The Value Of Life (Loreena Arenais)

[WolfMortum]

"There's never going to be a time in our lives where killing someone is 'Okay" Veiere shook his head, soon moving to take his seat in the co-pilots chair while his daughter worked on getting things running and setting them off on their way to their next destination, "The problem is that we're not always so fortunate to be given the choice. At all times, a Jedi should seek to find an alternative solution to any violent or aggressive situation...-But when we are forced to take a life, we have to consider the consequences, both in killing that person, or what might happen should we choose not to act in the moment".

"There's an old saying that speaks about the greater of two evils...-I don't rightly recall the whole thing but the point of it was that sometimes we're forced to make a bad choice, so that we're able to get the best possible outcome of bad outcomes. Think about a gunmen in a hostage situation for example, if we have the opportunity and he's forcing our hand to act, would you not choose to take his life before he can take the lives of his hostages, innocent victims of his selfish choices..." the subject was a long time debate among many Jedi for their differences nowadays, yet it was a philosophical subject that had always made students consider their future outside of 'black and white' thinking.

"One of these days, you are going to come to a point where you will have to make this choice, just as I have in the past" He turned to glance to Lori, having just admitted that he had killed people before, and that she would likely be forced to do the same one day for the greater good of others; "You will have to live with the consequences of your actions. It is a burden that all Jedi take on, so that others in the Galaxy might not have to know the harsh realities of the lives we lead. There won't always be a way to avoid the loss of sentient life, but take into consideration the worst case scenario and do what you can to achieve the greater good...-That is all that we can ask of ourselves during such times of moral crisis".

[member="Loreena Arenais"]

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori listened carefully. Well, as much as she could while she was also getting the Kingsguard into the air. The weight in the words that [member="Veiere Arenais"] had spoken sunk in. During the Battle for Commenor, she had destroyed some of the enemy fighters, but at times that was done out of anger when she had watched her Dad's ship split in two and she had feared that he had perished. That was a really bad day.

Was she evil in those acts? Or did she help to spare other lives that those Sith pilots would have otherwise of killed?

When he mentioned the scenario of a hostage situation, Lori froze. She had been there before, but her Dad didn't know about it yet. That was about to change.

"After the Sith took over and I escaped and you sent me off to talk to Yasha, I had an incident on my way back to your ship. I made a stop to refuel my fighter and get some food when I saw a broadcast with our faces. We were being hunted. I decided to get out of there as I didn't want to be seen. But it was too late. A rogue Mandalorian that only cared for credits chased me through the shops. A baker let me hide in his shop, but the Mando discovered that. He injured some of the customers and held one of them hostage. I couldn't let him kill any of them, so I gave myself up. If I hadn't of run away from him earlier or hid in that shop, then the others wouldn't of been hurt. I don't know if any of them died. One man was hurt badly in his leg, I know that much. But it was my fault. I shouldn't of left my fighter."

 

[WolfMortum]

"We can't always help it, Lori" Veiere replied gently to his daughter, his gaze turning back for the direction in which they were headed, the skies overhead of Commenor taking his thoughts back to a time where he was in a similar situation himself not so long ago; "[member="Alkor Centaris"], a known and skilled warrior among the Mandalorian Empire managed to best me during an incident on the world of Gree. It was during my exile, right before the invasion of Commenor. It was he who took me into the custody of the Dark Lord of the Sith...." the two had seen and even bloodied each other since, somehow resigning to hold a mutual respect for the others way of life.

"It's not the Jedi way to force our will upon others, nor change how they choose to live their lives. We should only ever intervene when the lives of others are at stake, when people are being oppressed by others", everyone in the Galaxy had a right to choose for themselves what they did and why, it wasn't about becoming a dictatorship to force peace upon the unwilling, but rather about enforcing the consequences for the injustice's done against both the innocence of Society and too the Force itself.

