Maarani immediately began to veer the Vastes away from its course to the Jedi Temple, ready to start on a near vertical climb.
As soon as the change become clear, Dana practically leapt from her seat to grab her shoulder. "What the hell are you doing!?"
Just as brashly, Maarani pushed that hand away, sticking to her intent. "We lost. I told them Azera is on board. You really think they're not going to try and kill her the moment we land?"
"Maarani-"
"No!"
When Maarani pushed again, it was with the Force that time.
Dana was almost ready to draw out her lightsaber as a raw reflex to the attack, only stopped by the fact that she had no idea what to make of the intent behind that push. It hadn't drawn on the dark, or the light for that matter. Not having even a vague sense of what to expect put her even further on edge.
Maarani couldn't care less, getting right back to focusing on the course change. Even with the indicator that Carth was trying to contact them again, and could still possibly take action if he assumed it was Azera's choice to flee.
"I dare you to look me in the eye and tell me not one Jedi will try to attack us for bringing Lasidia's apprentice to the scene of her own attack just moments after it ended. Discipline and moral codes have a habit of going away when your home gets bombed."
"Tee, it won't come to that."
Knowing she was now at the centre of attention in quite possibly the worst way, Azera had remained silent until that moment. She turned her head to Maarani after a few seconds, if only to give the vague impression of some kind of facial contact.
"The Jedi need a healer more than anything, especially revenge. Now is when we prove that I've changed, and we stop more people from dying today."
After holding that stare a while, Maarani looked back to Dana and Izan. For once, they both clearly agreed on the matter, set on landing.
She turned back to her controls without so much as a sigh, readjusting their course to the nearest landing bay in the Temple that hadn't been outright destroyed or was flooded with relief traffic.
It took her a little longer to restore the comm link with Carth, who looked understandably suspicious by then.
"Before you ask, it was Azera who convinced me to set down. I was the one who was ready to run. And I know that's not nearly enough to convince you to back off from her, so I'll agree to terms."
"I'm listening."
"Azera is a healer. Probably among the top tier in the galaxy right now. There are hundreds of Jedi down there that are critically wounded. Give us one full cycle of peace to let her heal the worst cases. After that time is up, we'll hash out what happens next with how Kiarna's crimes are dealt with." She made a brief glance at Azera again, not sure how to feel about her nod of agreement. "That will also be on my terms. I won't let the Senate dictate proceedings, and I will outright refuse to let anyone in the military but you have a say in the matter. This is only between the Jedi and the civilian Republic government. Agreed?"
Carth let out a long winded sigh, struggling to work through planning the logistics of everything involved already. Getting any of it to work out that way was so very unlikely.
"I can't promise anything, Maarani."
"Good. Don't make promises you can't or won't keep. I'm not going to tolerate them anymore, not after everything I've been through. Do what you can to get what I want done, and if it works out I'll continue to cooperate. If I see Republic troopers anywhere near Azera before this time tomorrow, she and I will vanish, and we won't be found again. Mark my word."
"For what it's worth, I'm not out for blood here. I'll do what I can to keep this from blowing up, but keeping it under wraps for even half a cycle might not be possible. And if you do vanish, please don't give up on the Republic just yet. Admiral Onasi out."
By the time their conversation was done, the Vastes was on approach to the landing bay. Already, there were quite a few speeder cars and the like moving injured from the place. To the left, rows of bodies under what sheets were available had already started to grow in number.
"Az, you've got until midnight to heal as many people as you can manage. They're not even going to wait until morning to mobilize and take you in. Assuming they don't convince some of the Jedi guards to grab you first for them."
Since there was still no way to contact the Temple for landing clearance, she just went for the most vacant area and set down in a place that wasn't going to block any inbound or outbound craft. It left her enough time to turn around properly and talk with the other three.
"I still can't reach the Lady of Balance, so I'm not going to count on being able to get out of here through shatterspace. Doesn't mean we won't go into hiding, Az, just that we won't be able to come back and help with more of the Jedi when they leave quite as easily."
Dana had a rather dark look to her face since first mention of them vanishing, though that last assurance eased it slightly.
"Teegs, the Jedi do have the right to retain custody of any Sith. Neither the Senate nor the military can overrule the High Council. And if you're this committed to keeping Azera safe then you can probably convince Brianna to give that order."
Maarani just rolled her eyes. "One, even if she survived the attack, I wouldn't count on the Council being anywhere remotely near forgiving. Two, I don't trust the Senate at all, not when they only took action about what Republic Intelligence was doing solely because Seradan leaked it to the entire galaxy and I spoke up. They had to know about Mirial much earlier on, which means a good chunk of them will have no problem giving illegal orders to the kind of soldiers that will carry them out."
She sighed quietly at that, turning her head towards Azera a little. "Either they render you unconscious and take you then, or they'll force you to fight back and we all know exactly what will happen after that. And let's face it, the Jedi are in no condition to protect you on a constant basis."
Azera nodded quietly in agreement, then cast her attention to the area outside the ship as a precaution. Their arrival, and lack of departure or contact had drawn attention by then. They didn't have too much longer before they'd come and try to force their way in.
Leaving it aside for just a little longer, she looked to Dana instead at that moment. "We also have to consider that the Sith, and the Empire might come and try to rescue me if I'm portrayed as fighting back. By now they have to know I've switched sides. So I'm either a double agent and thus a target for rescue, or a traitor and one for assassination. I won't fight back."
It was a lot for Dana to take in, though after the amount of hostility between herself and the pair she wasn't going to take that outreach of trust for granted. Now that they were in agreement about the situation, she had to hold up her end.
"Alright. So the most we can do is get the Council to come down on your side of however this turns out, since there's no way to enforce your sanctuary. What do we do when the gloves come off and they send in secret forces?"
Maarani clicked her fingers lightly as an idea came to mind. "Back when the Mirial news broke, Jayden and I discussed getting sanctuary for me on Mandalore Prime if things backfired. Steadfast I trust a hell of a lot more than Chancellor Ollur, and Jayden's right up there in his good books. She convinces him to get you sanctuary, Az, we sneak you over to the Mandalorian Embassy and they'll be able to do a much better job of protecting you. I know it's not a guarantee he'll agree to it, but it's far better than climbing down below the Temple and hiding in the lower layers of Coruscant. Izan?"
He blinked at actually being brought up in the midst of the discussion, though he had been paying attention thoroughly. "I've been listening."
"Jayden's going to have her hands full. You're the most neutral person on this ship, and you have a trustworthy face."
"Thanks?"
"Just do what you can to keep Az safe, both in the Temple and at the embassy if we get her there. I'm going to be tied up with the Council for all the crap they've put me through before as well as trying to sort out this mess. And let's face it, people aren't going to take Cecile seriously because it's so much easier to pretend droids don't have a say. You're someone people will actually bother listen to, and it could make the difference between settling this peacefully and more people getting shot or beaten up. Not asking you to put yourself in the line of fire, just do what you can to keep things under control."
Maarani's gaze started to gravitate downward, culminating in her reaching to her forehead as the most difficult situation came to mind.
"I know Yuthura is by far the most convincing Jedi on our side. She's well known by the public, has a lot of respect across all the groups."
