Battle Scared
Ch.1 War crimes
She was silent as she walked. Her head hung low and her eyes looking down at the floor. She noticed two sets of armored feet moving in her peripheral vision but was quick to ignore them. They were just two men among the dozen that were assigned as "escorts" to her new, unwilling place of residence. At first, she thought about using the metal cuffs to strike the guard closest to her, but Barriss Offee knew such actions would amount to nothing. She knew long before being accompanied by a dozen armed escorts that all she had left to do was go where she was told and think about what lead her to this moment.
She was a young mirialan woman whos very beliefs had been shaken to the point of seeing the Jedi, an order of peacekeepers and philosophers that had she once been proud to be a part of as a fraud. She was convinced that the Jedi council had allowed the order to become nothing more then soldiers and conquers who despite what saying otherwise were just as willing to wage war as their enemies. This realization made Barriss not only renounce the order and the republic but decide that a statement needed to be made, a statement that would show all government officials who only discuss and spectate the Clone Wars what it's effects look like up close. It would also show all young, impressionable Jedi what would be in store for them if they take part in the fighting.
This statement came in the form of a bomb implanted in a man serving the jedi at their temple. The explosion killed dozens, Jedi and civilian alike just as Barriss intended. An attack so violent in the republic's capital and the Jedi's home was sure to cause an uproar of protest against the war. Such an idea was all Barris needed to remove any sense of remorse for those caught in the blast.
When the deed was done there was one important thing Barriss had yet to do, have the blame be cast on someone else; another Jedi who at first Barriss had thought about leaving be only because in the past she called that Jedi her friend. But friendship did not change what Ashoka had become to Barriss, nor did it effect the thoughts she now had about her master and the rest of her once esteemed order. So she framed her once good friend and was had almost gotten away with it but was discovered at a crucial time by Ashoka's master, Anakin Skywalker.
Barriss tried to kill him quickly while they were alone in her room, but that lead to the two dueling throughout the Jedi temple until at last Barriss was outdone by Anakin's experience and strength. She was presented to the court, where she told them her reasons without any regret. Although she had been caught, in her mind she did not completely fail. She believed her statement could still open the eyes of those blinded by battle and help them step away from it before the dark side of the force clouded their minds further.
After being presented to the court she was given an official trial that many of the Jedi order's council members attended. She was almost given the death penalty what little support Barriss had during the trial convinced the court she a thing was not necessary.
Chancellor Palpetine himself addressed the public on the matter, calling it a tragedy and ensuring the public that Barriss would be imprisoned in Coruscants most secure facility and also insisted that the Jedi order itself not be blamed to ensure civilians won't try to seek vengeance but also to ensure the Jedi could continue to play their part in the chancellors agenda.
After the declaration, Barriss was moved from her imprisonment in the Jedi temple and was now on her way to the Republic Judiciary Central Detention Center accompanied by a dozen of the republics senate guard. She was forced to change into an orange prison jumpsuit, making her her dark brown hair hang freely down to the base of her neck. She also had to wear specially designed handcuffs that bound her hands and wrists and would not release them unless those who were authorized deactivated them.
With her recollections complete Barriss turned her thoughts from the past to the present, she had just stepped off the transport shuttle and was now walking towards the entrance of the Detention Center located at the top of the massive prison. It was designed with the intention of allowing the guards constant observation of their prisoners, the top of the towering facility was where the guards ate, slept and watched over the inmates with state of the art surveillance systems.
Barriss guessed she would be handed off to the shocktroopers that were given guard duty instead of the front lines of the war that bared their name but was surprised to see two Jedi standing in front of the detention center doors. A bald, Caucasian human male with a small brown goatee and a pale yellow skinned Twi'lek both wearing traditional Jedi garbs and robes. Judging by the age they appeared to be Barriss assumed they were both experienced Jedi knights. As she approached the two men she could feel their worries towards her repressed behind reminders of Jedi teachings and masks of blank expressions.
"Greeting Barriss." The human Jedi said when the company of royal guard officially presented her to the Jedi. "I am Tyree Bulvare, this is Kovo Novuuna."
"We will be taking you to your cell." Kovo said with a calm, hushed tone of voice. "Please follow us."
With that said the royal guards left Barriss in the hands of Tyree and Kovo before heading back to the transport shuttle and boarding it. As that happened Barriss walked through the detention center entrance and then towards the elevator with Kovo at her left and Tyree a her right.
"Did the council not think I was secure enough without your help?" Barriss asked with slight sarcasm, though she was still curious about why Tyree and Kovo were there.
"You are not the only one we are here for." Tyree said as they stepped into the elevator.
"What do you mean by that?" Barriss asked while looking up at Kovo.
"There are others who have lost their way during the war." Kovo said as he turned his head to Barriss's direction. "We must keep them here, despite wishing otherwise."
