(D2 EA) War Hero

[Nekoinu]

Standing inside the entrance of the Compound was no other than Jedi Master Garrick Lorne. He waved off the military escort he had brought with him and waited for the first person of authority to pass by.

[Arali Zian]

Arali heads from her apartment, datapad in one hand, commlink in the other, on her way to her weekly book club meeting, and chatting with the club president on the way.

She dresses light, with her lightsaber discretely tucked away among the various tools she normally carries with her.

On her way out the compound, she spots a man.

A very large man.

A very large, familiar man.

Arali freezes, then speaks into her comm. "Sorry, Yae. Family business just came up. Not gonna make it this week."

Click.

What's he doing here? Please, oh please don't say he's here for the peace summit.

Arali tucks away her comm, and approaches the soldier. "Good afternoon, Master Lorne," she greets professionally. "This visit is... unexpected."

[Nekoinu]

"The Force works in mysterious ways. You are one of the people I was hoping to see. Follow me." He walked over to a nearby bench and sat down on it to allow them to be more level while conversing. "Do you know why I am here, Arali?" he asked, his tone far more serious.

[Arali Zian]

Five seconds, and already giving orders.

Arali suppresses her annoyance and obeys, but remains standing. This is growing... alarming.

She considers for a moment, multiple possibilities coming to mind, but in the end, there is only on honest answer.

"No, sir." The gravity in his voice wipes away concern for pleasantries.

[Nekoinu]

"Last Galactic Standard night, another one of my former padawans called me incessantly until I received his message." He allowed her to fill in the gaps.

[Arali Zian]

"I see." Arali keeps her face neutral, but inside, she curses Vatou's panicking. Didn't have to call Master Lorne over this.

She goes over events in her head, and quickly compiles events in her head, and relays them in the manner of a military debrief. A habit Lorne drilled into her, and which he gets back out on command.

"Last night, I was entrusted with the care of two children, in a hotel room in the lower levels. However, shortly after I arrived and Vatou departed, a group of unknown, armed men began slicing the locks, at which point I jammed the lock and created an alternate escape route to a lower floor. When it became clear I was outmaneuvered, I keyed a distress signal and withdrew to a defensible position. Shortly after, Knight Alysele Cortess arrived. Faced with the prospect of engaging two Jedi, they fled. As they left, they stated that they were hired for a smash and grab of two children. Their skills, training, and equipment were all unnoteworthy. After the assailants left, we took the children to this compound, as a more secure location.
There were no casualties, and only minor property damage."

An accurate account, leaving out only minor details. And mentioning Aly doesn't hurt; she doesn't know the sensitive parts.

[Nekoinu]

Master Lorne listened to the report and then nodded. "I see. Your report was much more concise than Vatou's but it is nonetheless still troubling. What would possess him to bring children on his decadent trips to this moon?" A pause. "How did they know he would bring the children there? And when you described their outfit, what do you mean by unnoteworthy? Were they unskilled or merely average for this place?"

A pause. "You were lucky that Jedi Knight Alysele was there to assist you. She is an accomplished duelist and they were right to flee from her."

[Arali Zian]

Arali bites her tongue. She wants to tell her master that he's wrong, to tell her Vatou is brave, is saving these children. But on that subject, she says nothing. Safer for Lorne to believe this version.

"They were merely average, though not incompetent, and adequately organized, and bore no markings of any particular gang or mercenary company. Either their employer was of limited means, or specifically did not want their involvement traced back."

The praise for the haughty and unhinged knight, Arali also lets slide, simply taking satisfaction in the fact that last time they fought, she won.

[Nekoinu]

"I see. There are many questions to be asked on this matter." Garrick Lorne stayed silent, looking at the twi'lek in front of him. "Did you plan any move against them, Arali?" he finally asked, a bit of concern leaking into his voice.

