remarkable!- He thought, in the two hundred and ninety seven years of his self imposed exile on Yavin Four, he'd seen many sentients and their droids come and go. Mercenaries, pirates and even a few Republic Intelligence outfits had used the ancient temples and the mausoleums as centers of operations for a myriad of different clandestine things. Were the rebels more curious, they likely would find more than just ruins, there was even a hidden hangar with three old cruisers.

The creature blinked, allowing himself a moment to correct himself. They weren't revels anymore, but apparently they were calling themselves the "Restored Republic" or the "New Republic". The being had felt the shift in the force, the overwhelming darkness and even felt the death of his old master, a bittersweet passing but a rest well earned. He felt another great shift, as if a tidal wave of light had dispersed the dark and when his vision was unclouded for the first time in what must have been centuries the creature was finally aware of the extent of the manipulation. His entire reason for exile, the arrogance, the solution came to him one night as the new light began to settle and he finally freed those poor souls and wept bitterly.

"I was blinded by my own darkness as much as the darkness." That had been what stopped him when he felt the mistress of illusions (He'd been keenly interested in Tasaia, as a youth he'd been a keen student of all things arcane and dabbled in illusion work before he found his calling in matters of the soul. To see a true mistress of misdirection at work was a rare honor) and when he felt the burgeoning power of the Skywalker boy. What had ultimately changed his mind had been observing Luke spar with Mara and Kenth, a particular diagonal slash which had been a favorite of his old master. Had Yoda trained this youth as well? Reaching out with the force he'd gently probed the Boy's mind, subtly in a way he'd not been accustomed too and he could see the hours of frustration, exhaustion, awe, exhilaration and meditative contemplation associated with Yoda and the laugh.

Ah, then perhaps I belong with them and not in exile.

"Man, your sex bot is a chatty one" A female pilot remarked giving Eira a look over. She whistled then looked at the Twi'lik Commander "sophisticated this one, can pass for human most days. Guess your species is out of its number one profession huh sir?"

"That's okay, we make better fighter pilots than you humies do any way and with service models looking this sophisticated, your employment prospects are gonna sssuuuuuccckkk" The pair laughed before she turned and extended a hand to Dremmick "Call me hound, your Jedi escorts should be here shortly, in the meantime, try and behave yourself, you too missy"

It decided now was as good a time as any to approach, which was remarkably easy given that he was often identified as an animal. The tarmak of the ad hoc space port was annoyingly warm to the touch of his fur pads, but that resolved itself when one of the fighter pilots knelt and called him over.

Ikrit shrugged and hopped into his arms "Hah this is the friendliest local I've seen in awhile, everything seems spooked lately"

@Lotrix Molick



"I'm starting to realize the more I know about learn about the Sith in general the more the Emperor and his types seem like a bunch of crazed pretenders. This place, the temple, it feels like your helmet and armor in some ways I wonder how much the Jedi and Sith both lost in knowledge over the eons and if it isn't better for us to send people out to seek that knowledge out" If for any other reason, than for their own defense, Tasaia proved that when she spent several years here off and on doing whatever she pleased while only Luke was the wiser to her and only at the end.

As The Farghul took her helmet back Mara clapped the woman on her ribs in thanks, green eyes shifting towards Hamner who was giving her a look that said he wanted her to keep an eye on the Felinoid, not become a partner in crime. -Funny how he insists that he's a subordinate but he gives me orders-.

Amusingly she would have obeyed him in any other case, because while he kept acting like he wasn't a master, he knew more about the Jedi than anyone of them, at least of their history. -If he was more confident in his skills in the force I think he'd be Luke's number two instead of me-. There was a cynical part of her that couldn't help but wonder if it wasn't genuine humility. Hamner was a genius at the game after all and she was used to a very different sort of force user while Luke was, sometimes naive.

