"Any casualties?"

"No. A member of Hylo's crew has a broken leg, others a few bruises… Oh yes, Koth's pride has been severely damaged by the fact that he was pushed out of the way by Arcann himself."

Nyx chuckled at Lana's welcomed touch of humour. The zakuulian was indeed probably quite unhappy, to say the least. The former emperor was the person he would be the less pleased to be obliged to, followed closely by the same man's mother. She would have paid for getting a single glimpse on his face when he had realised who had protected him from being crushed by the 1.5 ton crate that had fell that morning in the military hangar.

A broken cable. It could have been considered an accident if there had not been other cases within the last month. At first, the incidents had not seemed related but after the first two events, they had started looking at them more closely and found traces of sabotage, some well crafted, some others far more clumsy. And that was not a good sign, because it indicated that they were facing not only one but several people, potentially not even coordinated.

"How many so far, Lana?"

"Five. And Hylo, Oggurobb and Aygo have all reported missing material that could apparently serve in the construction of explosive devices."

Nyx frowned. That meant more attempts to be expected. "Says who?"

"Kaliyo Djannis. With her terrorist background, I took the liberty of showing her the list to know if it something made sense."

Ah Firebrand. Obviously she would be at a good position to know how to build artisanal bombs. After all, she had spent the last years in a personal guerrilla against zakuulian society. Which made her as well a good candidate for having a responsibility in the current events. "Could she be involved?"

"She could. It is legitimate to consider her as not the most reliable member of the Alliance."

Nyx nodded. They already had had hints of the insubordination she was capable of, indeed. "Send for her, please. I want to confront her directly."

"Yes, Commander."

Lana's very formal answer made Nyx smile. The war room was empty except for the two of them, the title was therefore not necessary, but Lana always switched to it naturally when they were working. It was her way to make a clear distinction between the moments when they were friends, and those when there was a clear chain of command in place with one of them being the leader of the Alliance and the other, one of her subordinates. The fact that Nyx considered Lana as her equal and had never used that many formalities herself - only calling her 'Lord Beniko' when being openly ironic - did not change anything to the well-acquired habit.

While Lana processed her request, Nyx looked around, wondering where Theron was working from. He had asked to be excused for today's morning briefing, giving as a pretext that he had a lead requiring all his attention. A case he would talk about later if relevant. She suspected that even if it might be true, he tried as well his best to avoid her as much as possible. But she trusted him. He was a professional. If there was something they had to know, he would brief them. Better let him do his job and get to terms with the new situation as well.

She had another burning subject to deal with anyway. These incidents had to stop before they became an open threat for the Alliance, before everybody noticed what was now obvious for her. These were not mere sabotage against them, they had not been disturbing the course of operations enough to be useful in that matter. No, these were assassination attempts always targeting the same person. Only one was always nearby. Arcann.

Nyx had to admit that it should not really be a surprise. She had witnessed the vehemence with which some of her people had opposed her choice to accept his allegiance and bring him to Odessen. And she could understand their point, but had considered that they would eventually get used to it. She had heard them, but not listened. Now the Alliance was paying the price of her having forced a very unpopular choice upon them all.

She would probably not have had this kind of issues in the Empire. Deference and submission were common traits within the imperial instances, mostly obtained out of fear or thanks to promises of a higher position. Decisions were seldom questioned or challenged, people knew all too well that misplaced resistance was often synonym to a short future. She had never had an army, but had had to play the game herself like any other, bringing just as much insubordination and manipulation to the play to serve her needs. Such was the way of the Sith Empire, at least before it was crushed down by Valkorion's sons.

Leading the Alliance was a different experience. She could not expect the same obedience a Sith Lord would have counted on. But she had not really counted on it, only failed to realise that this was not the kind of decision that she could take all by herself and impose without creating ripples.

"I made a mistake," she muttered. "He should not be here, or at least not free."

Lana left the console she had been typing on and moved in front of Nyx. "I must say that I have been myself surprised by your choice that day. But I always supported it anyway. I trusted that you had rational reasons to make that decision, even if they were hard to grasp at first. And just the announcement of that alliance was a priceless and well served hard blow to Vaylin."

"It was the only one that made sense, purely rationally. Why let Senya save him and then not take the opportunity of having him work for us?"

Lana's sudden chortle made Nyx frown. "Have I said something funny?"

"Sort of. You usually insist on how rational something was when you used your instincts instead on the very moment and found a good reason for it afterwards."

Nyx rolled her eyes. Either she was getting bad at the political game or her friend knew her far too well. Yes, it had obviously been her guts speaking, and for once, leading her in quite a wrong direction considering the events that they were now left with. A wrong move for the Alliance leader, yet she selfishly did not regret it at all.