Barriss scoffed and rolled her eyes at Kovo's remark, her reaction made Tyree's face have a brief twitch of anger before he calmed himself with deep breath through his nose.
"Am I the one who's lost their way?" Barriss asked Kovo with a serious tone and expression. "Tell me, when exactly did the Jedi allow themselves to become no better then soldiers and prison guards?"
"We do what we must to protect the republic and it's people." Tyree replied, his frustraion starting to show in his voice.
"Is that so?" Barriss asked sarcastically, she could sense Tyree's exposed feelings and decided to see how far he could pushed. "What do you think will happen if the republic wins this war?
"The Jedi will help them capture count Dooku and restore peace. Then the people will realize that and all those who sided with the separatists were nothing more then failed tyrants." Tyree answered confidently.
"Do you really believe It's that simple? That all those who follow the separatists would surrender so easily? That defeating one man like Dooku could end an entire war?" Barriss was not surprised by Tyree's simplicity, Jedi are not meant to have a full understanding of war which made their participation all the more disheartening to her. "The fighting would not stop, the republic would be keen to wipe out any factions of resistance left and the Jedi would offer to help without a second thought. Because that is all we are now, tools of war made from the dark side and crafted by our own ignorance."
"How dare you?" Tyree said with his anger showing again. "How dare you still think of yourself as a Jedi after what you've done?"
"That is enough." Kovo stated firmly, knowing he had to put a stop to the conversation before Barris made Tyree's anger turn to hate.
"No, it isn't." Tyree said while glaring back at Kovo, making the Twi'lek worry even more. "Answer me." Tyree stared at Barriss as he waited for his answer.
"I did not attack the order." Barriss replied calmly, no longer focused on goading Tyree as she explained herself. "I opened its eyes, showed everyone what we have thrown away our teachings to be apart of. You say I am no longer a Jedi, but I say I the only one who remembers what that should mean."
"You think what you did would be taken as a lesson?" Tyree asked with his right fist clenched. "Slaughtering innocents what meant to help?!" Tyree's voice was now raised, he tried to step towards Barriss but was stopped by Kovo's hand on his shoulder.
"Enough!" Kovo said with a raised voice as he stopped Tyree.
Tyree could see a a smirk on Barriss's face, despite his arguments he had begun to lose that which had always been key for a Jedi; his composure. This made him realize that his response was only adding to Barriss's belief that the Jedi were losing their way. After a few tense seconds went by Tyree decided to stepped back, take another deep breath and refuse to allow Barriss to enrage him again.
"We will have talk about this." Kovo said to Tyree out of concern.
"I know." Tyree replied quietly.
A few more moments of silence passed before Barriss realized something, they were still descending. She knew the detention center was a large compound even by Coruscant's standards but she also knew the cells were placed in the tower connecting the prisons base to the command center at the top. This made her wonder why they were taking so long when they could just take her to whatever cell she was assigned to via hover platform.
"Where are you taking me?" Barriss asked Kovo.
"The republic has decided that in a case such as yours...the highest security is needed." Kova stated, not hiding not the conflicting emotions he felt with such orders.
"I see." Barriss said with her eyes on the elevator doors.
Barriss now understood what would await her and for that reason let the last minute of the elevators decent be quiet. She stood ready to face whatever would be in store on the other side of the doors, not flinching physically or mentally when she could feel the elevator reach it's destination.
The doors opened with half a dozen men waiting on the other side. Five of them were standard prison shocktroopers, each with standard issue armor and equipment. The sixth man was not a clone and not a regular guard. He wore a uniform instead of armor, black boots, grey pants and a red overcoat that matched the red on parts of the shocktroopers armor. His thin, gray head of hair and slightly wrinkled face portrayed him as a man past his prime but his posture and direct way of speaking made it clear to Barriss that he was a man with experience in his field.
"Hello miss Offee." The old man said to Barriss as she stepped out the elevator with Kovo and Tyree. "I am your warden, you may refer to me as such or as Captain Lerron and nothing else." He said with emphasis on the last two words. "If you have any questions, ask them now."
In the brief silence before she replied, Barriss observed one thing about the captain. He was looking down on her, both literally and morally. It was a look she had become very familiar with since being caught, one Barriss thought she would be forced to get used to. Lerron was looking at her the same way she knew so many at her trial did, like she nothing more then a criminal.
"Where am I?" Barriss asked.
"The detention center's lowest point, also known as the maximum security level." Captain Lerron replied. "This is where we keep many of the most vile, dangerous and unstable criminals the republic has been forced to deal with. Considering the nature of your crimes you will be classified under all three." Lerron was not joking when he said that. "Anything else?"
"What makes this place so secure?" Barriss asked, hoping to learn anything useful about the prison security systems.
