Are all Jedi this reckless? Just the good ones…

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus smiled ruefully. “You know that question was in part for my own benefit.” She blushed slightly. “Not that I don’t care for how you’re faring — you know that. But…I have to confess…I have been worried but the recent actions of the Republic and some Jedi.”

“The former have become more aggressive. Shoot to kill orders, attempts to oversee the Jedi. And the latter? There are many that are growing more militant. Talk of making the Republic something to be feared?”


She shook her head. “You know, Sera, maybe I am the wrong Grand Master in these times? Perhaps a more military point of view is called for?”

[member="Seraphina Shel'tah"]

 

[Seraphina Shel'tah]

Sera nodded. "Of course." While the Twi'lek wasn't privy to a lot of information being passed about the galaxy, she had heard the rumblings of the Republic, and the turmoil it was facing, as well as the Jedi that had been shifting their positions of peacekeepers back to what they had been during the Clone Wars - Jedi Commanders, or something relatively similar in practice, if not so much in name.

Seraphina knew that Corvus was not this type of Jedi, and did not operate under a militaristic model. Regardless of her newly discovered feelings, even cold fish Corvus would never have taken part in actively militarizing the Order. "Perhaps you're right. Maybe that isn't the answer you were expecting out of me. But, if the Order as a whole collectively feels that proceeding in a way that you see unfit, it may be best to step aside and let the majority rule. Fighting it will only breed discontent."

Her eyes looked into the other woman's with a rather concerned expression. "Though without you the Order will lose its' greatest ally, as well as the Republic. But as much as it pains me to admit it, I can't foresee the Republic surviving on its' own for much longer. I think it is collapsing under its' own weight."

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus listened to Sera’s counsel. It was not a surprise to her in truth. She’d had many of the same thoughts herself and that was what prompted her questions.

“I have some decisions to make, clearly,” she responded, her gaze wistful. “But I need to focus on the here and now.”

They reached the valley, it was approximately a twenty kilometre journey. The ship was hidden from aerial surveillance but was easily spotted from the ground.

It appeared undamaged. “So," Corvus said as they all walked over to the ship. “You’ve told the truth so far, I take it the cargo is still on board.”

The Gundark nodded.

“Then we are at your disposal. But be aware that we have no jurisdiction here. We cannot make laws nor complain about unjust ones. But lies should be exposed and bribery and corruption exposed. Yes Sera?”

[member="Seraphina Shel'tah"]

 

[Seraphina Shel'tah]

Seraphina gave a nod to Corvus. "I trust you'll make the decision that is best for you and the Order. You always have." And with that she let the discussion pass over.

The ship was just up ahead as they entered the valley. It looked well concealed, presumably intentionally so. Still, Sera hadn't the best of feelings that this would be a simple locate and return mission. Things that seemed straight forward and simple always ended up becoming a hellish nightmare. And to assume anything otherwise was generally a mistake.

Though Corvus still operated by the laws of the planets she visited, as well as the Republic and Jedi Order, while Sera was more something of a vigilante at this point. Following laws when possible, but breaking or disregarding them if she deemed necessary. The Twi'lek gave Corvus a bit of a smile. "Sure, so long as it doesn't endanger us."

Climbing down from the speeder she took a look around the vicinity. It was quiet, save for the few birds chirping through the trees. "You think we ought to look around before going in? I'm not one for surprises."

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus nodded her approval at Sera’s plan. “I’m sure there’s nothing out of the ordinary — but given we’ve travelled all the way here, it makes a lot of sense.”

The Beskar stuck close to them, not getting in their way and actually proving helpful in pointing things out to them. There was, in truth, little to see.

Satisfied, Corvus indicated they should return to the restaurant and decide their next move. Bringing down a government — even a corrupt one, was technically above their pay grade.

As they sat and talked, the bar-owner walked over.

"Do you know the true power of a lightsaber?"

"The true power?" Corvus echoed. She looked to Sera for support.

He smiled. “Let me enlighten you. Its real power is in the eye of the beholder. The sight of a lightsaber can inspire great fear, but it can also inspire great hope. It all depends on whether one regards the Jedi as friend or foe."

Reaching out with his right upper arm, he placed his hand on Corvus’ shoulder and said, "With one quick sweep of a lightsaber, you give hope to everyone who sees your blade. Except for the bad guys, that is. Your lightsaber brings them to their knees, and without spilling a drop of blood."

“Many weapons can kill, but only the lightsaber can inspire such extremes of hope or fear. And I shall add that I will be forever glad that only Jedi carry lightsabers.”

