Ask What Must Be Done.

[Hera "The Joyful" Albion]

Jedi Master Hera Albion felt, out of place, in her new cloak. But the ceremonies and congratulations on her promotion were scarcely complete when she was called to duty once more. Now, arriving on the ISC-controlled world, she would meet, or at least see, Emryc Thorne in person. Unfortunately, the visit was no cordial occasion. A Sith Lord had been captured, a real live Sith lord, the kind that burned murdered Padawans and burned down Yavin.

Hera wished she could have mustered up some anger for him, against him, but seeing the frozen body in carbonite on the holo she felt nothing but pity. He couldn't have been any older or younger than herself, and now he was standing in the balance. Closing the datapad she received her information on, Hera braced herself as her shuttle set down. Within minutes, she would arrive in the same room as the carbonite-frozen Sith, accompanied by two other council members.

The room they entered was vast, tables and chairs cleared from the center and put gently to the side. Behind Hera, the two other council members followed, before her, Emryc Thorne (@Sreeya) and the frozen Sith Lord. (@Scoobert) She wasn't sure what to say at this moment, so she said nothing at all. Instead opting to bow respectfully towards the Thorne, though she could not help the intrusive thought that crept into her mind. 'He looks a lot like his son, but older.'

Standing tall, her characteristic smile notably absent from her face, Hera did finally manage to eek out a short sentence. "Should I stand here?"

Please keep posting to at least 48 hours. Thread is DE

@Logan @Valen Pelora

 

[Kaisa Vanloa]

Kaisa followed behind Hera in silence. Her mind was wavy with the storm of thought, a roiling ocean and she was alone, adrift on a failing life boat. Under normal circumstances, Kaisa prided herself on always being sure of the next step. Thoroughly prepared and unflappable.

But she hadn't been prepared for this.

A Sith Lord delivered to their doorstep by Emryc Thorne. The details of the situation were.. murky at best, at least as far what Hera had told them. Not that she blamed her, the newly minted Master was treading in uncharted waters. They all were.

As they entered the room, Kaisa's attention snapped immediately to the carbonite-frozen form of what she assumed was Draugr. Her gaze hung there for a few moments before finally turning to the only man in the room. Kaisa had never met the esteemed President, and suffice to say she wished that their first meeting could have been under less grave circumstance.

President Thorne, Kaisa said with a nod of her head, before placing a hand on her hip, just above where her lightsaber dangled.

Normally this would have been where Kaisa made some sort of witty quip but, strangely enough, she just couldn't think of anything. Instead, she carried only a solemn look on her face and the faintest ghost of a grimace on her lips.

@Black Noise @Sreeya @Valen Pelora @Scoobert

 

[Alexandria Voran]

Uncertainty. The Force whispered the word through the Jedi. A clouded future and a narrow path extended before them. Their steps leading them down an unknow road. That did not mean they should walk with hesitation. Alex had spent weeks in mediation. Centering herself for the war ahead. The losses of Yavin and the Jedi defeats had shaken her core. Lena and Kaisa had remined her of who she was. The future may be shrouded but Light would shine through.

She dressed in her armor. Her robes pressed and her saber hanging at her hip. Alex’s face was serene mask. Her head held high and her back straight. Her mind locked tight in the Force but her presence flowing outward. The full power she commanded bursting beneath the surface. Alex could sense the hesitation in Hera and Kaisa. She offered a hand through the Force. An anchor in a stormy sea. She was Grandmaster.

The Jedi answered the call when President Thorne announced Draugr’s capture. A strange situation. The ISC had been steadfastly neutral throughout the war, but the Empire had changed all of that. Did she trust Emyrc? No. She did put faith in his desire to see the Empire routed. That she could trust. Alex took her place at the head of the congregation as they entered the room. She nodded respectfully. “A shame, these are the circumstances under which we finally meet.” Emyrc of course was at the Galactic Senate when the Jedi were hauled out but the two had never truly met. Alex tilted her head to the side.