Nyx looked at her counterpart questioningly. "Do you realise the amount of strength and determination it must have represented to join me there, look me straight in the eyes and state that he wanted to join us? He could have just disappeared after Voss, we were too busy to chase him, but he came back to offer his help. I could have stuck my lightsaber right through his neck when he knelt, but he still did it without fear…"

Lana raised a quizzical eyebrow. "Are you telling me that he somehow managed to impress you?"

"Enough to make me wonder what he was really made of, I suppose…" Nyx answered, a half-smile on her face. "Ironic, isn't it? I found him definitely pathetic before Voss. No matter how powerful he was, he was mostly a grown up man with a childish attitude and absolutely no control over the dark side. He just deserved to die for that only, if not for all the other things he had done. But that day made me… curious."

"Yeah, well, speaking about curious, I'd like to know why the fuck I am requested to come here on my rest day, and why I have even been threatened if I did not come!"

Interrupted in their discussion, both Sith turned their gaze to the direction of the voice to see a moody Kaliyo Djannis enter the room, followed closely by C2-N2.

"Master, when she stated that she did not want to cooperate and follow me, I took the liberty to explain to Miss Djannis that cutting the hot water provided to her refresher might be a necessary measure I would have to apply."

"Good morning Kaliyo," said Nyx, repressing a smile at the evocation of the 'terrible' threat the woman had had to endure. "I was not aware that you had been assigned specific rest days." That was of course not the way operations were organised on the base. Auxiliaries had specific schedules but none of the members likely to be needed for special operations had any.

"Well, since it was probably due to negligence, I set one myself. And since today is my rest day, can I go? I was planning to have an early lunch."

That was Kaliyo Djannis, or the so-called Firebrand as most people knew her on the base. Irreverent, impertinent and definitely not keen to submit to anyone's request, without arguing. But she had proven to be as well one of the best elements on infiltration operations and was definitely skilled with explosive. Which made her as much a good advisor in their current case than a potential perfect culprit. Nyx decided to call for the first one and see what would happen. She held out a datapad to her.

"Here are the results of the analysis of an incident that happened in the military hangar this early morning. Do you see anything interesting?"

Kaliyo took the datapad with a displeased sigh and had a look at the report. "Yep. Most of the cable was cut clean at a point which should not be neither damaged by extended use not under particular tension. This is not an accident, you have a saboteur on the base."

Nyx looked at her interrogatively. "Any idea of who it could be?"

"Oh, now I see why I'm here… Well no, I've not made friends with all the terrorists in the galaxy. But I can tell you this one knows the job. Not like the one I stopped two nights ago."

Lana straightened immediately her eyes leaving the screen of the datapad she had been reading so far. "Excuse me?"

Kaliyo immediately took the opportunity to show off. A hand on her hip, she shot a taunting look to Lana. "Yeah, looks like you need more people to work on securing the base. I stopped someone the other day. It was a stupid thing anyway, he would not have had the guts to handle the death of several people."

"A name," Lana asked, glowering at her.

"Don't even know it. And won't say more. He did not do it after all. And in my opinion, he will think twice before trying his chance again on mister ex mighty emperor."

Nyx and Lana exchanged a silent sidelong glance. That somehow confirmed their assumptions on the most plausible target of the other attempts. "And… where is that bomb now?"

"In my quarters. I kept it safe for a better use."

Lana sighed. "I'll have someone escort you back and dispose of it…"

"Hey it's mine now!"

"Do not push the odds too far, Firebrand…" Kaliyo shot a disapproving look to both Sith but did not insist. A few seconds later, Admiral Aygo and one of his soldiers were ready to accompany her back to her quarters, leaving Nyx and Lana alone in the war room.

"So… What do you want to do, Commander?"

Nyx took some time before answering, thinking about the best course of action. She could not back off and change her decision as it would represent a blatant threat to her authority. And she would not let anyone cast doubts on her ability to make the right choices, nor would she let anyone attack her self-assurance. Besides… Despite the fact that she was in the best position to hold grudge against him, she had started to appreciate who Arcann was, now that he had been stripped of his uncontrolled madness and obsession over his father. In fact, she found that he was… a decent man? To be honest, probably a bit more than that. The time she had spent with him so far was, against all odds, rather pleasant.

She raised her eyes to meet Lana's, her decision taken. "Set a mandatory briefing time this afternoon for everyone on the base, coupled with an open channel to all of our inhabited ships and people on operations. I will talk to them…"

All Alliance members present on the base had gathered in the military hangar. Conversation were buzzing among various groups of people, rumours and hypothesis spreading wildly on the reason why they had been convened. Speeches were no common events on Odessen. Most of them had only seen three, two if Senator Saresh's unfruitful attempt to seize command of the Alliance was set aside.

