A Precarious Position

[Azar Torsin]

Azar was somewhat surprised when he'd received the call from Lex to meet on Dantooine. It wasn't anywhere near Republic space, which felt odd to him.

The wind blew lightly over the fields and Azar leaned back in his chair a bit further, sipping a cup of caf just outside a the small cantina along the road. It wasn't busy at all, and as he looked around, he only saw two children playing with a ball at the other side of the cantina. They didn't care who he was or what he was doing here, and the Jedi Master was able to sip his drink in peace.

Even so, something felt strange. There were questions in his mind that weren't answered. Why were they meeting on Dantooine? Lex had seemed somewhat... uncomfortable and shifty on the com, which seemed very unlike her. The Force was telling him something was off, but he just couldn't quite figure out what it was. No matter how much his mind churned through these things, he didn't have any answers.

 

[Lex Kyrst]

She looked all around herself before approaching Azar. She could recognize him anywhere by now, especially with that broody expression on his face at all times. She made a point not to wear her GAR uniform, dressed in civilian clothing but always keeping a pistol on her. Lex sat down across from Azar and managed a faint smile.

“I know you’re caught off guard by this,” She looked all around herself. The area was mostly deserted and no one would bother them here. Lex ordered herself a cup of caf as she pondered over her words carefully, “You saw the Chancellor’s address. Thank you for coming to meet with me anyway,” She smiled at him again, “I’m surprised at myself. You know how wary I was of Force users from the beginning. It’s how I was raised. I was that way until I met you and learned how you operated. It opened my eyes to a lot of things and made me think that it’s possible to really….make a difference in the galaxy by doing honest, good work.”

She paused there, thumb brushing over the top of her caf cup, “I came here because I believe in the Jedi and I believe in you. I want you to know that you have friends no matter what the Chancellor says,” Lex grimaced before she retrieved a datapad and slid it over to him, “There are the names of Jedi marked for bounties by the Republic,” She muttered quietly, knowing he’d spot his own name there.

“I wanted to meet to warn you about this and to stand with you to take the fight where it needs to go. I’ve given up hope in my Chancellor, but that doesn’t mean I can’t covertly utilize my skills and put them to good use.”

 

[Azar Torsin]

Azar could immediately tell that Lex was at least slightly on edge. She was out of uniform, she was looking around, and she just felt on edge. Even here, where there may not have been any danger, Azar could feel the looming shadow of something terrible. Not malice or a trap, but something else.

He gave a slow nod as she mentioned the Chancellor's address and being surprised at liking the Jedi... or at least him. It was as she slid the datapad over to him that he looked down at it and his blood ran cold. He was surprised and angry. War crimes? For stopping spice production. It was clear that the Republic had truly fallen, and the hope Azar had for them went with it. He was angry. He shouldn't have been, but he was, and he said nothing for several moments as he tried to collect himself.

I can't believe it... he finally said, shaking his head in disbelief. I'm a war criminal for helping burn a Cartel spice lab, he said, setting the datapad down. The Republic is lost, he growled angrily, rubbing his face with his hands before taking in a deep breath to cool his nerves.

That was when his mind came back to Lex. She had risked a great deal to meet with him and pass this on to him. Thank you, Lex, he said sincerely. It was far more than most would have done for him, and somehow despite the horrible situation, there was a silver lining. He suppressed the urge to tell her she was in danger, he was already sure she knew that.

Do you still believe in the Republic? he asked. He didn't want to put her in a precarious position, but there was little way to avoid it at this point. He couldn't ask her to leave the Republic - it was what she'd grown up in and fought for - but this just cemented in his mind that they were nothing but a puppet of Andraste now. Or is it just a vassal of the Empire? Perhaps it was time to take the fight to the Empire. The problem was how. The Jedi have been complacent in the war against the Empire for too long, he mused aloud, shaking his head. But how do you fight a force that size?

 

[Lex Kyrst]

She observed him quietly, seeing the emotions flash across his face. It was rare she ever saw him angry, and this was an obvious example. She didn’t know how to react to it, realizing that it was a very unfamiliar look to him. Azar was always calm in the face of even the most terrible situations, and this obviously shook him to the core. She shook her head, “Think about it. What can the Jedi offer right now in the face of a looming threat like the Sith? As much as I hate to play devil’s advocate, the Chancellor was acting in the interest of his people. However, that doesn’t mean those of us that want to fight will sit on our hands and watch the Sith take over the galaxy.”

As he asked if she still believed in the Republic, she had to think about her answers, “It’s all I’ve ever known..” She muttered quietly, “I can’t turn my back on it, but I can recognize when it’s going in a direction I don’t agree with,” Lex knew she was in danger being here. If word got out that she were meeting with a Jedi, at this point her career would be over to begin with and she could very well end up detained somewhere.

As he mused about fighting the Empire, Lex chewed nervously on her lip. For a moment, no words were exchanged, but she finally spoke, “I’m only telling you this because the Republic overall will not act out again and nowadays if you spill this, no one will take the word of a Jedi. However….I led a Black Ops mission deep in Sith space where I had a team dressed as Hutt enforcers. We did covert strikes against Sith bases and planted evidence that the Hutts were behind it. The Empress is known to be paranoid and act brashly, and I wanted to exploit that,” Lex didn’t know why she was trusting him so easily with an operation that was top secret and a breach of national security, “The actions of six individuals shifted the course of the war. The Empress turned on the Hutts and now she is not aiding the Hutts in the war against the Republic,” She leaned forward in her seat, “Do you see what this means? Facing them directly is not the way. Nobody stands a chance facing them directly.”

 

[Azar Torsin]

Her words were painfully true: the Jedi had nothing to offer the Republic or the rest of the galaxy. They couldn't even look after themselves. Spintir had fallen as an onslaught and none of the Jedi Council had come to help. The Jedi leadership had been picked off time and again, and it was becoming more clear that things were not hopeful.

Her final comments, however, were what fascinated him. He knew the risk she took in sharing that information with him. It was tantamount to treason, not to mention just meeting with him. And yet, here she was anyway.

He nodded slowly as she finished speaking. Impressive, he said at first, letting thoughts roll through his head. That was the kind of ingenuity and creativity the Jedi needed to begin showing. They were never going to win - or even survive - if they didn't change their game. I think it's time for the Jedi to change tactics... completely, he said, shaking his head and leaning forward to sip his drink.

But they're stubborn. Many of the younger Jedi are... impulsive and brash, he said, realizing how old he was making himself sound. As a man in his middle ages, he felt ancient in the Order nowadays. The average age in the Order - excluding extremes like Wyck - had to have only been in their late twenties.

So tell me: do you want to hit back? he asked, glancing over at her. Of course she wouldn't want to leave the Republic entirely, but that didn't mean he couldn't begin recruiting for missions that wouldn't go on the radar. He could think of a few Jedi he could trust who were afraid to fight. Perhaps there were some Republic soldiers who would do the same.