Matma settled in, catching up with old acquaintences.
"Bernu'mat'manadu... It is good to see you well," Ari greeted in their native language of Cheunh with a respectful cant of her dark head towards the Imperial Knight,
"Well met, Brask'ari'sabosen. It warms my heart to see House Sabosen represented among us- and you representing them", Matma replied in accented Cheunh, dipping his head in response.
For the first time in a while, Khalani smiled. "Matma, it's good to see you well," he greeted, holding out a hand to shake. Memories of the last time the two had met came flooding back. The slavers, the Hellions, and that one Mandalorian that had been detained. And of course, his command aboard his cruiser the Peacemaker.
"And you, Khalani. For an undertaking such as this, I am heartened to have a warrior like you among us", Matma replied, grasping his hand. "We did good work once, fighting for our people. I sense we will be needed for me of that good work."
Soon thereafter, the Chiss old enough to remember Csilla regaled the younger ones of the beauty of the homeworld. The glory of the Ascendancy. Matma sat silently, unable to speak as he realized that younger Chiss- the ones of the diaspora, the ones raised after the Cataclysm- seemed to outnumber the older ones.
Then, Dr. Sila spoke:
"This is Chiss Space. Or so it was. Now it's just another sector of space where whatever species of cutthroat, vagabond, or otherwise call home. Even the Galactic Alliance has laid claim to some of it, taking what worlds they could 'save'. We're going to take it back. All of it. We must rebuild the Chiss Ascendancy. It will take time. A tremendous amount. If we don't, within a few generations, it will be forgotten. A distant memory to us and forgotten footnote for the rest of the galaxy. I called you all to Thearterra because it is the only place that could be considered safe enough for us to gather in number. From here, we will gather our strength and rebuild. We will go into more detail once we get into contact with more of our people. For now, you all will return to your normal lives, as you wish. Continue living as you were as to not arise suspicion. I will call you when you are needed. Or, if you wish to stay, help me rebuild here, then I will not refuse the assistance. The decision is yours. Either way, you will become an integral part to what we are doing. Not just for us in this room, but all of our people."
Matma stood up.
"Me and my
Hellions will stay to guard this facility- many of us fought the Maw, with the Empire- until the
Empire betrayed us. Now, we fight for our people. Additionally, my contribution will be
this."
Plunging his hand into his cloak, Matma withdrew a
Holocron.
"It seemed almost a lifetime ago...I was trained by the Imperial Knights, to defend the First Order. I became Ser Matma Bernu, head of the Knights. I taught many. And learned much. I preserved all of the teachings of the First Order, all what I have learned in my travels...in this holocron.
"We thought the monsters that sundered Csilla were vanquished at Exegol. We were wrong. I sense...a
great coming darkness. I have heard rumors- rumors of those monsters
pillaging Onderon, allied with the Empire. We must rebuild...but we must be prepared to defend our people from those who would seek to lay us low once more.
"What I ask is this: for the ones with the
Sight, send them to this facility. If they cannot travel, I will come get them. But bring the
ozyly-esehembo here
, and I shall train them in the ways of the Force."
Tiecia
|
Aaaine
|
Plikh'ala'niu (Khalani)
|
Rakom|
Stybla'rei'naodo|
Teorme
|
Karisa
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