Xae-Lin Ardel

At some point shortly after Armiena had initiated the jump, Xae-Lin had called in one of the other operatives and advised them where they might be able to find a blanket for the emaciated Jedi Master. While Armenia fitfully slept, Xae-Lin reached out to the other woman through the Force and called forth the pure energy of the Lightside to help bolster Draygo, glad they all had made it out of the mission alive.

Xae pulled the Force around her as a buffer against the cutting chill of the Iridonian atmosphere while she put her utter faith in Darex’s seemingly half-baked plan. If I can’t trust the Grandmaster of the Jedi, then who can I really trust? She really wished that she’d grabbed at least another layer other than the summer-weight button-down blue shirt she was wearing. Keldabe hadn’t been overly hot, but it wasn’t snow, ice, and lower atmosphere either. Xae drew on the light within to keep the cold at bay as Darex’s fighter sat her down near the wreckage of Misal’s ship. All she could manage was quick nod before she set to work making herself an opening with the crimson-bladed weapon. The wrecked ship just barely helped with the biting wind as the Exorcist picked her way toward what remained of the cockpit. As the blade pierced the door that would grant Xae access to Misal, she was quick to call over the comm, “I’m here to help, don’t shoot. Not a real Sith, though I play one in haphazard rescues apparently…” Placing one hand on Misal’s shoulder, Xae-Lin reached up to touch the control panel, feeling where Misal ended and the ship began and leveraging that knowledge to gently, but firmly separate the two until the injured woman was able to pull free. “Let’s get you out of here. I might be cold, and a fire sounds nice right about now, but there’s just something about a potential ship explosion I’m not so good with if it’s all the same to you.”

What the Force are those things?! Xae wondered as she brought the Lambda back around to face the Maturin halfway wondering just how long it would take the eight-appendaged things to figure her out as being a friend rather than a foe. "I'll help where I can. I might not be much of a healer, but I am essentially a Light Side battery and can probably sustain her until we can get Armiena to Skye or a temple. Darex, I'm going to do something crazy. Cover me." With Misal's vessel now spinning out of control into the upper atmosphere, Xae knew that it was up to her to extract the team from the transport shuttle. Drawing once more on Darex's knowledge of ships and space combat, she throttled the engines and angled the vessel toward the rear of the ship where the shuttle bay's magcon field glowed in deceptive invitation. Not having the frequencies of Misal's team she opened her channel to Darex, "Think you could let them know I'm coming? I also might have a red lightsaber, so tell them not to worry about that either. I'd rather keep up this 'Sith' facade as long as possible. I can reach Armiena so she knows not to actually kill me with her mind." Xae hoped her misdirection and overall overtures as a Sith on a vessel with a Sith transponder would keep up the confusion long enough that the team could make it out with Armenia alive. The more the people that held the former Grandmaster thought she'd been taken in a cross-fight between the Jedi and Sith, the hard it would be for them to sort out the truth of their loss. Was it probably immoral to mislead as Xae was, likely, but in this instance, it was the ends that mattered more than the means. It wasn't like she was planning to go on a murder spree and if it made the crew of the transit think twice before messing with her and spared their lives, then all the better. She brought the vessel into the landing bay and felt the sense of artificial gravity overtake the ship as she set it down. Leaving the engines hot, she drew the black-hilted lightsaber Jaina had made and hit the activator switch on the ship's ramp. The Force was kind enough to warn her of the volleys from the crew that arced their way towards her. No longer in the uncertainty of space in what amounted to a fancy tin can, Xae's footing was sure and she deflected the projectiles back and just over their sources. Her initial training had been as a Guardian, the warrior-diplomat of the Jedi Order and she knew how to use the Force to defend as well as attack. Using the Force she moved some of the boxes and other equipment to fence in the crew of the Maturin that opposed her, pinning them against the walls of the hangar. Her mission now was to buy time and clear a path for Misal's team and Armiena.

Xae's ship bucked as the Corvettes volley managed to find something to hit on the weaving Lambda as she did her best not to fly into the line of fire of one of the few remaining Z-95s. Reason #42 why I hate flying, she thought, drawing on Darex's much more expansive knowledge of space combat through their Force connection, which also provided her with reasons #34-41 for her list. It was keeping her alive, though, and that was the important thing. Her next shots went slightly wide of her mark, indicating that there might be something going on with the targeting systems. #43 - Systems don't always work. Maybe they'll set down if we ask them nicely? The ship jolted again and this time one of the panels began shooting sparks. Guess we're a bit past the diplomacy phase of things. #44 - Fire on ships eat oxygen. #45 I need oxygen to continue fighting. #46 - There is no water in space. She reached over and grabbed her outer robe from the copilot's seat and began beating at the panel to extinguish the flames while she attempted to keep a decent line of flight. Where's a damn R4 unit when you need one? I hope Emily wasn't wanting to get her ship back in one piece... Xae's bout of errant flying had brought her in line with the Corvette and she unleashed a volley of turbo laser fire at the main bridge. If I hit the engines...they go boom. I remember that much. So bridge it is.

