Pre-Timeline - Out of the Shadows

[Prudence]

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The light filtered in from the hole in the roof in a peaceful kind of way. The large raised gardens and fountains remained unperturbed by the beams of light that cascaded from above, only disturbed by the occasional cloud that passed over. The age that time and neglect had wrought upon the temple was least evident in this room. It was seldom visited nowadays, as many of the temple's occupants opted for their chambers, or for situational rooms. That was to say that the temple didn't have many occupants anymore. There were more than the temple had been used to, but there weren't many Jedi anymore. The order had been decimated by the civil war that had stemmed from within its ranks, and had never truly recovered. Those that were left were working actively to rebuild the order, and reorganize its ranks. There was little time left for peaceful meditation and reflection, and that meant that the fountain room got fewer and fewer visitors. Despite this, it's naturally earthy and ancient aesthetic showed time's merciless residue less than the other parts of the temple, and that in and of itself was relaxing - to escape the age and decay that had become a daily part of life.

Kalee slowly ascended the ancient stairs that lead to one of the raised portions of the fountain chamber, choosing to walk amongst the massive fountain-gardens. She extended a hand, her ceremonial cloak flowing about her arm as she shifted posture, and ran her fingers across the ancient marble that made up the garden. It was cold, and rough to the touch - it's old surface pocked by the wears of time, and fissures in the marble. There was little to be heard in the chamber, as she was currently it's only occupant. Instead there was only the quiet trickling of water, and the fluttering of leaves as a wind would brush through the chamber from above. She had chosen the chamber because of its peaceful nature, and because it was one of the least monitored rooms in the temple. In order to leave the chamber peaceful, dataports and energy outlets hadn't been installed in its walls, and there was no monitoring equipment to be found - a rare sight in a temple tense about security and betrayal now more than ever. Kalee trusted the Jedi Order with her all, but what she wanted to discuss with a fellow Knight that she had grown to trust was something that made her uneasy, and she wasn't sure who's ears should hear that information yet - thus her focus on confidentiality.

@Fyston

 

[Fyston]

The clash of lightsabers filled Kaizer's ears and he found the changing pitch of each blade to be oddly comforting. The Knight was surrounded by Jedi of various ages, though none was older than 20. Each one was practicing their skills with a weapon as he moved around, occasionally demonstrating a helpful technique or correcting an error as the rest sparred with their peers. Beads of sweat lined his forehead as the Knight had only recently finished with his own match.

There was a nagging feeling in the back of Kaizer's mind, though he could not place what he was forgetting. He ran through a mental checklist as he paced up and down the training area, ticking off tasks that he had completed and easily remembering everything that was springing to his mind. He had completed his daily duties and his training regimen and, while he had a few reports to type up, was fairly caught up on paperwork and his studying. While he had a mission or two approaching, he had either already prepared or had already set aside a time to finishing his prep.

And so the Knight paced, his mind focused on what it could not find as he absentmindedly paced the aisles between the sparring Jedi. That is, until a parried strike threatened to bisect him, if it had been on full power. The Knight stopped in his tracks and suddenly remembered where he was supposed to be ten minutes ago, a quick check of his watch confirmed. Taking time to answer any questions and announce the date of the next 'class,' Kaizer pulled his robe to him and pulled it over his form. The Knight never ran, though he certainly walked quickly and with purpose as he guided himself to the meeting spot, a place that Kaizer had dubbed the 'Fountain Room.'

The Knight slowed his pace to that of a peaceful walk right before he came into view of the entrance of the room, attempting not to appear rushed. While his military training urged him to be early, he enjoyed being able to make his own schedule and, as a result, tended to be at least ten minutes late to anything. His long stride carried him into the room and, reaching out with the Force, was able to sense the location of his comrade. As he laid eyes on her, Kaizer bowed his head respectfully. "Hello, Kalee. What did you wish to speak with me about?" The Knight made no mention of the fact that he was late, though that was more due to the fact that he never truly considered himself late, only arriving precisely when the Force meant him to arrive.