"You'll see soon enough." Lerron replied, dismissing the question. "Let's be on our way."
Lerron and his men lead Barriss with Tyree and Kovo following behind. Before getting to the actual cells Barriss was brought through the lower levels command center. Barriss saw rows of clones monitoring cameras and dozens more in full armor doing various duties. She saw only one door connecting the command center to the rest of the lower level and assumed the design was intentional. When she was lead through the cells Barriss observed everything from the wide, hexagon shaped hallways that were entirely black to the small, orb shaped cameras that were at every corner and center of the hallways.
The lower levels architecture was simple, but effective. It was essentially a spiders web with the command center appropriately placed in the middle with the only elevator. Beyond that was a hallway that went all the way around the command center and branched out into eight directions. Each of these separate paths dozens of prisoners kept in simple, square cells and then connected to another hallway that went all the way around before the paths continued.
Barriss saw six squads of guards on the way to her cell, five clones assigned to each of them. She also got a clear view of the type of prisoners kept in the lower levels, the worst kind. These were not simple brutes or thieves, they were madmen and the most vicious types of criminal. If a prisoner wasn't a huge, savage monster or a screaming lunatic they were just cold and quiet. It was the cold ones that caught Barriss's attention, in the rest she sensed nothing but rage and unbalance but the quiet ones often the opposite. They were calm and likely waiting for their chance to escape.
To be sane and sent to the lower level means you had committed the most horrid of atrocities and shown no remorse, this fact become clear to Barriss as the group leading her was approaching her cell.
"Sergeant, the door." Lerron ordered.
One of the clone trooper's used an access card to deactivate the orange ray shield covering the cell. The cell wasn't cramped but was in no way luxurious. Inside was a one person bed placed in the left corner with a sink and toilet on the opposite wall. "Get in." Lerron said to Barriss without sympathy.
Barriss did as was told without complaint, she knew there was no other logical choice in this situation. After she stepped inside one of the guards reactivated the ray shield, sealing her inside.
"You will be given three meals per day, you will not be given time outside and you will have no visitors unless the Jedi council and the supreme chancellor allow it." Lerron said before pointing at Tyree and Kovo. "These two will be here for five more days, then they will switch with two other Jedi."
"Is that really necessary?" Barriss asked.
"As I said, you're not the only one were here for." Tyree answered.
Barriss wasn't sure what Tyree meant, but was then clarified by another prisoner's shouting.
"I told you Lerron!" The loud, male voice said.
While Barriss's cell was on the left side wall the shouting came from the cell on the right side and last before the end of the hall. The bodies of the guards, Tyree and Kovo limited her view but through a small space between two of the shocktroopers Barriss could see Lerron approach a dark skinned human male.
Barriss was observant enough to gain information about the prisoner with just his appearence. He was young, likely in his early to mid twenties. This fact was highlighted by the adolescent stubble on his face that was black like his nappy, disheveled hair. He was also strong, appearing to be well over six feet tall with a muscular build and square jawline.
These were minor bits of information compared to two things about the prisoner that instantly caught Barriss's attention. The man had the same handcuffs as her, cuffs she knew were designed to restrain a force users hands in order to stifle their ability to use it. This meant he was either a separatist agent or perhaps another Jedi who decided to take a stand against the war.
The second detail about the prisoner that immediately caught Barriss's attention was the fact that he was able to keep himself standing despite the fact he was missing most of his right leg.
"I told you it was going to be another Jedi in that cell." The prisoner said to Lerron as he forcused all of his weight towards his foot to stand. "People can only be fooled for so long." He said with a smug look on his face. "How many does that make now?"
"With miss Offee here, three." Lerron said, causing the prisoner's smugness to fade. "Face it Lhod, you are not a victim. You're a criminal."
"It is not a crime to care!" Lhod screamed with anger, he almost stumbled as he shouted but managed to keep himself up. "I shouldn't be in here, it should be the one's that decide whether or not a planet is worth saving! If you think what I've done is anything compared to what the republic has allowed you're nothing but...!" Lhod as cut off mid sentence by Captain Lerron, who was able to make the cell soundproof with a button below the access card slot.
"We've heard it all before." Lerron said casually after silencing Lhod. "Some people just can't accept what they've done."
Although he couldn't be heard, Lhod lips could easily be read as he yelled "What i've done?!" before trying to lunge at Lerron only to be stopped and electrocuted by his cell's ray shield. He fell back, his body convulsing from the shock for a few seconds. When it was over, Lhod was left lying on the floor screaming obscenities at Lerron that could not be heard. The captain turned away from Lhod's cell, shaking his head with sigh of exasperation.
"I hope you won't allow your sanity to go as well." Lerron said as he walked back to Barriss's cell. "One mad Jedi is irritating enough."
