The Beginning of the Jedi Crusade

[Astra de Aurora]

"Greetings, Jedi. Thank you for coming."

This time when Snake had called the meeting the majority of the Jedi had arrived. Only the stragglers were walking in now, but they would not miss much of what she was saying next.

"Our progress with reestablishing ourselves in the galaxy is going well. Missions are being completed and while we may not succeed in all of them, we at least put out the world that the Jedi are here to help. I have spoken myself to the Supreme Chancellor and we are allied with the Republic once more. Also, the Cheiftan Thraibacca has agreed to speak to the other Cheiftans of Kashyyyk and they will decide whether or not they will join our cause.

"Cause for what? War. It is inevitable that we will have to fight the Sith. The Republic has fought against the Sith for Dantooine. I feel that the best course of action would be to fight alongside the Republic."

She paused for a moment, waiting for the others to speak. She felt nervous at telling the other Jedi of her plan; they would all remember what had happened to Revan and Malak during the Mandalorian wars when they fought.

OOC: Sorry for the inactivity, all.

 

[Dexington]

"War?"

*Jace stood in the middle of the large group of Jedi, whispering to himself. He was looking at the Jedi Grandmaster with admiration, hoping to one day rise to that level once himself. However, he was not all too sure when she made it clear that the Jedi would be going to war. The duties of a Grandmaster were far greater than any other Jedi, they had to decide what was best on the largest scale for the entire order and act upon it. He trusted in Snake's judgement, but was confused by one thing that he had been told by another Jedi Master already. There was about to be a war against the Sith anyway, according to Quill Aridius, so why start another one here and now? He was sure the matter would be settled once the other Masters of the order had their say.*

 

[Lillianne Crasse]

OOC: First off, sorry for the ooc...lol. Secondly, are all the Jedi supposed to respond?

EDITED POST

Kohia listened intently to the speech of the Jedi Grandmaster. War? The way it sounded in her mind even was distasteful. Kohia was not a belligerent person. In fact, she was very much a pacifist and even passive. In a war there was never a true victor. Instead there were only casualties on all sides, lives lost, families shattered and blood to cover up more blood for wrongs.

Her eyes swept through the room taking in the reactions of the other Jedi gathered in the room. Some were behind the Grandmaster fully, while others disagreed. A few hushed voices could be heard mumbling to one another as some held private conversations. Still, Kohia remained silent, taking it all in. Afterall, she was merely a padawan in the midst of Jedi with more experience and clout than she held.

 

[Astra de Aurora]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Nydia Sebek @ Aug 28 2007, 08:10 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

OOC: First off, sorry for the ooc...lol. Secondly, are all the Jedi supposed to respond?[/b]

Definitely

 

[Eddy]

Gabriel Usze was amongst the group of Padawans listening intently to their Grandmaster give her speech, but unlike them, he was not looking at the Grandmaster. Gabriel was looking up towards the ceiling, as if staring at something only he knew was there, and with an intense gaze that would surely confuse even the masters. He did not speak much, this one, but when he did, you know he meant every word, and had chosen them with the utmost care, as if one false syllable would cause the galaxy to implode upon itself. Gabriel took such things as communication to a very serious degree, as he knew all to well that anything said or heard, depended greatly upon perspective, and if you did not communicate with someone in the proper manner, then people would not understand.

We will go to war? he wondered. This is something we have not done directly for some time, and more specifically, something Gabriel had never done. Even if his Grandmaster willed it, he would not do so lightly, for the Force was his true master, and that was the one entity he could never disobey.

 

[Green Ranger]

Tyrn Lightell, the first of the Jedi Crusaders who had dedicated himself to the war quite some time ago, stood watching the group in silence. Though neither a powerful nor a well known Jedi, Tyrn had immediately understood the need for this and had sworn himself to finding a quick solution to the problem, no matter the personal cost. For that was the person Tyrn was an eager - perhaps slightly over-eager - individual who seldom percieved the repurcussions of his actions. However, the results thus far had been outstanding - the recapture of Dantooine with Tyrn's own aid had somewhat improved his reputation, and even if the person remained unknown, the name Lightell had become a glimmer of hope for the Republic. Perhaps that had gone to the young Jedi's head - only time would tell.