The trio began to move Mara stopped suddenly and reached out for the nearest solid object to grab on, she caught Hamner's elbow in a vice like grip and he turned to see the redheads face pale as a Hoth wasteland. She was cold to the touch, Jade's eyes burned though, blazing with consternation and confusion. Kenth moved to question her when he suddenly felt it as well, the light had shifted, it twisted and caught ablaze and it was a sickening heat. Roaring in a way that filled him with cold, as if..yes! It was like gazing into an open reactor during a meltdown! That was exactly it, the force had never felt like this before to him and he realized there was a howl of agony as if something had been torn.

"It's burning, the dark side" Mara murmured "The light is being..Force, I didn't even know this was possible"

"What is this?" Hamner asked alarmed. "No idea, it's as if something ripped open the heart of the force and gathered up the living force and used it as an ignition source to shoot lightside into the dark..I'm not describing this right"

"I know the feeling" Hamner murmured "Like a reactor breach in a planetary powergrid" He muttered grimly, that was one of his earliest memories from his childhood on Coru. Seeing the dead, the rad damage and the poisoned ash rising into the sky, creating a deathly pale snow of carbon, plasteel and synthcrete. She nodded "it's localized around someone, a person..a female" her eyes narrowed looking to Tasai, deferring to the one who likely had the most experience with other force using sects "Something big is coming isn't it?"

"Yes" though the answer came from Luke who'd ventured out from the temple, his eyes grim something Jade had seldom seen. "But not here, it's coming to Endor. Kenth, Mara I've sent Kale and Lahana ahead to Endor. I want you to take some of our Jedi and whatever members of the Republic army that can be ready in half an hour. You must go"

Hamner blinked "Endor?! But there's no way...What's there for?"

"I don't know.." Luke answered honesty in his tone. "But I have been searching for two beings who had concealed themselves in the force. I think one of them has just revealed itself to me"

"This thing..It's perverse"

Luke nodded before turning to tasaia, eying the Farghul with some of his usual optimism returning. "I cannot command you, I wouldn't presume too either, but if you could accompany my Jedi. If you could help them, if you could lend your brand of justice to meeting this oncoming storm. I would be in your debt and you would gain a friend for life"

"a couple of them" Mara murmured, rising to her full heat, finally shaking off the assault to her senses. "What about you Luke?"

The Jedi shook his head, sandy blond hair swaying in the humid breeze as he did. "No, there's another force user here who is calling to me and the force surrounds the crew of the Nexu. I'm needed here"

He paused then allowed a knowing smirk to come over his face "And Kenth, you're in command"

"I'm not a Jedi Master"

"That's just been changed" As Hamner made a move to object Luke cut him off. "no, you think you can protect me by remaining a Jedi Knight, so when you have to do something sneaky and Huttlike to force an issue before the Alliance council I can say you acted on your own. I'm not a fan of self sacrifice Kenth. At least not like that, I won't let you expose yourself to that kind of underhanded nonsense while giving you no official recognition. You cannot be a shield and a lightsaber at once. Besides" he reached up and slapped the other man's shoulder. "You've earned it"

"Hah! You're one of us now" Mara grinned "Which means now you're really screwed"

Turning she gave Tasaia a feral grin "So, playing interrogator would have been fun, but beating up Blasphemers sound more fun? Whad'ya say Panther..you down for some good ol'fashion carnage prevention?"

-I might have made a mistake- Luke thought with an amused smile -those two are going to run wild over Endor and I'm going to end up stuck with the bill-

@TheWatchDog
Tasaia watched the apparently unusually mirthful Jade prod her ribs, though the hit would result in no reaction given the armor the Farghul wore. As they walked, though, the tear into the Force washed over them. Mara reacted the worst of the three, though Tasaia was closest behind given how deeply she tended to immerse herself in the Force. She staggered, catching herself by wrapping her tail around Mara's waist and then using it to help support her. She found the description rather apt, though she would have probably described it more like a blade between the Dark Side's ribs.

Hamner's question as he looked at the Farghul was met with a grim shake of her head. "No...you are thinking too small. Something that strong could make a wound in the Force. It's likely to have galaxy wide consequences. We're going to need to prepare for something potentially worse than the war we just ended." Her grim forecast seemed almost confirmed by Luke. As he spoke and Jade regained her composure, Tasaia let go of her waist, letting her tail fall back down, the tip flicking back and forth as the felinoid worked through her agitation.

