Ask I Knew You Were Trouble

[Alexandria Voran]

Location: Undisclosed FWA Prison​

She could not get that moment out of her mind. Her own thoughts bending backward, her control of the Force wielding against her. There had been no warning. At least nothing Alex had been able to feel. In her mind it had happened in an instant, the moment she wielded the Force as a weapon against the thoughts of the Sith, the Jedi Master had lost control. A part of her was still shaken by the experience. Everything about the assault had felt unnatural. Alex was a Master of the Force. Her skills were not accidental. She was not foolish enough to believe she understood all of the Force’s mysteries, but to have not even an inkling of an idea was unusual. She did not like that feeling.

The Sith had been taken into FWA custody after the battle. From there, she had been whisked away to a difficult to find location, and an even more difficult to find prison. The type reserved for those prisoners possessing the Force. All the usual precautions were in place. Deflector shields, stun collars, and an array of tools to discourage use of the Force. The kind of place no Force user, dark or light, ever wished to call home. The FWA maintain the prison but granted the Jedi permission to visit.

That was how Jedi Master Alexandria Voran found herself staring past the shields into the Sith’s cell. The captured woman’s photo was being distributed throughout the Order in effort to identify the prisoner. So far, the search had been fruitless. To Alex, the Sith was just another red haired Darksider. She resisted the urge to reach out and touch the girls mind…just to see. It was not worth it. Yet.

“I trust the Rangers are keeping you comfortable.” These things were always so awkward. She knew the Sith would likely have very little to say, but she had to try. “I am Jedi Master Alexandria Voran, I was hoping we could talk.” There you go Alex, so very normal.

@GABA

 

[Darth Tiamat]

This was not good, but it wasn't the worst situation. There was at least some morals among the FWA to how they needed to treat their prisons, but it did not mean she would be made comfortable. In fact they just still seemed to do what they wanted, and knowing her early experiences with the Rangers, there still was no respect for anyone who could command the Force. She had wondered when the Jedi would be coming to talk to her, most of her time was just sitting in silence. Lately it had only been Rangers who stood on the other side of the shield in fear of what the Sith could still do with her binds. They demanded her name, her role within the Sith Order, and her purpose on Byblos, but the young red haired Sith was not interested in sharing that information, not that it would change anything.

Her days were uncertain, she wasn't entirely sure how long the stun bolts kept her unconscious. The only inkling she had to some idea of time was when they came in to give her some sort of sedative to make her sleep. She hated it, it left her groggy for most of the day, and by the time it would clear, it was just about time for another one. In fact, now her head was feeling a bit more clear did the guards showed up and she felt rather annoyed it was that time again. However, it was different.

The guards warned her with a reminder of the power they did have over her; stun cuffs, shock collars, more drugs to keep her subdued as the Jedi Master came and stood in observation in front of her cell and before she was finally let inside. Tiamat gauged the woman, looking her up and down before her eyebrows rose in interest. Not because she was a Jedi who wanted to just talk, more so because she recognized the voice before she fell unconscious on the Gladiator.

She shrugged and did her best to gesture to her plain cell as she remained seated on the floor, "Rangers don't care for my comfort." she felt the woman's assumption was rather ignorant, "So what do you want to talk about, Master Jedi?" she asked, "I do enjoy conversation, if you ask the right questions."

@Valen Pelora

 

[Alexandria Voran]

Alex kept her face smooth, her mind still. This was very much outside her realm of expertise. But there were only so many Masters and she needed answer to what had happened above Byblos. She was forced outside her comfort zone again…for the good of the Order. This was the first true Sith Alex had ever encountered or spoken with. Unlike many of her brothers and sister she managed to avoid much of the fighting. She realized her excuses had all been motivated by fear. She preached to her students to face those fears. Her breathing was slow and even. She knew this would be difficult. The Sith seemed far too delighted to have company.

