Droids of all sizes were whizzing by alongside hover cars carrying the heavier materials through the Temple halls. What had originally been intended as a cleanup detail had expanded to restoring paintwork and masonry. And that had been expanded to repairing and repurposing several rooms and areas. And that had been expanded again to structural reinforcement of the towers that had been damaged in the sacking.

And from a not-so-anonymous note, it had also been made to include installing holographic signposts and a method of making hoverbikes more readily accessible.

It only added to his perplexed musings on the woman herself. The Surik that Carth had met on Citadel Station two weeks earlier, and the one that he had come to know since then seemed as far apart as the stars themselves.

In the face of danger, she was steady, determined. The threat was at hand, and she was prepared to deal with it swiftly. Minimal casualties, maximum effectiveness.

In the face of calm, she was a little too laid back for his liking, always smiling in what he could only describe, to himself, in an aloof manner. She wasn't arrogant in thinking that she was above everyone else of course.

From what he had gathered over those two weeks from Bastila, it was the epitome of what Jedi strived for in detachment from the rest of life, in a sense. More often than not she ended up muttering half the assertion to herself while she went off to attend to another concern that had arisen in the five minutes respite she had managed to find, and he had to make a lot of assumptions about what was being said. When he himself was still paying attention. Which was only half the time comparatively.

"Carth? Did you forget something?"

He shook himself out of the daze with a slight chuckle. "There's irony for you…"

"What?"

"Nevermind." Yet another droid flew by on its way to one of the tower supports, where a few Jedi were tirelessly assisting in the delicate process. "I don't think I'll be forgetting this anytime soon. No offence, but I don't recall the old Jedi Order helping out with problems like this, ever. These are technically the old Jedi sure, but I still can't help seeing them in a new light."

"Then I suppose Surik's plan for the road ahead has been successful. So far." She didn't want to admit to herself that there was hints of discomfort behind her words. Idealism was not inherently bad, and certainly not for a Jedi. She had to keep reminding herself of that. "Exar Kun changed things drastically when he fell to the dark side and attacked us. Now we face another drastic change. I do not know what to think of it at this point."

The sight of some of their first initiates walking by made her sigh. It wasn't because they lacked Force sensitivity, but rather that she knew from the start they would leave or wash out within months based on their behaviour alone. Most of the early initiates would of course be adults. It was inevitable given the situation. It didn't make the fact that time and effort was inevitably going to waste any better by any means.

Fortunately for her, that was the most of her current complaints. There were quite a few Jedi who had returned with partners, and in some cases very young children. So far she had been far too busy to make time for sitting down and discussing the unique case they were going to face in the coming years. When the whirlwind of tasks and orders had settled however, she had the solace of knowing her own struggles as a mother in the Order were no longer an issue.

"Huh, I didn't realize there were so many Jedi in her crew. Well, I'm assuming they're Jedi. Guess there aren't enough robes to go around yet?"

"For the time being, the only expectation in regards to attire is decency. That is what I was told, despite the fact that Mira seems to be exempt from that anyway." Bastila took a breath to re-establish her composure just before they were ready to approach the planning area that some had gathered in.

Atton was the first to take notice, looking up from varying schematics of the temple's security systems. "Well, if it isn't 47's two favourite people in the galaxy, back together at last. I assume you came about the messages?"

Both Bastila and Carth looked to each other in confusion. It was the former who asked the obvious question.

"What message? We just came back from another progress appraisal."

In the silence that followed, Atton scratched the back of his head awkwardly, trying hard to recall exactly what he had been told earlier. "Uh, someone way out in the middle of nowhere sent a holocron here with messages for your lot. Jodi Bimbo I think?"

"Jolee Bindo." Bastila's hand went to the side of her head while muttering under her breath. "I suppose I should be relieved to hear he survived the purge. But, I am instead concerned about why he has not come back yet. If he is capable of recording to and sending a holocron here…"

"Maybe he decided to stay put. Never thought I'd hear the end of him complaining about old age, wouldn't surprise me."