Corvus chuckled. “Have you ever considered teaching on Ossus? Or telling that to the Sith?”

[member="Seraphina Shel'tah"]

 

[Seraphina Shel'tah]

Once the three returned to the diner and began the philosophical discussion behind what the sight of a lightsaber instills in the common person, Sera chimed in as Corvus mentioned discussing it with the Sith. "I do believe the Sith practice the latter portion of that statement, in great depth. Fear is their specialty. It's the only manner in which they rule." The Twi'lek shrugged her shoulders with a bit of discontent. "Sadly, most folks look at a Jedi and Sith and see the same thing, a person with a lightsaber who is either there to help them, or hurt them. There is no true understanding between the beliefs of each. Jedi serve the people. The Sith wish to rule them. And until that distinction is made by the actions taken by said lightsaber weilder, that person has no idea of the intentions. Unfortunately, a Sith could very well claim to be a Jedi, and most would be none the wiser."

The woman leaned back in her chair thinking for a few moments before looking over at Corvus.

"Perhaps he is on to something though."

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus listened to Sera’s counsel. She’d missed her more than she’d realised. She had an honest and straightforward approach that she admired.

“I agree. It’s hard enough to differentiate between Sith and Jedi sometimes. The shades of Jedi make it even harder. Dark, Grey, Rogue? And define Rogue? Some simply don’t have an Order. Others choose not to follow the Code.”

Corvus sighed. “But that’s all well and good, but it doesn’t help the locals does it.”

She glanced at the diner-owner and back at Sera. “Now, as you know, I’m a scholar. But that does not mean I like to plan. So…in true Corvus style, I say we head to wherever the head person is and we wing it. Who’s with me?”

[member="Seraphina Shel'tah"]

 

[Seraphina Shel'tah]

"To drive the conversation in a slight tangent, I might offer my own glimmer of insight into that. The Sith we see today are really just a shadow of their former glory. An odd attempt at returning to the days of the purebloods. What they are now is just a coalition of corrupted dark side users who fight in the name of the Sith, but they are not Sith themselves, as much as they wish it so." Sera crinkled her nose, in somewhat disgust.

"As for the Greys and the Rogues? A Grey Jedi to me is just a confused Jedi teetering on the edge of corruption, but hasn't fully embraced the Dark Side yet. Rogues though, I believe Rogues are simply Jedi that have either left the Order, or have fielded no allegience to any governments. Perhaps they are dark siders themselves, but I would personally not label them rogue."

When Corvus unveiled her grand plan however, Sera laughed; rather loudly in fact. The grandmaster of the Jedi was a role must commonly understood as being a place of great wisdom and understanding. A position that not necessarily drove the Jedi's direction, but helped guide it. Planning, however, was not Corvus' style.

"Alright, let's do that.How do you suppose our reception will be taken when we walk in, lightsabers at the ready? I suspect poorly." A small grin danced on her face.

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus listened. Her golden era of Lore was from the Ruusan Reformation to Order 66. The Sith then seemed more powerful, despite their numbers, than the current hordes. And she reflected on conversations she’d had with the Sith on the battlefields, where she was amazed at their lack of knowledge of that era. It never occurred to her that this, in itself, was an odd thing to do.

And she nodded at Sera’s description of the grey and rogues. It was a label attached to anyone not affiliated half of the time and meant little in truth.

And she blushed slightly at Sera’s reaction to her plan — or rather lack of it. “Remember the analogy. The good guys will welcome us, the bad ones will fear us. So their reaction will, up to a point, determine their level of guilt, won’t it?”

Corvus insisted on paying the bill, she had enough credits in her pocket to cover the cost, and headed outside. “Walk or hail a cab?” she asked Sera.

[member="Seraphina Shel'tah"]

 

[Seraphina Shel'tah]

"Perhaps. Some folk I've learned are professionals at hiding the truth though. So they may welcome us with open arms, while concealing the knife they plan to stab us in the back with." Walking into any kind of neutral zone with the potential for things to go sideways always worried her more than going into something knowing they would have to fight. The unknown was something that disturbed her inner peace.

"We may as well save the energy and get ourselves a cab. It's not as if we're trying to sneak in or anything, so there's little point in walking if it isn't necessary."

Rubbing her forehead with two fingers, she quietly cleared her throat before continuing. "One would suspect their security will be a lot more stringent than we've seen thus far though. We may be forced to leave our lightsabers behind, whether their intentions are good or not."