[Arali Zian]

"No," she says flatly. "Their lack of distinction works to protect them, as well. If I saw them, I would probably recognize them, but this is a large planet, and I have no viable leads. More importantly, the true threat is the employer, and I sincerely doubt this group even knows who they were working for; only that their credits were good. It is a common arrangement on this world."

[Nekoinu]

"Typical criminals. That is why I do not understand why you and now even Vatou insist on being here. I do not know what you did but that young man has strayed from his path."

[Arali Zian]

Again, Arali weathers the insult to Vatou, but not the one to herself.

"I am here because this is where I can do good." She taps her datapad and hands it to her former master.
"I found these parts from a junk dealer. Together, I was able to reconstruct an old model of munch-fungus harvester. Crude, but reliable. I took it to Nayan III and helped them sow their caves, as their fields have been underperforming to the point where they could not properly support their population. Comparable equipment at wartime prices would have cost seven times as much in Republic space."

[Nekoinu]

Master Lorne took a moment to look at the datapad. His former padawan was surely aware that it was not his area of expertise. "You could perform good at another planet or moon. Instead, you live among the scum and villainy."

[Arali Zian]

"I live among people," she corrects. "More of them good people than you are going to acknowledge." Dirty trick of rhetoric. If he dismisses her, she's right, and if he doesn't, then he agrees with her. "Besides, if this place is so corrupt, what is our duty if not to bring hope?"

Of course, she doesn't expect any of that to get through to her former master.

"And if I were on another planet," her expression softens, "I couldn't be there for Master Thun."

That, on the other hand, might.

[Nekoinu]

"Your admiration for these people will never cease to amaze me," he stated, "There is no hope for them if they are under Hutt control. Your efforts could be better suited towards helping citizens of the Republic."

Garrick Lorne paused at the mention of his former master. "What could you have been doing with Master Thun?"

[Arali Zian]

For several seconds, Arali stares at her former master like he's grown a second head. "She is the senior Jedi master of one of the most politically charged enclaves in the galaxy. I make sure this fact disturbs her as little as possible in..."

Does he really not realize how old Master Thun is? How little time she probably has left? With her skill, she could probably extend her life with the force, but... it doesn't seem like she's going to.

"She worries about you, you know. Please, make time to visit the gardens while you're here."

[Nekoinu]

"If time permits. I must find the ones who attacked Vatou and put an end to their schemes." A pause. "But you did answer my question. How have you been gelling Master Thun? She is capable of much and posseses wisdom beyond us combined and more."

[Arali Zian]

That's why I said MAKE time, you jerk...

"She is also only one person, and advancing in years," Arali reminds him. "I am, officially, her aide. I handle many of the administrative duties of the enclave that do not require her personal attention yet cannot be divested to civilians."

Trying to talk in terms Lorne will understand gets exhausting.

[Nekoinu]

"I do not know why you did not say that first." He took a deep breath, a Jedi mantra sort. "How is Master Thun?"

[Arali Zian]

"You could ask her yourself," she jabs, but only offers that moment's resistance.

"She is... slowing down, but pushing herself to hide it. She has many friends here, thankfully, who help her from withdrawing from the world too much. She has built a peaceful life here, or as much as can be asked, given the times."

[Nekoinu]

"I see." A pause. "Remember that there is no death, only the Force. When the time comes for her to move on, then it shall."

[Arali Zian]

"And until then, I will treasure what time..."

She trails off. A silence falls over the pair for a while, until Arali breaks it.

"I'd like to do a diagnostic on your legs before you leave." She helped install them, after all; she knows them better than even techs far better than herself. And she has to make sure her master didn't get anyone to override the limiters while they were apart.

If those legs fail, she might lose him, too.

[Nekoinu]

"I have my soldiers addressing them everyday." A pause. "But I will let you do it. I am confident in your abilities in that regard.'

[Arali Zian]

"In that regard?" Arali raises an eyebrow, letting a little more sass and energy back into the conversation. "Brave words, Master Lorne."

[Nekoinu]

Garrick Lorne shifted in his seat. "You may run the diagnostics now if you wish, Arali."