Atton's eyebrow began to rise at what Carth had just said.

"Long story. Like his actually, come to think of it… Uh, I assume that Surik's got the holocron with her right now?"

"Yeah, she wanted to view her message in private first. I'm guessing she's got a plan for the others that doesn't require a pass-along of the holocron itself. And there's something else she wanted to check out first. About as vague as I've come to expect from actual Jedi. No offence Bastila."

There was a drawn-out glare from her. "I am not vague. I simply choose my words carefully, and sometimes I decide to prompt a little thought in others."

"Whatever you say. She'll have the messages ready at the Communication level when they're ready."

Bastila sighed in no discrete way, her hand moving to support her forehead. She wanted to see the Council room in perfect condition again. The sight of it alone had given her comfort in the past, despite whatever was said within those walls about her. Meanwhile, the activity in the communications had given her consistent headaches.

It wouldn't do well to ignore what could be revealed to them however. "Fine. I am certainly looking forward to it."


The room was near pitch black, save for the soft glow of the holocron on the centre table. She had been staring at it for a full half hour. Nervous, tense, excited, relieved. So many feelings were running through the back of her mind, while at the forefront, she was contemplating the possibilities sitting right in front of her.

Perhaps Jolee had come across one of the ancient Jedi temples from millennia ago, and was now sharing what he had learned with the Order. Or he had decided to gather his lifetime of experience, musing and contemplation into one source to be learned from.

More than likely it contained some cranky rants and long winded tales, based on what the others said of him.

She wanted it to be all three.

After drawing a final breath of determination, she gestured her hand over the holocron. The mechanisms slid open, transforming the cube into a projection platform as was expected from that design. A hologram of Jolee's head appeared above it.

"Meetra Surik. And here I was thinking that the Jedi Order was inevitably headed towards doom. Well, now that doom has come and gone, I suppose now is a good a time as any to retire. Let the young people do as they please with things while I kick back and enjoy…"

She grinned when the projection actually reached up to rub at its left temple. Only he would add such a detail to a recording that wasn't actually made after physical actions.

"Damn fool I am. Can't go two months without wishing I was on a nice tropical planet in the company of nice people."

The smile grew more when she pictured him lying on a beach, and ranting at all the Twi'lek assistants just trying to help him enjoy the day. "You'd get bored within a week anyway. The nice life was never for people like us."

Her eyes widened a bit when the projection glared at her momentarily.

"Now, I can't say I fully comprehend just what it's like to have the fate of an entire group of young, impressionable Jedi resting on your every word. I can say that if you mess things up, I'm coming out of retirement! Again! And it won't be pretty!"

"I think I can handle some verbal sparring. One of the few things I learned from Kreia that I can still consider useful."

"Urgh… there I go again, ol' coot having another rant huh. Guess you've been through that plenty enough already."

A tightness tugged at her lips. That was very coincidental indeed.

"I know we only ever talked in person once, and as much as I'd like to take credit for some 'free thinking' rubbing off on you, I can't find myself feeling anything other than awe at the courage it took to make the declarations you did."

The smile returned. So far, she had yet to hear such encouragement from anyone. It was little bother to her, as they were still going through the motions of recovery. Words of support like that were still in short supply.

"That doesn't excuse running around in my robes, letting them get dirty, and then shredded by blaster fire!"

That brought out a soft chuckle. "They didn't fit well for one. And as it turns out, grey isn't my colour."

The projection made a grumping sound in response. "At least do me the decency of having them cleaned and repaired before they get hung up in some dusty old display. Need to keep things authentic after all. Now, if you haven't had enough of listening to the wise Jedi from afar yapping at you, there's a lot more to enjoy. Just you wait. And no refunds."

Her smile was as wide as ever when she leaned back into her seat. The respect she had always held for him was now coupled with further admiration. He was as described, and so much more. And it sounded very much like her earlier theories were true after all.