It was an odd thing to willingly open your mind to another person, even if they were trusted to use the ability for keeping you from pulling the wrong maneuver and getting yourself killed rather than exploring the reaches of your mind. However, Darex Trevelian was a Jedi Master - The Grandmaster no less - so if she wasn’t going to trust him, then she likely had no business in the Jedi Order. She allowed the Force to flow between her and Darex and to allow its guidance and Darex’s experience behind the yolk of a ship guide her actions and movements. It wasn’t elegant flying. It didn’t have to be. It had to be functional and serve their ends well enough. As the burst from Darex’s ion cannon bypassed her ship and headed for the GR-75, she acknowledged Darex’s command and opened fire on the ascending GR-75 - because that’s what a Sith would do, right? The GR-75’s shields popped and sparked with every shot as she threw all her little Lambda had at it. Xae-lin had a little Lambda, little Lambda, little Lambda Xae-lin had a little Lambda, and it goes pew pew pew...

At Darex’s order, Xae flipped over to the private tactical channel. “Weapons. Right,” she said hesitantly as her gaze skimmed over the vast array of buttons in front of her. “Probably? I kind of borrowed this ship from a Sith Temple and they aren’t known for their peaceful habits.” Should have grabbed a damn droid while I was at it, Xae thought as she finally located the switch she hoped would power up the weapons. Nothing happened. “This is why I never flew much in the war,” she grumbled and tried another one. <<Hail unidentified ships. This is a restricted flight zone. You will identify yourselves and remain where you are or we will fire. >> Well, this is just great, Xae thought, looking for the source of the transmission on her scanners, very much reminded of why she hated space travel. Between her and Darex and the dustball planet of Iridonia was a Corvette that was making way for their position. Long-forgotten echoes of her memories with Joreel surfaced. They'd owned a ship like the one on her scanner. It had been their home during the war - their refuge and place where their love had grown. Why does his damn ghost keep popping up all of a sudden? Xae wondered, though remembering what he'd shown her of the Cabur's controls gave her an idea of what to look for in the shuttle she was flying. She flipped another switch and a new section of the panel lit up. “I’ve got weapons!” she responded back to Darex’s comm. “I’m guessing now would be a good time to let you know I’ve never actually flown in combat. Or flown much at all. But we’ve got the Force on our side and that will have to be enough.” To the Corvette, she transmitted, "Sure, if you think getting into a fight between a Jedi fighter and a Sith Shuttle is a good idea, then be my guest. You keep to your job and we'll keep to ours."

Darex's scan turned up a Lambda-class shuttle with a Sith registration transponder who appeared to be making for the same coordinates that he was. Xae hadn't left the Mandalorian world with much fanfare, not that she'd expected to. The family connections she'd recently discovered were still slightly foreign to her, despite meeting the two men face to face. She hoped her father and brother could find some sort of common ground rather than Tros continuing to cling to his hatred for their father. Both now had her contact information, and it looked like Tros was finding purpose again after so much loss. "Good to see you again Grandmaster," Xae-Lin transmitted as soon as she'd checked out the fighter. "I hadn't expected to receive your comm so soon after my conversation with Jaina. She mentioned that I should also fill you in on my involvement on Onderon. Later though. Let's go get Master Drago."

