Retracing Steps

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Connor Harrison"]

"Rise then, Connor," she stated. Years and years of slow prods, gentle words, harsh actions, a welcoming ear had all led to this... Connor pledging himself to her and the Sith. She always did enjoy the game of turning someone, and while Connor's had been... rather haphazard, the game had been fun. The dark side was pleased, but the process was not done just yet.

"You'll need to choose a new name, one to show your loyalty to the dark side and the Sith," she said. "The dark side will reveal it to you, all you need do is listen to your innermost truth."

Her words were quiet, intended to draw him deeper into the well. Once his name, his Sith name, came to him, she would continue in a more business-like tone.

"With the war between the Alliance and the First Order starting to heat up again, we must play this conflict to our advantage," she said. "When the Grand Marshal dies and I replace him, it will set in motion a chain of events that will ignite the fire within the Alliance to once again turn all attention to countering the darkness. Peace will be drowned out in a rush of fiery passion and militancy, and the Jedi will want to destroy the organization they encounter on Byss. To that end, we must lead the trail back to the First Order. That's where you come in. Can you hazard a guess what your task is?"

 

[Connor Harrison]

For a moment, he said and did nothing. Just rested on bended knee and replayed his path to here in seconds.

Rhen Var. Voss. Nar Shaddaa. Tatooine. Ziost. Dosuun. Mustafar. Skor. Maena.

All his footprints of the Jedi and the pain and time he had spent fighting for them nearly washed away forever.

So, Connor rose and nodded slowly to Taeli. A new name? His eyes fell for a second as he thought, maybe a little too hard. Then, he stopped thinking and just was himself looking at nothing on the ground. No thought, just letting the Force talk to him.

It came without his own reasoning.

”Craith.”

That was it. That was Connor. He found her face again.

”It means scar. A wound or mark that has not healed and so covered by tissue that hides the permeant mark left. Without mine I would not be here. I am the scar of the Jedi that will never heal, and that is what I will be. ”

There was determination in his voice as he hoped the natural discovery of a name would suffice without much thought and planning.

”As for your plan, I assume my role will be leaving breadcrumbs for the Alliance to follow and urging the Order to let me be the one to unknowingly drop them as you command?”

[member="Taeli Raaf"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Connor Harrison"]

"Partially, Lord Craith," she replied, putting particular emphasis on his new name. It was good name for a Sith, and the more he heard it and identified himself with it, the better. She wouldn't bestow the honorific of Darth on him, not yet. "When the Grand Marshal dies, the Jedi of the New Jedi Order will embrace a zeal unseen, even during their conflict with the One Sith Empire. This war will not be the pitiful little scuffle between the First Order and the Alliance had previously. No, this one will be much broader... and far more deadly. There will be no peace this time, not until one side is completely and utterly broken."

She looked out at the crowd, a cruel smirk in place as she pondered how many of those poor hapless souls would die in the fires of this Great Galactic War.

"While you will be leaving a trail of crumbs for the Alliance to follow straight back to the First Order, they will also need to be... energized. The servants of Sieger Ren must have the same zeal as the Jedi, both orders exhausting themselves upon each other in a ceaseless circle of conflict. It will be your task, Lord Craith, to see that this comes to pass... and if you so happen to find others that might prove useful, who might be inclined to join the Sith and forsake their Supreme Leader in secret... it will only help in the end."

Silence stretched for a moment.

"The complete and utter ascension of the Sith and the dark side."

 

[Connor Harrison]

Connor lowered his head in silent thanks, and quietly stood beside Taeli looking out as she unfurled her bold intention. Bold but not impossible, and not without danger. While superpowers picked themselves apart, that was the time to strike.

”My only concern is that won't be as easy as it once may have been, my Lady.”

He gave a sigh, but one of contempt rather than self loathing.

”I am without guidance in the First Order. I have no allies, no leaders. Their changes since Skor have been kept from me despite my being involved with a number of operations. They don't trust me, and to that extent I know that my influence is near dead with them. As is my patience.”

There was a hint of resentment in his voice, and frustration at himself for trying so hard.

”I couldn't even tell you how their Ren operate. I know this isn't what you may want to hear, but I will try. I did encounter a few of the Alliance allies who seemed ready to crack. Maybe they could also be used to weaken the Jedi influence?”

[member="Taeli Raaf"]

 

[Taeli Raaf]

[member="Connor Harrison"]

"Hmm, then we will have to go about this another way," she said quietly, thinking. She couldn't say she was too brokenhearted over the Ren being so... obstinate in regards to Connor. It just confirmed to her, yet again, that the Ren had no idea what they were truly doing. She wasn't concerned about turning GA allies as of yet, but one or two might not be a bad idea. A few new agents elsewhere would only help move other pieces of the board. Still, they needed some way to completely incense the Ren.

"It would seem to me... that while we do false flag operations that lead back to the First Order, we will have to do the same in reverse," she stated. "It shouldn't be too hard, especially with the Alliance planning some assaults already. I leave it to you to decide how you want to do this, and you will have access to whatever you need. Consider my vast resources at your disposal for whatever operations you want to run."

 

[Connor Harrison]

Looking out at the race, Connor watched some of the pods zip along the home stretch, thin streaks of dust zipping up behind the engines.

”I guess the power base I had is now gone. They won’t let me in again, they never truly did. There’s nothing I can say that will cause them to pay attention to that of a war criminal so I’ll have to re-think things.”

There was nobody within the First Order anymore to meet with. Even the good doctor Irajah had vanished. As for the Alliance, he knew a few names, but again, his insignificance wouldn’t be cause for concern with larger threats out there.

”You know me. Logical thinking isn’t my strong suit. You pull the strings, I jump. That’s how it works.”

He turned to her.

”Don’t forget me when your internal Alliance plan takes off – maybe then I could be more use to you in getting your hands dirty without them even touching anything?”

[member="Taeli Raaf"]