“I don’t suppose we could start with your name? Or at least something for me to call you by?” She knew the Rangers had asked and asked…and asked again. Their tactics had been what Alex expected. It was time to try and different approach. She would leave the aggressive questioning to those more suited. “The Rangers have asked all the easy questions and they will continue to ask long after I’m gone.” Alex cocked her head to the side. “I’m not interested in where you’re from, what’s your title, why you attacked Byblos.” She shook her head slowly. “You haven’t answered the Rangers, so why would you answer me?” There was no point trying to pry information the young women did not want to give.

“I’m more curious to know how you got here.” Alex shrugged. “You must have a story, what lead you down this path.” She wanted to understand the Sith. This was a unique opportunity. One they rarely found presented before them. “What information could I possible learn to identify you from that?” She expected the Sith to lie, there was no reason to tell the truth. Again, Alex resisted the urge to reach for the Sith’s mind.

@GABA

 

[Darth Tiamat]

They always wanted her name! Internally the redhaired Sith sighed, her eyebrows raising in mild amusement that this being would also follow with the same procedure. This one also claimed to not be interested in some more pressing details, but as far as Tiamat was concerned, that was all they wanted to know. If she did have such information, she would not share until they were able to pry it from her mind; though it seemed there was an overall lack of trust to anything she claimed or said that did not motivate the Sith woman further.

Tiamat's head tilted to one side and then the other, the collar pinching if she rolled her neck too far, "How I got here?" she frowned and closed her eyes thinking about the Jedi Master's words. "You make it sound like I chose wrongly...this path." she responded, opening her eyes to rest her blue gaze on the Jedi woman, "When in fact, it gave me back my dignity, my strength, and independence..." she paused, her eyes scanned her cell, "Well, in a figurative sense, literally, not so much." Tiamat hummed with a small smile curling on her lip.

"Hm..." she verbally thought outload, "I guess, for now if you haaave to call me something, then you can call me Manat." she offered, "Otherwise there is not much else to me." the Sith shrugged.

@Valen Pelora

 

[Alexandria Voran]

“Manat.” She chewed on the name in her mind. A false name to be sure, but it was a start. Alex had managed to make some small progress where the Rangers had failed. Manat was not exactly what she had expected. The Sith were horrors. Murderers. They killed her friends…her family. Manat had boarded with a monster. The dark use of the Force that had nearly struck Vinry was unnatural. The young woman before her looked positively normal. It should have been impossible. Whatever strange abilities the Sith possessed in the Force were perversion. Alex needed to remind herself of that. It was simply easier when the villains looked the part.

“I see…” She shook her head. “A true believer.” Were they all so guilty? “Your passions broke your chains and all that?” There was an appeal in such a path to some. She saw it as nothing but an easy solution to difficult problems. But she understood why people took that path. There was no handy textbook on interrogations. She figured talking was at least a step in the right direction. She knew she would not suddenly change the Sith’s mind, but there was still value in the discussion. “And the killing? The conquering…subjugating of worlds…does that give you your independence, strength and dignity?” Alex quirked an eyebrow. “I understand wanting to eliminate us.” She gestured as herself. “But the war? What purpose does that serve?” Truly, she wondered.

@GABA

 

[Darth Tiamat]

Tiamat was silent as the Jedi Master spoke, she clearly had a limited view of who the Sith were, fed to her by her Jedi teachings. She remembered during her acolyte years much of what Emryc had taught her about the Jedi, their views just as subjective as the Sith. Her eyes widened and her smile grew bigger as she described her assumptive passions and goals as someone who served the darkness.

She did not respond at first, trying to decide what she wanted to reply to, none of what she had asked were directive questions. Instead Tiamat could see the Jedi trying to confirm and differentiate between the truths and bias narratives she had grown to understand.

"Doesn't everyone have a passion though? Seems odd that only the Sith would use such a concept to free themselves of existential burdens." Tiamat tilted her head slightly in her thoughts, "A musician may be passionate about his composition, the soldier is passionate about their commitment to brotherhood, and the Jedi, may be passionate about service to others." Tiamat shrugged.

"Don't generalize Master Voran." she stated, her blue eyes focused on Alex for a moment, before her gaze fell to her cuffed wrists.