“Speaking of those Jedi ways,” Xae muttered (just loud enough for Tros to hear) as she heard her comm chirp for her attention. “Excuse me.” Stepping away from the tense reunion, she moved further into the building and sought out a small closet to take the call from. “Hey, Jaina. How are things? Did you get Tirzah back?” When the hologram finally materialized, Jaina looked obviously like a nerf caught in speeder halogen, as though she were unable to cogently form a thought for the space of several seconds. No, I--she’s--Tirzah’s gone. Another pause, eyes darting down and back up. I think Andon has her now. The strain and grief were evident even though the other Jedi’s voice seemed steady as could be. How are things on Mandalore? Did you find your brother? “I’m so sorry, Jaina,” the other woman whispered, sending a wave of comfort to her friend through the Force even as she reached out to the shimmering holo before her. “They’ve just gone through what looks like a major war. I’m not too sure of the details, but I did find my brother...and...my father...” Xae sighed. I saw the news holos about the sector. I’m glad you missed the fighting. If I’d have known you were going into a war zone, I probably would have either stopped you from going or sent a lot more backup with you, Jaina added apologetically. As it is, we might need you coreward sooner than I’d expected. I don’t want to preempt your time with your family… Obviously unsure as to whether or not such a reunion was, in fact, desired, Jaina’s sentence hung in the air, begging for completion. “It’s fine,” Xae-lin assured her. “I think it meant more to them. I’m not really sure I get this whole Mandalorian thing, but I don’t think it’s less important to them than being part of the Jedi Order is for me. Tros is out of the woods from his injuries. Frond seems to be glad to be planetside again. What’s up?” In a word, Faust, Jaina murmured, as though concealing the thought from any eavesdroppers, though the very act seemed paranoid at best. The Imperial fleet just arrived over Coruscant, Darex has assembled a Jedi fleet, Skye is trying to get to the bottom of the incident at the Memorial, and the Sith are going on the offensive. There was a strike on Kashyyyk. The dread plastered all over her face left no room for doubt that Jaina was drawing a connection between the Sith attack and the presence of the Jedi for the funeral of the fallen Wookiee Master. We’re going to need all available personnel on hand for whatever he tries next. “Stang, leave for a few minutes and the whole galaxy goes to Hell,” Xae swore, leaning her hand against the shelving unit. “He had some sort of construct of himself on Onderon, interrupted the talks, and made an attempt on the Dark Lord’s life during the negotiations.” She closed her eyes and pursed her lips as the memory served to remind her of another promise she’d made. “I just remembered I was supposed to meet with their police chief, Tenbree...Tensbriss...Tene...or something like that.” She shrugged, knocking over a broom handle, quickly using the Force to keep it from clattering to the ground and setting it upright again. “I can’t remember his name. Debrief on my involvement on Onderon,” she explained, taking a moment to ensure the broom wasn’t going to succumb to gravity again. “Still can’t believe that Vos pulled out at the last minute, but I guess it can be daunting staring down that many Sith vessels considering his past dealings with them,” Xae grumbled, her shoulders falling once more with the weight of everything. A few moments of silence passed between the two women before Xae spoke up again. “I can’t believe they hit Kashyyyk. Wasn’t taking Kirlocca from us enough?” The auburn-haired woman shook her head. “I guess I could always reach out to Emily and see what she might know of the Sith movements. I doubt Master Quietus would be so forthcoming...” the Exorcist pondered further, her brow furrowing. “Wait, you were there a while before the funeral, with Misal Drago, right? Any ideas what reasons the Sith might have for attacking the Wookiees outside of wanting to conscript an unpaid labor force?” Jaina shook her head, but there was steel in her eyes. Not yet, no, other than forcing another lost ally for the Alliance. I doubt they’d have much interest in what Misal and I were doing. In any case, I’ll find out about Kashyyyk, I have Emily on board with me, and I need to talk to Raynuk anyways about--other things. Her eyes narrowed suddenly as if Xae’s earlier words had finally clicked. Wait, Tenebris? Tenebris E’lann? You were on Onderon with the Supreme Commander of the GA? I have a feeling Master Trevelian is going to want to hear about this. “YES! Tenebris! That was his name. Uhhh...Supreme Commander of the GA? He was just head of CoreSec when I crossed paths with him on Onderon.” She shrugged figuring it might be better to give Jaina a bit more information on the developments on Onderon. “I’d be happy to debrief with the Grandmaster prior to speaking with Tenebris. Short version once I was planetside - Faust fired on the Dark Lord of the Sith and I might have stepped between them considering we were all meeting under terms of talking things out. We both know how Faust likes rules…” You didn’t. It wasn’t a question, nor did it contain any ounce of surprise. You know, between you and I, we’re probably half the reason the Jedi have a reputation for getting into trouble and sticking our noses where they don’t belong… Amusement played behind a self-deprecating smirk. Though it is nice to know that Faust has no love for the current iteration of what passes for Sith. I admit to having been rather disappointed by them lately. Maybe the Hunter has become a bit of a lone wolf. In any case, hightail it back here. I have a feeling we’re about to need all the help we can get. “Will do. It’s somewhat uncomfortable for me to hide who I am around here and Mandos aren’t known for being the most tolerant of our kind. I’ll ping you once I’m en route. And Jaina,” Xae raised her hand to the hologram as though reaching for her friend. “Don’t run. Not from your feelings. They’ll eat you alive if you keep shoving them down. You once told me you were tired of running. Keep your promises to yourself. You are stronger than you give yourself credit for. We’ll be together soon hopefully and I can give you a hug in person. May the Force be with you, my sister.”

“Please don’t feel you’ve got to be civil to one another on my account,” Xae remarked, releasing Frond’s “hand” and looking at her half-brother and father once again. “And I go by Xae.” Still feeling the pull of the Force around them, she placed her hand on Tros’s shoulder and allowed it to flow through her and into him, provided he was willing. Though she wasn’t a healer, she trusted in the Force’s will and power to benefit her brother’s recovery. “Too many people speak formalities and riddles and too few say what’s on their hearts. It’s all to plain that there is a lot of anger and hurt on either side. We were brought together for a reason, and that could very well be to figure out ways past the hurt we’ve caused each other. I may be your little sister, but I’m also a big girl who can handle more than a heated argument between family members.” “Besides,” she turned to look at Bas’lan, with a mischievous smile, “He and I already had it out.”

“‘Dar’Manda’?” Xae echoed as her mind worked to piece together the translation. “No longer a Mandalorian?” She gave him a sympathetic look. “Tro’solus,” she began gently, “I’ve never been a Mandalorian. You know what I am. And I’m afraid I don’t remember much of your language from my time together with a Mandalorian called Joreel Ordo, so I’m not quite sure I was able to follow all of that.” Her eyes met his, and she could recognize the fact he was opening up to her and admitting something she wouldn’t have expected most Mandalorians to openly admit. “Joreel left me to lead your people and I haven’t heard from him since.” Xae still wasn’t quite able to hide the pain of the admission from her eyes. Tros had opened up with her; she was more than willing to respond in kind. All in all, though, it was a very clinical description of what had once ignited a passion deep inside her very being, but one that had been tempered as she’d begun to find herself left for one reason or another. When Joreel had ultimately left the Order, Xae had done her best to let her feelings go with him. It was easier said than done, especially when so many reminders of him would still crop up. Maybe part of her had been willing to come to Mandalore in the hopes that she might run into him, or at least hear of his fate. Darex had hinted that there might be some larger form of resolution or closure to the situation, but perhaps the Force had other plans in mind. Frond’s interjections, as well as his presence at this most awkward of reunions, confirmed her second theory. “Of course I care, Frond. Even if they weren’t ‘kin’ I would care,” she looked from Tros to Bas’lan, to Frond and back again. “I don’t know how to save him. Kriff. I’m an Exorcist, not a healer.” Despite her correction, the viney hand remained held toward her, insistent. She could feel the Force beginning to surge around them as she began to understand and extended her hand toward her father and took Frond’s as well. Maybe I can exorcise the demons that plague this family. Trevelian indicated that there was a measure of peace to be found here.