"You gave yourself up for the safety and good of others. This is something you're Mother would hate for me to tell you, but what you did was the right thing..." Veiere glanced back to [member="Loreena Arenais"] with a faint smile and a look of pride, though adding for good caution; "Just don't throw yourself to the wolves needlessly. You can achieve much more for the betterment of people while you still have a future to do so. If you get yourself killed out there, your potential to make a difference in the lives of others will end then and there...-Not to mention I'll have to hunt them down".

Veiere didn't need to elaborate on the last of his words, whether or not they were a joke would be something he hoped no one would ever have to find out.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

"Well, I didn't mean to get myself into that situation.
I didn't know that we were being hunted. But then I found out that we were and had to get to safety." At least [member="Veiere Arenais"] seemed proud of her. It was hard to tell what her Mom would think.

She glanced over at her Dad briefly, trying to imagine him being in custody of the Sith Emperor. It wasn't until she turned her head to face the viewport again that she asked her question. "What was it like when you were held by the Sith? Did they torture you or beat you?" Lori wanted to know in case there came a time that they would catch her too.

It was bound to happen one day or another. One could call it a family curse. For as much times as her Mom would get into trouble, so too did her Dad. Maybe [member="Caedyn Arenais"] got into it the least? It was hard to say.

 

[WolfMortum]

"The battle of Gree was fierce, and [member="Alkor Centaris"] was the better warrior than I, at the time" Veiere replied honestly, though he hoped that his Daughter wouldn't be too frightened by the prospect of her father being overcome by a Mandalorian, given the political side of things. No longer were there concerns as he and Alkor had since come to an agreement...-Yet [member="Loreena Arenais"] didn't know that. Not unless she'd seen the so called "pay-per-view" that [member="Kaine Australis"] had put up.

"As for my capture and time spent with the Sith Emperor...-It could have been far worse. Frankly, had I not been such a high priority and valuable a prisoner that coincided with his plans for taking Commenor, [member="Darth Carnifex"] could have had me killed on the spot then and there. I was after all fighting against the Sith occupation on Gree" it was no small miracle that Veiere had survived the capture, let alone managing to escape and avoid being recaptured by the Bounty Hunter, [member="Koda Fett"].

"It was a fluke, however...-Most people aren't nearly so lucky and I wouldn't chance a visit to the Dark Lord of the Sith, captured and unarmed again, if I could help it" he added, being sure to look to Lori and have her understand that his survival was something of a fairy-tale outcome, a novelty that wasn't a common reality; "Never underestimate the Sith...-They are cunning and most will go to any length to see their goals achieved".

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori had been around [member="Alkor Centaris"] once or twice before. Had she of known that he would capture [member="Veiere Arenais"] for credits and taken him to their enemy, well she just might of punched him REALLY hard. Of course what would have happened afterwards might have been bad and she'd of more than likely been put in her place again. There were some aspects of Mandalorian life that she liked, but others that she just couldn't understand. Most especially where her family were involved.

She continued to steer the ship to where her Dad was taking her, listening as he told her of just hpw lucky he was. But all that it made her think of was what could have happened if she was caught. More than likely she'd be used as a blackmail tool too. Or at worst, she could be killed for not having the strength of the adults.

"Are all Sith bad?
I thought that we had some that were good with us? Has that all changed now?" Of course she was thinking about Uncle Darlyn. And even of the Sith that her and her crew found all alone in an escape pod floating in space where a Star Destroyer had just left. He seemed okay...

 

[WolfMortum]

Veiere took a moment to consider his Daughters question, [member="Loreena Arenais"] not having yet explored much of the theory nor history behind the Dark Side of the Force, nor the Sith themselves. Inhaling audibly, he'd soon release a sigh, exhaling through his nose as his gaze returned to the view-port before them both.

