Relative Freedoms

[Samka Derith]

Some hours after the events of the menagerie​

​

----​

​

The others had all left now. It was just the two of them.

Samka Derith lay back, spreading herself fully across a couch made to sit at least four humans, and sighed looking up at the starship's ceiling.

In spite of the way the day had gone, it had still been a day out. The first in a long while. Not just here as a prisoner of the Silver Jedi but even back among the Knights of Ren, she couldn't recall spending time going out purely for leisure. There was always an ulterior motive to every action, responsibilities to be aware of and to always be on call for action to defend the nation. Today... there had been none of that.

And it had been a disaster on many levels. It only reinforced the reason why she didn't have such leisure time. Someone stronger and wiser than the rest had to baby sit the foolish masses. Here it was Jyoti, the Jedi Master stepping in to swiftly save a deteriorating situation. Back home, it was her. She wondered how they were doing. For all their talk, all their decades of brainwashing, the Knights of Ren had a mix of egos which could easily boil over in her absence. She could only trust for now that the system was bigger than she was alone.

Jyoti...

The Jedi Master was more interesting than she'd first thought. A figure worthy of respect. The way she'd so effortlessly enforced her will today showed how powerful she truly was. At first glance she'd had no idea of it, Sam suspected it was a random Jedi Master, chosen because of their mutual connection to Charlie. Perhaps that was the case but she was certainly no ordinary Jedi. Did she suspect the same of her? Was 'Elizah' still an average Dark Sider to her? Probably not. If the Jedi had any idea of her true position, a great deal more fuss would have been made but Jyoti with her fierce intelligence likely knew more than she had let on.

It was a pity she stood on the wrong side, she'd make a powerful ally if turned. Unfortunate then that she'd likely have to be killed sooner or later.

"Interesting friends you have," Samka said, still looking directly up at the ceiling, the youth's voice carrying around the room enough without having to look at her Echani captor. "What happens now then?" She gave a soft resigned sigh at the thought of returning to her room with its drab literary choice. "Are we back to before?"

[member="Jyoti Nooran"]​

 

[Eugen Aker]

And then there was two.

Hours after the impromptu social and just about everyone had cleared out from her ship to continue about their business. Even Charlie was gone, hanging out with the other Padawan and her new Librarian friend. She would have preferred for everyone to be gone from her ship, but she had to keep an eye on Elizah, now casually laid out on the booth.

It wasn't so bad. Despite her usual haughty attitude, Elizah hadn't given her much trouble. In fact, she had been the best behaved out of the bunch at the zoo, the real sources of trouble being a Spiced up Knight and a drunk Sith.

Once again, drugs are bad, okay?

Though it wasn't faulted of the intoxicants, only a symptom of a deeper issue. Right now she didn't feel like psychoanalyzing either of them, so for the moment, she had delegated the responsibility of their care to Allyson and Josh. Tonight she aimed to just relax.

Granted, the woman was smart enough to know what would happen if she had acted out, Jyoti was under no illusion the Dark Sider was really making an attempt at rehabilitation. That was just fine, the Echani had her own unstated motives in building a rapport.

Ice cream all gone, Jyoti was now posted up against one countertop, sipping tea, thinking about what she wanted for dinner. The frosty dessert, while delicious, was no substitute for dinner. Her new body burned through calories like crazy, always leaving her famished.

"They're...something," she answered candidly, not totally disagreeing with what Elizah was really implying.

"Dinner happens, once I figure out what I want."

For now, the captive could relax, Jyoti having no plans of locking her away for the evening. As long as she behaved.

There were a few people more deserving of the brig tonight.

[member="Samka Derith"]

 

[Samka Derith]

"You cook?"

Samka perched up to sit crossed legged on the sofa. There was a mischievous grin spreading onto her face. It wasn't devious or wicked. It was merely the sweet teasing smile of a young woman. "I knew you had it in you to be my chef, Master Nooran! I'm in the mood for seafood so I hope you got something good to whet my appetite."

The small, dainty figure hopped off the sofa and skipped over to the Jedi Master. "On a more serious note, I hate to feel useless. Anything I can do? I promise I won't poison you." A soft chuckle at her own dark joke. "There'd be nothing to gain from it. Besides, I think you interest me."

She awaited Jyoti's response with hands held behind her back, a pleasant smile on her youthful face. "If we work together, it'll be done quicker. Common sense. Who knows, perhaps we'll be the dream team?"