“He looks much the same as when he was an acolyte.” Far back on Dantooine. “And seems to have learned no lessons.” Frozen in carbonite the Sith Lord was less of a threat. Still, he was a Sith Lord. They needed to be wary.

@Logan @Sreeya @Black Noise

 

[Emryc Thorne]

Emryc watched as the Jedi filed in, all of them appearing grim despite the tides fundamentally turning in their favor. He was reminded that the Jedi were so dull that they couldn’t even allow themselves a moment of joy at a significant victory. They didn’t celebrate obvious wins, they couldn’t break down in defeat, they were even more robotic than he was forced to be as part of his Sith upbringing. A part of him felt that deep distaste for his opinionated and lively son going into an Order with walking husks of humanoids.

“Ladies,” He said curtly with a tip of his head at them all. Emryc looked over at the carbonite, “He will be unfrozen now. Prepare accordingly,” He said simply, motioning for his droid to step forth and unfreeze. Emryc himself didn’t want to be right next to the Sith Lord once he was awakened. He was conveniently near the back of the room, reaching for a cigarra so he could enjoy the show. He wanted to be here to ensure the Jedi didn't simply let him walk.

@Valen Pelora @Black Noise @Logan @Scoobert

 

[Darth Draugr]

Unfreezing from the carbonite, Draugr's vision was blurred for a moment as if waking from a deep sleep. As he began to feel his limbs break free from the stillness he would catch himself from falling as he stood before the three Jedi and Emryc Thorne. His vision cleared after a few blinks and he could see where he was, and who was with him.

He figured he'd be some prize in the slug's palace, or even held captive by the ISC. Instead though, he was here being brought to the Jedi.. left with no weapon to defend himself but the force. When the faces of the Jedi became clear he recognized two of them immediately, one being the Jedi Grandmaster. She was smaller than he anticipated, and the next Kaisa, Jedi Councilor. Already he was outmatched in strength, and to add a little more there was a Jedi Master with them as well.

He could feel himself prepare to lash out on them, he felt his impulsive actions to reach for his sabers to fight. Yet.. they weren't there. He knew they wouldn't be, but instinct alone failed him. They had the pitbull in a corner, and now he planned to bite. "I will not be your prisoner!" Using the force he would send out a wave of force energy to send the Jedi back as he held up his fists in a fighting position. Altair taught him a couple things in Matukai, and now he wouldn't let it go to waste.

He could hear the tiefling's voice in the back of his head, 'Light on your feet' 'speed' 'like a razor-fin,' and he did exactly that waiting for any of them to strike.

@Valen Pelora @Logan @Black Noise @Sreeya

 

[Alexandria Voran]

Prepare accordingly. Alex was already awash in the Force. Her sense spread wide. By all accounts, Emryc Thorne was a capable fighter but a Sith Lord was something else entirely. She would not have him injured or killed accidently on her watch. A piece of her mind keeping an eye on him. Draugr had been devested of his weapons, but he was not powerless. The Jedi were well aware of that fact. Each of them reading themselves as the carbonite slowly unfroze. Alex took no chances. She watched him stumble from the block, slowly blinking his eyes, and she acted.

The Force whipping from her like iron cables. Her strength brought forth to clamp down on his arms and legs. Binding the Sith Lord in place before he had a chance to orient himself. Draugr was strong…she was stronger. If the Sith Lord somehow managed to work the Force and send forth his blast, her left hand would quickly craft a barrier to blunt blow while her feet rooted in place.

“Bind him.” Her voice was command. She understood the triumph this could represent. That did not mean she relished what would come next. Draugr had been allowed to escape their grasp once. He had taken countless innocent lives since. Alex would not let them make the same mistake twice. May the Force be with them.

@Logan @Sreeya @Black Noise @Scoobert

 

[Hera "The Joyful" Albion]

Hera reacted instinctively as Emryc announced his intentions. She coalesced the Force around her, preparing for whatever may come as the Sith Lord was released. Alex seemingly had known this Sith from another time, and she could not help but wonder why the GrandMaster had let him live back then. A lapse in judgement? A failure? Whatever the reason, it brought them to this place here and now. Well, that and Emryc brought them here. They would not have this sith if not for his connections.