"Calm down!" Xae cried as she forced him to lie back down as the monitors began keening. "Yes, I found our Dad," she began, still not fully grasping Tros's reasons for hating the man so much. His agitation hadn't abated, so Xae leaned toward his ear and whispered in a low warning, "You would be dead now if not for him. I would never have found you. Holding on to your anger is only hurting you so I suggest you drop it until you can at least stand squarely on your own two feet." She leaned away from him but kept her hand on his arm. "I've heard his story. I would now hear your side. You sought me out. Why?"

Xae followed Bas'lan Ardell along the same path she'd seen Frond disappear. From where Frond was standing over her half-brother, it wasn't hard to figure out which injured figure was Tro'solus. "I'm kind of shocked they let you in here without a fuss," Xae whispered as she stepped in beside her tree-like friend as she took his place holding Tros's hand. "I told you I'd find you in Keldable as soon as I was able. I guess it was one hell of a war, then?" Her tone was light, an attempt at humor in order to evoke a response. "I found Dad. I believe you."

As odd as it sounded, Xae did know what it was like to have lost a family. Hers wasn’t the one that she was born to or the half-sibling she’d grown up with, but rather a life that might have existed were it not for Joreel’s decision to leave the order and lead his people. She only knew the surface of the Mandalorian people, but family was a large part of that surface level. To even have a word for a parental-divorce...Xae merely shook her head. “Girls are prized in Dathomiri culture, especially among the Nightsisters,” she admitted, looking away from him. “If I had been born a boy, I’m sure she would have thrust me into your arms and told you never to return.” The Jedi Knight sighed. “Still, I knew you, at least. Maybe not as my father, but you taught me enough that I didn’t lose myself in my mother’s darkness.” She could feel his brokenness and pain in the Force as well as her half-brothers. “I’ll still claim you. I don’t even know what that means, but everyone deserves someone to stand by them. I may not know much about being a Mandalorian, but I do know how important family is. Why else would Tro’solus have sought me out across the galaxy?”

“His name is Frond, and he’s just as sentient as you or I,” Xae stated firmly as her traveling companion strode off in stoic silence. “He found me on Kashyyyk and told me I was needed here. So here I am.” She sighed and searched her father’s rough expression. “I promise, it’s not my intent to pick a fight with you, Bas’lan. I’m not a Mandalorian. You’re my father, and my brother is in there. Someone apparently picked a fight with the Mandalorians and lost, and I bet I can guarantee that it wasn’t because the families that defended Mandalore were fighting amongst themselves. I want to know you both.” The truth of the matter was that she barely knew him at all. Sure, she somewhat remembered him from her past - the name he’d used resonating deep within her. How had he come to leave his family here to help bring her into being? Curiosity flooded her in the moments of silence she appraised the man who’d sired, then been denied a place in her life. He wasn’t lying about that; the Force rang with the truth of his words. It did little to provide any actual answers to her questions, however. There was only one still living who could, and he was standing before her. “I don’t understand,” Xae-Lin began as she took a step toward him, her voice calmer now that her anger melted away. The use of a nickname she hadn’t heard in years only served to solidify his story being true. Her soul remembered it, even if her mind did not. His words also brought a level of explanation that helped soothe the hurt of a young girl who’d been left to fend for herself and her sense of honor among the vipers of the Dathomiri jungles. “Why didn’t you tell me? You always said I was clever and quick to understand anything you could explain to me. My mother was horrible, how could you even? Why did you leave your old family to start a new family just to leave it? I know my mother was horrible, Why didn’t you ever tell me I was yours? And what is ‘dar’buir’?” One question after another continued to bubble up within her mind as she remembered little from her early years other than her mother’s cruelty and the reprieve she got when Bas’lan had stayed for a bit between his trips to and from the sector. Her hands came to her head in a physical attempt to stem the flow. At the time Tro'solus had presented himself, Xae hadn’t had the head space to process or fully think about what his appearance might mean. Bas’lan’s presence where she least expected it now through her in ways she hadn’t expected. There is emotion, yet peace. Find yours.

Xae stepped back from him, visibly hurt and taken aback by his reaction. "I here because I made a promise. Something that I actually hold to, unlike some other people I could name." She closed her eyes and sighed. The Force had given her a second chance with her father and she'd let her past hurts barb her words. "You'd promised to take me with you and all you did is left and never came back. I had to figure things out on my own. What right do you have to demand anything of me?" There is emotion, yet peace. Let it go, Xae. The Jedi Knight had not expected the deeply buried feelings of anger toward the man who'd been her protector and taught her to fight to surface so rapidly or even that they'd existed at all. She took another breath and found her calm focus in the Force once more. "I didn't know it was a war zone until I got here, okay? I always wondered what could have happened to you to make you forget about me. I thought you were dead because that was the easier thing to believe at the time. I'd even forgotten about you until some bounty hunter claiming to be my brother dropped into my life. Is it true? Do I have another brother? Is he why you left?"