"Chaos, yet harmony." she continued, "Its part of your code right?" she confirmed, her eyes widening with some interest, "I enjoy that line." Tiamat explained and paused, waiting for the Jedi's reaction if one would come to her knowing something about their code.

@Valen Pelora

 

[Alexandria Voran]

Alex kept her face carefully still while waiting for a response. This was different than what she had expected, perhaps different than what Manat expected. It was a game with the stakes impossibly high. She knew touching the Sith’s mind would be a mistake. Bravado, threats, all the usual tactics would not work on Alex. Why would they work on the Sith? If the situation was reversed, she would assume she was dead no matter the outcome. Why betray your family on the way out? Alex smiled and nodded as a fraction of the Code hit her hears. She met Manat’s eyes. “Yes, a piece of the Code…do you know the rest?” Alex furrowed her brow for a moment.

“Emotion, yet peace. Ignorance, yet knowledge. Passion, yet serenity. Chaos, yet harmony. Death, yet the Force.”

Her Master would be proud. “Do you not generalize who we are? Stodgy old scholars who resist even the whisper of emotion as the path to the Darkness.” She met Manat’s eyes again. “I can admit I have judged you on merely on who you fight for and what I have been taught…I can accept I was wrong.” She shrugged. “Can you do the same?” Alex took a step closer to the shield. “I’ve loved, hated, felt fear, courage…but those passions are not who I am.” Neither of them was going to suddenly change their minds on anything. The Darkness was the path to absolute corruption. Sith could be saved but the Darkside would never be balance. Still, perhaps they could learn to understand each other.

 

[Darth Tiamat]

The line from the code elicited a smile from the Jedi Master who invited her to recall the rest. She kept her gaze on the Jedi woman, listening her recite the full code, the echoes of Wyck's voice from the holocron she opened years ago chanted along in her memory. She felt as though she could relate the most that one line of code; she could describe much of life as chaotic and yet if she allowed that chaos to consume her, then she would not have the control over the darkness as she pleased. A lesson of tranquility and harmony, and a balance within that has taken her years to master.

She questioned the sith lord about her assumptions of the Jedi and at one point she may have thought them as only scholars who sat around making suggestions for others to follow. Then she of course met Byron and Crix and that seemed to change her mind, finding the variety of Jedi reflected much like different schools of practice within the Sith Order. Her gaze drifted, evident her thoughts were elsewhere as the Master Jedi continued until she asked Tiamat if she could do the same, to let go of the presumptions she had held and admit faults.

The redhead grinned, "I must be mindful of the history of my predecessors, learn from their mistakes and make changes to see that the darkness is not suffocated by the zealous passions of those who oppose it." Tiamat pressed a palm against her chest, "Chaos," she then moved her hands to gesture to Alex, "Yet, harmony." She eyed the woman for a moment, finding it curious that she denied having passions and yet, there was an odd curiosity she could see within the Jedi Master; a curiosity that had yet to be satisfied by the unknowns of a power that is mystified by the mere fact it was forbidden in her morals.

"Those passions are everything that make you who you are. I'm sure the Jedi teach about experience, and to deny yourself of who you are, can be just as limiting as it is for one of my own kind."

@Valen Pelora

 

[Alexandria Voran]

Her goal was to keep the Sith’s attention…keep her talking. The sideways glance while a mind drifted was not what Alex wanted. She laughed when Manat causally brought up chaos and harmony. The Sith pointed first at herself and then Alex. Her laugh was not very professional, but it was genuine, surprising the Jedi Master. “Wow. After all these years, I still can be surprised.” She cocked her head to the side. “You don’t strike me as a stary eyed idealist.” Her brow furrowed for a moment…trying to find the right words. “You must know we cannot coexist in balance. The Sith Lords you serve would never allow it.” Alex was not like all her fellow Jedi. Max had taught her better. Her mind was not closed but there were simply truths. The Light was balance, and the Darkness was not. Mixing the two did not lead to grey, only destruction.