As Draugr was released, before his body had even completely dethawed, Hera snapped the Force around his limbs. While not as strong as Alex, Hera’s ability was not to be ignored. Powerful ropes of the Force would reach out to attempt to bind the Sith Lord, aiding the iron of Alex’s own ability. Strangely enough, something changed in Hera’s demeanor as the fight began.

Visible only to Emryc and, perhaps, Draugr as well, as they could see her. Hera was smiling. A wild and terrifying grin spread across her face. Even now, in this dark time, in this dark situation, Hera found a sort of joy. A great enemy would be defeated, the galaxy would be made safer. How could she not grin? How could she not smile? How could she not be filled with joy?

If Draugr even managed to pull off his repulse, Hera would plant her feet firmly and use the Force binding on Draugr’s own body to anchor herself, preventing any loss of movement.

 

[Kaisa Vanloa]

The moment that President Thorne had spoken his intention, things began clicking into place inside of Kaisa's mind. Where there had once been an angry storm brewing there was now quiet, still waters. Whether that meant she had survived the maelstrom or simply found herself at its center was yet to be determined.

Regardless, she knew what must come next.

They were releasing a rabid animal from its confines and she knew in her heart of hearts that Darth Draugr would react as a rabid animal would. Backed into a corner, faced with arguably three of the strongest Jedi in the entire Order, there was only one way this was going to go.

Kaisa heard Alex's instruction but she did not heed it. She felt Hera and Alex behind her, bindings through the force snapping up the Darth and holding him in place. She knew that the newly minted Master would listen to what she was told, whether she thought it was the right course or not. In times like these, people often did what they were told.

Kaisa was not one of those people.

The force seared through her veins and mixed with adrenaline, pumping through her entire body so fiercely and so hot that it felt like battery acid. But it was not malice or anger or vileness that fueled her. It was the Light, and it spoke to Kaisa in a way it had very few times in her life. And that voice, the one only she could hear, was the one she listened to.

A blazing fast move to the right would ensure that Kaisa would dodge out of the way if Draugr's force blast managed to find fruition even through the mountainous resistance he would face. Right hand snapped to her hip, gripping the hilt of her lightsaber with the kind of assuredness that only came when a person knew what they were about to do was without a doubt, unequivocally the right thing to do.

A flash of yellow accompanied by the unmistakable snap-hiss and the smell of burnt ozone. Kaisa swung her lightsaber from right to left with machine like precision. She was not looking to incapacitate or subdue Darth Draugr. Her only intent, and it would be clear to any and all of those watching, would be to put an end to the man in front of her once and for all.

Kaisa's blade would look to find purchase along the Darth's neck, severing his head from his body.

One fell swoop. No preludes, no letting things play out, no questions.

Kaisa Vanloa was a Jedi, and in her mind, destroying the evil of Darth Draugr was what a Jedi should do.

If her attack was successful and the Darth had been vanquished, she would clip her lightsaber back to her belt without words, without explanation. Not out of defiance or as a display of bravado - simply because at the end of the day, regardless of what even the Grand Master would say, Kaisa knew she had done the right thing.

And if the Darth managed to survive her attack, Kaisa would be ready for whatever might come next.

@Black Noise @Valen Pelora @Scoobert @Sreeya

 

[Darth Draugr]

Before Draugr could send his force blast, it seemed he had been interrupted by being binded through the Force. When he heard Voran command them to bind him he knew he needed to escape. The Sith Lord began to muster the force within himself as much as he could. Every ounce of strength he had would be built up and fill his body with a burning rage. The Force sending a chilling pulse through his body, and his eyes began glowing Sith Yellow.

Kaisa had began to make her way to Draugr, but before she could ignite her blade, as she had made her way to him after Voran's command, he had a window of opportunity to strike and make his escape, timing it as perfect as he could he would use all the strength he had to blast outward a Force Repulse. At the strength of a Sith Lord it wouldn't matter if you were slightly stronger or if you were slightly weaker, the sheer force of the attack would be enough to send his enemies back.