Vette had joined Senya and her son at the back of the crowd, greeting them as cheerfuly as she always was. From where they stood, they could see Hylo and Gaunt both leaning arms crossed against the railing of the nearby ramp. Firebrand had apparently made friends with some of Koth's team. From the exchange of handshake, they had most probably been placing bet on the reason of today's gathering, and based on her smug smile, she seemed quite confident with her own bet.

Koth himself had shot a dark look to Arcann while passing by to join his crew just a while ago. And he was not the only one. While most of the Force users seemed to have gotten along with Arcann's arrival, probably thanks to their capability to sense the change in him, and helped by the fact that he was now training them, it was not the case of many others who still showed their disapproval even though open animosity was prevented. However, the former emperor was working hard in trying to earn his place among us and it was starting to pay off. While Vette was certainly the most friendly of them all, other people, mostly workers he had helped with duties linked to the delivery of emergency goods to planets having suffered from his or his sister's bombings, could stay around him without flinching and had even started greeting him spontaneously. Things were evolving. Slowly, but steadily.

When the Commander entered the hangar followed by Lana and Theron, all faces turned progressively towards the plateform overhanging the main deck. Theron took position in a corner where he could oversee the crowd below while Lana reached the other side, tapping on her datapad to open a holo channel and soon delivering a sign to Nyx who had been patiently waiting. Conversations faded as she stepped forward to address the audience. After a few seconds of silence spent looking at the crowd, she started speaking with a strong and clear voice.

We all joined the Alliance for a reason. The galaxy was at war and the forces we had put our faith in had failed. The Empire and the Republic had been silenced, but we wanted to keep fighting. And indeed we fought many battles. And we won a lot of them. We have all contributed to write an important part of the history of the galaxy.

Whispers of approbation rose. Yes, that was what had motivated many of them. When Zakuul had brought the Empire and the Republic to their knees, forcing them to sign a treaty that made them incapable of challenging the new dominant power in the galaxy, a lot of people had lost faith. As soon as the word had spread that an Alliance welcoming anyone had been created to fight back, it had instilled new hope in many hearts. People had gathered aboard ships departing for Odessen, leaving their life behind them to try making a difference. From the moment of their arrival, everyone had found a way to contribute to the war effort, whether it was on the field or simply making sure that things were running smoothly on the base. There were so many tasks needing to be taken care of…

Over time, the face of the oppression changed. And rather unexpected people joined the fight. Many of us joined with blood of former battles on our hands, but the past did not matter, only what we could make of the future. I know that some hands are dirtier than others, but in spite of it, the same chance has been granted to every single one of us, a chance to make a difference by serving the purpose of the Alliance.

Obvious glances were shot towards Arcann who straightened his back, Senya putting a gentle hand on his right shoulder. Indeed some hands were dirtier. Having killed millions did not really compare to any other crime… And while many other members who might not be proud of their past could blend in the crowd, his face was known by everyone on the base. He might blend in eventually, but it would take months, or years… It had only been a few weeks and the shadow of his past actions was still cast upon then all, even though some people, like the Commander, seemed to find the strength to turn the page more easily than others.

Kaliyo was another one collecting sidelong glances. Even though she was clearly second to the former emperor in terms of threat, she had been terrorising Zakuul long enough to be considered part of the most wanted criminals by those who used to live there. But she seemed to take it easy, shrugging nonchalantly to those who dared looking at her.

I am impressed by how people coming from so different places and cultures could work together. How, despite of our differences, we have been able to fight side by side for a common goal. That, has always been our strength.

Humans and aliens. Soldiers of both the Empire and the Republic. Sith, Jedi, Knights of Zakuul. Smugglers and former law enforcement officials. All united under the same banner. The base was indeed a colourful mix of individuals comparing easily with cosmopolitan planets such as Nar Shaada. A lot of members had discovered species they had not even heard about when setting foot on Odessen. And even among humans, which remained a majority, tens of origins could be found.

The Commander marked a pause. A few groups had started complimenting and high fiving each others quietly, a proof that bonds that went beyond duty had formed. Fighting side by side was a strong vector of trust and friendship and they all recently had to give their best to help and protect each other when Vaylin had attacked the planet. The Alliance was definitely more than the gathering of single individuals, there was a strong sense of belonging keeping them together. However, when Nyx began to speak again, it was to deliver a less pleasing message.

But recently, something changed. Silent voices have risen, unusual and unnatural accidents have happened. Some within our ranks have started fighting us from the inside. I understand. Difficult choices that are made seldom please everyone. And one of those choices has been made, denying some of us of the revenge they were aspiring to.

The mention of accidents caused a surprised and confused hubbub among the crowd associated with a sudden feeling of unease. While the Commander had not pronounced the word 'sabotage', everyone had understood that it was what she implied, and most had not expected it to be the subject of the speech. Yes, there had been a few accidents, but most of them had not assisted to any of them and considered these as part of the events that might happen naturally. Acknowledging them an intentional cause profoundly changed their meaning and the threat they represented.