Barriss opened her mouth to speak but Lerron cut her off by showing his hand hovering over her cell's soundproof switch. She glared at Lerron for silencing her but the captain stood unfazed.
"You have been told everything you need to know." Lerron said with his arms behind his back. "Goodbye, miss Offee."
Lerron, his squad and Tyree walked away from Barriss to return to the command center, only Kovo stayed long enough to speak.
"You have only one chance to leave this place." Kovo said as he stepped toward Barriss. "You must admit that you have fallen and strive to pull yourself back into the light, only then will the council consider arguing your release."
"And why would they do that?" Barriss asked sarcastically.
"I cannot say for certain that they would, but I'd like to think they want to help and I'd rather not see another Jedi left here in the dark side as...others have been." Kovo said as he looked at Lhod's cell and for a moment the cell across from his.
"The Jedi are the ones in dark." Barriss said, feeling insulted. "I was the one trying to pull all of you out of it. If you truly wish to help then you stop all the others before they become villains."
"Jedi are taught to be protectors, and that is what we are." Kovo stated.
"We are not protecting anything!" Barriss remarked with a cold look. "We murder, slaughter and conquer for a republic that wants it's people to believe it's noble when in reality it is lead by corrupt politicians that embrace the dark side without even practicing it."
Kovo opened his mouth to respond but didn't. He could sense Barriss's feelings of confidence in her cause and her frustration at it's result. Despite wanting to believe otherwise seeing Barriss so certain of herself made him wonder if Tyree and those who thought like him were right to consider the jedi imprisoned in the lower levels as nothing more then lost causes.
"I'm sorry you believe that." Kovo said after a few moments of silence. "I can only hope you soon understand how things really are." Kovo then left to join Tyree and the others without giving Barriss time to speak again.
Barriss watched Kovo walk away but thought nothing of him or his ideals. Her mind was completely focused on one thing, she was not the only Jedi imprisoned. She first looked toward Lhod, who was sitting near the ray shield to his cell and eyeing Barriss up and down. She took note of the intensity of his stare and his bright, yellow eyes because in the past her former master told her such eyes could be a sign of ones fall to the dark side.
She did not think there was any more to learn about to Lhod at the time and instead turned her head to look at the wall on her left. On the other side was the last cell in that section of the and Barriss knew there was a Jedi on the other side of the wall. She felt the urge to call out and see if anyone would answer but assumed that would just lead to the guards coming back. She stood still as she faced the wall, her curiosity being the only on her mind until something else worked it's way in. Something that almost caused Barriss to jump in surprise, a voice.
"Do not react..." The male voice said in Barriss's mind, it's words being the only reason Barriss was able to stop her bodies natural response of surprise. "Do not look around, you will not see me."
Barriss quickly looked down at the floor in hopes that the camera in her cell wouldn't see her face and wide eyes. She was certain the voice was coming from the cell beside her but also knew that the voice didn't want her to react to ensure Lerron and his men wouldn't feel the need to investigate.
"All you have to do is think about what you wish to say and I will hear you." The voice said. "Ask whatever you wish as long as you don't arouse suspicsion in the process."
Barriss knew telepathy was possible so she had no trouble believing that was how someone was speaking to her. She stepped towards her bed and took a seat on it, her eyes still looking at the floor as she cleared her mind of everything but her first question.
"Who are you?" Barriss said in her mind.
"My name is Sevrik Komen, a man who's story likely resembles yours." The voice replied, speaking with a refined manner and accent.
"You are a Jedi?" Barriss thought in response.
"I was, but have not been for some time. Now I am a captive here like you." Sevrik's voice said calmly.
"Why are you here?" Barriss thought.
"I have been charged with crimes of treason towards the republic." Sevrik's voice said.
"But what did you do?" Barriss asked, her curiosity enticed again.
"What I was told, and not nothing more." Sevrik's voice answered. "But now it's my turn for questions. first, what is first name miss Offee?"
Hearing her last name made Barriss realize Sevrik must have been paying close attention when the guards brought her to her cell. This made her wonder what kind of man Sevrik would turn out to be.
"Barriss." She said after a moments hesitation.
"Well then Barriss Offee, I have one more question for you." Sevrik's voice said, taking a few moments to pause before speaking again. "Would you like to leave this place?"
Barriss's eyes were wide again, now fully aware of why Sevrik was conversing with her. The man was likely going to use her as a pawn in his plan to escape, but as Barriss looked around her cell she knew it was not a place wanted to call home.
She had no plan to escape on her own and was aware of how hard it would be to accomplish. Even if she did find a way out of her cell she knew nothing little about the facilities layouts, but perhaps Sevrik did. After a little more time to contemplate, Barriss decided she would take the opportunity presented to her.
"What did you have in mind?" Barriss asked with her eyes on the wall again.