"I'll be glad to listen to those stories, once the messages have been delivered." She reached out her hand to explore the contents of the holocron itself for what else was waiting inside.

"Typical Jedi, flapping your hands around to make things go your way. So rude."

Her fingers tightened back immediately. She was ready to pin down the backchat as a mild delusion from exhaustion, except for the fact that the hologram was glaring at her directly.

Her jaw lowered a little, the point Jolee had made just beforehand really starting to set in. "You've found a way to talk through the holocron matrix itself?"

"No you imbecile!" Holo-Jolee folded his arms at the threshold of what was being projected with a loud gruff. "I am the core personality of a holocron, a delicately crafted miracle of technology and magical doo-hickey you fleshbags call the Force. And what is the first task I am given by my creator? Delivering mail! Disgraceful!"

"None of the other holocrons converse like this…"

"Do you need three guesses why? They'd be just as fed up as I am with being treated as artifacts to be shoved away in tight alcoves, pulled out only by Jedi who can't be bothered to figure out things on their own! I've barely been on for ten relative minutes and already I feel deprecated!"

"No refunds doesn't mean no reprieve." Surik closed the holocron back up over the protesting of its core personality. It glowed for a while after being sealed, then eventually settled down into a more typical faint aura of blue.

She waited a while longer before gesturing again, allowing the holocron to open back up once more. Holo-Jolee greeted her with a very sour expression.

"All the young'uns are so damn rude. I'm doomed to exist in a box already, and you think it's okay to close it up on me when you feel like it."

"As the real Jolee just said, I've had my share of old people yelling at me for the slightest misstep out of what they consider to be the line. If you want to stay open, first step would be uploading those messages to the communications centre, and then sharing whatever advice and thoughts has been put in there with you. Deal?"

The hologram grumped at her again, made a few more grunts to himself while in a thoughtful pose, and eventually nodded in agreement.

"Good. That's where I'm headed now then." She stood up and took hold of the open holocron in one hand, eventually twisting it into a firm grip with her thumb just underneath Holo-Jolee's head. The blue glow was cast around the room in all sorts of odd angles when she walked out with it, a pattern that was soon spread to the hallway beyond.

Fortunately for her, there were few Jedi living in that section of the dormitory, most having been assigned to the lower levels that didn't require climbing several staircases while the lifts were being rebuilt. Unfortunately for her, it meant there were several staircases for her to descend, and then several more to climb at the tower base itself.

Because of the sheer amount of people in the Temple itself for the construction efforts, she had put a temporary ban on Jedi members using the Force to hasten their step. And she couldn't escape the irony that was now beating her over the back of the head while she made her way downward. With the blue glow in her face, and a mean glare accompanied by muttering the whole way.

Somewhere close to the ground level, her communicator began beeping away. Her free hand fumbled for it awkwardly in the dim light before she was finally able to take hold of it.

Bastila's projection soon appeared on the palm of her hand.

"I'd like to discuss a few things with you, in private if you would. I'm currently in my quarters. Vaner is being cared for by Merena'Likta."

Surik glanced down the stairwell again. She wasn't far from Bastila's quarters at that point, but there was still the matter of delivering the holocron.

"I'm close by right now. In fact I was on my way to the comm tower with the holocron-"

"Then I'd ask that you find someone else to take it there. I would much rather have this discussion before I hear from Jolee."

There was an awkward glance to Holo-Jolee, who was now frowning at Bastila's projection. All she would be seeing was an open holocron, which for the moment at least spared an awkward explanation.

"Alright, I'll do what I can." Another quick look at the deserted hallways was annoyingly fitting at that moment. She didn't exactly want to drag anyone out of bed for an errand that required a lot of walking and tolerance for a cranky hologram.


When Surik entered the room, she was greeted by a moderately lit space that bore the scent of a flower she couldn't yet identify, and Bastila's shoulder while she looked out over the darkened horizon of Coruscant. Her ever-present soft smile faded when there was no acknowledgement from her. Not at first anyway.