The Commander had to raise her hands to require silence before continuing. Theron and Lana remained imperturbable, their looks scanning the faces below as if looking for anything unusual.

I do respect thirst for revenge. Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth. This is one of the values I have been raised with. But I have no respect for cowards. For those who work in our backs to undermine our strength. And I will not let that happen. I will not allow anyone try and exercise justice from the shadows and stand anonymously against any member of the Alliance.

"Shit… It's you she's talking about here, isn't she?" whispered Vette who had gotten closer to Arcann. "You were the target. You said you were there several times… Looks like you have a friend having your back, buddy."

Arcann shushed Vette with a silent move of his hand, not taking his eyes off the Commander. He looked rather tense and exhaled slowly, his hands joining again in his back in his distinctive usual serious stance. Senya glanced at him interrogatively but did not comment, they would have time to discuss the subject later. She turned her attention back to the platform, focusing again on the speaker.

Joining our fight has never been a synonym of a life-time commitment. Everyone can someday make the choice to leave. If our fight is not yours anymore, you are free to go anywhere you see fit. You can even decide to start fighting us from the outside. War is war… The destiny of winners is to be challenged until they fall and we are ready to fight. But no one will be allowed to fight us silently from within and we will not suffer any other cowardly hidden threat.

Inspiring during the first part of her speech, Nyx's voice had moved to a more determined tone that was close to being threatening. She was making sure that everyone marked her words and that every single one of them understood that she would stop at nothing to make the incidents cease.

Her face, glance, stance, everything in her gave the same message. Those who had never had the opportunity to see her displeased got a good opportunity to remember that their Commander was no mere high-ranking military officer but a Sith, and that even though they could all acknowledge that she was of the rational type and not inclined to cruelty, she still remained someone who would never hesitate using strength and radical means if she considered that they were a necessary response.

Events will not be investigated further. The perpetrators will get a second chance to be true to the Alliance again. Today I offer people who do not recognise themselves in our goals anymore to step forward and make their will known. Those who want to leave will be able to do so without any consequences. Those who want to confront me for the decisions I took will be heard. But those who remain silent despite their disagreement will be allowed no other option than getting to terms with choices made.

A second chance… That was probably one of those things that were so unusual coming from a Sith. During her time as the leader of the Alliance, the Commander had applied that rule several times while recruiting. No matter if the past had opposed them, those willing to join her were given an opportunity to prove their value and their commitment. It was however rather unusual that she offered pardon that way. Those who were close to her knew that taking advantage of the trust that had been granted was most probably the worst insult to her face. Renouncing to take action on the incidents had certainly not been an easy choice.

Theron and Lana seemed briefly surprised. They might not have had full visibility on her plans before her speech. However they quickly resumed to the more neutral expression they had born from the beginning. Both of them knew that Nyx hardly changed her decisions when they were set and in any case had decided to trust her already long ago. They knew as well what was usually associated to a second chance and were bracing themselves for her next words and the reactions that they might generate.

If you want to speak your mind and stand against decisions made in the past, this is your one chance. Make your request right now or come to me privately until midnight. Those who do not take this opportunity but are caught red-handed later trying to weaken us from the inside will be treated with the inclemency they deserve. Sentence will be death.

There it was, what those who knew her enough were expecting. There was a second chance, but never a third. The Commander could be magnanimous once, but she would never allow being betrayed a second time without unleashing her rage. Trust was granted in a limited amount and without naivety, and those who burnt what they had been allocated were to suffer the consequences.

Theron and Lana straightened up, looking at the audience, joined on the front of the platform by the Admiral Aygo, all of them getting ready for the reactions. Nyx gave them a quick look and waited for them to return a nod before continuing.

Who want to be heard, speak!

At first, there was silence. An unsual and heavy one, as if all attending the speech were suddenly holding their breaths. But soon after, a small group of men and women stepped out of the crowd, all wearing armours as if ready for battle. Not many remained permanently ready to leave, but wearing an armour was part of their rules. Mandalorians. One of them made a step further to address the Commander.

"Al'verde! Mhi copaanir gra'tuar kyr'am Torian."

Nyx frowned and turned to Theron who leant forward to whisper her a few words then she turned her attention back to the fighter.

"Torian fought like all Mandalorians, bravely, and knowing that death might come one day. But I know that your code of honour requires opportunities of taking revenge for his death. State your request."

"One designated champion of our clan must be allowed to fight the champion chosen by the remaining family of Torian's murderer," the spoksman said.

"I will fight your champion to cleanse the honour of our family."