Her hand trailed down her face when she lifted her head back up, fingers spread across as she just held that thought for a few seconds. One last moment of consideration.
"I won't ask her to go through that. I was supposed to stay with her on Akar Kesh until her passing, I'm convinced of that. And now she's been denied that ideal peace. I won't let her lose what's left of her serenity just to make this mess a little easier to deal with. She deserves far better."
"Tee, we need to get moving now."
The other three looked to Azera at last when she moved to stand. "Sereti is coming. She's encountered this ship, back when we met on Katarr. There's no hiding now."
"I think we've said what needs to be said anyway. Time to try and make most of it happen."
Maarani motioned for Dana and Izan to head down through the ship, but deliberately held Azera back with one hold on her arm. When they were alone, she moved around to clasp the other, her hands moving up and down a little in growing fear.
"Az, I really think you need to change into something that isn't this coat and vest. The mask is obvious, but the red trim on white is still a pretty big giveaway. At least make it harder for them to single you out in a crowd."
With the thick tension of the situation, Azera had to really force the smile she gave. One moment of easing the mood was quite possibly the last they'd have for a very long while.
"You're not even pretending that it's just an excuse to watch." Her hands moved up to return the arm hold, that time working upward to cup around the face. "Tee, we are both going to survive this. Now kiss me, go outside, and do what you do best."
In a move that actually shocked Azera, Maarani just pulled away, and started heading down the stairs without looking back.
"Right now, I'm still feeling kinda awful for how I behaved back on Akar Kesh. Let's just not do any of the flirty crap until this is over. I don't need cheering up."
Inevitably, she stopped at the end of the stairs, sighing quietly when she noticed Azera was following her down.
When she saw her hand out to the left, holding the lightsaber, it was enough for Maarani to lift that barrier just for a moment. Looking back over her shoulder, reaching around to touch the back of Azera's hand, and only then taking the lightsaber.
"I'm not giving this to them."
"I know. Make them understand. 'Your lightsaber is your life', right."
Maarani rolled her eyes, but chose to not make any quips or remarks about that phrase she found dubious at the best of times. The point was clear, and she wasn't taking the gesture for granted in the slightest.
The others were still preparing to disembark by the time she got down to the boarding ramp. In some cases, there were things that had to be completed, or prepare for before departing. For certain others, they knew that there was a certain time to make their presence known, after what needed to be said had done so.
Maarani breathed in, tilted her head to either side briefly, then began walking down the ramp with her lightsaber in hand. Unactivated, but at the ready nonetheless on the odd chance she had to prove her point. Azera's remained clipped to her belt.
With just Azera's warning to go on up until that moment, she was rather shocked to see Sereti's actual state. Most of her head, predominantly the right side, had been rather hastily bandaged up given the quality on display. The sane applied to her right shoulder and arm. There was a bit of an eyepatch visible beneath the head wrap, though given she lacked eyes it wasn't quite as terrible a wound as it otherwise would have been.
In all, it was a rather apt visual for her mood in general. Broken underneath, barely holding together on the surface, and with a lot of deep resentment at the forefront.
The fact that some of the Temple guards had wounds of their own, even cracked masks and armour, if not outright burns from lightsaber strikes, didn't ease things at all. They were quite possibly the few survivors of their group left.
Seeing the lightsaber, Sereti just clenched her teeth while readying her own, keeping it sheathed for the time being.
"Where is she?"
It seemed so long ago when Maarani had arrived at the Temple. Brash, angry, obnoxious and sarcastic. Deeply disturbed and depressed.
That was all gone for her. Sereti had gone from the stoic leader of the Jedi, something close to what they could have all aspired to be, to a bitter wreck with a single-track mindset.
Maarani responded in exactly the way the situation called for.
"Getting dressed. So she can heal the wounded while wearing something that isn't going to make them resent her. The only place she's going is inside, to help."
She stepped forward, motioning for the others to wait a little longer before joining her. Keeping her head cool, her own emotions in check, and doing everything she could to block out the rising tension around her.
"You saw what she did at Katarr. She told me you were there when she healed the biggest Force Wound that any of us have heard about. You can accept that Kiarna is gone. Or you can keep assuming she's evil forever and condemn all those people inside to horrible painful deaths. Your move."
Sereti's grip on her lightsaber tightened a little, moreso when she tilted her head up towards the boarding ramp again.
Not wanting to take long at all, Azera had simply ditched the red trim white coat and vest for a long dress of dark green instead. The stitching to seal where there had once been a hole in the shoulder was still visible under the right angle of light.
The guards brought their polesabers up when they noticed her approach. Something that drew more attention from others in the area, who until then had been paying attention where they could.
There was no hiding from the potency of rumours, thus Azera made no effort to hide the fact that she was handing her mask to Sereti. People were going to find out anyway, and in her mind, the best option was to make that first memory an ideal one, for them all.
"It's dead. Hasn't done anything other than work as a voice modulator, rebreather, and the other technical functions. Stick it in a vault, melt it down. I don't care."
While neither of the Miraluka could actually stare at each other for obvious reasons, there was nonetheless a clash of feelings, intentions and the like. Visual body language remained a core part of their society after all, even if the way they perceived it was different from almost all others.
The tension ended when Sereti grabbed the mask, turning it in her hand for a few moments, then moved to hand it over to one of the guards.
"Get it under lockdown. Members of the Council only. Bar everyone else. Especially non-Jedi." Sereti tilted her head up a little, sighing through her teeth. "It's not going to prove anything. You still did a lot of things before you ever joined the Sith. Before you took up that mantle."
Azera tightened what little there was of her lips, still able to convey some amount of expression. "To be honest, after everything I've learned from Tee about her experience in the military, as well as my own research about the long and sordid history of all this? The Republic can go fuck itself, along with its opinions about me." She shrugged right after that. "But I'm going to help anyway."
Maarani decided to shrug as well, not having any real way to follow up on that. "I think we've made our case. So are we going to keep standing around here?"
The timing of what was to follow made her wish that it was all planned. She no longer needed to look back to know that Yuthura was making her way out of the ship at last, with Dana not far behind.
Nearly nine years since departing the Temple grounds, it was a very surreal moment for the aging Twi'lek to be standing on Coruscant once again. Perhaps just as surreal as it was for those who recognized her. By her own opinion, she was hardly a Jedi worthy of legend or renown, but her absence had clearly been felt all the same.
All she gave was a solemn nod to Sereti. That was all that was needed to solidify the decision she was already reaching.
"I can't let you walk around freely, Azera."
"Good, actually." Maarani glanced to her left at Azera herself, then went right back to Sereti. "I know they're in pain, and they're exhausted. But I'd much rather that Izan and Cecile aren't the only ones watching her back while she's focused on healing and I'm elsewhere sorting out what happens next. Stick to my plan and it won't be for more than a day."
Sereti tilted her head slightly at the presumption on display.
"And we'll know we can trust you to help plan the next moves."
Seeing that Yuthura was doing fine with Dana's help alone, and that the others were finally coming down from the ship, Sereti finally conceded. Another gesture was all she needed to instruct the guards to assume a protective formation around Maarani and Azera, leaving her free to lead the way.
"You've both changed considerably since our last respective encounters. For example, you've been emanating an aura of calm since you got here, Tegama."