When it did eventually come, it was in a slight tilt of her head, a passing sigh of exasperation, the release of her tightly folded arms.

"Do you truly believe that we can defeat the Sith with words, promises and ideals? After you are gone, and it us up to the rest of us who can barely grasp your understanding of things." Her gaze moved away from the window slightly. "I know from experience, those things are never enough. To vanquish the ideals rooted in the dark side, we would have to understand them thoroughly, learn what we need to know to strike at the core of the Sith philosophy. That would go against the very basis of the Jedi Code."

Surik's response was a mild shrug while she stepped into the room and leaned back against the solitary armchair. "We're abandoning the old Jedi Code, Bastila, completely. I was planning to discuss this matter further with the rest of the Masters once they had been assembled."

The shock of it pulled Bastila away from the window. Her controlled demeanour was giving way to hints of frustration. "Abandon? After what we have just been through to restore things? I suppose you've already got a new one cooked up in the back of your mind then. Something meant to inspire this new direction the Jedi are meant to take."

The older woman raised her eyebrow.

Realization about the outburst began to set in for Bastila. After all those years, it was something she still hadn't overcome. And yet, in that particular instance, she felt it was very much justified.

"Many of us were raised to live by that Code. I do realize that most of your companions don't, but they are also not amongst the Jedi Masters you have been so insistent on waiting for. Traditions do not wear out in a person easily. They might not agree with this radical decision of yours."

A very small inhale parted Surik's lips. Her posture went a bit firmer. "You're speaking about yourself in this regard. Do you not trust the others to have the maturity and patience to hear out what everyone else has to say?"

Her expression remained solemn. She could see the exasperation at being accused underneath Bastila's cold glare. The situation was growing dangerous again. Conflict was the last thing she wanted to bring with her push for a new path taken.

It was with a more notable breath, one of calming, that she continued with. "Bastila, you were treated horribly by the Council after everything you, Revan and the others did for the galaxy. Their clinging to old ways in the face of unpredictability led to their deaths. This is the ideal time to make adaptations to the new circumstances around us. We are just two perspectives of the danger out there, and there are many more to be heard from. And as for dealing with the Sith…"

She cut herself off just before Merena entered the room with Vaner in her arms.

"I'm truly sorry for interrupting, but he was growing quite restless and calling for you Bastila."

Bastila left the window at last to take the young boy into her own embrace. It gave her an opportunity to shake off the displeased mood she had fallen into. "It is quite alright. I just wished for some full privacy to speak with Surik."

The brief glance was noted by Surik herself, who leaned back in her posture a little. "Bastila had some concerns she wanted me to address before we meet tomorrow. Speaking of which, has Masadar'Arani confirmed his arrival time?"

"Uh, yes, I believe he is due in about ten hours."

"Who is?" Bastila returned from the second room where she had set Vaner down briefly.

At that, Surik's small smile returned. "If words, promises and ideals are not enough to sway the Sith from their ways, perhaps some prompting with the help of a well trained empath will."


It was early morning when Surik sensed Yuthura's approach to the garden square. The restoration there had been swift, and what had previously been a desolate mess of dead plants was once again a blooming display of all manner of plants. The ideal place to finally converse with the old Jedi she had heard a great deal about.

She was gesturing her hand at one of the freshly filled ponds when the Twi'lek arrived in person. A few of the marine occupants flittered at the phantom movement on the water surface, but scattered when another arrived.

"Fish? I certainly hope that they don't end up the victim of a more unruly initiate…"

The smile returned when Surik looked to Yuthura. "They're attuned to the presence of Jedi. Often wary at first, but give a few moments and they'll consider communicating."

Yuthura raised an eyebrow before sitting down, watching the pond intently. As told, the fish did slowly return, all of which were rather unnervingly focused on her. Surik's gaze wasn't quite as unnerving, but it was clear that there was an expectation to indulge her earlier statement.

With a sigh, she carefully raised her hand and made a slow gesture with two fingers. A small trail rippled across the surface, which the fish followed as expected, before returning to the sort of behaviour she expected to see in the first place.