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus smiled. “Now is the time when it’s handy to be an Empath. Faces, gestures and even words can be faked. But emotions? Unless they’re closed to the Focre, they will reveal their true feelings.”

“And even no feelings is a sign. To at the very least be wary. But you’re right of course. You invariably are.”

And she smiled playfully when Sera mentioned their weapons. “We are Jedi. We are the weapon, not the blade. That’s the part people seem to forget.”

She hailed a cab and once inside confirmed they wanted to head to the town hall. “Let’s just hope they’re home,” she said to Sera. “And seeing as we’ve a few minutes on our hands and given I’ve been so forthcoming, I thought I’d ask you something.”

“Varus….”

[member="Seraphina Shel'tah"]

 

[Seraphina Shel'tah]

"Truer words could not be spoken. On either subject." She nodded in agreement to Corvus. The lightsaber was afterall simply a tool. And where most could hardly tell the difference between Sith and Jedi, so too did they often forget that a Jedi rarely needed a weapon to be a weapon. It also helped that there were two. It may appear not to be much of an advantage, especially if outnumbered, but the true strength came from the magnitude that was brought upon by two Jedi in the same place.

Though if Sera's face could grow any pinker the moment Corvus name dropped Varus it would become its' own new shade. She bit the inside of her lip and looked up at Corvus.

"Mhm? What about Varus?" The Twi'lek wondered just what was about to be asked, while attempting to wrangle in her blushed cheeks.

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Was Corvus enjoying this? Truly, it appeared she was actually getting some pleasure from the squirming that Sera was now doing. The straight-talking Twi’lek was now at a loss for words. Her skin-tone was not the giveaway of course, her emotions were.

But Corvus was — at most — teasing. She was not going to press the issue and immediately closed her emotions down.

But nor was she going to let the Jedi Master off the hook so easily, having opened up her own feelings. “You. Varus. You and Varus. You and Varus. I always believed there was something going on there. When you left, he took it badly. Of course he was all bluff and bravado, but I know him too well to be entirely fooled. Any more than you can shake off my questions.”

“But. And I mean this. If it’s personal, we’ll say no more. I’ll just make stuff up instead.” She smiled and held a hand up. “Just kidding."

"Probably.”

She stared straight ahead. “Does it count if you have your fingers crossed?” There was a grin slapped right across her face right now.

[member="Seraphina Shel'tah"]

 

[Seraphina Shel'tah]

Sera crossed her leg, then adjusted herself and instead crossed the other. She started unknowingly bouncing ever so slightly in her seat as Corvus spoke.

"Me and Varus? Me AND Varus? Mhmm. Yes. Us. Right. Umm-" It was rare that she got flustered at all. However she thought she had done a pretty decent job at hiding that particular subject. "Well, I guess there's no point in trying to deny it, huh? If you already know, then you already know." She tilted her head to the side and ran her hand along the back of her head. "I'm not surprised he took it badly. I didn't exactly tell him I was leaving. But I am sure he tried to play it off like he was fine. He is quite stubborn and thick-headed."

She laughed and set her hands down on her lap. "He irritates me. I irritate him. We tolerate each other's snarky remarks. It works out well. And he can be sweet when he isn't trying to be the biggest chest beater in the room."

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus smiled. “You sound like Phyllis at times.”

“And you know I’m teasing and nothing you say will go any further. I just wanted to know you were OK with it. And it sounds like you are. And you’re right, he is an interesting one. Even when you’re trying to help him, it’s like he doesn’t want to be helped.”

She shrugged. “But his heart is most definitely in the right place and that’s all that matters. Right?”

“So, plan of attack? My bit is getting us there and asking to see the head honcho. If you want any tactics beyond that preliminary phase, now is the time to synchronise our approach.”

[member="Seraphina Shel'tah"]

 

[Seraphina Shel'tah]

"I'm not sure whether that is a compliment or not." She squinted a single eye towards Corvus with a bit of a smirk. "But yes. I am OK with it, even if he's a thickheaded stubborn bull sometimes, or rather, most of the time. He never wants my help, he's so full of pride I can't imagine why he needs to eat, there can't be any room for anything else in that chest of his, I swear." She nodded in agreement. "But yes, if nothing else, he does mean well. So I suppose there's that."

The Twi'lek tapped her chin lightly with the tip of her finger at the request for some kind of plan upon arrival. "Well, I suppose we may as well simply be honest about why we're here. Worst case, they shoot us and we have to do what we're prepared for anyway. Otherwise, we find out what's really going on and settle this peacefully. Though as much as I'd prefer the latter, I always assume the prior."