Maarani kept her eyes forward as they finally got moving towards the Temple itself. Ignoring all the other stares and looks they were getting by that point.
"Father told me once that all that's needed to start lifting rocks with the Force is suspension of disbelief, mostly in how normal physics work. Training is what makes the difference between making them float, and throwing them at a target with perfect precision. I've seen enough crazy and unbelievable things to get the suspension part down, therefore empathic power. Calm is simple, and it's working so far."
Moving further inside highlighted the true extent of the damage more and more. The frequency of scorch marks, holes in the floor, walls, pillars and the like becoming commonplace. As did relief workers hurrying about, and soon those injured Jedi that hadn't entirely escaped the chaos.
The rest of the walk was spent on explaining the basic outline of the plan to help those they could, and then move to safety when the time came. It was far from complete by the time they reached the main hall, but the situation meant that explaining in detail would have to wait longer.
Thin mats and thermal blankets were laid out in two rows for some distance. All those who weren't critically injured, but also not able to move on their own without going into agony. There simply wasn't the space to move them out to other hospitals in the area safely.
Not having to go through the full brunt of looking at all the Jedi in pain was something Sereti found herself grateful to Maarani for. It had been hard enough to get to that bay in the first place, walking past them when the most she had suffered was a fracture to her optical cavity.
"The medical ward is in bad condition right now. I suggest you start here, Azera. I hate to put it this way, but we need the space for construction crews and the like to come stabilize the structure before more of it collapses in on us."
Of course, Maarani immediately started looking up and around to see that for herself. "It's miraculous the Reconciliation Spire didn't bring down the Temple altogether."
Some of the statues in particular had been targeted for attack, a few across the expansive space having collapsed to rubble More of Lasidia's deliberate pattern, tearing down Jedi figures of the past. Those statues bearing definite cracks already had droids wrapping metal cable around the least damaged sections to try and anchor them to more stable walls.
Azera had done just the opposite, approaching the nearest of the patients slowly, keeping her pace nice and calm.
She doubted wearing a cloth face mask would be any more comforting than her mangled skin given the context. The last she needed was to fit into the concept of a faceless entity come to take them away, especially given the variety of races and peoples she would have to tend to.
The first was a younger man, his face bruised and scratched. One of his legs was clearly broken. In general he was agitated, but on seeing a Miraluka with a distorted face approaching he was quickly becoming frantic.
"No… no! Go away!"
Unfazed, Azera knelt down beside the mat, reaching out her hand towards him. "You need to relax. I'm going to fix your leg. Bone fractures-"
"Go away! I know you! I know you!"
Her outstretched hand started to close. Of course, it was never going to be as simple as losing the mask and changing her clothes. Whether it was light or dark, her presence, her familiarity to others had a baseline that wouldn't ever change.
"Look, I am here as a healer, nothing else. You're in shock, but you have to let go of being scared and angry on top of that."
The frantic shaking of his head soon saw him falling back onto the mat, on the verge of convulsing. His pained ranting, along with the state of his body was quickly drawing attention from others nearby. Raising suspicions, starting assumptions.
Maarani practically landed on her knees when she noticed how things had turned. Unlike Azera, she had no reservations about reaching out to make contact, taking hold of what little of his left arm hadn't been grazed.
"Calm down. Okay? Calm. Stop fighting when we're trying to help you. Just lie down, stop throwing a fit, and let her heal you."
Her words were forceful, but still not enough to stop his panic attack. The passive calm she was putting out wasn't enough.
"Fine. This is for your own good."
Her hand moved to his forehead as she concentrated down on him directly. After a few seconds, the shaking and yelling stopped, forced calm taking hold. Not serene by any means, but to Maarani it was far better than his previous behaviour.
Dana and Izan had caught up to Sereti by then, all of whom had taken full notice of the shift in behaviour. While the latter was somewhat impressed, Dana herself had a growing look of disdain again. It didn't sit right with her at all.
Leaving Azera to tend to the leg, Maarani soon returned to where the others had gathered, ushering them a bit further away. She had already taken notice of Dana's expression, and while there was no keeping the conversation from Azera, she could at least prevent the other injured from overhearing.
"I didn't go hard on his head. Az has enough to deal with without fixing a popped blood vessel as well. I can get this empathic thing under control soon enough."
"The fact that you actually knew brain damage was a risk of forcing that on him isn't helping, Teegs. Nevermind that you just took away his right to consent-"
"To letting Azera put his leg back into one piece so he doesn't end up losing it? To stop him from getting every other wounded person lying out there from getting agitated and hurting themselves more as well?"
Maarani reached up to her left lekku, gesturing a finger over the scar. "I didn't consent to Kiarna pulling the wood shard out and closing the wound! But you know what? I'd have brain damage if she left it in and I was stuck out there well into the night. I'm pretty sure you know what it's like for a stab wound to get infected Dana. At least it was just your foot!"
"So much for keeping calm."
With a roll of her eyes, Maarani looked over to Izan, making sure that he really came to regret the quip with a glare.
"I'm good at keeping calm when I'm not being criticized for helping people out. Maybe they don't like it, maybe they don't want it. But they are sure as hell going to regret not accepting it when they realize they've lost parts of their own bodies just because they whined and complained about who did the healing. Now if you don't mind?"
She gestured towards Azera, keeping her glare up until he backed out of the group and went over to her.
Sereti used that chance to intervene before Maarani and Dana went back to the heated debate yet again. "My point about helping them to a safer location stands. This wasn't meant to become the main collecting point. And I do believe that under these conditions that stabilizing their condition for movement elsewhere takes precedence over the right to choose who does the stabilizing. It is a policy to give emergency treatment to wounded Imperial soldiers after all, ultimately this is no different."
While not happy about that stance, Dana did visibly back down from any intent to argue further. Something she was at least glad to see in Maarani as well.
"Teegs, I just don't want this going to your head. Being able to influence people like that is so very dangerous, especially if you reason it as being for their own good. Doing it without proper training that we obviously can't provide right now is also bad, but can't be helped I guess. Do the bare minimum, then move on. Please."
Maarani folded her arms up before nodding, glancing between them. "Alright, bare minimum it is. Just enough to let her put bones back together and stop internal bleeding. I'll let her know, she's probably getting carried away with easing their pain and healing all their wounds."
Once she had left to go help as well, Sereti took the chance to user Dana away. There wasn't anywhere in the main hall that didn't have a droid or a few workers doing their best with the stabilization effort, putting privacy at a premium. There was a lot to be said, but only a small portion was safe for that immediate conversation.
"You've changed your tone with Maarani considerably since we last spoke. Went from being so very protective of her wellbeing, to that level of scrutiny. Though you obviously still care a great deal, I'm not arguing that."
Dana chose to remain silent for the moment.
Sereti continued on after a small sigh. She had plenty to say regardless. "I do regret being so hostile to you at the time, it was a mistake. I shouldn't have tried to micromanage a situation I knew anything about. Hindsight isn't even a factor."
They passed another of the large statues. Most of the upper portion had collapsed to the floor and rolled down the stairs to their left. In a way, it was better off down there where it was no longer at an active risk of falling.