Tyrn still felt a sense of discomfort, however - standing in front of the Jedi as he was, in a place of authority that the Lightell boy really didn't feel he should have been in yet. Still, he wore the carefully practiced facade of a calm, in control individual. He prayed he would not have to speak though - control of body and control of voice were two different things, and Tyrn was still a novice of the latter. He stood patiently by, watching the Grandmaster speak and the reactions of the other Jedi - this could go any way, and Tyrn, despite his calm facade, was carefully looking over the group of Jedi, trying to determine what the most likely path was. Knowing the Jedi, they would probably obey Brooks' orders. Still...

 

[Jorax]

*Jedi Master Kyle Stellar seemed a bit restless and uncomfortable as he heard this speech. It was war again. What he was going to say next might reach out to the hearts of others, but would not exactly answer the question itself.*

"We are not instigators, Grandmaster. We are defenders. What you are asking of us, or more of the Jedi Philosophy, is to change to being warbringers. We have long defended justice through our quiet ways, and it has worked. Why the change now? Did we not encounter the Sith years ago only to have our forces decimated?"

 

[Rev]

Avare' watched and listened to the chaos that came in the form of whispers from across the room. Staring at those who stood most of them were known to the Order in some way, some more than others. It was wise to protest the war, they would not want to be attackers, they would be no different than the Sith if that were to happen.

"Grandmaster... I know a war is in the making, but I have to say we can not start the War... though there are ways to get around us starting it. We join the Republic's ranks as we have in the past, when the Republic makes their move, we are there to assist and lead the soldiers. Not only is our morale low, but theres is too, if we can hide our own low morale, we can raise theres and ultimately defeat the Sith."

Looking around the Padawans, Knights and even Masters that had stood protesting the war.

"My fellow Jedi, we all know a War is on the horizon.. it will fall upon us in time, when that time is no one can tell. We must make a move, whether it is offensive or defensive... for if we sit back and wait just as the Council did during the times of the Mandalorian Wars we will be the ones falling to the hands of the Sith... It may be against our ways to make a first move... to instigate, but we are protectors. The Sith will attack, we must not only protect the Republic but the Jedi ways, for if we fall the Jedi are decimated, and the Sith will rise to a greater power, ultimately defeating the Republic, and even the Galaxy."

Taking in a deep breath the Jedi Knight slipped back to his original spot and awaited a barrage of questions, comments, and pleas.

 

[OneoftheLost]

Vanar Dalthune sat in a small corner, listening to far more important individuals argue and bicker over the Grandmaster's words. The Grandmaster remained silent, saying nothing yet, seemingly taking in each complaint. The young Liberi found himself rising to his feet with his good friend and Chance. The red-haired , newly appointed Jedi-Knight was watching, and listening intently.

He turned to Vanar whispering.

"This is madness, we don't have the forces or the strength to fully confront the sith, even with the Wookies and the Republic!"

Vanar blinked, his black eyes studying his friend.

"You underestimate the Jedi. We have the surperior force. We work through the force, not the other way around. The sith are weak, attaining power through numbers and fear. I say we listen. No matter what we think, the grandmaster will have the answers."

Chance shrugged and turned back to the matter at hand.

Vanar sighed. This war could turn into a very, very long and drawn out war of attrition, as far as the young Liberi could see, both combined forces where evenly matched. Not to mention what the mandalorians would do.

Probably harrass both sides.

No, this was the beginnings of something BIG.

For all his talk, Vanar was worried, he'd seen things...in the dark corners of the galaxy... things that had changed him, things that the sith controlled.

I hope it never comes to that.

Vanar continued to listen, watching the more powerful members of the Jedi throw ideas and complaints into the growing discussion.

 

[Eddy]

"Masters, if I may say something," Gabriel said, as his cool gray eyes finally came floating down back to their faces and took a step forward. Normally, most Padawans would be nervous of addressing the masters, especially with so many arrayed here today, but Gabriel knew that none of them would criticize him, for it was not their way. "War is a difficult situation, and the Jedi are not warmongers. But, if we sit by and watch the galaxy become engulfed in a war, surely the Sith will win. I am not proposing we start another situation like that of the Mandalorian Wars, but we must help the Republic, if nothing else. Has all our training of combat been for naught? Are we not to lend our strength to those in need? If we are protectors of the Peace, then peace we must preserve, not leave the Republic to fight its own war."

It was the most he had spoken in the last three months. But surely, the others would see the wisdom in his words. The Jedi needed to enter this war, whether they liked it or not, because the Force had not guided an entire Order to sit by in times such as these.

 

[Cailst]

Hayvan stood among the other Jedi contemplating the war and the potential consequences of the war. He did remember hearing these words before in a different mouth. Khaluq who was the previous grandmaster had also gone to the darkside a while back. It was odd hearing very similar words though.