 

[Prudence]

Kalee could feel a swirling, fast moving presence approaching the Fountain Room. There was a sense of speed, or urgency, about the man - though she could tell that there was also a sense of calm. The Force moved about him swiftly, outlining his presence as one of strength, but also one of serenity - at peace with himself. She had been pacing between the fountains now, tracing her fingers along the ages-old surface of each of them. She allowed one of her fingers to dip over the rim, tracing a small ripple through the pool of water at the fountain's base, before retrieving her finger from the cool water. She looked at the water running down her finger, before wiping it dry on her cloak and turning her attention to the door.

As she had felt, the warm outgoing presence of Kaizer filled the doorway to the fountain room, and she allowed a slight warm smile to cross her lips. The man was behind the schedule that they had set, causing Kalee to have to wait on him, but the serene Jedi didn't make note of it - a small wait in such a peaceful place was of little inconvenience to her. She nodded her head to him, welcomingly, and then reciprocated the slight bow of his head in a more respectful manner.

"Thank you for coming here Kaizer, I was hoping I could talk to you about something that I've been looking into." She began slowly walking about the fountains her fingers still tracing along the top of the rim of one of the fountains. Her other hand fished around in a pocket on her belt and pulled forth a small datapad. Handing it ot Kaizer she began to speak, but in a hushed tone. "I chose this place because there are few ears listening here, but I believe there's something going on beneath the surface of the Jedi. These are all incidents on the Outer Rim that have caught the attention of local news, enough for us to pick it up. They all ended with casualties, and some of them were blatantly against facilities that were later identified as belonging to the Exiles. In some circumstances... like this one." She motioned with her forefinger to one of the articles on the datapad she'd handed him, "There's evidence that lightsabers were involved, though the reporter didn't seem to realize it. They attributed it to a plasma cutter, or a vibroblade... but I think there are Jedi out there actively hunting the exiles, and using darker methods to do so."

 

[Fyston]

Kaizer watched as his fellow Jedi walked around the fountain, his gaze locked on to her finger as it traced the top of one of the fountains. His head tilted a few degrees to the side, Kaizer didn't quite understand the need for her keeping a finger on the fountain. As a purely practical person, every action he took and every word he spoke, as well as those actions and words he didn't take/speak, had a purpose. Many found him to be blunt, though Kaizer was raised in a world where practicality was a necessity and where a person who walked slowly and traced a fountain had to be up to something.

The Knight listened as Kalee spoke and grabbed the datapad from her when she offered it to him. He wasn't quite getting what she was going on about as, while he could put two and two together, was generally focused on what was happening right in front of him as opposed to what happened on the other side of the galaxy. Still, his ears perked up as she mentioned the explanation that the reporters gave for the injuries sustained in the various incidents. Though he zoomed in on the images to be certain, there was no need for Kaizer to do so in order to confirm that they were lightsaber wounds. He'd seen his fair share as a soldier and he'd seen more than his fair share since he'd become a Jedi.

Kaizer waited for Kalee to stop speaking and, giving the article a final scan for any additional useful information, looked bluntly at Kalee. While he could see that she did not feel as if they were vibroblade or plasma cutter wounds, Kaizer had known the difference between various energy weapons' wounds from the time he was a child. "My father was a doctor on Dantooine and he saw a bit of everything. A vibroweapon will not cauterize the wounds as they have been and, while a plasma cutter or torch will cauterize the wounds, they are precise tools. These wounds are those of a lightsaber and any critical thinking or research on their part would have confirmed that." A voice in the back of Kaizer's mind told him to go into more detail regarding the mechanisms of injury involved, though his practicality took over as he sat the datapad on a nearby bench.

His mind honed in on the last sentence Kalee spoke and the Knight couldn't help but shake his head. "Most of these events are too far from Jedi territory to be us. Hell, we're stretched too thin as it is and, given our seemingly rising casualty rate, we don't and probably won't have the manpower for such skirmishes. What's more likely is that the Exiles have begun to splinter into smaller factions and fight amongst themselves. If you hear footsteps on Haruun Kal, think Akk Dog, not Rancor."