Xae cast an irritated look Frond's direction sending her thoughts to him through the Force, Let's leave the 'Jedi' part quiet for now. Mandalorians aren't known for liking Force Users and have some long and deep seeded hatred of Jedi in particular. Aloud she slowly shook her head and answered the arboreal alien, "No, Frond. Not trouble. Family, though perhaps not the one you saw." Xae was honestly glad it hadn't been Joreel standing there when she'd turned. For several moments she didn't answer her father's question somehow frozen in the moment as the rest of the city continued its movement around the unusual trio. "I originally left Dathomir and the Nightsisters when I was fourteen," she answered, not seeing fit to fill in the details about her life following. "I was in orbit when Black Sun laid waste to the planet more recently though. After all my mother and the clan put me through, you'll have to excuse me if I'm not to upset about it other than for the loss of the jungle and harm done to the planet as a whole. Things have a way of balancing themselves, I've found." She looked around the square they were in then back at Bas'lan. "Can we go somewhere less in the open to have this discussion? What happened here?"

“I don’t think any of them back there was him,” Xae-lin remarked as her lips twisted up and to the right in consternation. “It might have helped if I knew what he looked like under the helmet, or if I’d been somewhat focused on learning what he felt like the the Force, or if I’d actually gotten his comm code. This is like looking for a needle in a haystack!” Her shoulders drooped for a moment in defeat before she added, “Come on, Frond. Let’s check the next one. We’ll either find him or we won’t and we’ll just keep on going until we do or I find his armor.” She continued to pick her way among the groups of Mandalorians that were any combination of milling about, partying (more than a few winking her way), or somberly gathered together. It should not have been an easy crowd to navigate and it wouldn’t have been were it not for the unusual nature of her companion. They’d just started down the next street when she got the distinct impression she was being watched. Turning to the Force, she sensed no ill will, just a sense of shock and disbelief mixed with concern - a presence that was vaguely familiar. Deciding it was best to continue on her mission until confronted, she shifted her gaze up to Frond as someone reached out and touched her shoulder. Turning, she looked up and saw an old man in a wrinkled and dusty MandalMotors jacket and paused. “Can I help you?” She asked giving the man a good hard look. She knew him. The years had worn him down, but there was no mistaking the sharp gleam in the turquoise eyes that were an exact mirror to her own. There was no mistaking the way the Force surged through her and through the connection that bonded the daughter with the father. “Bas’lan?” It came out as a hushed whisper, followed by a more hesitant and extremely uncertain, “Dad? ”

Xae hadn't expected a warm welcome to the Mandalorian homeworld, especially making their presence known in the middle of a war zone like they had. That's why she'd taken a few minutes to change into more civilian-looking clothes instead of the white robes she'd worn. Considering Frond's reaction to space travel, she didn't think it was likely that many of his species had ever made it to the Mandalorian world. As she emerged from the loading bay, Xae raised her arms in a similar fashion to greet the Mandalorian defenders. Nothing about her appearance gave off that she was Jedi - dark blue pants, light blue top, brown vest, and boots that looked as though they'd blend in most galactic spaceports - and her lightsabers were carefully hidden within the ship. She'd made this journey as Tros Ardell’s sister and from what she knew about the Mandalorian people touting “Jedi” wasn’t likely to earn her any favors. “I am Xae-Lin Ardel. My brother sent for me. His name is Tros Ardell and I need to find him.” Okay, so it wasn’t a total truth. She’d been the one to agree to meet him in Keldable when she was able, but it was close enough. One of them wearing gold and olive green armor jerked his head toward her and Frond. “Check them for weapons,” he ordered his compatriots. “You’re a bit late answering the Mand’alor’s call girl. Nice of you to show up when most of the fighting was done.” A woman roughly a head taller than Xae in pale green and purple armor patted her down and declared her clear while a much larger man in forest green armor with a pair of twin axes across his back checked Frond. Xae waited patiently for them to finish and return to the side of their commander. “He didn’t mention there was a war on, and I’ve been out of pocket for a while,” she admitted. “Convenient,” the gold and green armored one snorted as he rested his heavy repeater on the ground and sized her and Frond up for a moment. “There’s too much to be done to babysit wayward sisters. You’re just as likely to find him alive or dead. Be on your way and stay out of ours.” “Sounds like a plan,” she agreed, waving Frond forward so she could secure the ship. The patrol was gone by the time Xae turned back to the path leading into the city and turned to Frond in a low voice, “You’re leading this operation. I barely know the guy.”

Civilian vessel, proceed to these coordinates and get the haran out of our combat arena unless you want to get shot down. I'll alert command you're coming, but I make no promises about your brother. The comm was abruptly cut short after that. "Best welcome we could have hoped for, I guess," Xae remarked to Frond, noticing his droop for the first time. She quickly keyed in the landing coordinates and the circuitous path they'd provided her to route around the worst of the space battle and rose from her seat. "Forgive me," she began. "I didn't realize how hard space-travel is for one like you. This might help." The petite Jedi reached out and placed her hand just above Frond's, calling on the light of the Force and directing the flow into the tree-like being. Just before they hit the atmosphere, she buckled herself back in her seat and took them the rest of the way to landfall, just outside the city.