"I'm not going easy just because her unique talent works, and she's ended up on our side. I realize things could've gone differently-"
"Oh you don't even know the half of it." Having no intention of stopping their walk, Dana just did her best to keep her head forward throughout it. "We may very well have created the second incarnation of Exar Kun. You should know, she was captured by Sloane for torture over the course of a week at least."
"By the gods…"
"And that was right after your friend Nihilus ripped the Lady of Sorrows from her. So, yeah, I'm inclined to believe between all that she hasn't been entirely stable since. And I'm not even going to start on her obsession with the Lady of Balance and her group."
She went quiet as they passed another group of civilians. Unlike Sereti, her qualms about talking out in the open were merely when others were just metres away.
"I'm not trying to push her back down after years of that from her squadmates. I'm just scared she's going to develop a very large ego and lash out if we're not careful. We gave her the means after all. And with how attached she's grown to Azera, it's only going to take one stupid mistake to tip her right back over the edge."
That time, Sereti took her time to think. The next subject at hand was rather more delicate. Something she didn't want to hear, even if the circumstances weren't so abysmal.
"You really believe that the Senate and the military are going to come after her in our jurisdiction?"
"We've all seen the files. We all watched that broadcast by Chancellor Ollur. He played it up all nice and clean but he knew. They'll want a fresh victory to try and get some support back, and putting the White Terror on trial will go a long way to restoring face. I saw it happen when Chancellor Sidrona declared Ulic Qel-Droma a prisoner of the Republic instead of the Jedi. There's a very real precedent if the Senate bands together and supports Ollur on this."
"Maybe. But as you said, public support is going to be with us for a while. And since Azera hasn't officially been captured, the Republic will have to make the arrest themselves. Maarani might just be one step ahead of them, if Mandalore cooperates."
By then they had reached the far end of the main hall, approaching some of the corridors that hadn't completely collapsed in. Further ahead were the various paths to the High Council Spire. It was quieter in that area, enough for Sereti to stop at last and speak more freely.
"Unless you believe she should go on trial, Dana."
Dana stopped as well, turning to look back across the expansive space. Maarani, Azera and Izan were just barely visible at that distance.
"I've had a lot of arguments with Azera. And I realize it's a different case when she hasn't really gone through the process of becoming an actual new person."
She breathed out with a tone of self admission, looking back to Sereti. "Everything aside, keeping Azera alive is the best way to keep Teegs under control. Simple, hard practicality. They're joined at the hip, their minds are linked, and they've got ambitions together. And the fact remains that Azera did bring her back from the dead, while also showing more restraint than any of us on a number of occasions."
At that moment, she shrugged and moved to resume their walk. "She has Masadar's approval, as well as Yuthura's. I think there's a long road ahead of training with the Jedi before we can truly trust her, but as a behavioural psychologist I am convinced that she is distinct from the personality we knew as Kiarna. That's good enough for me."
"Fine. Then it's good enough for the Jedi. Officially."
Dana quietly raised an eyebrow, stopping again when she noticed Sereti wasn't moving to follow. "What do you mean?"
Sereti took a much longer breath at that. Far from the calming presence of Maarani, her own attempts to keep everything collected were shaking loose. Just a little. It was still more than what could've been asked of her given everything surrounding them.
"Brianna is in a coma. Several members of the High Council are badly injured. Utan escaped with mild injuries, and Torbut will return after they've finished stitching what's left of his arm since there's going to be a long wait for replacements. For the duration of this crisis, we're both members of the High Council, until decisions on permanent members are reached."
If the news before hadn't been so utterly shocking, Dana might just have broken out into laughter at the last part. The laughter that came with utter disbelief. Not of joy, but complete disappointment in how far everything had fallen.
"After everything… After Suroni split the Jedi Order in two? After I nearly screwed up thirty years of planning for a surefire way to defeat the Sith? After being told my rank of Jedi Master was always going to be honorary because I'm an artificial personality in the body of a former dark side witch?"
"You're the best expert on who Maarani has evolved into we have. And you're also the most familiar with Azera and her current state of being. You need to be able to act with Council authority while working with both of them, so it's going to happen as soon as what's left of the inner circle can convene."
Sereti closed the gap between them at last, laying both hands on Dana's shoulders. "And you are not artificial. Suroni is gone, and you're about to step out of her shadow into the public eye. We all need you on point. And I need you focused, because there's now some hard news to break."
Those hands fell away, Sereti clasping them for a bit before deciding to just keep her arms tightly folded instead. She could feel the change in Dana's stance already.
"Atris is dead."
It hit Dana like a haunting wind, sucking the air from her body. Of course, she wouldn't have sensed it amongst all the other voices. One silent departure. Seeing the carnage was hard, but that simple statement made her tremble just a little.
And still, she did her best to remain steadfast. "Lasidia?"
"She had deep bruises on the neck. We found her right outside the holocron vault. But, what happened in there will need to wait."
She had noticed one of the padawans left to watch over the medical ward approaching hastily. A subtle gesture brought him over.
"Dr Xilubu says she's waking up."
"Alright. Head down that way." Sereti gestured to the long walkway she and Dana had come up from. "And inform the Rutian Twi'lek in the area of the full message. She'll be accompanying a Miraluka in non-Jedi attire. And a, uh…?"
Dana rolled her eyes slightly. "Zeltron. With bright red hair and beard. The Twi'lek is Maarani."
She watched the padawan depart swiftly after that, tilting her head with an uncertain expression. "Guess having bright pink skin doesn't make a difference to some after all. Izan's trustworthy, he's come through for us several times over. Anything that isn't specifically about Teegs, he should be in on."
"It's your call to make now, Dana. This isn't something you have to come to others for approval on anymore."
Shrugging, Dana decided to start moving on again, that time waiting to be sure Sereti had done the same.
"In that case, I'd like to know who it is that just woke up then. I need a moment to grieve, so I think I'd rather know everyone I'm praying for, that might still have a chance."
Sereti needed another bracing breath before answering. The death count was far from done that day.
"Koor. Carmen is shaken, but alive. Merena'Likta was last seen at the base of the Reconciliation Spire right before it went down. I can't think of anyone else here that Tegama had any real bond with. And while I'd rather wait before informing her of things that will interrupt her ability to calm others, Koor simply won't live to see nightfall."
"Lie down and stay quiet, or you're going to be coughing up blood within the hour. Az?"
Azera was carefully passing her hand over the torso of the latest patient, a Weequay woman. "Several of your ribs are broken. One of them has completely fractured, and there's a piece lodged in your stomach. I'd say it's going to be much less than an hour."
The woman in question just glared back, shaking from the pain in her midsection, then took a stuttering breath to speak.
"I'd rather die here, than be tainted by the lure of the dark side, of a mass murdering Sith."
Immediately, Maarani got up on her feet. Only seven patients in, and she was reaching the edge of how calm she could keep herself in the face of absolute, unwavering stubborn behaviour. So far, she had been holding back on her empathic power, just as Dana had asked. And as a result, things were progressing far slower than she could tolerate.
Taking a small break to breathe, and collect herself didn't improve her mood below the surface at all. It wasn't even a matter of getting gratitude. The obtuse way in which all of them were reacting to simple aid was too much.
"Stuff it. Can't keep going at it like this."