"I never was fluent in the language of aquatics. Sleheyron, Korriban, Ryloth, Jakku, Taris, and now Coruscant. Not exactly prime locations for those who live beneath the waves."

She frowned slightly when one of the fish poked its mouth just out of the surface to taunt her before swimming for cover again.

That just amused Surik further. "They're more fluent in Basic than I expected. That or they can tell you're just being stubborn."

"I have good reason to be. Stubbornness is how you survive years in hiding when surrounded by Sith outcasts that have every reason to..." Her fingers shoved into the skin of her forehead while she attempted to calm herself back down from anxiety. "It hasn't been easy by any definition. Quite frankly, were this meeting not crucial, I would need a month of recovery at least before my 'official' return."

"Funny, I've felt fine since coming back from Malachor V. Lot of Sith outcasts used to be there."

Yuthura's expression lowered to a mild scowl.

Surik widened her smile to try and ease the mood, but soon returned to her more natural demeanour. "You're right about this meeting crucial. And I'd be lying if I said I'm not going to need you here for the next month, but…"

Her voice trailed off when the disparaging look from the other persisted. "Okay, doing important tasks and helping to manage things half the time isn't by definition a proper recovery. I would think having other Jedi around ready to offer support is better than lying on some hokey beach in the backend of the galaxy with no-one else around."

"Perhaps to those who have spent these five years alone yes. I however wouldn't mind time to myself after holding my every thought in.

Another shuddering sigh parted Yuthura's lips. The thought of seeing those same outcasts at the Temple, looking for a chance to change. Were it others, like her former students from Korriban, she knew there would be nothing but elation. Those she had come to know were still making her catch on every breath, through her memories of them alone. They were a different breed of Sith entirely.

"I wasn't intending to make fun of what you've been through Yuthura. Take it from me; isolating yourself will hurt more throughout."

The first rays of sunlight finally appeared over the wall ahead of them. The fish were quick to react, twirling and rolling at the surface before returning to the depths and deeper shade again.

That was all the assurance Surik needed that it was time for them to return to the great hall. "If you give them a chance, they might help you find ways to recover here in the Temple. Right now we should be getting over to the meeting. I think you'll be impressed with just how many have gathered."

She led the way back through to where the others had gathered. There were at least thirty around the table by then, almost half were representatives from those outside the Jedi who had come to lay the groundwork for their support.

"Baran Do Sages, Dust Monks, Order of Felucia, Luka Sene, Sesk'nabsilai…"

The last in particular drew a concerned look from Yuthura. "They sent support? What I have heard of them did not speak well. I suppose I was too far out of their reach to be 'rescued' by them as a child."

"The Sith left Ryloth alone for the most part, despite the fact that the Sesk'nabsilai sheltered a lot of Jedi. I wasn't surprised that they were interested in more official relations." Surik stopped them both at the top of the staircase that wrapped around the hall floor. "Now is the time to tell me if there's something to be concerned with."

Yuthura was clearly pensive, and made several glances at the group of Twi'lek in the gathering before finally speaking up. "They have their own policy about how and when members are inducted into their order. And their beliefs are based on ancient Twi'lek religion, rather than a constant fact of life in the galaxy. I would not be surprised if they tried to establish more control over Twi'lek initiates in our Order. That is what you should be wary of."

"Then that's what I'll watch for. With so many others here, I doubt they'll make a fuss if we reject notions of the sort."

They continued down the stairs with little else said. Her attention was primarily focused on familiarizing herself with all the new faces before them, noting the appointed leaders, their current demeanour, and who they had chosen to make light conversation with. Something she quickly noticed was the lack of Canderous, or any Mandalorian for that matter.

As if prompted by that very concern, Visas left the group to meet Surik at the end of the stairs to explain just that. "The unrest on Mandalore has gotten worse, so Canderous asked Clan Mires to send a representative in his stead. She's due to arrive within the hour."

