Of Monsters and Men [Open to All]

[Rosa Gunn]

Roon had been a disaster, Jorus and companies attempt to 'draw' Daxton Bane out and kill him had failed, and nearly cost Jorus his life. The conclusion was drawn that not only was Daxton a monster, but he was smart and he was considered a shining angel by the Fed's. She had considered her position carefully on the matter.

On one hand, Thessa was a Vagrant and it was in Rosa's nature to protect and avenge her, on the other, Daxton Bane had had multiple victims, one of which had been the former Mandalore. Surely Justice was required? Surely someone had to do something about this man? Surely the galaxy needed to know the extent of his crimes?

She paced back and forth across the meditation chamber, turning the holo-projector over in her hands, forehead creased with a frown as she waited for the rest of the Conclave to arrive so she could present her case, her plan and give them a chance to make a difference.

@[member="Qae Shena"] @[member="Jaxton Ravos"] @[member="Teynara Jeralyr"] @[member="Boolon Murr"] @[member="Thurion Heavenshield"] @[member="Daux"] @[member="Jericho"]

 

[Thurion Heavenshield]

The first to wander into the room was young Thurion, seemingly unaware what the meeting was going to be about. Alongside him patted his friend @[member="Daux"], who he the day before had been trying to teach to walk normally; on two legs, that is. In the room stood @[member="Rosa Mazhar"], who seemed rather distressed about something. "Hi, Master Rosa!" he said enthustiatically with a wave of his hand, smiling as he normally would. "Say hello, Kitty", he told the girl beside him with a soft, cuddly tone. After Daux's clumsy attempt at speaking, the two removed themselves from the entrance and walked up to the lady. "Here, look what I found!" Holding up a white flower with large petals for Rosa to see, he then intertwined it into Daux's hair, which otherwise of course looked as unkempt as ever. "There, now you are the prettiest Kitty in the Galaxy." With a pet of her head, Thurion's attention was then turned to the next person who would enter the room, moments after the two of them did.

@[member="Jaxton Ravos"] @[member="Qae Shena"] @[member="Teynara Jeralyr"] @[member="Seroth Ur-Rahn"] @[member="Jericho"] @[member="Boolon Murr"]

 

[Jericho]

Jericho slightly tilted his head to see a vixen follow him. He had no interest in attacking her. He would gain nothing of it. Jericho felt an odd feeling; one that he could not dismiss. “Is such a thing possible?” He tried desperately to dwell this feeling. Those thoughts of his slithered into his mind; He was tending to the wounds of a woman. He escaped his thoughts and took another glace at the woman. “Why can’t I focus…” Watching her brought calmed hid heart. “This feeling..” He continued to think to himself, as his eyes scrolled her up and down. He missed placed his footing and tripped. He stumbled gracefully for a few steps and fell.


Luckily he stumbled toward the steps, and the bottom step cushioned his fall. He quickly hopped up and dusted of his pants, and tended to his hair. Jericho tried his best to hide his embarrassment. “…” He acted like nothing had happened and hurried up the stairs. “Not too far now…” Once he reached the top of the steps he walked down the hall and opened the doors to his bedroom. Jericho entered quietly and made his way to the balcony, and closed the doors and curtains. “Come please shut the door behind you.”


Slowly Jericho opened his eyes, a bead of sweat dripping from his forehead. In that meditation session; everything felt so real, was this the feeling of being closer to the force or was it merely the feeling of his own personal desire trying to take hold. Jericho's heart began to flutter, he placed his right hand on his chest. He could feel his restlessness growing. He wanted to pursue those desires, but he could not allow himself to indulge in those feelings. It was a good feeling but at the same time so painful. It was painful enough to cause him to pant and feel out of place, more so than he already have. He was going to ponder more on those thought until he received a message via his holocron. A meeting was being called with all for the majority of the conclave. Jericho wiped the sweat from his head and shook a bit to regain feeling of his body.