 

[Prudence]

There was little interest from her companion exhibited over her topic of conversation at first. Kalee didn't need to be sensitive to the Force in order to know that, but her sensitivity confirmed what she already knew. The living energy field sat stale between the two of them, as his eyes slowly paced the screen she had handed him to feign interest. It wasn't until she mentioned the weapons used that she felt an electric surge through the Force, as its balance shifted, flowing away from him excitedly. A small smile crept across her lips as she managed to draw his attention. She traced her finger along the surface it was presently on, looping it in a subtle celebratory circle.

His interest grew in the Force as she continued speaking, and she could feel him drawn to the images on the screen - a sense of almost amusement coming from him over what he knew. Ever courteous, he allowed her to finish speaking before he voiced his opinion. Kalee stopped in her tracks, her finger even freezing atop the marble surface of one of the fountains, giving the man her full attention as her eyes bored into him, probing his face for even the slightest expression. As he gave the anecdote of his father's work, followed by the technical explanation for why the alternatives to a lightsaber were unlikely she nodded, her smile broadening into a full lipped satisfactory smile. "I had thought something similar, though I lack the firsthand experience you do."

Kaizer began towards a nearby bench, and Kalee followed behind him, her hand dipping back into the fountain and tracing patterns in it as they walked. She withdrew her hand as they drew away from the fountains, converging on the bench that he had set the datapad on. Her eyes focused on the screen, reading over what he had left the pad on, before returning to him. Kaizer was skeptical of her reasoning, but it was because she hadn't provided all of her evidence, she was certain. He liked to think the Exiles were infighting, but Kalee doubted that, it was too coincidental.

"Doubtful." she said softly, before crouching down to the datapad. With a few swipes of her finger she moved to another chart, this time a map of all known Jedi movements. "I put a fair deal of research into this when.... I guess when I detected the irregularities in reports. That must've been, I actually don't know when that was, or what drew my attention, but that's neither here nor there." She smiled innocently before returning her attention to the pads, "If you look here, you can find a map of all Jedi activities..." she swiped a finger down, and the map shifted, retaining the Jedi movements but adding a series of red dots, "These red dots are all of the incidents that I compiled. With the ongoing uncertainty in the Order, and the fears of betrayal or security, all Jedi leaving or entering Jakku must sign out where they are headed, and where they have been. I cross referenced that with the events, and I found this." Her finger tapped the screen and holographic busts of half a dozen Jedi rose from the screen, "These Jedi happened to be on an assignment in the sector of the incidents on multiple occasions when one happened, and had an unverifyable alibi each time." She swiped the hologram, and it shifted to a dozen more faces, "These happened to be out on assignment the time of the remaining incidents, and each time they were coincidentally across the galaxy from each event." She held up a finger warding off a question, "Before you ask how they could be involved across the galaxy, I tapped into local press feeds for each planet they were supposedly on in the past eight months, and I was able to find NO cam footage of them anywhere, no reports of their peacekeeping efforts, and no evidence that they were on planet." Her mouth twisted into a bit of a smile, as if she was proud of herself "Now I know what you're thinking, yes I went to check the navi-computers of their ships. Wouldn't you know it, each one of these Jedi had wiped Navi-computers." She looked at him, satisfaction eminating from her petite features, "What do you think now?"

 

[Fyston]

As the other Jedi began explaining herself, Kaizer watched as she became more and more excited and proud of herself. She had pieced together pieces that Kaizer had believed were too far fetched to ever be connected. That she had tapped into the Jedi databases and stolen confidential information was tantamount to treason regardless of the reason. Feigning a smile, the Jedi chuckled a bit as she finished.

"I think you've gotten too close to our secrets," he said bluntly as he simultaneously brought his weapon into his hands and ignited it with the Force. Given their close proximity, Kaizer hoped to catch her off guard and bisect her, though he was not folly enough to expect it to work. If his opening attack failed, he would backtrack and, keeping his guard up, gain some room to maneuver.