The strong female voice that had risen from the crowd was Senya's. Judging by Arcann's astounded face, she had voluntarily anticipated the fact that her son would most probably be wanting to be the one having to fight. "Vaylin was my daughter, I will bear the consequences of her actions."

Nyx nodded to Senya who had raised her eyes to her before turning her attention again to the mandalorian. From the corner of the eye, she had clearly seen that Arcann would have wanted to draw her attention to silently protest and suspected that he wanted her to stop his mother. But she decided not to give him the attention. Senya had made a choice that had to be respected, there was no reason for her to refuse.

"Your challenge has been accepted. You will name a champion and come to me to arrange the fight."

"Vor entye, Al'verde."

The group stepped back into the crowd who had started whispering again, breaking the silence that had hung above them moments before. A middle-aged couple then stepped shyly out of the audience to request permission to leave the Alliance to go back to their home planet. As the permission was granted to them, it motivated a few others to claim the same.

The atmosphere was relaxing a bit when an angry-looking man wearing the characteristic jumpsuit of the people responsible for the base maintenance drew himself away from the hands of peers who were apparently trying to hold him back.

"Commander! I demand that the mass murderer you invited here is put into a cell and ends his days rotting there! You know who I am talking about!" he said aggressively, gesturing clearly towards Arcann.

Nyx had been waiting for someone to dare stand out and finally make that claim openly. She made eye contact with Arcann as soon as she heard it, intimating him the clear order not to attempt to respond himself. He sustained her gaze disapprovingly for a while but finally nodded imperceptibly, giving in reluctantly to her command before turning a reassuring look to his mother who had tensed as well.

Lana tapped rapidly on her datapad before whispering informations to Nyx who then took a few steps on the platform in the direction of the worker.

"This is not happening, Bradan Ellmid. I hear your call, but former emperor Arcann has not given me reasons to doubt his allegiance to the Alliance since his pledge to serve it. That is the very principle of second chance."

"But he does not deserve that second chance! You have no right to make this choice while millions have been killed! He is a murderer!" the man screamed, looking at the people surrounding him to try and rally them. While some might have been agreeing, they still did not seem inclined to stand out as he did, preferring not to even meet his gaze.

Nyx remained calm but assertive when she answered him once again. "I hear you… You will be accompanied to a meeting room where we can talk about it quietly. Then you will be free to choose from the options given to you." She then addressed the audience once more while two of Aygo's men - unarmed, she had set that as a condition - showed the way to the plaintiff. "Does anyone else want to speak their mind now?"

As no one else decided to make themselves known, the audience was soon thanked and dismissed by Lana while the Commander disappeared towards the meeting room. The visible part of the day was done, but for her, it was far from over…

Mandalorian - English
Al'verde! Mhi copaanir gra'tuar kyr'am Torian. - Commander! We request revenge for Torian's death
Vor entye, Al'verde. - Thank you, Commander.

Arcann was not pleased, to say the least. After the speech that the Commander had given in the hangar, he had spent an hour in a heated discussion with his mother, trying to convince her to let him fight the Mandalorian. He could not bear the idea of her taking responsibility for his sister's deeds and get hurt or potentially even die in the doing. Not for what Vaylin had done. Letting him handle it made much more sense.

Senya had categorically refused to come to her senses, arguing that she was a fighter as much as he was and did not fear the challenge put upon her. She had said that she was the right person for that and he did not need to take everything upon his own shoulders, that they could both carry the load. But he did not want her to do so, as he did not want the Commander to act the way she had. He was responsible of what was happening on the base. If he had not been there, there would not be accidents. He was the one who should be facing all this and both Senya and the Commander had no right to force him to do otherwise.

In the face of his mother's determination not to change her mind, he had decided to try another way and ask the Alliance leader to intercede on his behalf. Oh, he knew that it would be hard. He had already understood that if he considered himself stubborn, she was probably a good match to him in that matter. And in any case, he wanted to confront her too about the speech she had just given and the results of it. But the door of the meeting room had remained closed. She had refused to let him in, letting her intendant droid notify him that she was busy. Three times already.

It was just past midnight, the deadline that she had given to people wanting to face her to make their opinion known. He had no idea of how many had come. Was her unavailability justified or had she just been pushing him away on purpose? He was pacing again in front of the door, waiting for the droid to answer his fourth request, which was taking longer this time. Was it a good sign? The door finally opened, revealing Lana who made way for him to enter. The sight of her made him feel slightly frustrated, he had hoped to see the Commander alone. As much as he was slowly getting at ease with her, his interactions with the other Sith had remained rather formal so far.

He went straight in, striding towards the back of the room where the other woman was standing, turning her back to him, busy pouring a dark red liquid into wine glasses. Her voice seemed amused when she addressed him but he could not see her face.