Luke asked her, almost plead with her, to help them. Whether he asked or not, this was too important to ignore. "Master Luke, you needn't ask. It is part of my duties to protect those that cannot protect themselves. This will require my attention and will likely start to draw the rest of my order towards it if it continues to grow like I predict." She flipped her comm open again.

"Mistress?" The droid's cadence was one of worry as Tasaia rarely contacted her so often.

"Prepare the ship for flight. Do a weapons check. Get all the guest rooms ready and reserve two of the passenger rooms for individuals. Take stock of our medical supplies and rations. Make sure we can operate at full capacity for at least three weeks. Battle is likely, so arm yourself, my dear." Tasaia, while normally very light and full of levity, had become cold and serious for the message. Everything had to be prepared and perfect if a mission was taking place.

"I will, Mistress. Come back unharmed once we meet the enemy. I shall inform our gunner." The line went dead as her droids jumped into action.

Her serious demeanor broke back down once her orders were issued, a smile forming under her helmet when Mara asked if she would prefer some combat. "Very much so. I enjoy my hunts, especially if I have another predator to share the spoils with me." She pulled out her lightsaber and gave it a small flourish to test its weight before extending both blades and checking the emitters. "Been a while, old friend. You are as eager as ever." To anyone that understands sabers, they would notice the obvious signatures of synthetic crystals, though the energy pulses traveling from base to tip every few seconds would mean the crystal were compressed to produce more agile, slender blades. Tasaia then switched one blade off and activated the dual phase, careful to face partially away as the blade extended to its three meter length. "Yes, you are very eager to be my claws once again." She then turned it off before placing it back at her belt and turning to Mara.

"My equipment is ready. My ship will be ready shortly. We can leave whenever. You get your own room, same to you, Master Hamner. Each has a sanisteam for use, so please feel free to clean up any time you desire. And Master Jade, if you need clothing, I think you will fit in mine should you want something light and airy to lounge in before the battle." She then turned towards the direction of her ship. "I can lead you to it if desired. I will also drop the illusion to allow it to be detected on sensors. Please warn our allies of its sudden appearance." She waved her hand in the direction of the ship, letting her strong illusion ritual fall. Anyone manning sensors would suddenly see a large ship appear within walking distance of the temple, hidden in the jungles. Its thermal signature would be minimal as it was landed and only powered for living. The size, though, would hint at it being either a large civilian freighter or a medium troop transport.

Prelude to War.
@Lotrix Molick

"potentially worse than the war we just ended" Luke allowed himself to repeat those words, a look of concern flashing through his face. While he'd only been part of the Galactic Civil war for it's final years, the conflict in general had existed bubbling below the surface since the end of the Clone wars, going hot several times over the last fifteen years before finally boiling over into an all out war after the Death of Starkiller and the subsequent battle of Skariff. In many ways, they were both right, it felt like a reactor breach, but one that permeated the Galaxy, one that.

"Several billion people lost their lives during the last war, I'd rather avoid that...My Jedi are willing to fight and die for the Galaxy but"

"Rather they not have too" Jade nodded "I'll take master Kota and Sylas and a few others I think are half way decent fighters, Kenth here can supply the talking them down part"

Hamner nodded his tone grave, Mara couldn't tell if he was annoyed at the fact that he'd just been promoted at the drop of a hat without really having a chance to try and convince Luke as to why this was a bad idea. Or, as concerned as they were and it was moments like that which made Mara question the Corelian if only slightly. -He's loyal, but such a kriffing cynic-. Hamner had been the first to depart, to gather the blind Jedi Master and several of the others while Mara lingered long enough to watch the Farghul snap to action.

In some ways it was nerve wracking, heading into battle with an untested force user of known capability who'd just admitted to being a vigilante who went about offing people like her (Or rather who she used to be) as a form of devotion to her code. On the other, she liked the Farghul despite her best efforts to keep herself guarded, Tassaia had a carefree way about her, that she could do and live with bloody deeds and be confident that she never once took a life that didn't deserve it was..admirable.