She turned around, then clapped her hands in a loud, aggressive way to get the attention of everyone nearby, glaring at all of them.
"Hey! Take your hang-ups, your dumbass Jedi beliefs and all the other complaining and suspicion and shove it where none of us have to hear about it! Because we care! If you want us to stop caring, then behaving like brats refusing their medicine is going to do just that! If you want to die here, in the cold, pretty much alone, then go right ahead! Stop wasting our time just because you don't have much left!"'
Her finger went up to both Izan and Azera when she saw them ready to protest. She wasn't done yet.
"Azera is a Miraluka. She can perceive extremely minor body language. It doesn't matter if you have broken legs, broken backs, or broken necks. If you want to stay that way, in agony, in pain, tell her no in whatever way you can, even if its as simple as moving your eyes from side to side. Those of you who aren't close minded, who are actually capable of accepting that she is in fact different from Kiarna. Well, you'll get relief from the worst of your injuries a lot faster this way. That's all."
Leaving it at that, she walked right away from the rows of mats for some space to breathe. Feeling Azera's hand on her arm as she moved to join her just brought on another bout of frustration.
"Tee-"
"Go help those who want it, or just don't object to it. Guess I'm keeping the gloves on until one of us comes up with a new idea. Or they get shipped out faster."
There was barely a minute between Azera walking away, something Maarani was grateful for, and the arrival of the padawan.
"Maarani?"
"What!"
Immediately, she regretted snapping at him, lifting a hand to indicate she needed a moment while calming herself down from that fuming mood.
"I'm sorry. Having to deal with people that need help but refuse it really doesn't sit right with me. Am I needed somewhere?"
The padawan made a brief glance over at the other Jedi nearby before deciding to focus on his task as best he could. "Master Pala asked me to relay a message to you from Dr Xilubu. Master Koor has woken up."
The resentment drained from Maarani immediately. Her first reaction was to look right back to Azera. After the lack of gratitude from those nearby, leaving to help Koor with whatever she had woken from seemed rather more appealing.
"I see. Do you know what happened to her? Because if it's not that serious-"
She didn't even need to look to feel the shift of emotion from the padawan. The sort that put her moment of planning to the side, and made her listen.
"In Dr Xilubu's words, roughly. She was stabbed with a lightsaber at the base of her left lung by Darth Lasidia, who then proceeded to slice out to Koor's right. Damaging a large portion of her internal organs, and severing the spine. He couldn't believe she was capable of waking up at all, even given her strength in the Force."
It was a very grim report, and the fact that it had to come from someone who barely looked fifteen didn't make Maarani feel any less anxious. All her previous talk about Yuthura holding on for her sake left an ill feeling in mind. Koor couldn't have known she had returned.
Regardless, there was no other path in mind by then.
"Are you to inform anyone else, or heading back there now?"
"I was just told to tell Master Pala. Temple communications still aren't back online yet."
To that, Maarani just nodded then went back to looking out the empty window again, keeping her arms folded. One more look at Coruscant before she moved away again. "If you deliver another message to Master Pala, or Azera for that matter? Tell them I'll be with Koor, until it's over. Lead the way."
While the padawan moved to do just that, Maarani took one last glance over at Azera. It was the simplest way of telling her without spawning more questions in those who didn't know. And from the look of it, she wasn't going to get any argument from Azera herself.
Perhaps the only part of the Temple to escape the devastation above were the gardens that lined the mountain itself below.
Yuthura had found her way back to the spot she had come to so many times before, as did many other Jedi in need of guidance. So often, she had been one to give it, starting with Masadar and Rilana on the day the Order split. Now, with little left to give, all she really needed was a chance to talk.
When Utan approached, now nursing a bruise on his head in addition to the bandaged ear. Knowing just how fortunate he had been in the crisis had taken a toll on his demeanour. And with others far better equipped to handle the few tasks he could work on, it had left him with little else to keep his mind off the guilt.
Talking with the revered Jedi Master after years of absence was all he could think of.
"Might I?"
Yuthura's purple eyes turned downward towards the many little streams that went down the rocky surface below, then closed for a few moments to take in the sound.
"I found one of the lost ancestral colonies. I found Balance."
Her eyes opened. It was tranquility that she had come to miss long ago. The position of the temple on Akar Kesh meant that days of minimal, or no wind flow at all were very few indeed. And she simply didn't have the means, or the peace of mind to go exploring too far from that safe haven.
"Before Tegama arrived, it was different. The murals, the writing, the inscriptions. It was all mythology to me. The fanciful notions of ancient Je'daii. Not unlike the beliefs of pagan races."
Her eyes cast around at that moment, taking in the sight of the dense plantlife that stretched out ahead of them.
"Then, I felt the flow of the Force in true balance for a fraction of a second. Witnessed time itself come to a standstill in that instant. I have a real concept of Balance, and through Tegama, the face it has chosen to wear."
Utan blinked a couple of times, taking it all in quietly, as best he could. The conceptual side of being a Jedi had always been the lesser of two in his mind. Learning the craft of a lightsaber had stemmed from his familiarity and comfort with the physical. Listening to Yuthura's description made him realize she was very much on the other end of that scale. All he could do was speculate, and ask simple questions that he hoped would bridge the gap between them.
"Word has been spreading about a Lady of Balance. And of a Following that have gathered around her. Yet, we know almost nothing about her at this point in time."
Yuthura smiled quietly. "She isn't one of the Whills. Something about what I have learned leads me to believe they are distinct. She is, different. Less of a primal, base aspect of the Force. More, something newer. A crystallization, if you will. A being that has taken time to coalesce, to smooth the rough edges, and find purity in her state of existence."
She quietly chuckled after that, reaching up to politely clear her throat. "It is hard to describe something that is conceptual by its own nature. Tegama and Azera see the face, the simple interpretation in a physical form that is the Lady of Balance. I think I have looked beneath that face, and scratched the surface of what Balance truly is."
Her eyes closed once again, hands lifting off the railing to come together, focusing her thoughts inward, then releasing.
"I've struggled to find where I stand in the light and the dark. Sometimes, I have agreed with the notion that there is a clear border. Other times, that the border is blurred, a spectrum between the two extremes. Now, I don't believe they are ends of a linear scale, but aspects of something that curves in on itself. Balance is not a single point exactly between the light and the dark. It is a flux of every shade, constantly in motion, never fixed in place."
With her exhale came another small sensation of relief. Those sensations had been growing shorter, smaller. But they would last her long enough.
"It is little wonder that Grey Jedi have sought out their own path. No two are the same by the very definition of being grey. It is difficult to find common ground when you might as well be standing on different mountains from each other."
"Perhaps that is why even the unity of the Following is not perfect. Jayden has encountered dissidents of their order."
Yuthura nodded at last, stepping away from the railing to kneel down closer to Utan, smiling softly again. "It is the nature of sapience, and of free thought. To progress, to learn and grow, we must all face our challenges. I have faced many, and soon I will face the last. The most I can hope for is that I will overcome that final challenge, and reach the height of my true growth before moving on."
Gripping onto the railing for support, Yuthura moved back up to standing, breathing heavily afterwards for a little while. Even simple actions were starting to require greater exertion on her part, though she was intent on keeping it to herself.