"Arcann…If you come to confess about the incidents, you are slightly too late. But I guess that if you wanted to attempt on your own life, there would be much easier ways to do so." She turned around with two glasses in her hands and indeed, she bore a slightly mocking smile, one he had already seen several times. Taking a few steps in his direction, she held out one of the glasses she was carrying towards him, handing the other one to Lana who had moved to his side. "Lana and I were planning to have a glass of alderaanian wine to end the day on a good note. Care to join us?"

Arcann frowned and huffed but took the glass she offered. This woman could be so rattling! It was like she was blowing cold, mocking him and inviting him in a friendly manner all at the same time. How was he supposed to sort this out? At least when they were still enemies, things were easy to understand. She was aggressive, taunting, relentless… And now she could still sometimes be some of all that mixed with a friendliness and a patience towards him that contrasted vividly and left him confused. Whether it was on purpose or not, that simple gesture had at least substantially decreased his irritation, leaving him rather uncertain of how to move next.

She turned around again to grab her own glass and raised it, followed by Lana and him, "to a long day that is nearly over." Nyx sipped her wine and sighed delightfully. "I imagine that you would like to have news from the man you have seen earlier… He will leave Odessen, but we had a fruitful discussion and he finally understood my point."

"You should have let me handle it," he growled, satisfied of being finally able to state his point after several hours of waiting.

She gave him a surprised look. "Why?"

"Because these incidents are targeting me. They have nothing to do with you. I do not need you to protect me. I do not want you to protect me" he answered, looking at her sharply and insisting on the very last sentence.

"I am not protecting you," she answered in the very same way. "Assassination attempts, whoever they target, are directly threatening my authority. And unless you want to challenge it as well, you have no say in this."

She said the last sentence in a mix of assertiveness and nonchalance that left him first wordless and made Lana snort discreetly. She had been observing their exchange silently, barely repressing a smile as she watched their egos clashing. Apparently, she was enjoying it quite a lot.

Enjoying it, he was not. All his years as an Emperor, he had made sure that no one else than himself had a chance to decide of his fate. He had even hunted and killed as many Scions as possible to make sure that nobody even considered fate as something uncontrollable. And yet she was doing exactly the same thing his father used to do: trying to impose on him something he was not willing to accept.

His body language must have shown some of his thinking because he immediately sensed Lana and the Commander straighten up and observe him more closely. Realising it, he forced himself to calm down. She might be a Sith - and she had warned him not so long ago about them - she was not his father. He was not intending to engage in a conflict against her. Not again.

"I am not challenging you, Commander! But you cannot simply decide to handle things your way when others are concerned."

"Yes I can. And I did. I made a decision that is turning against me, I handle it."

Arcann let out a frustrated sigh. By no means was she changing her mind, he could see it already. He could still try to convince her but he had to choose his battles. This one was most probably lost. "Were there others?" he only added.

"A few, but we dealt with each case."

The Commander moved to the big table sitting in the middle of the room to lean against it. She absorbed in the contemplation of the dark liquid swirling in her glass while she was turning it, imposing naturally a moment of silence. Arcann broke it tentatively after a few seconds.

"I can leave. And find other ways to help."

She raised her head briskly, as if she was shocked by his suggestion. "And show them that they were right and that they can defy my authority anytime they want? Certainly not. You are free to go if you do not feel that you belong to the Alliance, but now is not really a good time."

"But I am bringing you issues that you would not have if I was not here. And that slow down your work."

"You are. I will not deny it." She shrugged and smirked to Lana. "And Lord Beniko loves me for that."

"Well, allow me to praise you for your admirable way of handling the situation today, My Lord," answered Lana sarcastically mirroring the usual imperial deference and roughing out a bow, making the Commander utter a laughter.

"In any case, there is no way backward, only forward." Nyx straightened up and took a few steps in his direction, leaving less than one meter between them when she stopped. "You know Arcann, you made sure to point out that you are a better fighter than I am, but you should not try to challenge me on diplomacy and negotiations, I do not think that you would be a match."

"I guess that I have to grant you a point here," sighed Arcann with an ironic smile. All he had always needed to know in diplomacy was how to be stronger and more determined than his opponent. The treaties he had made the Republic and the Empire sign had been easily imposed as they had no other choice if they wanted to survive. He had not really needed to develop finer skills in that area as long as strength worked. From the various talks he had assisted to, her moves were far more subtle and he even wondered sometimes to what extent she used the same skills when talking to him, how much of it was calculated. It did not really suit him, but by joining the Alliance, he had as well accepted not to be the one in command and he still needed time to see how to adjust and find the best way to contribute.