He clapped his hands on his face twice then stood putting on his robes with his hood up and his breathing mask on. He collects his threes saber and put them around his person but instead of on his belt took the time to practice his force use and kept them a float around where they would normally be around his waist. After doing so, he made his way to the meditation room where the meeting was being called too. When he entered he noticed only Rosa and Thurion were the only two who arrive. He bowed his head respectfully to his fellow knight then walked over to Thurion, his former fellow padawan. Jericho gently patted his friend lightly on the top of his head. He then stood to the side awaiting for the other members to arrive to the meeting as well.

 

[Lief]

The little kitten of a girl stumbled haphazardly through the room, clutching at Thurion as best she could in a wobbly attempt at walking, both hands grasping into his right arm. But it was tiring work, and ontop of such she was being urged to make noises again. But since it was her beloved Furry asking she decided she might as well comply a little, and tried to mimic his words. "Eh-oh!" she said, in a very rudimentary attempt at 'hello', taking a few more unbalanced steps into the room before giving up. With a bit of an annoyed grunt the tiny girl fell back onto her hands and knees and nipped at the back of Thurion's leg affectionately, moving alongside him towards the lady. When he began to entwine the flower into her hair she raised a hand and tried to play with it, before noting the look of pride upon her friend's lips. She couldn't bring herself to harm the flower in any way, and instead she lowered her hands and murmured a purred "Taa-oo!"

 

[Jaxton Ravos]

Jaxton walked into the meditation room, seeing @[member="Thurion Heavenshield"] and @[member="Daux"] already playing around with each other. With a quick affectionate ruffle of the girl's hair he passed the two and noticed Jericho had already arrived, serious as always, especially since the loss of Asha Seren. What troubled him most however, was his friend @[member="Rosa Mazhar"]. Though he wasn't technically an empath from the speaking of the Force, he was a Zeltron, and that gave him the ability to sense emotions telepathically, biologically. He couldn't tell exactly what emotions she was feeling but it was a blend of anger, worry, and fear that meant to Jaxton something had happened.

So, he came to her side, wrapped an arm around her shoulder and gently squeezed, before letting her go. "I'll help." He said to the woman, not needing an explanation or a story, but merely offering what he could to a friend.

 

[Rosa Gunn]

Young Thurion and little Daux brought a genuine smile to Rosa's face. "Hello little ones." she replied softly, though their innocence did not quite erase the sharp edges of her concern. She returned Jericho's bow and drew in a deep breath, exhaling slowly, releasing her hold on her emotions slipping into a more calmer place as Jaxton gave her shoulders a squeeze.

A soft laugh escaped her, "You might not say that when I tell you what I have in mind." She was still waiting for @[member="Qae Shena"], @[member="Teynara Jeralyr"] and Boolon Murr, but she figured she could catch them up when they finally joined them. "Alright," she said activating the holoprojector in her hand. A miniaturised hologram of Daxton Bane flickered to life, turning slowly in her hand "This is Daxton Bane, well known for once running around within the Empire. He is now playing Templar among the 'Feds, playing the part of a kind and gentle man."

There was an edge of bitterness to her voice. "I got back from Roon a couple of hours ago. A few Vagrants wanted to draw him out and challenge him...kill him even for torturing Thessa Kai. I went, because I figured they would need someone to heal, and to be the voice of reason if worst came to worst. It was a disaster, Jorus nearly got himself killed. They grossly underestimated Daxton's capabilities. Drawing him out is not possible. But this zabrak...he is a monster. I intend to expose him."

@[member="Jaxton Ravos"]@[member="Daux"] @[member="Jericho"] @[member="Thurion Heavenshield"]

 

[Teynara Jeralyr]

"You'd think that the Vagrants would know better than to provoke a Sith," a soft voice said, breezing in through from one of the several entrances to the Meditation Chamber in which the members of the Conclave were gathering. It still felt odd to do this, but it was far more appropriate than the lofty Councils that were convened among the Jedi. "Arrogance was their downfall there. And it only serves to draw more attention to them. Isn't that contrary to their ideology?"

Teynara entered the room with a steady stride, her pale blue eyes flickering from face to face, a faint smile curving her lips to indicate that she was pleased to see most of them. Oddly enough, the Temple often seemed emptier more often than not: perhaps the wanderlust that seemed to afflict Jedi still hadn't managed to get out of anybody's systems just yet. It was good that the others had all come: Rosa had called, and the Conclave's members had all returned from what they had doing with admirable speed. It spoke well of the bonds between them all.