"I am close, Utan. I didn't expect to return here in this way, on this occasion. I don't believe it was planned. But it is going to be where I move on to the next existence. And I am content at last."
The medical ward was so very different from how Maarani remembered it. When the greatest mystery was why she had been asleep for fourteen hours, unable to wake.
Just about every bed had someone in critical condition laying in it. Those that were on the brink, or past it and being made comfortable. The sort that even she knew were too fragile to risk upsetting with Azera's presence.
Those few beds that weren't designed for life support functions were being used for all manner of surgeries. Getting through as many stitch-ups and the likes as the medical droids could handle. Somewhere around the middle of the ward, she noticed a tall blue man having the stump of his left arm between the elbow and shoulder sealed up at last.
Catching her breath, and after seeking silent approval from one of the nurses, she walked over to look at Torbut face to face at last.
He winced briefly as the suture was completed, though managed something of a smile upon noticing Maarani at last.
"My fellow blue-skin from across the galaxy." Once certain the surgery was complete, he slid off the bed and made a point of straightening it out for the next in line. When able to move clear, he reached out his right hand to Maarani, nodding when she took it.
Seeing Jayden without her leg enough times meant she wasn't all that disturbed by his condition. The only concern on her mind was that which he had as well.
"Sereti sent word around to me. What else is there to say?"
Torbut nodded quietly, with the best look of understanding he could muster. "We both grew fearful when contact was lost. The most we can do now is be grateful that the Force allowed for an intersection of our paths at this time. Even if they are paths that we would never have gone down willingly, if there were a choice. Such is life."
"Yeah. Sometimes."
A shiver went through Maarani's body when she looked away from those crimson eyes. Further down the ward, it was quieter, and all of the beds had been curtained off. Even when one of the doctors approached from one nearby, his voice and mannerisms remained subdued.
"Tegama'Arani. We haven't met yet. I was away from the Temple during your brief visit, but I have learned some amount about you since. Dr Xilubu."
That time, there was no handshake offered, something Maarani was quietly grateful for.
"I can't say the same, doctor. But then there's a lot I've missed out on." She looked up to Torbut for his approval, then readied herself to ask the inevitable question. "Is she in any condition for visitors?"
"Truthfully, no. But, her immediate family will not arrive in time, and holographic comms of any range are still offline. The comfort of familiar faces is all we can give her."
He stepped to one side while gesturing to the left row, leaving the pair to move around to the bed itself.
At a glance, the sheer extent of Koor's mortal wound wasn't really visible at all. It had been hard to hear the details at the time, but going in with full knowledge made Maarani feel comforted in a way. She had expected to see agony, but it was far from that.
Koor's eyelids were fluttering slightly, as light as her breathing. Even when they opened more, having sensed the presence of others, the small twitches persisted.
She was incapable of anything but the slightest movement of her head, which went towards looking up to Torbut at first.
"I tried. I lost again. Typical, huh?"
His next inhale was audibly deeper. The notion of trying to find the slim positive in it all had vanished by then, leaving him to grapple with the real feelings he was going through.
It opened up a few select things to Maarani that she hadn't noticed before, even when she had seen the two of them together previously. Another shudder went through her body, culminating in locking eyes with Koor.
"Maarani. Heh. You came back."
After taking a deep breath of her own, Maarani gestured to one of the nearby seats. It quietly slid over towards her, close enough that she could sit up on it and lean a little closer. Just enough of a demonstration to make Koor smile a little, which is all she wanted to see.
"Yeah. A lot's happened. But, for now, I'm here to stay."
She looked to Torbut when he pulled up a chair as well, who again nodded in approval when he guessed her next move.
"Koor, you pulled me out of one of my lowest moments. That's something I can never match in return. Not for a moment have I taken it for granted."
Koor's eyes began to wander, though her attention remained. It was already growing difficult to keep her sight focused on one point.
"I know. I do wish I knew sooner. If Ileyan hadn't died, maybe."
To try and help her focus, Maarani very lightly reached out to take hold of Koor's left hand, holding it between her own warmly.
"Remember our conversation back on Sarka? When you found me in the forest, I was still dazed. You wanted me to talk about myself, and I started rambling about this one woman I fancied?"
"Let me guess. The two of you after all?"
"No, actually. Like I said, she was into men. Haven't seen or heard her since. But there's a different woman I ended up getting with. Real funny, long, winding, convoluted, insane story that I'm gonna do a really terrible job of telling."
It made Koor smile more, perhaps in place of laughing now that she was no longer capable of it.
"Tell me. Terrible storytelling and all."
Maarani chewed her lip, holding that hand a little tighter as she looked down, then decided to just shrug off all her concerns and worries.
"Met her on Sarka, actually. Well, her alter ego. Getting to meet the real woman took a lot longer than that, I'll say."
There was something different about the Coruscant sunset that set it apart from just about any other she had seen. It wasn't simply down to the perpetual flight paths of traffic, or the constant glow of building lights.
Sitting somewhere on one of the few stable rooftops of the Temple, all Maarani could do was ponder on the orange glows of the incoming evening. Whether it was simply a fact of growing up on Ryloth, where the sky was perpetually trapped somewhere in a mix of dawn and dusk she couldn't tell.
By the time she sensed Carmen coming up to the roof, and approaching, she had broken out of that pondering trance. There were still some minutes left before the sun vanished below the artificial horizon altogether. Enough time to talk, before she had to return below and start making preparations.
After all that had happened in that day alone, going over the mess that was her involvement on Mirial seemed so small. But no less important.
"I won't blame you for walking away now, Carmen. If you just want to say your peace, that's okay."
Carmen walked right up and sat down on the left side, also dangling her legs over the edge. Watching the sunset for just a little while.
When nothing was said for a little while, Maarani just tilted her head about with a little sigh.
"Koor went peacefully. Slipped back into sleep sometime after I talked about Felucia. I like to think she heard the rest."
The colours in the sky started to shift as the light faded, crossing to rose red, then towards night blue.
Eventually, Maarani took her eyes away from the sunset, looking right at Carmen. Trying to think of some kind of way to ease into what had to be said. When she found common ground, it wasn't what she expected, but it would do the trick.
"New tattoos?"
Carmen finally turned her head as well, blinking briefly. Her hand soon moved up to her cheek, brushing along the latest pair of diamonds added to the pattern across her face.
"Yeah. Marking my progression to becoming a Jedi Knight. Got them a couple days after the ceremony. And yours?"
"Dana, Izan and I visited a Twi'lek colony to lay low after the droids came for me. Just another weird phase, realized that I could get tattoos that being in service wouldn't allow before. And I guess someone somewhere decided to put Korriban Sith markings on a public database after that war. These are Yuthura's."
Maarani sarcastically smiled after that, looking back up towards the sky as the first stars began to peek through.
"Me and my stupid horny phase. That damn station is where it all started to go wrong." She tilted her head again, scoffing at her own statement. "Actually, no. It all went wrong when I actually agreed to join Blue Squadron instead of pushing for a ground forces career."
That time, Carmen went right for the hand on the shoulder, more to get her attention than to provide solace. "Maarani. I don't blame you. You were following orders."
It took a lot of self-restraint from Maarani to keep from shaking loose and walking away. The inner loathing had come right back to the surface. Something she knew would happen, and that she would have to endure. Knowing didn't make it easy.