After his attack, he would need to escape, so once his attack had been made on the Jedi, he would run as fast as he could toward the exit, leaving the room and trying to find an escape. The Jedi had proven they weren't taking prisoners, and he hadn't any help. He was on his own against the entire Jedi Order. He would need a ship to fly out with.

As fit as Draugr was, he would run fast enough to make it out the door and make a left turn, now it was time to lose them in the halls. three on one was not good odds, especially without a weapon, but evening it out to one on one by having them split up, that would make things much more interesting.

@Sreeya @Logan @Valen Pelora @Black Noise

 

[Hera "The Joyful" Albion]

Hera's binding locked down Draugr's legs and arms, preventing him from moving any further. Her binding stopped his initial repulse, interrupting the Sith Lord's concentration it seemed, but he drew the Force within him to repulse again. Every Jedi in the room could sense the intense gathering of energy as Kaisa moved forward. Kaisa wasn't binding him, but Hera didn't react to her companion or change her plans.

Instead, she tightened her bindings through the Force, squaring up her stance and gathering strength within herself. Preparing for what she reliably predicted would come next. Then, as expected, the Sith Lord's gathering of energy burst forth in another attempted repulse, but Hera had prepared herself. Holding tight to her bindings and refusing to let the Sith Lord go, she gathered as much energy as she could spare to strengthen herself and not lose concentration on her binding.

Her feet slid back quite a few feet, but the room was large, and Hera did not lose her footing nor her concentration as the repulse hit. The Sith Lord was bound both by Hera and by Alex, who had previously prepared a barrier in case of this exact situation. He was not going anywhere.

@Scoobert @Logan @Valen Pelora @Sreeya

 

[Alexandria Voran]

She’d seen Draugr fight before, read the briefings on his invasions. He was a man acustomed to fighting with the upper hand. Winning through overpowering his foes. The Sith Lord would find these Jedi not such easy prey. They could all feel the man building the power within himself. That raw rage feeding the Darkside. Alex did not flinch.

Kaisa had made her choice. One with which the Grandmaster agreed. She’d only wished to question the Sith Lord first, but that time had passed. This gatherings conclusion was destined from the start. The Order allowed Draugr to escape once. She would ensure that never happened again. Not with the President of the ISC in the room. As Draugr shifted to building his power, Alex did the same. Quickly, her binding tightened to spread across his entire body. Pressure building to hold him in place. Her control did not lessen. Every ounce of her strength rippling through her body. Draugr could try to move but would find her will equal to the task.

The Force blast may still burst forth but Alex had already prepared for this very eventuality. The barrier was ready when his attack was unleashed to blunt the majority of the pulse, the Force flowing through Alex to root her in place. Her focus on binding the Sith Lord was unbroken. She was unmoved.

The Morellian Jedi did not speak. Kaisa would finish what was started.

@Scoobert @Black Noise @Sreeya @Logan

 

[Kaisa Vanloa]

Kaisa felt the darkness building inside of Draugr as she closed in for her attack. Her eyes narrowed and the grip on her saber tightened, but she did not change her course. The window for Draugr's attempted force repulse was small and slamming shut with every second that ticked by.

As Alex and Hera steeled their resolve and tightened their hold on the Darth, Kaisa did the same. She would not be deterred no matter what futile attempt Draugr made to save his own life. Still, the flash of yellow light would come. Still, her attack was aimed directly at Draugr's throat.

Still, Kaisa knew she was doing exactly what she needed to do.

And as the bindings creeping along Draugr tightened, she found strength knowing that both of her fellow Jedi - her friends - thought that too.

With Alex blunting the majority of the force pulse, Kaisa was still able to follow through with her attack. Fueled by the lightside of the force she pressed through what resistance she still met, however little it was. The Jedi Councilor pulled her blade across Draugr's neck, deep enough and with more than enough strength to cleanly remove the Darth's head from his shoulders and send it rolling across the floor.