She shook her head again. “Someone taught you a great deal about us but not enough to understand who we truly are.” The Jedi Master rarely made assumptions on age given her own youthful appearance but Manat did seem young…or at least different. Given the chance, she was sure the Sith would slaughter them all. However, locked behind the shield there was a opportunity to see the women underneath the darkness. “Do I seem the type to deny who I am?” She raised a hand before Manat could respond. “Perhaps I do not want the answer. My emotions are a part of me, I feel them just as you do, but we so much more than that.” Alex met the Sith’s eyes. She’d done this before.

“What are you afraid of? What chains have your passions freed you from?” It was a genuine question. There was something lurking beneath Manat’s surface that Alex could just barely see. She knew the feeling herself. She had been raised in the darkest slums of Corellia, her parents addicted to spice. The Jedi had been her freedom.

@GABA

 

[Darth Tiamat]

The Jedi's reaction bewildered Tiamat as she chuckled to the young Sith's response; she claimed surprise and took her beliefs as idealism, almost as though there was an innocence to the nature of her speech. The redhead's eyebrows rose slightly when Alex mentioned the Sith Lords not allowing her to seek what she wanted. "In time, it is them who may serve me." she grinned.

The woman continued, offering a level of discredit to what she did know; Tiamat never claimed to be an expert, but she possibly knew more than most Sith other than her own Master who seemed to take in all the knowledge he could find on the Jedi. She asked another question, but back-peddled, leaving it as a rhetoric to seek the thoughts of the Sith woman. Instead the conversation shifted, and the Jedi started to dig deeper, asking of her fears and what did the darkside free her from.

The prisoner knew the answer, but it was not as simple as the Jedi would find it to be; it was a constant process, just as the Jedi continued to improve themselves, there was a same level of work to rebuild and shape one to be better. Tiamat was not ready to share that information with the Jedi, she was not about to reveal her own vulnerabilities. This would be the wrong question to ask. The redhead kept her gaze on Alex for a moment longer before looking down at her palms, "What is the FWA and the Republic going to do with me?" she asked.

@Valen Pelora

 

[Alexandria Voran]

In time, it is them who may serve me. Alex kept her face carefully neutral, her mind blank. It was a minor revelation but important. She had never suspected Manat was a mere acolyte. Placing her exact rank within the Sith was difficult. The comment did not drastically change Alex’s perception, but it was an indicator of true Sith ambition. Had Manat achieved her goal or was she still climbing? The longer they talked, the less Alex suspected the young women was an ordinary servant of the Darkside. There was nothing about Manat that spoke of a grunt serving others. Still, she needing to confirm whatever suspicions she might have.

The Jedi Master was content to let the conversation lapse into silence for a moment. She was not in a rush and there were times silence was more effective than any perfectly crafted retort. Alex remained perfectly neutral while Manat chewed on the question. In the end, the Sith did answer with a question of her own. It was not a direct answer to Alex’s query, but it was an answer. She could lie to the Sith. Where would that get them. The Morellian Master was frank by nature…the truth then. “I don’t know.” Her voice rang with clarity. “The Sith have done terrible things to the families of Republic and the Free World Alliance.” Alex shook her head slowly, genuine sadness in her voice. “I wish it were otherwise, but there are many on our side who harbor hate in their heart…it may be different if you were in the custody of the Order.” She looked back at Manat. “But you are not.” That hate would poison them all eventually. She understood the pain they felt, ordinary men and women losing everything to fight a war against the Darkness. She knew why that hate grew. It did not lessen her concern.

“Those you boarded with…the droid and the other one…would they not have reported your capture?” Alex assumed the Sith continued their time-honored tradition of selfish betrayal. What ties could possible exist among those concerned only with conquest.

@GABA

 

[Darth Tiamat]

The Jedi Master's response to her question was more or less what Tiamat had expected; though she doubted things would be different if she were in the custody of the Jedi. However, Alex was not ignorant of the hate they held for the Sith as well as Force-users in general. It was not too long ago that the people of the Free Systems made it very clear they did not approve of the Jedi interference as much as they disapproved of the Sith coming to their worlds. Though she was an expensive prisoner and had a pitting feeling that the FWA may slip her something else in the sedative they gave her too often.