[member="Jyoti Nooran"]​

 

[Eugen Aker]

"Of course. Unlike Sieger, or Carnifex, I have no servants to feed me at home."

Back still turned to Elizah, she finally looked into the fridge for some options. Inside was a thick prime cut of Shaak, and a rack of cuckoo thighs. She could make a meal based on either protein option. While inspecting the fridge Elizah chimed in with a request for seafood.

Bleh. At best, she could only tolerate aquatic cuisine.

"Unfortunately, I have no seafood available, and it's too late to hit the markets for any. I hope you don't mind Shaak steak."

Not content to lounge on the couch, Elizah skipped over to her, offering a hand and a bit of black humor. She earned a soft snort for the off-color joke. Whether sincere or not, Elizah was entertaining at least. She couldn't ask for a better captive.

"I promise that you would fail if you tried. I guess you can help." She pointed to the crisper at the bottom of the fridge, then picked up the platter of Shaak and a container of butter. "Get few potatoes and slice them up. Bowls are in the first cabinet, knives in the second drawer."

She set the platter down, then went into another cabinet for seasoning. For their dinner, she had settled on buttered Shaak steak and parm scalloped potatoes. Not the fanciest dish ever, but it would be tasty none the less. Simple comfort food was her favorite after a long day in the field or office.

[member="Samka Derith"]

 

[Samka Derith]

She didn't usually cook for herself either. She had been taught the basics of cooking for survival skills but she was far from a chef. It was a waste of precious time better spent elsewhere. The Ren had people to cook for them. Sometimes it was basic provisions and sometimes more advanced meals. Samka found they tended to get more generous the higher up the ranks she had climbed. It wasn't something she had asked for, just something she noticed.

Sam tutted giving Jyoti an exaggerated pout at the meal choice. "Oh very well," she said in a resigned voice. She didn't really mind, the young woman was just playing games.

Trusted with knives already? My, my, Samka reflected to herself as she opened the draw to inspect her options. Some of them could do real damage in the wrong hands. She closed it again without a second thought having made her decision, placing her knife of choice beside a chopping board then moving to grab a few potatoes.

"Prepare to be blown away by my raw talent, Master Nooran," Sam smirked as she balanced an oddly shaped potato in front of her. "I cook rarely but when I do, I am told it causes one's mouth to explode with more pleasures than a 'legitimate business establishment' on Zeltros."

She plunged the knife in, causing a wonky cut in the potato.

"That's not my fault, the shape was odd to begin with," the young woman mumbled and began cutting faster. "So what are your duties among the Silver Jedi preciously? Aside from baby sitting zoo trips." Jyoti would likely think it an informal interrogation and it was true, useful information could come of it but Sam was also earnestly attempting conversation and to know the woman a little better.

[member="Jyoti Nooran"]​

 

[Eugen Aker]

She glanced over at Elizah out of the corner of the eye every few moments, seeing how she would handle free access to the knives. The woman was attractive and well-mannered, so it was tempting to let one's guard down, but she kept her guard up around the killer.

Fortunately, Elizah wasn't crazy enough to try anything on the Echani, but that poor potato appeared to take the brunt of her aggression with a wicked thrust.

"Hey, hey." she spoke up, momentarily pausing with her own prep work. "Ease up on the stabbing. This isn't war, it's dinner."

She reached over to stay the woman's hand, palms quite soft against the skin despite a hard life as a warrior. Close up, Elizah may have gotten a whiff her perfume, scented strongly with lilac.

"You didn't rinse off the potatoes first, anyway. Do that and let me show you how to make a proper cut."

[member="Samka Derith"]

 

[Samka Derith]

Samka sighed loudly, examining the cutting shape of the knife in the potato. "Oh this is fine," she said dismissively, knowing Jyoti had a point. "I used to make them like this all the time in the wildness. Granted it was hardly gourmet cooking but it did the job!"

She was about to continue when she felt the Jedi take her hand, causing a notable instinctive flinch from her arm. People didn't just touch her. Her crimson eyes flickered at Jyoti in a questioning glance. She typically detested physical contact but she'd tolerate it for the moment given the situation.

Upon hearing Jyoti's words, Samka sighed loudly while looking down at the potato before her. It was a bit grubby, true, but if it was due to be peeled and boiled what did it matter? "Very well, very well~" She said in a resigned tone which quickly turned sing song as she moved to rinse the vegetables in the sink. Next she passed the knife over to the Jedi Master, "Please," she flashed the older woman a mischievous smile, "show me your raw talent at such a menial task."