"That's a coward's excuse. I knew it was wrong. I should've pushed back harder, but I gave up." Again, she looked back towards the skies. "Chaser was right. Darrik and Omena had us all whipped into obedience. Because a good soldier follows orders from their commanding officer."
She scoffed once more, that time because of the memories that had become fresh in her mind. "Funny that, huh? A transgender Zeltron mechanic had the guts to stand up against the top tier pilots for someone she hadn't even met until then. I couldn't do that for myself in eight years. And all I did as thanks was spew horrible insults and tell her to shut up."
Carmen took a moment to breathe, thinking it all over. "You're admitting your mistakes, and learning from them, right? That's what good people do. They don't get angry, they don't lash out and blame others. There's plenty of mistakes others make to blame them for already."
The hint of bitterness in her voice was clear. It wasn't just a matter of offering some consolation in the wake of guilt. Others had been making their own mistakes.
When Maarani did finally turn around, it was with growing concern. "What happened?"
"My mentor. She went home with Master Utan, found out the truth. Blamed Master Pala for it. She, uh…" Her next inhale was cold. "She fell to her old ways, back when she was a Sith under Darth Malak."
Carmen had to reach up and wipe her eyes at that point.
"She was getting better though. She wouldn't have saved me from Lasidia if she didn't still care."
That was the moment Maarani reached her arm around to provide comfort at last. Without trying to extend any sensation of calm or the like. Just the simple gesture of support from someone ready to listen.
"Carmen, if I've learned anything from Dana, Jedi always care about their padawans. No matter how much you end up fighting, they always care." She moved herself closer, then carefully adjusted herself so she could provide a more embracing hug. "I'd apologize to her too if I could. I'm going to turn things around, once I get this mess with Azera straightened out. Cutting out the rot in the Republic military is my next goal."
"I wish it would be enough. I really do."
Maarani glimpsed what Carmen was getting at. Just enough to make her worry a lot more. Knowledge about the state of the galaxy had been limited on the Distant Star, and near non-existent since the move to the Vastes.
"How bad did things get? What's happening with Mirial now?"
When Carmen finally calmed down, she just shrugged her shoulders, trying not to rub too much more at her bleary eyes.
"My people. They… seceded from the Republic, over two weeks ago."
Maarani's hand went right back to her face as she winced harder. Of all the outcomes, that was quite possibly the most drastic, and damaging for the balance of power throughout the rest of the Republic. Not to mention all the trade that would be upset by it. One more block pulled from the crumbling infrastructure that kept so many worlds from collapsing into chaos.
"Goddess, how badly is this going to affect you?"
"Being a Jedi protects from almost all of it." A choking laugh came from Carmen, one of finding the horrible irony of it all. "I have it easy. So many friends dead, my mentor dead. Everyone else around me is in pain. But it's all okay. Because I'm not having my Republic citizenship revoked. I'm not getting kicked out of my home now that the subsidies are gone. So long as they see the lightsaber, strangers don't throw insults and literal trash my way. I got off so lucky compared to the rest of my people. So, I guess it evens out. I lost a lot, but I get to keep the rest. Maybe even my dignity."
That time, she was more careful with wiping her eyes, while also subtly easing free of Maarani's embrace. She wanted a bit of space between them at that point.
"Your girlfriend, Azera?"
Maarani tightened her lips. Things could go either way very quickly from there, and she wasn't sure what to expect.
"I wouldn't be preparing to go up against the Republic to defend her if she wasn't on the level, Carmen."
"I know. I talked with her before coming up here, actually."
That earned an eyebrow raise. Maarani hadn't heard Azera's side of a conversation in quite a while. Then again, she hadn't been paying much attention, and thinking back she couldn't recall hearing her quiet words of assurance and explanation to those she was able to heal. Perhaps one of them had learned to silence the connection between them after all.
"And how did that go?"
"It was short. I wasn't angry with her. I just wanted to know who she really was. What she wanted, why she came here." She waited for another breath, having settled down more by then. "She told me that she was in a state of transition, that she didn't know who Azera Vass was just yet, and she needed more time to pick up the pieces and find herself. And that what she wanted, and why she came here were the same thing."
"Which is?"
Carmen gave another little shrug and smile, keeping eye contact again. "To convince you to forgive her."
Just like that, Maarani's metaphorical walls went right back up. Her willingness to be open, and perhaps even honest withdrew back inside. She had made clear to everyone why she was doing everything in her power, and a little beyond, to protect Azera. It still stood apart from the most personal of issues still between them.
"And she's getting that opportunity, Carmen. I'm not going to let the Republic take her away from me. Not after it took everything else, after I shed blood protecting it. At least the Sith are honest about their malicious intent."
Maarani got back up at last, having little more she felt comfortable saying. The rest could wait for the coming days, when she had finally taken the time to rest and recuperate.
"Oh, by the way, have you seen Cecile?"
Having stood up as well, Carmen blinked at the name.
"CC-13. Dana named her Cecile. I figured she might've come back to you if she wanted a fresh maintenance check."
"Wanted?"
With a deep sigh, Maarani waved for Carmen to walk with her. It seemed they had some things to talk about yet after all.
"Cecile was the key to the others saving me from Sloane. This old Miraluka Sith with no concept of modesty. I gave Cecile full freedom as thanks, but so far she says she doesn't know what to do with it. I guess it's easy to forget barely anyone else is going to acknowledge that she has a will of her own."
"Maarani. Droid effect isn't a universal factor. Not every single droid is capable of achieving true, independent sapience on their own."
"Carmen. I told her that I'd give her some time to herself, and help out when I was done with this mess. When I went to leave, she specifically said she 'wished' to return to Coruscant, and track down the events missing from her memory files. She wants to learn about her past. She's reached sapience alright."
Carmen quietly shook her head, not so much in disbelief about Cecile's achievement, as it was doubt in Maarani's attitude towards the whole thing. She was far too naive about the state of droids in the galaxy, if nothing else.
No-one made a second glance at Cecile while she worked her way through the various crowds. Aside from what few police patrols there were at that hour in the entertainment district of the city, still preparing for another long night. People would be seeking any and all kinds of distraction from the day's events after all. And with an influx of people came an influx of incidents and crime.
Cecile's destination was a large plaza, bathed in pink light. To her right was one of the many stations for the massive network of rails that spanned Coruscant's surface. To the left was an opening to one of the larger open clubs in the district.
Her eyes flickered as she looked over the club entrance more closely, then started to approach. On the right hand side, far from the entrance itself, a perpetual pile of trash had collected up. Another flicker of her eyes brought back a semblance of recognition to her circuits.
Yet again, no-one was phased when she approached the pile, reaching out one of her hands towards the wall just above the pile. While faint, there was definitely a vague outline where dust and other weathering was less advanced than the rest of the wall around it.
Two of her other hands began to feel around her head and chassis again, ensuring the recollection of her body shape was accurate. To a degree, it seemed to match quite closely to that shape she was looking at.
Her head twitched with further flickering of her eyes while she leaned back up. There was definitely an impression in the pile that had been left by someone sitting in that exact spot. Enough evidence to conclude that her fragmented memory was not spitting out imaginary locations spliced from various moments after all.