“Stang,” Xae-Lin swore as the Lambda-class vessel emerged in the space around Mandalore ((the planet...not the man )) on the outskirts of a space battle the likes of which hadn’t been seen since the days of the last Galactic War. Acting quickly, Xae-Lin called back to Frond with a warning just before she adjusted their course for Mandalore. “Here’s hoping we blend in. Judging from the variety of ships, I’d say we just came out in the middle of what passes for the Mandalorian Fleet. Hang on and pray we don’t get shot down.” Her hand hovered over the communications panel as she silently weighed the options between sending out a comm burst to identify them as a friendly vessel or avoid calling unneeded attention to themselves and just make for the planet as best they could. Deciding that the Mandalorian people were certainly the type to shoot first and ask questions later, she opted that signaling their intent in the middle of a battlefield would be the better option. “Hail Mandalorian space fleet, I’m Xae-lin of the Ardell clan,” she winced slightly, having opted to leverage Tros’s claim when she was still questioning it herself. “I’ve come to give aid my brother. Is he in Keldabe?” ---------- Soresh stayed close to Vi’ika, knowing that it was the first war zone Mirdala’s hunt partner had been in. While he hadn’t been tasked with keeping the hound out of trouble, the two of them had fallen in together once the city fighting and battle for the spaceport began. She’d gone on the hunt after letting out a baleful howl that had sent a chill down Soresh’s spine and he was hard-pressed to keep up with her as she tore through the ranks while he provided cover. In the last few moments, however, the raven-furred sandhound had calmed somewhat and was now searching through buildings and rubble as though she were looking for someone. The two of them found several survivors of some of the bombings among the scores of dead defenders that littered the city. Once again, Vi’ika came across another survivor ((Tros Ardell)) wearing black and red armor and signaled the med-evac teams he’d caught up with. “We’ve got you, vod,” he reassured the man as he began working on the worst of his injuries. --- The Shogunite native stayed with his latest charge as they made their way back toward the medical tents, horrified when he came on the grisly scene the Death Watch had left behind. “Wait here,” Soresh bade the unknown man as he hid him away in another building while he went to investigate further. Please don’t let TeVerd be dead, he prayed as he entered what had been the primary med-center for this front of the battle, Or Tresha. Several minutes later, Soresh emerged stunned from the scene, but still heartened that TeVerd’s body nor Tresha’s had been among those slaughtered by the cowardly Death Watch. It was hard to will his voice calm enough to relay the status of the medical ward to command, but he somehow managed it as he watched Vi’ika sniff around before finally disappearing down an alleyway. When she didn’t come out again, he drew his sidearm and followed her path, an odd sense of dread creeping in the back of his mind. He saw the body of one Kyr’tsad slashed across the throat and riddled with blaster bolts as though he’d been used as a shield for someone and followed the trail of blood around the corner to where Vi’ika was laying next to the body of Soresh’s former mentor. He now knew what had possessed Mirdala’s hound to her mission and all he could think was, Stang.

“Frond, thank you for your amazing patience,” Xae-lin sighed as she managed to pick him out from among the other foliage in the direction Sandy had indicated. “I’ve finally wrapped up my business here.” Xae waved him after her as she headed back toward the Lambda-class shuttle that she’d borrowed from Raxus. As she started warming up the engines, she turned to ask him, “Where is he in trouble exactly? I can’t imagine anyone stupid enough to make trouble in the Mandalore Sector.” ((Sorry so short, working on wrapping things up on Mandalore so I don't have two characters in the same space.))