However, this was a bit different as the Republic was on the offensive and had a better chance of winning in his mind. Also, the mandalorians were on their side so they had even greater resources. It seemed like it would work. And if the Grandmaster were to go evil, the jedi could just get a new one so it didn't seem like it really mattered.

Still, it wasn't quite the jedi way to attack but it was in the name of helping the republic and saving lives from sith domination. The motives seemed good even if the methods weren't quite what they should be.

 

[Brandon Rhea]

*He could not believe what he was hearing from some of his fellow brothers within the Jedi Order. Fighting the Sith is warmongering? Fighting the Sith is attacking, not defending? It was amazing how they could not see the larger picture. Attacking the Sith would be a defense, considering what they had done since they had returned under the mantle of Darth Viscerus. Not fighting the Sith would be a betrayal of the principles of the Jedi. Not fighting the Sith would be a betrayal to all the people of the Republic, just as they had betrayed the Republic when they did nothing to stop the crusades of the Bendu Order. There was nothing he hated more than betrayal. It was the one thing he would never, ever stand for.*

“My brothers, attacking the Sith would be a defense. The war started four years ago on Yavin IV when they took us by surprise with their superior numbers. They ended the lives of millions of brothers and sisters on Alderaan, Corellia and Mon Calamari by poisoning the water supply. They ripped Coruscant by our hands. A rogue Sith killed the daughter of our Supreme Chancellor, leaving his grandson without a mother. The Republic has finally started to turn around this catastrophe by taking back Dantooine. We cannot stand by and not aid the Republic as we did during the Mandalorian War. We learned the hard way the price of stagnation. Had we acted when the Mandalorians struck first, Revan and Malak would not have gone against the decision of that Jedi Council, they would not have turned to the Dark Side and found the Star Forge and they would not have killed millions of innocents during the Jedi Civil War. That war and its aftermath led to Great Territorial War which led to the Great Rim Lines War which lead to the United Pirate Crusades with all of the wars culminating once and for all in the most recent Great Sovereign Crusades. The stagnation of the Jedi Council has caused the deaths of hundreds of millions, if not billions, over the last one hundred years in six wars. This outrage must end now. I implore this Council to act immediately. I assure you, if this Council refuses to act then I will act and preserve the Republic. This time, I would have the knowledge of what happened to Revan and Malak and I would allow this to end as it should: the destruction of the Sith and the preservation of the Republic.”

 

[Lillianne Crasse]

Kohia raised an eyebrow as she saw the padawan step forward and speak out. This man dared to step forward when some of the rest of the padawans were too quiet. Admiration for his actions rose in her as she turned her gaze back to the Grandmaster.

"Excuse me," she said politely and stepped forward. "I will be one of the first to say I hate the idea of war. Yet, as it has already been stated, we are protectors of the Republic. While they are strong, they cannot hope to push the Sith completely back. We have already seen them try. Dantooine may have been a victory, but the Sith will be better prepared the next time. However, we can't assume that our aid will change the course of events either. Even if we assist, we can't be guaranteed of victory. The cost will be great to all. However, we do owe it to them. Was it not our own failings that lead to the Sith being in the place they are now? By assisting, we are not becoming warmongers, but righting the wrong we helped create. Should we not take responsibility for our actions and inactions?"

She glanced around the room, knowing she might have stepped on some toes with her comment. However, she truly believed this. The Jedi, afterall, were responsible for the Sith coming into power recently, some might say even from the beginning.

OOC: Brandon, I never said you could kill Isabella off :p

 

[Green Ranger]

"To those of you who oppose the Grandmaster's proposal," Tyrn finally spoke up, quelling his nervousness and steadying his voice in an act of control he himself was surprised in, "Let me ask you all this - if not go to war, what would you have us do? Should we leave the peoples of the Republic - peoples we have sworn to protect, I might add - to fall to the guns and blades of the Sith? Will we sit idly by as the Republic is destroyed planet by planet? And when the Sith finally come knocking on these doors even here, will we still lay down our weapons because of our pacifist ways?

"I am aware that many of you have doubts about this, but consider the facts - at Dantooine, the first victory for the Republic in a long time, a single Jedi Knight was present. This alone has brought a glimmer of hope back to the galaxy, both those still loyal to the Republic and those oppressed by Sith tyranny. The Republic, both military and civilian, find hope in us, find courage where there was none before. And what if more Jedi were to join the cause, knights, padawans, the Jedi High Council, even? We could end this war quickly and decicively, and bring peace, order and justice back to the galaxy. Together, friends, my brothers, my sisters...together, we can bring balance back to the galaxy."