"Those who follow the Dark Side of the Force, aren't inherently bad people...-But the Dark Side does make them a dangerous risk. Your uncle [member="Darlyn Excron"] is a good example of this...-He's family to your Mother and I, and we care about him as if he were our own blood...-But he is also prone to acting rashly, using his emotions to fuel his actions and far more likely to resort to violence than Kay or myself", and Darlyn knew all too well that Veiere had been mindful of his alignment in the Force, ever since their first meeting. He did not judge people by their beliefs or life-style however, it was the actions that spoke loudly for their integrity or lack there of, that ought to be taken largely into consideration where searching for a reason to intervene. It wasn't the Jedi way to impose one's will upon others after-all, only to step in when there were lives at risk of being harmed or worse.

"The Sith and the Jedi are both intimately connected in history, dating centuries back to the very first Force Practitioners that would make up the Ancient Je'daii Order...-The very same Order your Brother follows, though it's a rarely heard of nowadays", Veiere glanced back to Lori whom might have been surprised to hear that Caedyn was following the same path as those that came before them. "This Order had followers of both the Lightside of the Force, and the Dark. They called these Ashla and Bogan, and looked to the Moon's of Tython to be manifestations of the Force...-Almost like deities".

"Of course, you know that today those of the Light and of the Dark Side, do not see eye to eye. It might surprise you to hear that it was the Followers of Ashla, the Lightsiders who acted first to confront those of the Darkside, fearing that they would bring about conflict and aggression, that ultimately started the first of the Force Civil Wars...", something that Veiere had learned from Caedyn's Master, [member="Asha Hex"]. She of whom held an extremely rare ability to flow walk. An ability that allowed her to experience events of the past, as if she had been there herself.

"It's sadly ironic, really...-That their fear of losing the peace they had over Tython, started the feud that we see between the Jedi and the Sith Empire today".

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori remembered some times when she acted on her emotions. Most recently it was during the liberation, when she had thought that [member="Veiere Arenais"] had died. She fired upon Sith fighters almost blindly, wanting to get back at them for all the pain that that was causing. Yet it was [member="Orrico Wayke"] that calmed her down and brought her back to her senses. She was glad to have him with her on her crew.

She looked to her Dad as he mentioned what Cae was learning. It took a lot to hold back her snicker as he spoke of Bogan. To her that sounded like something that would come out of Cae's nose. It was a silly name for something Dark. Maybe the whole thing was silly. But people died over it.

Her brows furrowed as he let her know of the history. It didn't really come to her surprise that it was the good guys that acted and attacked first. Wasn't that something that still happened? She learned of that in some of her history lessons.

"They acted out of fear of what could happen. That would be like us attacking the Sith or the First Order in order to stop them from attacking us, right? But that would only give them more reason to attack and just make things worse instead of better..." Lori chewed the inside of her cheek. She wasn't sure of what was going to happen now, just as she wasn't sure of where her Dad was leading them.

He sure liked to be mysterious.

"Will I get a Lightsaber like Cae?"

 

[WolfMortum]

"It's a sad fact that keeps repeating itself all across the Galaxy, year after year..." Veiere commented under his breath as he looked ahead, a familiar sight of the Canyon rockies suggesting their imminent arrival to the final resting place of the CSA Resolute, the very ship that his Daughter had thought Veiere had died on during the siege over the orbit of their home-world. It was a bleak remark, but unfortunately true for the numerous times that Veiere and Kay had both seen many a government go to war with one-another.

"Becoming a Jedi isn't about rushing to war and playing the hero, no matter what the holo-vids may make of us. Being a Jedi is about striving to make the smallest possible difference in a galaxy at war with itself. To help others when so few are willing or prepared to step outside of their own lives and offer a hand to those less fortunate than themselves..." and there were so many in today's society that could so easily become victims of war, purely by being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Commenor for example had tried to do nothing but help others, yet the civilians of this world were enslaved and killed because of their families unwillingness to surrender to the Emperor and Dark Lord of the Sith.