((Co-written)) Xae winced slightly, realizing how crazy her request must have sounded to the young girl. No, Jedi Knight, apparently, she corrected herself. “Let me try this again. Frond is...able to walk. That might help narrow things a bit.” She stepped back to examine her counterpart, both visually and through the Force. The girl was young, that much was apparent, but age didn’t always speak to maturity in Xae’s experience. There was an undercurrent of overwhelm, but a determination, a survival instinct to see the weight of the mantle on her shoulders through and do the responsibilities expected of a Jedi Knight justice. In the girl’s eyes, Xae-Lin recognized the same look she’d had several years prior when she’d reunited with the Jedi Order a newly minted Knight who’d been set adrift without guidance during the height of the last Galactic War. Coupling that with the way her light green tunic hung loosely from her frame, billowing from around where a thick brown belt wrapped itself around an almost too-thin waist - Xae had to wonder at the strength this girl possessed already at her age that had lead to such an achievement. The scars that marred the girl’s pale and equally thin arms bespoke her ability to withstand harsh trials and not hide them in shame. Though she bore no physical scars of her own since her re-emergence from the Force, Xae-Lin could appreciate whatever darkness Sandy had combated in her past. “Forgive me, Sandy, was it?” At the girl’s nod she continued,”How long have you been a Knight? It’s quite an achievement.” Then she shook her head, “I’m sorry. You’ve probably been getting that this whole trip haven’t you?” Sandy blushed, and let a sloppy smile show her white teeth. “Only about three days, I got promoted according to my master Adenna, though I doubt the council would accept it. And don’t worry, I’m used to it!” She laughed. Already running her mouth again. Xae returned her smile, doing her best to try to place the name Sandy had given and failing. Damn this fragmented memory of mine, she thought to herself before asking, “Is it something you feel you’ve earned?” Her tone was conversational and gentle, not accusatory or trite. Sandy brought a scarred hand up to rub her chin, mimicking the way Tobias always stroked his beard while he talked. She made a fake serious expression and her tone when she talked was conspiratorial in a laughing way. “I don’t think I have had the best and consistent training, I know how to touch the force, combat using a lightsaber, and use the force to assist me, but I know virtually nothing of being a Jedi Knight, so I don’t really know!” The auburn-haired Knight leaned in, the timbre of her voice growing equally conspiratorial as she admitted, “Neither did I when I was knighted. Do you feel like you’re up to the challenge of figuring out what that means to you and the Order?” Sandy’s bright blonde eyebrows drew together while she thought through her experiences, “I am always up for a challenge, but I do admit being very nervous about it, and I have no real direction, other than I wish to accompany Aidan Darkfire and the Imperials to help free slaves on Nal Hutta. Is that a mission worthy of a Jedi Knight?” When she said the name of the Darkfire boy, the other Jedi could easily sense the girl’s feelings towards him. Sandy was not in the mood to hide her feelings, especially from someone as nice as Xae. “Helping or defending those who cannot defend themselves is always a worthy mission in my eyes,” The elder Jedi Knight remarked without hesitation. The bright blonde haired girl gestured to her arms. “I admit there is a bit of a feeling of getting revenge on slavers. But I am trying not to let my past guide me into lusting after revenge. How would you handle that kind of thing?” Xae nodded in approval of the young woman’s self-awareness. “You were a slave? Or at least know first hand what happens if I were to make an educated guess?” Sandy smiled sadly, “I was that dumb padawan that got captured during the raid on Thallassia, you may have heard about it. It was kinda scandalous for Master Adenna, and well the slavers did these.” She gestured to her arms before continuing her sentence and putting her hand on her abdomen, “and a few...other things too.” The elder Jedi Knight nodded again, some slight recollection stirring her mind before she looked back at the girl before her bravely recounting what Xae was sure were painful events. Despite the pain, the Exorcist could feel the healing that was occurring as well as Sandy’s determination to not let those events rule her any longer than they had. “Raids are dangerous and unpredictable things,” she began. “It is impossible to foresee all eventualities and the path to desired outcomes within the Force as well. Sometimes our trials come when we least expect them and more often push us past our breaking points.” She rested her hand on Sandy’s shoulder and looked her in the eye. “I won’t malign or belittle what you’ve been through,” she promised. “One does not have to feel the touch of the Force in order to embrace the darkness. There are those that run full-force to it’s false illusions of power. You’ve experienced some of the worst things one being can do to another and I can sense that is part of what drives you now to help where you fell short before. Being willing to step back into the fire that burned you and quench it is what makes you worthy of the title of Jedi Knight, but it doesn’t stop there. “You already have acknowledged that you have your own reasons for pursuing this mission and are wary of the temptation to fall into revenge. I’ll leave you with this - there is a difference, however marginal, between seeking vengeance for past wrongs and doing what you’re capable of to prevent those wrongs from happening to someone else. You are aware of your own emotions going into this mission and I can sense your core motives are to bring you and others peace.” Sandy grabbed the arm of the Exorcist and pulled her into a swift hug, a few teared welling in her emerald eyes. “Thank you a thousand times over, your words have left me with no doubt to my purpose, but one.” She inclined her head to where Darkfire was boarding the Imperial shuttle, “Should I be wary of my heart as well?” She noticed a tree like creature busy touching ships on the bay behind the imperial shuttle. It was strange to her to talk like this to a woman she had just met, but this Exorcist felt more like a mother than anything she had ever had. Xae’s expression changed as she ran through her own memories and experiences regarding the younger Knight’s inquiry. She’d fallen hard and fast for Joreel Ordo, whose brashness often had landed him in trouble. Xae had lost touch with him when he’d left the Order to rally his people and she’d heard nothing of him since. Not that I’ve been looking, either, she admitted to herself. Yet another loose end to tie up in the Mandalore Sector. “Wary at least of the emotional bias that sways your feelings and judgement,” she finally responded. “Especially around Darkfire’s. I fought along side both of his parents, and though I don’t know what he’s like as a man, I do know the Force. If you two are guided together, let it happen as it will. In battle understand that you may lose each other or may have to sacrifice for the benefit of the many over the one you care for.” There was a slight pang of regret that Xae-lin didn’t bother to hide from the teen. “Attachment is not bad. It’s what makes us part of the greater whole. Selfishly holding on to that attachment to the detriment of the whole is what’s bad. Take what you will from that, Sandy.” The Exorcist also reached inside her pouch pocket and extended a card with her com code on it to Sandy. “And take this. I’m here if you need help or just need a sounding board. These are your first steps to Knighthood, which is not an easy thing to do on your own. It’s still up to the Council as to your status, but I will do my best to provide you the guidance I can when you need it regardless. The Force go with you, Sandy Sarna.” Taking the comm card in hand Sandy grinned, showing gums and white teeth. “I’ll call you as soon as we are done with this White Helm thing.” She pointed to where the tree was, “And I think I have found your quarry. Farewell my ori'vod.” She said, using a word she had learned in those dark dungeons from a friend that she had not seen since Coruscant. Xae’s brow furrowed at the vaguely familiar Mandalorian word. Big Sister, a voice from the back of her mind echoed. She waved at the young Knight as she dashed off with bounding steps to the raising Imperial landing ramp and scrambled on board, towards destiny, healing, and love.