It helped the woman seemed to share her and Luke's sense of humor.

"Well" she began.

"That leaves me with the duty of...oh?" she turned to see several Republic soldiers, all dressed in civilian attire, or in uniforms that were rather casually adorned and improperly attired. One of them was a short woman who looked like she was built from parts left over from an old Cold Wars At-Te, she was solid muscle with raven black hair and an E-Webs cannon was resting across her shoulders as though it weighed as light as a feather. She had an amused grin, beside her was a Republic soldier Mara knew because he was a sniper and a knife fighter who disemboweled nine of her Shadow Troopers and had supposedly fought Rua Skirata to a standstill in a brothel in Nar Shada once.

Mara didn't like him much, mostly because he had a propensity to shoot imperial troopers as they were surrendering. The girl who was a sexy tank with legs (To quote Han on the matter) was Cara Dune, she was not ordinarily a part of such a unit and Mara realized at once what had happened... Luke had requested some extra resources, which included troops. Naturally Borsk (Whom Luke had foolishly made the request too), had sent them a bunch of reprobates. Behind them was another twenty soldiers, most looking fresh out of the academy. "Followed you here" Sniper muttered, Mara had no desire to learn his name, kriff this guy. "Then, Hamner caught us on the way out, something about reinforcing Endor?"

"..With twenty five guys and about seven Jedi" Mara twitched.

Cara grinned "It's okay, we fight for about thirty a man, plus Han's got that place turned into a fortress, no way the empire can get to it without a considerable mobilization, which we'd have seen"

Yeah, Jade thought.

All true.

But you didn't feel the force get the weekend at Nar Shada treatment..

Luke who'd been watching, rolled his eyes "I'll try and get more to rendezvous with you on the planet, in the mean time may the force be with you"

other Jedi had begun to arrive, Hamner's forces were ready, the politician turned Jedi not having to look far for everything sensed what was coming.

"Light and airy before battle eh?" she laughed "you're even more eager than Luke here to see me half dressed" her teasing voice cracked the ice which seemed to building around everyone's throat. "We should as soon as the vessel is ready" she paused turning to eye Kenth "That is..if Master Hamner approves"

Hamner who'd been talking to Kota and Dune turned on her. His eyes blank for a second until it finally clicked on him that Luke had essentially placed him in charge. "Yes, as soon as possible" he muttered then wished he could use the forced to kick himself in his own ass at how incredibly lame that sounded. Thankfully Tassaia's lightsaber was ignited and more than a few young Jedi were too busy observing how amazing it looked to really catch how badly he flubbed his first response.

"We go into unknown danger, for all we know the planet may already be under attack..As to those of you who sensed..what it was that is coming..Do not engage..Let either Mara, Master Kale or Master Kota do that"

The blind Jedi Master nodded approvingly, an arrogant Jedi might have added "and myself" but Hamner knew his talent lay in strategy not in tactics and that any conflagration where he had to be involved would just jeopardize his allies. "I will call ahead to Endor when we're at the half way mark, but keep the stealth up...Until we've confirmed we're not undersiege"

Damn, Hamner thought.

He'd been in one planetary siege before that one was bad enough without the cannibalistic tree dwelling dwarves and the massive, man eating giants that could throw around imperial walkers like large toys and the weird witches in that castle and everything else on Endor.

"A clan of Dathomirian night sisters have taken up residence on Endor" Hamner warned causing Jade to shook him a particularly angry glare "And you neglected to mention this earlier why?!"

"Because before the council session could begin, I was summoned to the alliance council and Luke went off to talk to ghosts"

"...Fair enough...."

Luke shook his head before gripping Mara's wrist, no words needed to pass between them but he felt himself wishing her luck all the same. "You too Skywalker..Try not to get possessed or anything while I'm gone"

"perish the thought!" again Luke looked to the Farghul and bowed his head in thanks. "Bring them home..and yourself as well, there's always room in the temple for one more...and I'd hate to see your ghost get added to the menagerie here"