Once again, if her attack found purchase, Kaisa would simply stow her lightsaber away, clipping it back to its normal place on her belt. She would turn to face those she had arrived with and President Thorne, her gaze stony and her face showing little else other than the solemnity that came by taking someone's life.

No matter how extremely wicked, shockingly evil and vile that life might have been.

@Black Noise @Valen Pelora @Scoobert @Sreeya

 

[Darth Draugr]

As Draugr had tried to fight with everything he had, he knew he would meet his end here. Dying without the privilege to defend himself. Dying, here.. in an execution rather than a battlefield. The Zabrak had preached to his students, and to the children he kept secret from the galaxy of how they should die. In combat, a warrior's death. There was only one upside to how he had died... it took the Grandmaster, Councilor Kaisa, and a fugly Master to bring him down. None had the metaphorical balls to fight him in one on one combat.

His last stitch effort to fight off the Jedi had be void as they had shielded themselves, and acted with the aggression they preached to avoid in order to slaughter him. Their fixation on his death had only let him know how much he had succeeded at making them fear him. They acted as cowards in order to kill him. Emryc Thorne would stand and watch as the coward he was.

Watching on as he could see the yellow blade ignite, he could see everything. It had all been slow, as if time was barely passing by. His cold eyes never showing fear, or sorrow, or remorse. He was proud of who he was, and had become. Looking into the eyes of Kaisa he would be sure she had to look at him as she could him. To live with the guilt of taking a life. Leaving his yellow eyes on hers, he would smirk for a final time. 'For the Empire..'

Finally the lights went black. Ever since his days as a child growing up on Dathomir.. to being an Acolyte.. and to now, Draugr had never known peace. It was silent.. still... Cold.. The First Blade, Red Blade of the Empire, the Blood Prince, the Red Warden of Dathomir, Darth Draugr... Xeno Brogroo.. was dead.

@Sreeya @Logan @Valen Pelora @Black Noise

 

[Alexandria Voran]

Death pulsed briefly in the Force. A half second later, it was over. Draugr lay dead on the durasteel floor and torrent of the Light slowly retreated into to Alex. Their work here was done. Removing the First Blade was a triumph for the galaxy. There was one less Sith Lord posing a growing threat, but one dead Lord did not win the war.

The ISC was hammering the Empire. Pushing the Sith to the very brink of destruction. She could not help but see the parallels between Draugr and the masters he served. In his last moments, he had done everything to survive. Would the Imperials not do the same? All at a time when the Republic had lost its mind. She was confident they had done what was right. Alex could feel that in her heart. The Light guided their hands and yet there was still so much to be done.

The Grandmaster turned towards the President. “Thank you.” Her face softening. The hard resolve melting away. “I know we are only allies because the Empire was stupid enough to provoke you, but that man had taken countless lives.” Her eyes flicked back to the body. She did not much care what happened to it. The Morellian Jedi had not forgotten Stolas displaying Max like a trophy. “And our son is in good hands. I can understand if you’re not thrilled with his choice and I won’t make promises we can’t keep but I can swear one thing.” Hera had delt most closely with the younger Thorne. His force of personality. “We won’t try to change him. I’m well aware of what the galaxy thinks of us. Boring, stripped down versions of people.” Alex shrugged, a broad smile spreading across her face. “I am boring…stoic…and always have been. That’s not the Jedi in me, it’s just me.” The other sides of her were still there for those who knew her best. “We’ll teach him to wield his powers, but we won’t push him to be anything he isn't. You have my word.” She turned her head towards Kaisa and Hera briefly.

“Unless there is anything else for which we can be of service, we’ll take our leave, Mr. President.” The balance of the galaxy had tipped slightly in their favor today. A welcome change from the past years.

@Scoobert @Logan @Black Noise @Sreeya

 

[Emryc Thorne]

It was difficult to surprise Emryc, but Councilor Vanloa managed just that when she skipped past the rehabilitation and went right to beheading. It took a bit of patience, but it was accomplished in the end. It was even enough to make Emryc pause his smoking, watching the entire scene with mild interest. He recalled when he was present for the execution of Draugr’s apprentice by beheading. He had almost put Draugr on the chopping block himself. It was almost poetic that it ended up being his method of death.