"The lightsaber is the symbol of every Jedi, not to be thought of as a weapon but as a deterrence to violence. Always our last resort when diplomacy fails to resolve a problem" Veiere turned back to look to [member="Loreena Arenais"] with a somewhat serious look. "You will be receiving your first variation of the lightsaber when we reach our destination. We should only be moments away now...-But it's not a toy, and yours will be a training saber until you prove yourself ready both in practice and maturity, to wield a full frequency model".

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

If the past kept repeating, no matter what others did to try to stop it, then why did so many bother to try?

Because nothing would change if they didn't. And it could get worse.

Lori kept her eyes forward and focused on flying. As they neared the Canyons, she saw the remnants of their flagship in it's final resting place. She always wanted to go exploring in it, but hadn't found the time. Well now was her chance!

"Just like you and Mom do, right?" She was of course, referencing what makes a Jedi a Jedi. Both her parents were known for their selflessness and of helping everyone out.

Awesome! She'll be getting her own lightsaber!!! Lori sat up straighter and just beamed with excitement. Her Mandalorian training didn't come with yielding lightsabers. It dealt more with target practice and hand-to-hand combat. And of course her piloting and mechanical engineering. Come to think of it, it had been a while since she tinkered...

"Oh don't worry, Dad.
I'd probably lay out traps before I use a lightsaber. Unless it's a Sith attacking me with his, then I'd HAVE to use it." Not like she could stop the Sith from attacking by entertaining it with a few particles of light dancing in the air. That'd be silly.

[member="Veiere Arenais"]

 

[WolfMortum]

"As reassuring as that might seem, you can at-least ensure your opponent lives while practicing the use of a lightsaber. The first form that I'll teach you and one that all Jedi first learn focuses on disarming your opponent, once you've gotten the hang of handling the blade...".

Veiere smiled as the thought of practicing the saber arts with his daughter came to the front of his mind, imagining the two of them sharing in sparring matches would be a great time and way of building upon their relationship. It was a shame really that he hadn't taken Caedyn under his wing as well, though his Son already held plenty of training under his belt, not to mention the Je'daii were an Order Veiere was far less familiar with.

"Right...-Looks like this is it" Veiere soon motioned to the navigations display, their co-ordinates coming into meters of their target now. The massive Star-Destroyer that had fallen down upon the world of Commenor now clouding most of the view from the cockpot, spanning from one side to the other, there'd be no hiding their current destination from [member="Loreena Arenais"] now; "Set us down on the eastern flank of the Canyon and we'll walk the rest of the way...".

​

​

Twin Canyons - The Resolute's final resting place.​

​

There wasn't anything overly mysterious about this place unlike the dead scar that held such an effect on the flow of the Force Itself. Lori's Father had simply brought them this far north of the Capital for his daughter to see and understand that technology could only bring people so far, but that life could and often did carry so much greater potential when pushed beyond their limits. Veiere had been stationed upon this very ship during the initial battle to free Commenor. The CSA Resolute having taken a devastating hit by one of the larger Sith Flagships, The Saturn.

He hadn't known at the time but Lori had watched the impact and subsequent downing of the Resolute, fearing her father's death in that moment while she and her crew fought to hold off the assault of fighters and Sith Interceptors. Though the battle had eventually been won, it had been hard fought and many had died within the first stage of the conquest, not to mention the battle down upon the Surface.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

"Disarm and disable. Got it!" Of course that wasn't exactly what [member="Veiere Arenais"] had said. He only mentioned disarming. But to Lori, if the opponent wasn't disabled too, then she could get attacked by other means.

The Resolute looked much bigger on the ground than it did in space. Perhaps that was due to seeing the scale of it in comparison to the canyons themselves. Either way, it was awe inspiring.

"Roger that, Dad." She brought the Kingsguard down gently, powering her down once the landing was completed. Her eyes never really left the Resolute though. "Can it ever be fixed?" Some shipbuilders could do miracles. It was hard to tell the extent of the danage from here.