[member="Jyoti Nooran"]

 

[Eugen Aker]

Elizah mentioned something about her times out in the wilderness cooking for herself, but Jyoti was naturally skeptical. She felt like the woman to fib on even the most innocuous things. Regardless of the truth, her bladework was bad.

She could feel Elizah tense for just a moment as their hands made contact, then look up at her. The microexpression said a lot more about the woman than any words. On Jyoti's end, she hadn't really thought much about it, an innocent gesture from one of a race of people who were quite handsy by default.

After a bit of fussing, she handed over the knife. Smiling, she intentionally brushed her fingers over Elizah's hand again as she took hold of the handle.

"I'll be more than happy to show you how to care out this simple menial task the right way."

The first potato was already butchered, so she reached around Elizah for another. Again they came close to touching, but Jyoti avoided contact here as to not totally trigger her.

"You want your cuts to be all even so that the cook the same," she explained as she set the potato against the cutting board. "However, before anything, you want to slice off a small bit on one side of the potato to make a stable base. This will keep it from wobbling and avoid the trouble you had."

She slice it like so, the blade easily passing through the potato like it was only paper thin. She turned the potato on the flat side, then held one end down.

"You saw the way I cut potato? I let the blade do most of the work. When it's properly sharpened like this one is, you shouldn't have to manhandle the object of your cuts."

She proceeded to slice away thin circles of potato with a rapid sawing motion. Within only a matter of a few seconds, she was already halfway through. Then she handed the knife back over to Elizah.

"Here, you take over now. As you get closer to the end, you can use your knuckles against the flat of the blade to guide it, then pull away as you make the next cut. Looks easy enough?"

She returned to her own prep work, pulling out garlic and other seasonings for the steak.

"To answer your question, I'm nothing special. I go out and assist people in need with my gifts. Then at Rest, I teach people how to make the best use of theirs and live in normal society."

Her answer was intentionally vague, not offering much so that Elizah couldn't easily profile her.

"So nothing glamorous. What do you think I do?"

[member="Samka Derith"]

 

[Samka Derith]

Sam's lips pursed somewhat at being spoken down to but at the same time Jyoti clearly had more experience and knew what she wanted. So be it.

"I see, I see," the Ren nodded along at Jyoti's instruction, consciously trying not to flinch again as the Jedi touched her once more. "My way worked fine as well but I can adhere to your methods."

Taking the knife back from the Jedi, she cut the remaining potato as instructed. It was easier but she wouldn't admit that just yet. Nobody had taught her to cook 'properly', it hadn't been necessary. Only the basics for survival were needed in case she ever had to live off the land. Regardless, she muttered a quick 'thank you' as Jyoti returned to her station. Sam breathed a silent sigh of relief to have her personal space back and be away from the older woman's scent.

The answer to her question caused a snort of derision. "We both know there's more to it than that, Master Nooran," she smirked across at the Jedi. "I think you're something very special indeed. What you did back there," she gestured behind her with the knife between cuts to reference their day at the zoo, "that wasn't an easy feat. I don't need my connection to the Force to feel just how much strength you have." The smirk never left the young girl's face, there was something more sinister about it than the ones before, there was less innocence behind it. "I think you're a warrior. A diplomat. A caretaker. An interrogator. A bit of everything. A powerful Jedi Master." Sam's head cocked to the side as she made no effort to hide the way her eyes examined Jyoti from head to toe then nodded a few times. "You are something special."

[member="Jyoti Nooran"]

 

[Eugen Aker]

It was Jyoti's turn to snort as she pulled apart some thyme.

"You certainly do have a way with words. If I was a Sith Lord, then I'd probably be tickled pink right about now. Again, I don't do anything that isn't expected of any of my peers."

The Echani liked to think of herself as a humble person, but it did tickle her a bit earlier in the day when she had impressed Elizah with a raw display of power, which had elicited at least one honest expression from the woman. It was a small change, but their whole dynamic seemed to have changed since then.

She looked over at Elizah's cutting, nodding in approval at what she saw.

"Your cuts are looking much better. After you finish the potatoes, why don't you mix us a salad? I can take it over from here. There's also a box of white wine on the bottom shelf of the fridge."

"So, tell me a story. What are you doing running around in the wilds tomb raiding anyway?"