The pulse of the Dark Side that came from Draugr was almost triggering for him. Raze had been buried deep within the confines of his mind for almost two decades now, and yet the beast sniffed darkness like a shark could smell blood. It was exquisite to him, and his fingers trembled involuntarily. Smoking calmed him, so he took another long drag before exhaling a cloud.

The Grandmaster turned to him and, for whatever reason, felt the need to give a speech about what the galaxy thought of the Jedi and her own personality. Stoic. That was laughable. He was stoic. His face was largely impassive as he stared blankly at her, “On the contrary, I find you to be rather morose,” He had never seen her in person or on Holo when she wasn’t in some state of angst or melodrama. Avoiding the Dark Side must have been a full time job at the rate she devolved into despair.

He exhaled another puff of smoke, “I do trust you will be cleaning up the mess you made before you leave,” Emryc said, jutting his chin towards the severed head that was casually lying on the ground.


@Valen Pelora @Logan @Black Noise

 

[Hera "The Joyful" Albion]

Hera sighed deeply as it all seemed to finish, though the stupid little panic grin hadn't fully left her face. Walking over to the headless corpse of Draugr, she deftly picked up the body and slung it over her shoulder. Reaching down, she picked up the decapitated head as well. She couldn't help but start to smile a bit more as she struggled for purchase on the head. The horns were too small and spikey to grab, and he didn't have any hair!

Settling on grasping the face itself, she began to almost laugh nervously. It was squishy! She couldn't help it. It should have scared her a bit, the lack of empathy she felt for this corpse, but it didn't. Rather, she started to laugh a little harder before trying, desperately, to control herself. 'Breathe Hera, breathe' She told herself, settling only into a wide, genuine smile. Looking over to Emryc as she started to head back to the ship, she remarked, "We should talk sometime! Ezra and my Padawan get along really well, and they're so cute together!"

Giggling, and hiccuping, as she started walking away, Hera began shaking uncontrollably. Reality came crashing down in a way she did not expect. She was holding the body and the head of a man she had just helped kill. What terrified Hera wasn't the elimination of this monster, but the fact that she couldn't do anything other than laugh. It wasn't funny, death was never funny, but she was laughing.

Oh Force, she was laughing. She must have a screw loose.

@Sreeya @Logan @Valen Pelora @Scoobert

 

[Kaisa Vanloa]

A quiet hmm through pursed lips was all Kaisa could manage to add to Alex's speech, or whatever it was supposed to be. Never one for speeches herself, Kaisa always found it a little odd how Alex always seemed to find time for one. If she wasn't the Grandmaster of the Order, she probably would have made a pretty good Senator.

Attention drawn to Hera as the woman scooped up the remains of Draugr like one would scrap wood, Kaisa's eyebrow arched in curiosity as the Master started descending into some sort of hysterics. For a brief moment she wondered if Hera's promotion to Master had been a little too swift or without enough scrutiny, but figured she'd leave that to Alex to decide and deal with.

Looking over to Emryc, Kaisa walked toward the President and gave him a nod of her head in greeting. Without any hesitation or potential feeling of star-struck awe that many might feel when approaching someone of such caliber, Kaisa flashed Emryc one of those "passing by strangers on the street and accidentally making eye contact" smiles.

Mind if I bum one of those cigarras? She asked, eyes scanning the room for what all fancy rooms in fancy places seemed to have: a liquor cabinet.

Spotting one, she reached out with the force and floated two glasses and a bottle of the darkest looking liquor towards herself, catching one of them and offering the other to Emryc. Whether or not the President accepted, Kaisa would use the force to pour herself an almost full glass, having no intent on pretending she wasn't looking to down the entire bottle if no one stopped her.

To interesting times, She said, tipping her glass towards the President before taking a long swig, her face unflinching despite the harshness brought along by the strength of whatever alcohol they were drinking.

@Sreeya @Black Noise @Valen Pelora