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus smiled. In true Jedi fashion, you prepare for success and then prepare for failure. But given the majority only account for one or the other, Sera was well ahead of the game.

“Well we’re here,” she said as the cab stopped at an ornate looking building — that must have been the town hall. She gave the driver the required credits and stepped out, pulling her robes around her, linking her hands so they effectively disappeared inside her sleeves.

They walked through the automated doors and were greeted by an equally ornate reception area. Whereas the planet was rudimentary. Functional but bordering on austere, this was opulence.

“Good to see the tax-payers credits so well invested,” Corvus said to Sera. The receptionist visibly blushed. There had been a lot of that today.

“We’re here to see…whoever is in charge,” Corvus said, aware she’d never asked a name. She smiled politely. “Please.”

The receptionist indicated they should take a seat on one of the plush leather affairs that littered the polished marble floor, and then buzzed someone on her intercom.

“Someone will be with you presently, Master Jedi.”

[member="Seraphina Shel'tah"]

 

[Seraphina Shel'tah]

With a quick nod Sera acknowledged their arrival and hopped out of the cab alongside Corvus. A smile adorned her face as she watched the woman tuck her hands into her robes as was proper in the most Jedi fashion. The only reason the Twi'lek ever wore the robes was to conceal the weapons and armor beneath the fabric when it was required. In battle she found them to be a nuisance and much preferred the form fitting armor worn beneath instead. This excursion called for more subtle means though, and so she had followed suit, though left her arms by her side, she was never as proper as the grandmaster in that regard.

Her eyes rolled when she looked at the interior of the building, in comparison to the rest of what she had seen, following Corvus' comment. "I suppose those credits have to go somewhere, right?" She let Corvus speak to the receptionist at the front counter, and took her seat by a rather large frosted glass window, crossing her leg over the knee while she waited.

"Someone will be with us. Let's hope that someone is more welcoming than hostile, no?" And so she sat, waiting. Minutes passed, she looked over at Corvus with a bit of an irritated expression. "They sure do take their time." Though almost on cue, as she finished her statement the large, decorative doors on the west corner of the room opened, and a protocol droid approached the two Jedi. "Greetings to you. Would you mind following me please? My master is awaiting upstairs. He is very eager to meet your acquaintance. I will guide you to him promptly." Sera looked over at Corvus with a raised brow and slightly concerned look.

[member="Corvus Raaf"]

 

[Corvus Raaf]

Corvus raised an eyebrow at Sera. It was one of her famous eyebrow raises that spoke volumes. It said she agreed with everything her fellow Master had said and of course it would be better if they weren't hostile and certainly they were taking their time.

And on the way down it said, oh look - a protocol droid. They could at least have sent a person. Reminiscent of when Obi-Wan and Qui-Gon were met and almost subsequently gassed.

"Let's hope we don't have to hold our breath for too long," she offered to Sera as they approached the decorative doors. "And thank you for your charming welcome," she said to the droid. "I have a custom built protocol droid on my ship. A colleague...um...re-programmed him. He's a tad sarcastic nowadays. And has a habit of translating all my incoming messages - even though they're all in Galactic Basic to begin with. But apart from that he's wonderful."

"Oh, what lovely doors," she added as they approached them. "They weren't cheap, I know." And she smiled to Sera. "Onwards and upwards, eh," she added as they entered the room beyond.

[member="Seraphina Shel'tah"]

 

[Seraphina Shel'tah]

Sera nearly laughed. Corvus was always so polite, even to droids that likely gave zero interest in their presence, short of doing its programmed job of accommodating their temporary intrusion in its' day-to-day business. The Twi'lek nodded to her fellow Jedi, observing the elegant and ornate decorations adorning the doors and archway. "I'm sure the rest of the palace - I mean, town hall, is just as nice." She smirked, the droid wouldn't understand the underlying sarcasm in her voice, though Corvus surely would.

As the three proceeded into the adjoining chamber, the droid ushered them to a lift, pressing the '3' on the wall which would raise them to the highest floor in the building. As the doors opened, a nearly blinding glare filled the room as light reflected from the various gold and diamond engraved walls, pillars, floor, and ceiling. Sera's jaw nearly fell to the floor, her eye twitched a few times in utter disbelief at how over the top this place was. It truly was a palace suited for a king. She looked at Corvus. "Is this for real?" In cliche fashion, at the far end of the room was, for lack of better words, a throne, where the man they were here to see sat with a pair of guards with electro-staves stood at the ready. How welcoming.

[member="Corvus Raaf"]