She turned around, then lifted her head to try and match the presumed eye line she would have had at the time.
High above stretched all manner of flashing signs and other advertisements written in a multitude of languages alongside Basic. In the direct line of her vision, there was a much simpler sign. Glowing in bright pink, the outline of a buxom Twi'lek, dancing in a three frame animation. Over and over. Unchanging.
After one more flicker of her eyes, Cecile brought her head back downward, then towards the general direction of the Jedi Temple.
She had a location from before she had been taken down to the lower levels, and eventually found by Koogora. But the rest of the fragments were far more vague, too small and deteriorated to pull even the most obvious of details from. Aside from her own pleading to a particular 'Mistress'.
More resources, more help was needed. She couldn't pursue the trail alone.
A mix of eight men and women stepped off the long speeder at that moment, all wearing the uniforms of construction engineers. Presumably to take over for the night shift of the ongoing stabilization effort in the Temple grounds. And yet, each was actively thinking about the routine of maintaining a blaster rifle, repeating it mentally in their heads as a constant.
Point the rifle in a safe direction. Engage safety locks, power down energy pack.
Night had fallen by that hour, leaving just the poor light of portable setups to illuminate the steps leading to the Temple itself from that civilian dock. The eight moved up them swiftly nonetheless, keeping their toolboxes and the like secure in hand.
Disengage energy and plasma packs. Perform gas venting cycle at safe distance.
Each used their free hand to present the security clearance badge as they approached the doorway, waiting to be cleared by the Jedi guard.
Release locking pins. Remove handle and all other attachments. Discharge remaining energy in capacitor.
They continued on inside one by one, slowing down a bit to gather in the main hall so that they didn't lose sight of each other. Once all were through, they started to move on again.
Perform secondary venting of firing chamber. Remove all fastenings.
Only to stop just seconds later when a Twi'lek walked out into the open, branding a lightsaber in each hand. One was coloured blood orange, the other purple.
"I really do hate it when carbon build-up becomes a problem. Makes every shot feel just a little more sluggish. Still, that's why they try and make it easy to clean out."
Maarani had been looking over her own lightsaber, turning it around a little in her hand, then went right back to staring the group down.
"Yeah, I memorized blaster maintenance as well. Funny how all eight of you are going over it when you're here to fix some cracked statues."
The point man in the group assessed the situation, mostly focusing on the lightsabers, then quietly scoffed at Maarani.
"For what it's worth, Maarani. I and others respect you. Not easy to stand up and toe the line for a dirty squad."
Maarani shrugged, lifting up her own blade a little while moving into a defensive posture. "Since you seem reasonable, I'll try to be as well. There's a warrant out for the arrest of Kiarna, sure. But there isn't an active Senate order out to have her removed from Jedi custody. Turn around, nothing illegal has happened yet."
The point man smirked at that, giving a little shrug. "Nothing illegal going on here. Word is she wasn't arrested by the Jedi. Therefore, she's not in custody. We're apprehending a fugitive that's passively evading arrest."
"Sorry to disappoint, but I guess she's now actively evading arrest." Maarani took a step closer, keeping her stance calm and secure. "Several Temple guards spotted her fleeing the area in a speeder not an hour ago. I was up on the roof, missed the whole thing while my back was turned. Tch, should've been more careful, kept my eye on her. How silly of me."
Maarani lightly rolled her lightsaber around her fingertips, then readjusted her grip. "Good thing I've got her lightsaber right here." She gestured with Azera's, making sure they got a good look at its unique design. "I'd say you can go confirm my story with the guards. But then, you're just construction engineers. Not police. And I would never believe that a certain Senator brought in soldiers to make an undisclosed arrest on their behalf."
At that, the point man scoffed again, motioning for the others to turn around and head back out. "Nice try. Sad to see a good soldier like yourself defending a monster like the White Terror though."
"What's sad is that I defended the honour of liars, bullies and thugs to the galaxy."
Once the eight were out of sight, Maarani finally sheathed her lightsabers with a sigh. "Anything? Anything at all?"
Sereti walked into view from around the corner, shaking her head. "They kept on repeating the maintenance instructions. Not even a glimpse of whomever gave the order."
"It was a long shot anyway. More likely to have been an officer, but I hoped that asking about a Senator instead would catch them off guard. Maybe I should've been more specific."
"I don't think it would matter. They were ready to be questioned by Jedi, and turn around if caught. Much more insight than I clearly had."
Maarani rolled her eyes as she went to clip the lightsabers back to her belt. "Lasidia was undercover for months. She had this planned out for so long. Kept it so secret that even Azera wasn't told any details. It's not a matter of insight, but trust."
She walked up to the threshold of the doorway, watching as the capture group filed back into their speeder and flew off.
"Trust cost peoples lives, but the alternative is becoming the Empire by destroying privacy and liberty." Maarani curled her lip a little before looking to Sereti in a solemn way. "The blame lies with Lasidia. We all made mistakes sure, but she's the one who dropped the bombs and killed all these people. So, let's make sure the Republic doesn't kill our best chance of taking the Sith out of the picture properly."
"What's your plan for tomorrow? Until we hear back from Mandalore anyway."
Maarani turned back to look into the Temple a while, pondering it over. "I'd like clearance to go into the Senate building. I don't need authority to act for the Jedi, just clearance. High enough that they can't block me with red tape and bureaucracy."
Sereti lifted her hands a little at first, thinking it over. "I'll have to work out something with the Council. Dana will have clearance and authority however."
"Dana doesn't know Senator Iyep, let alone Ambassador Haran. The Twi'lek representatives. And last I checked, there aren't exactly any Vahla in the Republic, let alone in the government."
"Fair. How well do you know the senator and ambassador?"
Maarani tilted her head in a way that indicated her own knowledge was limited anyway. "I met the Ambassador on Mandalore Prime after the Revenant Dawn went down. He's a decent man, bit overweight, but he at least knows what to negotiate for in regards to my people. Senator Iyep I only know by reputation. It's why I voted against her in the elections."
That earned a disparaging expression from Sereti.
"That doesn't make me feel confident about you going to talk with her, Maarani"
"Actually, the fact that we won't get along at all is good. I don't want to make buddy-buddy with anyone in the Senate. Let alone with a lying, scheming, manipulative, greedy…" When that disparaging look grew more, Maarani decided to cut off her run of insults there with a fact. "Misandrist."
"Misandrist? Really?"
"Yeah. Being a lesbian doesn't mean I think misandrists are any better than the rest of the bigoted scum. She's convinced that male slaves don't deserve release, blames men for the fact that Twi'lek dancing girls are so common it's practically a staple of culture, and so on." She ended with a very belated shrug, finding a wall to lean back against. "And somehow she still won three-to-one. Democracy is wonderful when it gets to be this bloated, isn't it?"
"At least there's a chance for things to be turned around. Those in the Empire don't get that chance."
"Yeah, I keep hearing that in my head every time. Maybe now I can start working on a real counter-argument, huh?"
Opting to leave it at that, Sereti gave one more shrug before departing.
Maarani watched her leave, then turned her eyes back to the open space between the Jedi Temple and the Senate building. Glaring down at the looming mushroom shape in the distance.
"Your move."