Elizah came off as being pretty stuck up that she couldn't imagine the woman mucking around under her own volition, which gave Jyoti the impression that she was some kind operative with survival training later in life.

[member="Samka Derith"]

 

[Samka Derith]

"Your peers," Sam repeated with a small nod. "You're quite the question dodger, I can only hope I compare."

She continued to chop the potatoes bit by bit, beaming at Jyoti's praise as she pushed the finished slices to one side. Sam skipped over to the fridge, first pulling out the wine and placing the bottle on the side. She glanced over the label briefly and made a small noise of interest, she'd never particularly enjoyed the taste but Sam had grown rather fond of the sophisticated look a glass of the stuff gave her. Next she took out a collection of vegetables and made a show of glancing over at Jyoti as she took them to the sink for a wash.

"A story? Hmm." Sam bit her lip and made an exaggerated thinking sound. "You see I was out looking for mushrooms when I saw a sweet young girl investigating some ruins. It turned out to be your apprentice and here we are." She beamed brightly at Jyoti. "It's loosely based on real events," the Ren said as she began to shred lettuce. "Emphasis on the loosely. I'm not sure you want to factual version just yet, Master Nooran."

[member="Jyoti Nooran"]

 

[Eugen Aker]

As expected, Elizah didn't tell her much of anything as she cleaned the lettuce. Jyoti let out a small huff of amusement as she seasoned the Shaak steaks with generous helpings of salt and pepper.

"Those must have been some tasty mushrooms to bring you here all way from the Outer Rim." She purposely tossed in a line about Elizah's suspected origin point as bait. "Was this before or after you happened upon the hidden Jedi ruins? Hmmm."

She began to heat a pan full of oil for the steaks, then set them aside to start working on the sauce for the potatoes.

"Tell me another story...why the Dark Side? You certainly don't need it from what I can tell. I believe that you can be quite powerful on your own."

She glanced over at Elizah again, noting her ruby eyes and ashen skin. It was easy to see that she was already quite deeply steeped in the Dark Side despite her youth. Perhaps it was only because of the said vitality of youth that her corruption wasn't even worse...it wouldn't be too long before all those attractive features withered away on the woman's current path.

[member="Samka Derith"]

 

[Samka Derith]

"Hm," Samka cast a curious glance sideways at the taller woman. "I didn't come from the Outer Rim although I was born on Bespin if you must know," she tossed the Jedi Master a truth with such off-handedness that it could easily be a lie. "I didn't much care for mining gas though, I'd much rather pick mushrooms out in the beauty of nature, a forest world like Kashyyyk is ideal. You never know what you'll stumble across there."

She paused, mixing the vegetables she'd cut and shredded together in a bowl. "I... think I'm done." She frowned, not knowing if Jyoti wanted anything else done to the salad.

The Ren let out a soft girlish giggle. "Quite powerful, why thank you. Flattery shall get you nowhere though." She stopped again, tapping her chin while apparently deep in thought. "I don't need it but it certainly helps. It's a powerful ally if you can tame it. The Dark Side is something you must be powerful to begin with. Your, er, friends today," Samka motioned with her head, referring to the zoo incident. "The Dark Side rules them. Perhaps not in the most infamous sense where entire worlds are laid waste by maniacs but they're not as far off as some might think. You have to have control to use the Dark Side without fully succumbing to its desire for mindless destruction. The fact that I can do that makes me worthy of being an ally and not a tool." Sam paused, she'd revealed a little bit more to Jyoti of her mindset than she would have expected. It was nothing dangerous, no critical information, but she enjoyed the discussion and felt that on some level the Jedi Master would understand rather than reject it.

"Give a little, take a little?" Sam turned and batted her lashes up towards Jyoti as she leaned on the kitchen counter. "What makes the Light better for you?"

[member="Jyoti Nooran"]

 

[Eugen Aker]

Bespin.

Elizah could just be lying again, but that was really the first lead she had on the woman. This exercise may finally start bearing fruit. Definitely something to check out later...much later. She enjoyed the company of the Dark Sider more than she liked to admit, able to pick her brain with some burning questions for greater insight.

She looked over at Elizah's salad, finding it quite plain.

"Spice it up a little with more texture and flavors. There's avocados, croutons, cheese, cherry tomatoes - check out the fridge and pantry."