"Our danger is similar to theirs, however," she remarked calmly, coming to a stop next to @[member="Thurion Heavenshield"], patting him gently on the shoulder with a pale hand by way of greeting. "Bane or his allies might seek out our little Enclave if he learns of your involvement in such a move, and our Conclave would rapidly find itself embroiled in the greater conflicts we came here to avoid," the blonde woman observed, a slight frown forming on her face, marring her features slightly. "We all agreed that our involvement with galactic politics would be circumstantial at best, or so I thought."

Taking her hand from Thurion's shoulder, the young woman moved it to rest just below the crook of the elbow on her left arm, her expression now contemplative and far more solemn than was her preference. Rosa wasn't wrong: Daxton was a monster, a threat to the civilised galaxy. As for his powers and capabilities, Teynara knew she was in no position to judge, but she could count well enough: the numbers of those who had lost their lives to such a being, purely because he was powerful enough to take them. If she had still been among the Jedi, even a Healer such as herself might have advocated that they act to kill him, and remove such a threat.

Fortunately, she wasn't a Jedi any longer, and didn't have any place in their absurd conflict. That made matters simpler.

"Exposing him is exactly the right thing to do if something comes of it," she continued, glancing around to observe the others, see if she might gauge something from their expressions. "Such would destroy a reputation in some circles, but enhance it in others. Moreover, Bane will surely seek retribution for it, unless restrained by someone stronger or taken to task by those capable of defeating him. Are we prepared for those consequences?"

@Jaxton Ravos @Daux @Jericho @Thurion Heavenshield @[member="Rosa Mazhar"]

 

[Thurion Heavenshield]

With a smile he greeted his master, all while keeping Daux busy by fussing with her hair. The soft touch of Teynara's hand on his shoulder was a great source of reassurance that all was well with her. She had helped him with overcoming the loss of Asha, and proved to be just as wise and gentle as his former master. As such, Thurion now felt a peacefulness within him he had never felt before; not only had he put his past behind him with the help of Asha, now he had been able to put her death behind him as well. It had inspired him to want to learn, to see and experience things on his own, for the sake of growing into a better person - as well as a protector of the innocent. In an attempt to listen in on the seriousness of the conversation between the others in the room while keeping Daux interested, he sat down with his back against the wall so that she could curl up in his lap should she wish to.

As his master spoke, her words were those of wisdom beyond her years, he felt. Her tone was adamant, so very sure of itself, that it demanded everyone's attention, and she managed to touch upon some very important issues. The man - or monster - they spoke of seemed to be a downright nasty fellow, no doubt well-reputed with many connections. Sever the bond between one contact and the others grow stronger from it. This was something the blonde boy took an increasing interest in; the machinations and philosophical implications of disarming a potent threat, and what would come of it should they go through with it. Perhaps he himself thought he had lived his life in the Order and now in the Conclave a bit sheltered from the dangers of the Galaxy, and the many threats within it - threats he would have to deal with sooner or later, should he wish to keep people safe. His attention was only briefly interrupted by the nuzzling and loving affection of his friend curled up in his lap, along with the occasional nibbling of his fingers. Still, he did not mind her seeking his attention, nor did he hesitate to respond to her fussing, as he leaned in to kiss her forehead and rub his nose against hers.

@[member="Rosa Mazhar"] @[member="Teynara Jeralyr"] @[member="Jaxton Ravos"] @[member="Daux"] @[member="Qae Shena"] @[member="Jericho"] @[member="Boolon Murr"]

 

[Qae Shena]

The commanding voice of the Master-at-Arms came powerfully as he strode into the room, clad in the robes that he was wearing for most of his duties. They were, at least, comfortable, even if they didn't cover all of the scars on his arms. He seemed to be okay with that now. He'd herd most of the conversation on his way in and, very suddenly, the Master did not appear pleased with this conversation already.