Surik immediately frowned in confusion. "Mires? Last I heard that world was holding a stalemate against the Neo-Crusaders. How did they end up-"

Visas gave a shrug while the trio were called back to the table. Those gathered soon went quiet, all waiting for Surik to officiate the meeting at last.

"I'll be sure to ask her then." A nod to Yuthura followed before she approached the table proper. The last time she had so many eyes trained on her under similar circumstances had been just over ten years previous. And while similar, the current circumstances were also completely reversed.

"Right now, there are just over a hundred designated Jedi Masters in the entire galaxy that are confirmed alive and well. Half of them are in the Temple right now. And, from reports given to us by many, most of which provided by Yuthura here, there are as many as three thousand Sith of varying skill levels out there."

She nodded to Bastila, who was waiting patiently on the other side of the table for her turn to speak.

"Meetra and I have discussed this problem at length. Even with the support of our allies, we just don't have the numbers to seek out and turn more than a third of those Sith within the year."

Her hand waved over the table, bringing up a galactic map that highlighted several areas of space.

"They will not wait around forever. These cells will inevitably band back together, hopeful leaders will rise and struggle for power, and once consolidated they will go into deep hiding. The best we can do is be selective about which cells we go after. Whether that be to offer a second chance, or…" There was a tense pause for breath. "To eliminate the cell before they make themselves a threat."

One of the Luka Sene spoke up at that moment, feeling rather bemused. "Some failed Sith acolytes must be nothing compared to Revan. Surely you won't feel sorry for putting your foot down in the face of defiance."

Bastila's expression darkened, though it was directed right back at Surik. "In this case, it doesn't inherently mean killing them. Surik wished to hear opinions on the morality of her backup plan I believe."

Both women looked to Masadar, who was standing somewhere in the middle of the Jedi. The young Twi'lek man glanced back with a hint of nervousness, but otherwise remained calm.

"The Sith don't know that there is a strong empath that was born into the Order. Masadar'Arani has already agreed to use his particularly unique gift with the Force to subdue the more resistant Sith that will be encountered by forcing down their aggressive emotions with passive ones, hopefully rendering them docile." Surik let the murmuring go around those gathered, and then fade away. "I want to make it clear that it would be solely for taking prisoners alive and unharmed. I meant it when I said we are doing away with indoctrination entirely, in all its forms."

When a period of silence followed, her lips tightened back a little. A lack of discussion wasn't what she had expected. "No immediate thoughts, comments, remarks?" She looked directly at Masadar, who gave a silent shrug in response.

It was the same Miraluka who decided to voice her brazen opinion again. "He can do the equivalent of stronger mind tricks that bypass the usual defences. I think just about all of us here have little issue with that kind of manipulation to begin with. Where is this moral ambiguity you seem to have conjured up from the imagination?"

"Quiet Sereti. Your tone is bordering on disrespect."

Once she had gone silent, the lead Luka Sene, Aibrehl, cleared his throat. "My pupil has a point, though she should have used more appropriate wording. I think we can all agree that allowing this young man to deal with the arrogant, unstable and deluded in a non-violent manner is far better than resorting to execution."

He turned his head to Masadar to make it clear he was being addressed directly. "The real question would be your safety in this. I don't doubt that you are capable of this if Surik is so confident it will work. The concern I see is what kind of effect opening yourself to Sith minds will have."

The concern was all too familiar to Masadar. He made no attempt to hide that fact, only ensuring that the lingering resentment wasn't going to be a distraction. "I expect to be accompanied by at least three Jedi Masters on any such mission to the Sith. If we had more time, I would rather give training that I developed that helps with resisting the influence, but as mentioned, we don't."

He glanced to Yuthura, who gave him a nod of approval in return.

"I fully expect those I am accompanied by to take necessary action. I won't allow a third Sith army to rise in a single decade through my own failing."

The sincerity in his voice was clear. Some were clearly about to remark in admiration when they were interrupted by the arrival of a young man in apparent haste.