Elizah just seemed to brighten as the topic of the Dark Side came up, giving her prognosis on Jyoti's peers from earlier at the zoo, and making that same claim that all that all addicted Dark Siders made, being in control. Her visible corruption existed as a physical refutation of the said claim.

"They all struggle with with their passions, yes," she agreed with a small nod, now mixing the sauce. "Though I'd like to point out that the two troublemakers aren't Jedi. Miss Porg is a Sith, in fact."

"It's interesting that you don't only see the Dark Side in the literal sense, but as a lifestyle. Maybe I could be someone who goes through life never summoning Force Lightning or Darkshears or whatever popular with the kids today, but I could do just as much harm, if not more, in the way I decide to treat other people. It's how many of the worst people around tend to be self-righteous Jedi without a lick of empathy. That's honestly what bothers me most about you in all this, Elizah, that you tried to hurt a naive girl that really wanted to be your friend, and you keep hurting her with your lies even as she wants the best for you."

Elizah's assumption about Jyoti being her extremist counterpart in the Lightside was funny, which elicited a few chuckles.

"As a Jedi I don't find either the Light or Dark to be better. I believe we need both sides to be whole. There are good things that can come from "negative" emotions, for instance. Anger at injustices can inspire positive change. Envy over someone else's success can motivate self-improvement. And so on and so forth. Too much "virtue" leads to passivity and stagnation, which is what allows awful things like corruption to arise. I have learned from the mistakes of my predecessors who invited chaos with their own brand of extremism."

"I guess if I was to consider myself a champion of anything, it would be for balance and moderation. Could I show you something?"

[member="Samka Derith"]

 

[Samka Derith]

"Um. Indeed," Samka nodded, barely aware of what several of those ingredients were but checked the fridge regardless. At least she knew what cheese was.

"Sith?" She scoffed with a little snort. "You may call a bantha a gundark but that doesn't make it the truth. You are aware that the Sith Empire would do unspeakable things to that woman given the chance? I'll defer to the Sith Emperor to define who is Sith. But... that's beside the point."

Sam sighed as she began to grate the cheese into the salad bowl. "I don't want to hurt Charlie, it's never been a goal of mine. I don't take any pleasure from it. I simply can't trust her nor any of you with the truth yet, you must understand that much. You may not believe this but I'd rather the best for her as well, she's quite the sweet little thing. Quite unlike the majority of Jedi I've met before actually. But that doesn't change history nor ideology. I must keep my guard up."

Her curiosity had however been spiked by Jyoti's explanations. The entire time they'd known each other, this infernal collar had been around the Ren's neck, leaving her unable to deeply analyse the Force signature of the woman. "Always something new," Sam's brow furled as she once more looked the Jedi Master up and down. "I must admit the fact that I'm not dead by now has been a pleasant surprise to show you're not as blindly virtuous as others I've known." Her head cocked to the side. "What is it you wish to show me?"

[member="Jyoti Nooran"]

 

[Eugen Aker]

She had to hold back her own snort as she pointed to Carnifex as some kind of pinnacle of the Sith. If anything, he represented a regression of the Sith ideology, a product of a broken galaxy only just recovering from the apocalypse of the Long Night.

"Carnifex may serve as your personal gatekeeper, but I will continue to defer to the texts of Darth Bane and Darth Vectivus on how to spot a Sith. A mediocre Sith is still a Sith at the end of the day, anyway."

That last comment wasn't only directed at Scherezade.

"If I were to guess...as you're from Bespin then I'd have to imagine most of your exposure to Jedi has come from the New Jedi Order. That would explain a lot."

After Elizah agreed to see what Jyoti had to share, the Echani set aside her mixing spoon, the fished her phone from her back pocket. A few swipes later, and she came upon the image she wanted to share.

"There was a mosaic found as amid Jedi ruins, currently believed to be the oldest to date," she explained as she turned the screen for Elizah to see. "Researchers and locals refer to this image as the "Prime Jedi", perhaps the first Jedi. Tell me, what do you see?"

[member="Samka Derith"]

 

[Samka Derith]

"You see the problem with them is that dead men hold little authority when compared with the living. What Lord Carnifex says holds more weight in this modern galaxy than ancient philosophers," she smiled slightly. "Perhaps we could discuss the finer details over our meal, which I am so finely preparing!"

"I've met Jedi from all over," Sam shrugged at the comment. "I may be from one part of space but I've been all over, it's how I winded up here."

On Jyoti's invitation, Samka frowned, taking a few steps closer to the Jedi Master to peer at the picture.