"Despite the fact we should not be talking about the Vagrant Fleet here," he said first as warning, considering some of the Conclave did not know about the Fleet's existence in the first place given Qae's attempts to keep them secret to avoid the inevitable political inter-mingling, "is it our place to do this? Really?"

His hands were on his hips as he stared into the eyes of his fellow Spencer-prentice, staring her down. He actually was rather unimpressed with her, despite holding her in such loving regard. One could, after all, be unhappy with siblings, couldn't they? That was what she was to Qae - a sibling.

"Not only did you and the Fleet go to enact retribution on someone, a policy that goes blatantly against the First Law, added acts against someone that have already been acted on is against the very concept of Balance itself - an eye for an eye, not two eyes and a hand for an eye. We have acted once. I acted once, for Thessa. The others did this out of a sense of vengeance, and I'm not going to fault you for that. But I can not support this, Rosa. I've already fought him to the point that he ran away with his tail between his legs. You guys already acted out on your own. To do any more would be more fuel for the fire. We don't go exposing every Sith for what they are, do we? Where do we draw the line? Would you have other mass-murderers exposed for their crimes?"

His mind went immediately to Ori'vod, to Ashin Varanin, but he obviously said nothing about that particular matter. They didn't know - nor would they.

 

[Rosa Gunn]

Rosa flinched at Qae's first comment, bowing her head for a moment before looking up to meet his hard stare. He raised a point where the Vagrants were concerned, but she trusted the people that were here, and she had revealed nothing of their location. Her face remained stern as he berated her, she could feel his frustration in the force.

"I went," she began, her tone firm but her voice remaining at the same level "Because they asked for my help. I did not seek permission because it did not concern the Conclave. Jorus would be dead if I had not and what then? They would have gone another foolish crusade to avenge him and a cycle would have started that would have gotten progressively worse. This isn't about Thessa. This is about exposing someone who is hiding behind a façade and giving the people he is with the chance to see what they are protecting is nothing more than a monster. If he was acting as a sith I would not see the point, because it is common knowledge that their methods are undesirable. It is not, however, common knowledge that he is a sith."

She turned her attention to Teynara "The conclave would not be exposed, unless he is keeping tabs on all of his victims, which I highly doubt, the only face he'll have to come looking for is mine." She looked back at Qae, tight lipped. "I am not the sort to seek out revenge, if I was Mikhail Shorn would have been dead a long time ago. And yes, I would have them all exposed for their mass murders, but oddly enough there are very few whose heartless acts haven't already been seen by the galaxy."

 

[Qae Shena]

"You don't need my permission to use the Conclave, Rosa. What upsets me is that you and the Fleet went off to go and attack someone using an attack on a Fleet member as justification. That's wrong on so many levels. That's a very dark path, too. That's something that we shouldn't be doing - not only as members of the Fleet, but as people. Justify it once, then what? Do it again when someone else gets attacked? Keep doing it every time? Become the vigilantes of the Galaxy against the Sith?" Qae shook his head. No, no. This really would not do. There was so much to deal with, so much to do, but Qae felt that this was not a productive use of their time.

He looked at her and considered. "Let me remind you what happened last time one of those we considered friends provoked a Sith, Rosa: we lost hundreds of good people, our group splintered and never quite recovered the same way. You would be poking the hornet's nest to do this. He is a crafty one - what if he gets a trace on your ship, find us here? I wouldn't want a repeat of Void Station."

No. No, he would not. Rosa would remember it. She would remember that memory well and how it felt to all but lose Spencer forever, in that moment. How their lives felt like they were over. How they had clung to one another for support, needing that support. A repeat of that was unthinkable.

"I'm not saying it's about Thessa now," Qae implored, "but you need to step back and consider. Is it not the job of the Jedi and the Republic to handle the Sith? Are we really capable of provoking a Sith Lord and not expecting retribution from a much stronger and unified Sith Empire? Desmius' reign is over, Voracitos' tempered in the aftermath and this new administration is bloodthirsty, by all indications. We do this and he works it out and he will hunt you with that crafty mind."

 

[Rosa Gunn]

"I am not her." she replied coldly, forgetting for a moment that there were other people in the room with them "Don't you dare make that comparison. This is an entirely different situation. I am not running at him with a damn lightsaber. He has no idea who I am. I will not be running around shouting about what I am doing." She closed her eyes for a moment and shook her head.