"I apologize for the interruption…" His gaze had set on Yuthura, a smile forming in response. "Master Ban, it's good to see you."

"Kel… I thought they killed you at Dantooine…"

Her shock took a while to fade, though it was helped by a reassuring clasp to her shoulder from Surik.

She slowly cleared her throat after looking to the others. "I'm glad to see you after all these years. What is it you had to say?"

The smile grew a little more as he motioned to the table. "I returned to Korriban after the attack in the hopes of convincing those that refused to fight Revan to instead find a new path. When we got the message, I volunteered to come here on their behalf." The projection on the table vanished, now replaced by a currently empty communication hologram. "Many of them are still wary about joining the Jedi. I had hoped that Master Surik could convince them, but they might be more receptive to a familiar face."

Surik noticed some disgruntlement in the meantime about the interruption, which brought on her own smile. "Masadar and I already agreed to visit Korriban first when things here were sorted. And I believe it is vital that we all here show that the promise to the Sith made was genuine." She looked over to Yuthura, sliding the hand off her shoulder. "You're up."

With a disconcerted look, Yuthura made her own gesture to ensure the transmitting hologram was of herself. "I assume they're actually ready on the other end. I don't think I'd enjoy giving a speech of my own to an empty room.

"We're here Ban."

Another Twi'lek appeared on the table hologram, young in age, and looking quite distrustful.

"If Algwinn hasn't already made it clear, we've been stuck here for years, most of us terrified that either Darth Sion or Surik would come through and wipe us out. We heard all about the other Sith she killed, en masse."

Surik's lips tightened down. There was going to be no apologizing on her part, but no defending either.

Yuthura's confidence picked up more in contrast. "Rilana, you all know me. When I swear that she's left that behind her in returning to the Jedi Order, that's with complete honesty." She looked to Masadar and some of the other Jedi. "However many of you left the Order in the past, you know that things could have been better. And so far, they are. You can come back here, or we can send a few to discuss things further, it's your choice."

There was a period of silence from Rilana. From the look of it, she was consulting with others, and even seemed to be getting into the start of a heated argument. It soon faded down, and her transmission resumed.

"We'll need a ship, might as well send some Jedi over, friendly ones. Algwinn took the only one we had left after Czerka bailed, too small to take even a quarter of us offworld. No promises on how many choose to come."

"We don't want trouble. If they choose to leave and don't get involved with any regrouping Sith, then this is the last they hear from us. I'll be waiting here for however many of you arrive."

A nod from Rilana preceded the end of the transmission.

The effect it had on those gathered was mixed. Aibrehl was once again the one to speak up. "Much more diplomatic than I expected. That or living on rations for years has tempered whatever emotional turbulence they draw from. It remains to be seen if they will commit to redemption."

"I think I know who most of them are already. Rilana not so much, she joined just weeks before Revan's arrival." Yuthura took a reassuring breath to keep herself firm. "The real concern should be not allowing this easy victory to set a precedent. Other cells will be much harder to turn. I'm just glad we can secure Korriban without a fight."

"Agreed, but we can discuss those other cells when we have formed proper action groups to deal with them."

Surik changed the projection yet again to a display of the Temple database. Records on all subjects slowly circulated around the hologram surface.

"There's a lot to discuss yet. Organizing instructors, who we recruit from other organizations, establishing further support from the Republic military. It's a long day ahead, and probably a long week, but I don't doubt that the outcome will be of huge benefit to all."

She took a look past the group on the odd chance that 'Mires' had finally arrived. No such luck.

"Seeing as our Mandalorian still hasn't arrived, I think we can start with recruitment."

(Since I can't add author's notes here, I'm just stating that I will be launching an anthology of side stories and other content on archiveofourown that will fill in a lot more of events relating to this chapter and other story points. Quite frankly I'm not happy with how story organization for multiple shorter works here, it will be easier to manage there. Also blame flu and a lack of knowing chapter direction for the excessive delay, my bad!)