Slipping away in one's sleep spared from the torture of a prolonged death, but knowing the sentiment of the people toward Sith, not many would care what resulted in her fate.

Her thoughts refocused to Alex's next question, she noted the others that were with her on the ship and Tiamat gave a shrug. "Depends if I am still an asset." she replied, "Would not be out of of the question if they did nothing, correct?" she tested the Jedi's knowledge knowing the idea of Sith looking out for their own individual needs was not unheard of to those who practice their sect. "It may be best if I can figure out how to get out of here on my own."

@Valen Pelora

 

[Alexandria Voran]

Hey eyes shifted to the floor, the gears of her mind whirring away. “You would know better than I.” Alex went to meet Manat’s gaze again. “You’ve proven we do not know nearly as much as we would like.” She clicked her tongue. Did the Sith know they had taken another? Would it be unwise to reveal such a detail? “And I have no idea whether you are valuable to them or not.” She gestured at the general prison area. “I do know you’re valuable to them.” Alex pointed at one of the cameras streaming to the guard chamber. “They’ll never let you leave and there is going to come a time where boring conversation is the least of your worries.” She could not stop the sigh.

“You don’t have to believe me, but I would very much like to prevent that from happening.” The opinions within the Order on violence were rapidly changing…changing in a direction with which she did not agree. Others would come who would seem just as dark as what they wished to prevent. She knew there were those of a similar mind within the Rangers. “You are not ordinary.” More truth it was then. “I touched your mind and was brought to my knees.” Her gaze hardened for a moment. “I suspect we are of similar skill in the Force, but I would break just as easily as before if I touched your mind again.” She shook her head slowly. “I don’t expect answers but there are ways to make your life here easier and to avoid the darker side of the light.” It was a simple truth she wished was false.

The longer Manat was here and the longer she stayed silent, the darker her visitors would become. Alex was under no delusions who the Council would eventually send or what Rangers would find their way to this cell. The Sith had to see Alex was the easier path to living.

@GABA

 

[Darth Tiamat]

The Jedi master was correct in that Tiamat would know more to the actions of her Sith, though she felt she was just as in the dark as the Jedi herself. The woman had hopefully gained some favor with the Eternal in her revelation of the hypergate technology that existed, however, she was not entirely certain to the wisdom of the Dark Lord if she would serve purpose ongoing. The loss of Byblos would have gotten to the Dark Lord quickly and the consequences that awaited Stolas, the redheaded sith could only imagine what failure entailed for a Sith Lord.

I do know you’re valuable to them.

There was a emphasis on the last word and Tiamat was back to the present, her thoughts subsiding as she understood by what the Jedi Master met by 'them'. Further the Jedi described how they would not let her leave and internally, Tiamat disagreed, they would let her leave in death, however, just like the Jedi Master, the Sith woman was curious to know how far the FWA and the Rangers would go to get the information they wanted. That was of course a desperate move and one that could easily lead to a slippery slope of dire consequences for everyone. However, the Jedi was ready offer a way to spare her of such a path and the Sith woman's blue eyes narrowed in thought.

Now it was brought back to the topic of her mind and Tiamat relaxed, a small smirked formed as the Jedi seemed entirely too interested in something that could break her resolve. "You make it sound as though there is a level of desperation, have the Jedi and their allies fallen to hopelessness quickly?" she questioned, her head tilted slightly to allow the locks of her hair fall over her shoulder.

"Will you all forgo your values and morals to waste your time on me? Surely there are more powerful Sith out there you can capture and question. Or maybe weaker ones who will give you the answers you seek."

@Valen Pelora

 

[Alexandria Voran]

“Hopelessness…no.” Alex shook her head slowly. “Desperation? Of course.” Her eyes narrowed slightly. “War makes us all desperate and we are at war.” Manat would not give her the answers she sought. She knew that, but there was still room to learn. “The Sith are not all lords and ladies. Stolas’ proclamation is driven by ordinary soldiers.” She cocked her head to the side again. “You think they are not desperate for an end to the fighting?” It was easy for the Force users of the galaxy to forget their holy wars were perpetuated by the mundane. While Stolas declared his intentions, grunts died on Jedi blades. The same was true for the Order…it was one of the reasons their relationship with the Rangers had broken.