 

[WolfMortum]

Veiere shook his head in response to his daughters question as they began to make the trek towards the downed Goliath of a starship, the Resolute had been an assault cruiser and in comparison to they two, did indeed look truly massive from their present perspective on the ground; "She'll never fly again, however there has been talk of using the Resolute's remaining salvageable sections to create a new military facility close to the Capital that we can organize a fighting front with more efficiency than we have had in the past...".

"There's a number of reasons as to why we're here...-But the first and perhaps the most important is to understand that no matter how great our weapons or technology, no matter how confident we may feel behind these war machines or with the possessions that we own, the Force and the influence of Life is the one true thing that you can rely on..." Veiere began to explain his train of thought as they moved atop the Canyon ridge en-route to the derelict Destroyer.

"Rarely, does a plan ever go as intended...-And the fact is that Commenor has one of the smaller fleets compared to the greater political powers across the Galaxy. With this in mind however, it's also good to realize that even if there's a small chance of overcoming the odds, it's better to try and fight for the betterment of society and the people we care about. Giving up, only means that failure is a certainty where, with the Force as our ally, hope is never truly lost until we admit defeat".

[member="Loreena Arenais"]

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori quickly grabbed some water before she exited the ship. The Canyons tended to be hot at times and she needed to keep hydrated.

Her steps were lively as she caught up to [member="Veiere Arenais"] , listening as he explained about the unfortunate fate of the Resolute. Here for all eternity...

At least it'd be an AWESOME place to explore!

Her brows furrowed in thought as he explained further about the futile reliability on technology that plenty of people had. Machines and tech could be destroyed, but the Force couldn't. That was probably what he was saying.

Lori took a sip of her water. Don't give up? Well now that was fantastic advice. She was as stubborn as anything! So that meant that...that was a good thing! Yes!

Something else about that came to mind though, especially where Commenor was concerned. "Mom gave up though.
She gave up Commenor to the Sith. Was that the wrong thing for her to do?" Giving up COULD have saved the lives of others. But then such a thing conflicted with what she felt that her Dad was trying to say.

 

[WolfMortum]

"Your Mom never really gave up, but she was forced to recognize when a battle was lost. The Sith taking Commenor would always bring about War to our World, but the battle that claimed Munto City and held so many more lives at risk gave her little choice but to surrender for the time, that the greater good could be spared needless sacrifice. It was the best option she could have taken".

[member="Lady Kay"] still often blamed herself and questioned her decision made back then, yet Veiere firmly stood by the surrender and supported her still to this day for all that she had done to protect her people first, before her pride. Not all were so willing to take a loss of reputation or political credit like she had that day, but in the end, so many innocent would-be victims had been saved thanks to her foresight.

"And even though she didn't realize that I had been captured at the time, she had always believed that I would do everything within my power to retake Commenor and return our home to it's former glory. Your Mother is a wonderful diplomat, but she too understands that there are times where fighting is inevitable and in my past experience, she found a small amount of confidence to maintain her dignity and moral compass, even within Sith Custody. So really...She never truly gave up".

Veiere smiled fondly down to his daughter, [member="Loreena Arenais"], one half of the future of House Arenais and a Legacy that he and her Mother would one day leave behind when their time was at an end.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori listened to [member="Veiere Arenais"] very intently. He gave her an insight into the situation that she hadn't really thought of before. Maybe deep down she knew of it, but it hadn't come to the surface at all until now.

"I hope that I'm never put in that kind of situation.
I'm not sure what I'd do, really. I mean, it could happen with me and my crew, but on a much smaller scale. I just don't have the enemies that you and Mom have. After the liberation...I think that the Sith and hunters stopped bothering to look for us."

That was her experience, anyways. She had been lucky at being able to escape them when she did. The last thing that she wanted was to be used against her brother or her parents.

Lori took another sip of her water and then eyed the Resolute as they got closer to it. "We're going inside, right?"