Tyrn gave a sort of half smile, then turned around, his face contorting slightly as a headache hit him. He'd done something to strengthen the meaning of his words, but whatever he'd done, his body wasn't agreeing with it. Tyrn continued facing away from the Jedi, standing near the back wall of the main hall, as he attempted to block out the pain, using a fairly standard Jedi technique. Once it was somewhat under control and his composure was back, he turned back to face the Jedi. All in all, it seemed to them as if he had done so for dramatic effect, nothing more, though the nagging ache in his head still bothered Tyrn, and he began to wonder what it meant...

 

[Brandon Rhea]

OOC: Kelly, just so you know, if I was the Padawan who stepped out then you've got my rank wrong. I'm a Jedi Council Master, lol. Also, we had been talking about finishing off the Ussej/Kalel/Bella storyline and you had kept saying you were going to kill off Bella, so I figured when you left it would just be assumed she was dead. I had been going on that assumption with Cos also, so I guess we can work something out like we all thought she was dead or something. I'll talk to you later about it.

 

[Eddy]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Brandon Rhea @ Aug 30 2007, 10:10 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

OOC: Kelly, just so you know, if I was the Padawan who stepped out then you've got my rank wrong. I'm a Jedi Council Master, lol.[/b]

OOC: She was referring to me. :p

 

[Dexington]

*Jace listened to all of the people who were having their say. Padawans, quazi-Jedi, Masters and anyone else who wanted to talk. He figured it would be okay if he got his two cents in here anyway. Besides, his point was about to be a valid one and could be proved upon the arrival and speech of Master Quill Aridius.*

"But Masters, do you not know yet? There is already a war being waged against the Sith! The Sage that came to you earlier, Master Matchek, he has made alliances and is taking the fight to Coruscant itself! They are making an army, though they seem foolish to think they can take the planet on their own. Perhaps they are just biding time for us to prepare..."

*Jace stopped himself from saying anymore. None of the other Jedi knew that the Sage even existed and what he was saying probably sounded like madness to everyone around him. He was just a padawan, almost a Knight, but wild ravings about a different war were not going to get him far.*

"Master Aridius can tell you! Wherever he is..."

 

[Jorax]

*Listening to Master Matchek, Kyle was still focused on not attacking the Sith. It did not seem like the Jedi Way. However, there still lay one variable still unanswered for...the last Grandmaster.*

"What about Xiantos Zosimus? He knows our secrets...yet for a long time no one has ever seen him. What are we do to about him? Can we find the man that left our Order for no apparent reason?"

 

[Astra de Aurora]

Snake chose to respond to Kyle's question first. He brought up a good point, and if the wrong side had the information of the Jedi...

"I believe that Xiantos has died, fell to the Dark Side, or is living out a different lifestyle as we speak. True, he knows our bases, but bases can be constructed elsewhere. And as for our plans, this is what we are discussing now, are we not? The worst thing could be that he has become a Sith or a Dark Jedi, but everyone has the hope of redemption.

"Yes, by taking an offense we would be defending ourselves. Those of you who are truly against fighting the Sith at this point in time, stay out of battle and increase our bases' protection. Train. Complete missions. Heal the wounded. If you choose to become a Jedi Crusader, someone who is willing to take the offense, you must be ready for fighting at all times along with your other Jedi duties.

"We are still the guardians of peace. This war is to protect the innocents that will be slaughtered if we do not make our stand. I remember speaking out against Khaluq when she spoke of going to war and I can hardly believe myself that I am saying this as well. Do not go to the battlefront seeking vengence instead of justice. The Jedi do not kill unless they have to. If you have a choice, take a prisoner, redeem him, make him an ally.

"It is my belief that we will all end up fighting eventually. Some of us could die, but remember: 'There is no death, there is the Force'. I propose that our first offensive move should be an attack on Coruscant. Are there any other propositions on our first move?"

OOC: Assuming, of course, that Coruscant is still Sith-only.

 

[Cailst]

"We could also take Korriban since it is their capital and if we conquer it, we could then destroy it and get rid of its evilness for all time." Hayvan suggested since it was one of the most important planets for the sith and it would halt them for a while.

Even though there was a lot of dark side energy there, the best of the jedi would still be likely to stay good and it couldn't corrupt them that much.