"The Jedi and the Republic will do nothing unless they are presented with evidence. That is what I want to get. Once I have it, it will be sent to the Republic, to the Protectorate and I will personally take it to Ithor. How they act on it, is entirely up to them. I just want to allow them to see what they are blind to. Daxton is one man, he does not have the power nor the support that he had."

 

[Qae Shena]

He could feel her frustration spiking with her - and knew, logically, that this was not the way. She was upset for more than one reason now and Qae needed to be there for her. Images of what happened flashed through his mind and the immediate response on his part, even, was enough to temper the raging sea. "That's my point. I don't want you to walk that path, Rosa," he said, smiling weakly. "I know you're not her - but this is where that path starts. I don't want to see someone I care about accidentally mis-step and be taken to the depths of the abyss. You know you're important to me, to Seroth, to all of us. I care enough that I just couldn't see you make that fall."

He paused, letting her idea come into his mind, considering. "We don't know how much support he has, or where it is. Perhaps your idea might work - but I don't want you snooping too close to him. I'm hesitant even to take this step. That's the best I could give you."

it really, truly was. He didn't think this a path worth pursuing, because one man was just one man, in the end. The other men, those on the various sides of this intergalactic war which was most certainly not him, were not able to control all of this. Qae's involvement in this was minimal. His part had already been played, fighting to free Thessa from prison. No more could he step in, to disturb the balance.

 

[Thurion Heavenshield]

There was a brief silence in the room, and rising from the floor suddenly, Thurion found the need to speak before the group of people. There was a collected, serious tone about his voice, as if speaking with the strength and authority of a fully grown man. "I don't want anyone to die. Nobody. Especially none of you - of us; we're a family, and families don't go against eachother." His tone softened somewhat. "I know I might just be a kid, but that's how I wish the world to be; no more killing of innocent people, of good people. Asha was the last straw..." His hands clenched themselves into fists at his sides. "I don't want anyone to die, but if this plan could stop one man from killing hundreds of innocents, then I am for it, for whatever it's worth."

There was no sign or hint of anger in his voice, only a sense of pure determination the boy had never shown before. Things had changed; he wished to engage himself in matters of importance to the Conclave, to be more responsible and speak his mind about these things. Losing Asha had made him think a lot about the future, and in doing so his part to play in it. If he could spare one mother from mourning the loss of her son or daughter, he would do so without hesitation. Thurion walked slowly, circling the room as he spoke, hands clasped behind his back. "No man or woman can predict what will happen should we choose to go through with it, nor should we. It is not up to us to tell the future, we are only to do what is the right thing to do. If we do nothing, then we are becoming the neutral hermits we decided against becoming."

Surprised at the words he spoke, he could not help but feel the spirit of his former master shine through. "I would lay down my life for any of you, as well as any innocent caught in the path of destruction. That being said, vengeance by blood is not my way, nor do I think it should be any of our's. That path leads to the Dark side, and that is not my path to tread. If there is a non-violent way to disarm this threat, I say we take it. This Daxton is nothing more than a bully, and I've had my share of fighting bullies before, and would be glad to see another bite the dust." He paused, observing those listening as his voice returned to that of a twelve-year-old boy. "Th-That's all I have to say about it..." With an insecure and rather clumsy bow of his head he slumped back onto the floor beside his feral girl of a friend, slightly overtaken by the surge of authority he had displayed. "Thank you..." he murmured to himself, or rather someone else not physically present in the room.

@[member="Rosa Mazhar"] @[member="Qae Shena"] @[member="Teynara Jeralyr"] @[member="Jericho"] @[member="Jaxton Ravos"] @[member="Daux"]

 

[Jericho]

Jericho stood quietly as they all spoke their ideas to another and needless to say that Rosa, the one who called the meeting became quite heated. Once Master Qae Shena, begin to speak his mind about the whole situation to a certain extent from what he had just heard. Things were becoming, if not already, very personal. To be honest, he hadn't even heard of this occurrence until now. The way Rosa described a situation it seemed to be a most gruesome act done by a Templar or rather a sith pretending to be one. Only to end on deaf ears of the galaxy besides the ones who wanted redistribution for such an act.