 

[WolfMortum]

Veiere nodded to [member="Loreena Arenais"] as they neared the great fallen war-bird; "You are, yes" he answered her, "Though it's not safe so be on your guard. The Resolute was made of numerous expensive materials, electrical wiring and metals, computing components and the like. While we're here, it seems only fit that you take a look and consider what could be the future components to your own Lightsaber. After all, every student under the Jedi Order is responsible for the creation of their own".

As for Veiere himself, he had no purpose returning to the great vessel. "I'll await your return outside. Look to the Force for guidance if you find yourself uncertain or at a loss. Take as much time as you need, and explore the best you can if that's your wish. We're in no rush" He smiled to his daughter reassuringly, quite comfortable, complacent even to take a step back and give her the opportunity to roam and scavenge from the great crash site.

"You won't find the exactly components of course, for that we will reshape and work on crafting them together, but for now, consider what materials you'd like for your Lightsaber. If you don't find anything that fits your choosing, then consider it a chance to explore the past. There is always tomorrow, after all".

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori paused for a moment. She was going in by herself? That was a little strange to her. But then she continued walking while [member="Veiere Arenais"] explained further.

Her expression lifted however as he let her know the purpose. She was collecting components for her OWN lightsaber! Ha! And how fitting that they come from such a capital ship that protected their homeland too! It was such an honour! And one that she wasn't going to waste.

She took another sip of her water and then grinned after swallowing the cool liquid down. Already her mind was working on figuring out what she'd need and where to find it. Lori had already built herself a jetpack of her very own. Plus she helped tinker in Jaster's ship and learned a lot about engineering and creating her own mechanical wonders. The knowledge was great in helping her to rig traps in the escape tunnels under Chasin City for the Sith to fall prey in.

Just as she was about to go in and leave her Dad to wait outside, she paused and looked over to him. "Has the Resolute been cleared? You know...of bodies?" Surely there'd of been many that had died within her, both before and during the crash. Lori just wanted to prepare herself.

 

[WolfMortum]

Veiere's hand reached out to take his daughters shoulder in a comforting grasp as he replied, her question about the bodies causing him to near chuckle, though the memories still lingered and kept him from finding reason to disrespect the dead in such a way. "Yes" he paused a moment before gesturing to the vast fallen giant, "After the battle, we had medevac personnel on site as soon as we could to ensure that any and all survivors were returned to their families. We've salvaged everything we could as far as data goes, so even if you find a working terminal, you'll find it wiped of it's programming. Aside from that, the ship has been left as you see it...".

This wasn't to say however that there hadn't been other vagabonds and rogues that had come to seek to salvage whatever they could from the downed starship, Commenor was a nice world but it certainly wasn't free of it's criminal activity, especially so far out from the City settlements. "Just a word of caution, other's could have come and gone from the ship already. I don't sense anything unusual about our surroundings but do be careful. You never know who you might bump into so far out from the Capital. Curiosity does often get the better of us, after all" He smiled then, a knowing smile to [member="Loreena Arenais"] who so often let her curiosity venture.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori breathed a sigh of relief. It was hard to hide it, but she was quite glad that she wouldn't be running into the dead. Especially after all these months.

She gave [member="Veiere Arenais"] a small smile. "I'll be careful, Dad."

A hug was what she departed him with, before she hurried inside. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the change in light. Everything was at an angle as the Resolute didn't land flush to the ground. Large boulders and the canyon walls prevented that. The slight angle was enough to make anyone dizzy. So Lori did the best that she could and kept her eyes on her feet.

She licked her bottom lip as she climbed into one of the corridors, trying to recall the layout of the ship. "If I was engineering....where would I be?" There was bound to be plenty of components for her there. Lori kept one hand on the wall as she walked. A grin grew on her face. Here she was, alone in a massive vessel. She'd have a great echo for sure! But first she wanted to find what she needed. There was time for play after that.

Sounds of creaking was heard as she moved, the weight of the vessel still settling as the temperatures in the air heated and cooled the metal surfaces. It was enough to make anyone think that there were ghosts on board.

Hopefully there wasn't.