As she took a step backward, then in the direction of the bottle to pour some more wine in her glass, offering some to the others at the same time - an offer that Lana declined - , he took the opportunity to state the other request that had brought him there. "About my mother… I want to take her place in the duel. She should not be the one fighting." Nyx put down the bottle and turned around slowly to face him. "No. She made her decision and has as many rights to fight for the honour of your family as you do. But I do not think that you should be concerned for her. Lana?"

"Yes, Commander," answered Lana. "The Mandalorians have chosen their man and agree with your terms, even though they complained that it went against their traditions. But as they respect your authority on the territory of Odessen, they will abide by your rules." She then put her empty glass on the table and straightened up. "Now if you excuse me, I have a meeting at dawn and I could do with a few hours of sleep. Good night."

Nyx nodded a silent approval and watched her leave before choosing a chair to sit down, soon followed by Arcann. "You understand? I forbade them their traditional duel to death, there is no need for other dead people, we already had to mourn too many. They agreed with first blood. Your mother is safe."

Arcann let an ironic huff go through his nose. "It looks like you are doing it again. Taking care of things for us… Do you realise how frustrating this is?"

She shrugged. "Blame it on an everlasting need to control things, if you need… But I consider it as one of the two main things I am supposed to do as the Commander of the Alliance. Fight in the front row and take care of my people."

He had to concede that the people around seemed to appreciate that aspect. But he found it disturbing, considering how his father had always pictured the Sith, as selfish individuals, incapable of working as a whole for the good of their empire. He set the thought momentarily aside and continued: "There is another thing I need to ask for my mother… She had been having nightmares lately, about my sister. She does not want to bother you with this request but I think that it would be helpful if she could somehow… go where her remains are? If there is such a place…"

Nyx smiled gently, nodding. "There is such a place. I was expecting the request to come sooner or later. I can bring her there. Tomorrow?"

Arcann nodded. "I will let her know. Thank you, Commander. I…" He frowned. It was a good moment to get an opportunity to know more about her, but he was not entirely sure how he could formulate what he wanted to say. "This is most certainly not how I imagined that a Sith would handle things… Taking care of their people the way you do."

Nyx chuckled. "Do not even dare mentioning the word…"

Arcann shook his head with half a smile, knowing exactly what she meant. "I will not, I promise. But I still would like to understand… If you consent, of course."

She nodded. "I can at least try. But any answer I could give you here might not help you understand the Sith as a whole. We all have our own story."

He smiled. "I will do with yours as a first step, then. Valkorion… He taught us things about your kind. But I have difficulties seeing them in what you let me know of you."

"I was not raised a Sith from the beginning, only became one quite late. That might be part of the answer."

"You were born a slave…"

His remark made her laugh. She already knew that he had made researches about her, but not the extent of it. Well, he knew about this at least, but not much more of what her life had been before the Sith Academy and the first records of her. "Yes. I was born a slave, on Korriban. My parents were at the service of an officer who was based there with his family. A Major, if I remember well. I was sold to a Lieutenant Colonel later on… My clan was one those Darth Vich had brought back from Rattatak to Dromund Kaas and used to take power in the Empire. Many were killed when he failed, but some were enslaved. It was almost two generations before my birth, but the story of our disgrace is know by all of us."

Relaxing into her chair and turning it a little to better face him, Nyx started telling him about the Rattataki, how strong the sense of belonging to the clan was, even though they were spread at the service of many different military officials and lords or working on construction sites. They were allowed to gather only a few times a year, especially for the rituals of coming of age and for funerals, but their bonds remained strong. She had gotten her tattoos during her own coming of age and swore to one day break her chains, like all of them did. And in contrary to most of the others she had, when her sensitivity to the Force had been noticed. The day she had left for the Academy, she had swore that she would one day find a way to free them.

It was only the first step of her way up. "They have noticed soon that despite my origins, I was better skilled in manipulation and cunning than in fighting. You see, Rattataki's reputation for being bloodthirsty beasts is well spead… and somehow deserved. But…" she grinned, "I happen to have a brain and know how to use it. So I made my way into the political spheres."

Arcann listened silently. She was a good storyteller, not so surprisingly, knowing her talents at speaking to crowds. It was evident that she had many years of practice in that field. She had worked her way up through a mix of obedience to her masters and hidden insubordination, promises kept and broken, alliances and betrayals. She had killed when needed, spared when more useful. "When you have the nerves, politics is a challenging but rather entertaining game… Move a pawn, sacrifice another one, reaching a position of power is like a big chess game, isn't it?"

He huffed, a bit surprised. "Is that how you see it? A game?"

"Until the Emperor came into the play, yes, that was how I saw it. Things changed afterwards. And me, you, your siblings, we all ended up being pawns in his great scheme…" Nyx paused, tilting her head on the side, thinking. "Well, that might be the answer to your question… I have been trained to focus on my own power, my own ascension, and I did. But there has always been people I did not want to involve in the big game. My clan, my crew, my people. Those who chose to entrust me with their lives the way my clan had done. I think that the part of me who promised them that I would free them never got corrupted by my Sith training. I always made sure I remembered."