"I'm afraid if you're looking for additional insight, I'm of limited aid. This is the first I've heard of such a thing as a "Prime Jedi". The young Ren arched a brow up at Jyoti then back to the picture. She needed a moment to make sense of it. The meaning seemed obvious with first glance but it ran contrary to so much of popular belief. "The Dark and the Light." Samka said softly. "I see the Dark and Light balanced between this figure in meditation." She shook her head slightly. "If this is true the ideology has deeply shifted since foundation to the point of being unrecognisable. How fascinating."

She turned her attention fully back up to Jyoti. "Where was this found, Master Nooran?"

[member="Jyoti Nooran"]

 

[Eugen Aker]

She found it odd how dismissive the woman was when it came the wisdom of the old Sith Lords. Even she found some useful nuggets of insight reading them. Death had been accepted and welcome as a necessary requirement for progress, and the pursuit of immortality conversely declared apostasy as it stifled innovation. Such irreverence could explain how the Ren and Modern Sith had drifted so far from the Order of the Sith Lords.

From Jyoti's perspective, that was definitely for the best.

"Then I'm so fortunate that you came down to Kashyyyk for some mushroom hunting, otherwise we may have not crossed paths. I rather enjoy your company truth be told."

Being a sharp one, it didn't take Elizah long to see what Jyoti wanted. One figure, centered between orbs of Light and Dark.

"It was found in some of the oldest Jedi ruins currently known," she told Elizah, intentionally vague in her reply. "Ren come from the Sith, and the Sith from the Jedi, and perhaps the Jedi from this. We may have just found the missing link to all of it. I feel like something was lost from that point to now, and we all currently exist as aberrations, locked in some cyclic conflict without end. Is that how it should be? Do you ever wonder, or is it team Dark Side forever?"

[member="Samka Derith"]

 

[Samka Derith]

"It's never been something I've dwelled on," Sam admitted with a shrug as she returned to her bowl, noticing as well that Jyoti had dodged the question. "A person who seeks to balance the opposite sides of the Force rarely comes out sane in my observations. One side usually consumes the other, sometimes it's not even clear which."

A long distant thought crossed her mind, a memory long since forgotten until now. The Ren shook her head gently to remove it, now was not the time.

"Ah," Sam placed the rest of the cheese back in the fridge and then reached for an unusual fruit of some sorts. She held the bumpy green thing she presumed was an advocado and glanced back blankly at Jyoti. "How do I... erm?"

"But anyway," Sam placed the... thing on the chopping board in front of her. "What makes you think this even matters?" Her line of questioning wasn't dismissive at all, the small girl's tone friendly throughout. Instead she was curious about Jyoti's conclusions, believing the woman was intelligent enough to have reasoning behind her assertion. "You said about learning from the mistakes of the past and the need to adapt, maybe that's why Jedi and Sith are what they are. The Prime Jedi made a mistake and his ways are deeply flawed. The earliest incarnations are rarely the most successful, no?"

[member="Jyoti Nooran"]

 

[Eugen Aker]

Elizah was so intelligent that she found it weird that the woman had never questioned the order of things. Why was that?

"That's not quite true," she said shaking her head, now stacking slices of potatoes into a casserole dish. "There are many neutral organizations out there who seem to have struck a balance. It's not easy, but certainly not impossible."

The deeper conversation came to a momentary pause as Elizah requested help dicing up the avocado.

"Make a light incision around along the skin, then you'll be able to just slide it right off in two parts. All the flesh inside is good, just pick out the seed after slicing the peeled avocado in half."

She poured the creamy white sauce over the potatoes, then slid the dish into an air fryer to bake. Now all that was left was to cook the steaks.

"Doesn't it ever get tiring, watching the so-called Dark and Light go back and forth?" she asked, returning to the conversation. "The Sith Empire, for instance, is currently on version 5.0 or 6.0k, all within the past decade. The Republic seems to be back too, just because. People just seem to keep going through the motions doing the same things with the same results over and over again, and honestly, it's maddening."

"I wish there was another way. It's why this mosaic interests me. Maybe this Prime Jedi doesn't have all the answers and could be the cause of all the problems we face now, but it wouldn't hurt to see what they had to say and gain some knowledge. So much knowledge has been lost to us over the millennia. Maybe it would help if I showed you. It's hard to appreciate this discovery through pictures alone."

[member="Samka Derith"]