“I would not be here if I thought it a waste of time.” Alex very rarely did anything she considered a waste of time. She shrugged again. “You could tell me absolutely nothing of value and I would do it all the same.” She was old and getting older. She had time. “I’m not going to threaten, rattle my saber, or hurt you…it is not who I am.” It was not who she ever would be. The Order might be changing but she would not. “I want to understand what I have failed to understand.” A hand ran through her hair.

“It is nothing more nefarious than that. I thought I would find a terribly corrupt monster in this cell…but I haven’t.” Her met Manat’s eyes again. “The Order is wrong about the Sith, and I want to know why.” There were monsters…she knew that. Manat had certainly done terrible things but she was not the outward terror of Asminys. That made her more dangerous.

@GABA

 

[Darth Tiamat]

The Jedi Master reassured this meeting was not a waste of time and there was something in Tiamat's words that the Jedi was finding useful. The young Sith wondered when they would send in the hardcore Jedi who will threaten and rattle their swords at her. Surely, they would not be that arrogant to think she would give them anything willingly. She would always welcome one of them to try to pry the information from her head, but the surprise from Byblos has left them very uneasy to who she was and the capabilities she had to deter even some of their most powerful members of the Order.

Her eyes narrowed as though studying the Jedi Master a bit more carefully as she informed how she thought the Order was wrong about the sith. She wanted answers, but Tiamat was certain the Jedi woman was uncertain what questions she needed to ask to get those answers.

She had thought she were a monster and perhaps she was, she was caged up after all.

"Maybe I am a monster, the Rangers have me chained and bind, so they are seeing something in me that you do not see." she shrugged, "Or perhaps they wish to see only what they want to see. They refuse to see the reality, adhere to patterns of the past, fall into ignorance and be consumed by the flames of a fool's hope." the Sith woman gave a coy smile, "Why is the Order wrong about the Sith?" Tia leaned forward slightly, her voice falling to a chilling softness as she carefully spoke her next words.

"Close your eyes, Master Voran, they can deceive you."

@Valen Pelora

 

[Alexandria Voran]

They had reached the end of this little chat. Alex did not need the Force to ring with finality…it did anyways. What questions had she answered? She was not sure. Querying Manat would not give her the resolutions she sought. Those waited outside the prison. She knew there was value in learning to ask the right questions. Discover where she was blind. The Sith had certainly revealed that to her, but she still felt uncertain. Sadness crept into her voice. “They say there is wisdom in youth.” Alex closed her eyes, opening herself fully to the Force. The Light shined brightly in her heart. Balance as it was meant to be.

“We reflect our beliefs onto others…see what we want to see.” She sighed. “It is why the war will never end.” The Jedi Master opened her eyes, the Light shinning within. “I wanted to see a young girl who lost her way and grabbed onto the first raft she could. I wanted to see a child who could be saved.” Her voice became harder. “I failed to understand the woman who accepted her choices.” Alex shook her head slowly again. “The Order is wrong about the Sith but not for the reasons I believed. We reflect ourselves in you, we see the monsters we wish to see, and sometimes we yearn for your redemption…but we are not always wrong.”

She knew exactly what she had to do. “You are monsters, and we did not make you that way.” Soft, her voice was soft. “You walked that path on your own.” A sad smile this time. “So, you are right again Manat, my eyes lied. I saw a girl I could save, when we both know there is no saving you.” Her emotions trickled forth. Just enough so Manat could see the truth of her words. “I wish it were different…I really do…maybe one day it will be.” She closed her mind and turned to leave. Her work was done. She doubted the more aggressive questioning would be successful. It would only serve to further prove to Manat the young Sith was right about them all. Sadness beat in her chest. The war would never end unless that altered their thinking. She needed to speak to the Council.

@GABA

OOC: Exit Thread