So seemingly so; from what it sounded like even the order of the Templars did not acquire this information. After all this Daxton Bane fellow was still part of the order of the Templars; but that was his assumption from Rosa's words. "This is Daxton Bane, well known for once running around within the Empire. He is now playing Templar among the 'Feds, playing the part of a kind and gentle man." This was interesting, was she the sole survivor of the attack on bane? Or did the other vagrant attack fear his power so much that they do not speak to anyone else about this? No, the vagrant's have their own fleet and among their member was Qae Shena. Would it cause too much political issue for the fleet to take down one man? Most likely so, putting things in perceptive.

Each side made their points both valid and invalid on the case of what to do about Bane. Jericho let out a sigh, it seemed that the majority wanted a peaceful resolution to the whole ordeal in which peaceful being trying not to get involved with it all. Unfortunately, the fact of the matter was they already were due to the involvement of Rosa, whether or not she was a participant of the attack, the fact was she was there. And if Bane was as intelligent as he was a beast, he would do anything to keep him his facade with the Templars up. The way to do that was to eliminate the ones that could expose him, quietly.

"Admirable, Thurion. But remember Neutrality is not the same as indifference." Jericho started off taking a few steps foreword to the so he could be part of the circle rather than in the corner. "This is a matter between the vagrant fleet and a branch of the confederacy, the templars not the enclave as a whole." He said with his usual cold and stern tone of voice. "But as it would seems, two members are already in technically involved and as the code states we don't leave our family behind." He said crossed his arms and letting out a sigh. Taking time to think more of what he should say as he just, in a gist, talked of their code not really explaining himself to the members of the meeting.

"There are other ways to defeat a beast than that of saber." He continued as he uncrossed his arms and clenched two of his three lightsaber hilts. "I presume the members of the attack are still alive? As well as the person who was the main reason of the ordeal? Why not bring the case up to the confederacy, instead of the republic? I know little of the faction but I assume they have their own Justice system? If we can testify and win, he will lose face with the templars and his allies there." He said releasing the sabers again and this time letting them circle around his person, his waist as the center of their orbit.

"If not and we decide overall that some sort of confrontation is needed. It would be wise to gather information on our foe and know what we really are facing off against. I'd say, if we must, we send a small task force of two or three, but if he is as dangerous as assumed, even four member to gather any information that can be used against him either for a battle of saber or a battle of wits. Solely for information not confrontation. So those involved in anyway emotionally or otherwise; should not be a part of it as it may jeopardize the intent task. But again this is just an idea. What do you all think?" He said returning to his side of the room..

 

[Rosa Gunn]

Qae's lack of faith in Rosa stung more than anything. Closing her eyes she took a deep breath as Thurion and Jericho spoke, listening to what they had to say while she regained her calm centre. She opened her eyes and avoided looking at him entirely and let out a sigh. Perhaps she should have not brought this to them, perhaps she should have just trusted her instincts and started the investigations herself.

"None of us are emotionally involved. Thessa is our friend, yes but that is not my reasoning behind this. I do not intend to snoop anywhere near Daxton. At the moment, I know of two victims, Thessa Kai and Mia Monroe." One flew with the vagrants, the other was in hiding, but a conversation with Jorus had indicated that he could find her. "They may not be willing to speak about what was done, but those close to them, or those that helped free them may be able to give us something. This isn't a mission to kill Daxton, nor draw him into a fight. The Confederates will not listen to a case without evidence, and in truth we will have nothing but the words of others to go against him."

If the words of others was not enough, what would Rosa do then? "I'm leaving for Mandalore tomorrow, there are people there that can give us something." she knew this statement would upset Qae, simply because she had made the decision to do this already, she merely wanted their help...their blessing to do so and it was clear that she was not going to get it from Qae. She looked at him then, the determination in her eyes clear. "If we do nothing, matters will only get worse. It is highly likely that he was able to get a blood sample from one of the needles that was shot at Jorus. Think about where that leads. I will not stand by and do nothing."