"What happened to your clan, then?" asked Arcann, leaning forward. She cracked a smile, a triumphant one as if she considered it a victory over her peers. "Not long after accessing to the Dark Council, I freed them. All of them. It cost me an immense amount of money and some favours." Her smile moved to something more ironic and she made a falsely contrite wince. "But I believe that most of the Lords I still owed something to might have unfortunately died or fled during your conquest of our worlds. I will not miss them."

Despite the Commander's amusement, Arcann pulled a grim face at the evocation of his campaign against the Sith. She was not there, but there might have been some of her clan on Korriban or Dromund Kaas when they had attacked, which meant that they might have been caught in the wave of destruction he and his brother had led. And while he had so far not seen those battles as anything else than what it had been - a war between two opposed forces fighting for their power over the galaxy - the idea of having destroyed something she held dear made him feel unusually uneasy. Was it what she had mentioned after their first sparring session when she had said that there were things he had taken from her?

Getting closer to a former enemy came with unpleasant consequences, it was making everything more personal, too personal perhaps. Because if the warrior and the emperor had never cared about anything else than the objective of all actions undertaken, the man who had woken up from his years-long sleep on Voss apparently did. Sometimes, he felt like walking on eggshells and it was unusual for him. And definitely uncomfortable. That was probably one thing he did not really get along well with what the Voss healing had brought upon him: the fact of not being able to bury anything he felt and thought under the veil of anger, frustration and resentment that kept him going before. He somehow had to face parts of himself that he did not handle well, one of them being that he now cared about what others felt. And he did not really know how he was supposed to handle it, especially related to someone whose values and reactions he did not fully understand yet. Who she was, the true balance in that mix of a rational and even-tempered leader, impulsive and passionate Sith and… whoever she was as a woman, he did not really know. And it made him feel uncomfortable. This was not something he could tackle easily by using any of the martial or strategical skills he knew, or the superficial manners of the court he had been trained to thanks to years of formal meetings and parties.

But sometimes, the best way to continue was to stop thinking and step forward. He braced himself and asked bluntly. "Did they survive our raids?"

She surprisingly did not expect the question which made her straighten and frown. "Most did. They were free. A lot of them had gone back to Rattatak already and those who had willingly remained at my service on Dromund Kaas were able to hide long enough." She breathed in and out quietly before continuing. "Listen. If you really want to know, I lost part of my crew. Not during your raids but when we were attacked by your fleet later on. I know that they survived and we could find track of some of them who are now here. However, there are others that we could not find… But… War is war. It is ruthless and dirty. There is nothing from what happened that I would not have done myself. The Empire fell, but it only meant that we were not powerful enough to sustain your power. If we were not able to protect what was ours, we deserved to lose. And now you fell and the Empire is rising again, as it always has. It is an eternal circle…"

So that was how she saw it. Through the eye of the leader, the warrior. Emotionless despite the losses. Or at least that was the face she displayed and he was not capable of seeing through it to know if it was true. However, she was apparently far from done. She looked straight into his eyes with that piercing light gray look of hers. "But what you did to these worlds when you were looking for me to destroy your father, that was as useless as it was stupid and childish. Unworthy of a powerful ruler and the most ridiculous move for the conqueror you were. You let yourself be lead by a force that was far stronger than you and that you did not control. I can deal with the consequences as these are worlds of the Alliance, but in your willingness to amend for your past actions, you might want to consider this as a starting point."

Useless. Stupid. Childish. Unworthy. Ridiculous. Each word hit Arcann like a a slap in his face, leaving him speechless at first but quickly igniting rather unpleasant feelings. Again she was reminding him of his father. She was using the same words he had spoken for many years, with the same kind of cold tone in her voice. He could not allow her to do that, he would… But as if she had sensed his sudden tension, she then did something he was not expecting. She stood up and moved to the side of his chair to put a hand on his right shoulder, and when he raised his eyes to meet her gaze, the look he saw had nothing from the cold and detached one his father had always cast upon him. Instead, her face bore a rather encouraging smile. "I believe that you still have it in you to go through this and succeed, Arcann. Show me that I am not mistaken."

He nodded almost imperceptibly, wondering how she could be so similar to his father and yet so different. And as her hand left his shoulder, he stood up to follow her. She had already stepped toward the door, notifying him this way that the discussion was over. As he went past her and through the door, he paused and turned around to face her. She tilted her head and shot him an interrogative look, waiting for him to speak his mind.

"Just… My mother is right, you are rather full of surprises."

She answered with one of these amused smiles of hers. "Well, that makes two of us, then…"