Xae watched Jaina go, hell bent on finding her daughter, yet once more. When she gets past this, Force give her and Tirzah a chance to just be for a while. They need each other, she offered up in silent prayer for the mother and daughter that just couldn’t seem to catch any sort of break now that they finally had a chance to form a relationship. Jaina runs to her family...while you run away, her inner voice observed. Yeah, well Tirzah’s never tried to kill her, the Jedi Knight volleyed back as she stepped out, walking along the landing pads in search of the strange tree-being that had approached her bearing such ominous news. Right, right. So your last brother tried to kill you - successfully cursed you for a time - and your Mandalorian lover abandoned you for his people and got himself killed, yet again. No good could ever come from contact with that sector could it? Yet, you wouldn’t be standing here, now if that was the case. I’d hardly call Baslan “good” if he was cavorting around on Dathomir with my mother. The bounty hunter didn’t kill you or make attempt to capture you. He just wanted to talk. I’m going because I made a promise, Xae clamped down on her inner debate as her search yielded little results. She saw a young girl with bright platinum blonde hair in a light green tunic and approached her. “Excuse me,” she began looking up at the teenager. “I’m looking for a tree. You wouldn’t happen to have seen him? Frond, I think his name was.” She cast one last look around before shaking her head. “Some example to set,” she mumbled to herself and extended her hand toward the girl. “Jedi Knight Xae-Lin Ardel, by the way. Forgive my manners, or lack thereof.”

((Co-written, a bit of back posting)) Xae looked to Jaina as Darex had began issuing orders for the rest of them. Guess we have a new Grandmaster, she thought as she bowed out of the meeting to attend to Tirzah as Jaina had bade. Aelyn had done an admirable job in getting the girl to a more medically stable environment with the help of Master Organa’s droid, but the Exorcist took her leave as she rested a hand on Jaina’s shoulder before departure. Exiting the Serenity in favor of freeing up space for people that might actually be able to do more good than she could for Tirzah, she looked back up toward the trees where the council meetings had been held and decided a quick word was in order with the newly resurrected Darex Trevelian. Ducking past the Wookiee guards, she found him alone and paused, not wanting to interrupt his ruminations. When he finally did acknowledge her she felt she should set the record straight, “The archives might list me as such, but I don’t see myself as a Master of the Order. I’ve had no trials, only the title conferred on me by Master Vos.” She pursed her lips, opting to keep things to facts. Darex nodded as Ardel informed him that she didn’t feel she deserved the rank of master, and gave her explanation. “Very well, Knight Ardel,” he said. “Perhaps we can arrange a trial for you for the near future, to give you a chance to prove yourself worthy of the title of master. Thank you for your honestly; I agree that it is a title that should never be bestowed lightly.” He noticed her tone as she spoke of Vos; clearly the Kiffar had not done much to endear many of the Order to himself, and his attitude towards Darex might not have been uncommon. He made no comment, however, motioning for her to continue. “This cult does concern me greatly because of their actions I know of at least five of us that have risen seemingly from the dead, present company included. I died on Gala following the attack that came about after Master Vos first came to us.” The more time she’d spent in her meditations with the Force the more certain she’d grown that her life had ended at the blade of the Sith she and Kyrie had encountered. “It was in death that I received my training in the Exorcist Arts from Master Il-Andon and he released me back to Gala years later as former Grandmaster Dahar, along with Masters Tobias and Kirlocca were banding together to defeat a great darkness that had taken root on our ruined world. “Upon my return to Tython I encountered Jaina, who’d come to us in search of her daughter. Jaina spoke of her own waking in a tomb on Hapes claiming that a long-dead Sith Master had been resurrected along with her. My path later crossed with his as well as another though, surprisingly, there was no battle between us. “Now Faust is back in some foul capacity, I’ve seen his construct with my own eyes and I’ve seen his journal that I believe has more than helped guide the cult to perversely affect the natural order of the galaxy. It might be why Il-Andon returned me, and why the Force saw fit to return you to us.” “This is troubling, indeed,” Darex mused. “The idea that this Cult may have played a part in bringing Faust back means they could do the same with any of the Sith of old--Ar-Pharazon, Jidai Geki, Kakuto Ryu…” his voice trailed off. “Please continue to make this investigation a priority, and inform me and Master Skywalker as you learn more. Have you been able to determine their motivation?” “Not as of yet, Master, but their agents did manage to infiltrate their way past the defenses of a Sith Temple and managed to procure a decent portion of their collection of their combat and Force studies section from what I could tell. I’ve spent the last month and a half cataloging what’s there against the manifest I was given by the Temple’s owner.” She shrugged and closed her eyes opening herself to the Force and to any scrutiny the Grandmaster felt he needed to give considering she’d just admitted to spending so much time in a place steeped in the Dark Side learning and having built enough trust among at least one Sith that she was allowed unparalleled access to what usually were closely guarded archives and artifacts. “Near as I can guess,” she continued, her tone growing cautious and thoughtful, “based on my own impressions, they are looking for someone or something that will make them stronger than Faust was. They seem obsessed - ascertained from what was reclaimed at one of the resurrection sites and the account from a first-hand witness - with reversing death and controlling those they raised as a means to achieve that goal. What their endgame is, I can only guess, but it doesn’t take a far leap of logic to know it’s not going to be good for the galaxy.” The Jedi Grandmaster looked serious. “Indeed.” He was surprised by the news that she had been working with a Sith, but he took it as a good omen. “The fact that they seem to be targeting the Sith means two things: they might also target us, and perhaps you can continue your alliance with this Sith. Be wary, but I know that there are Sith who are willing to work with Jedi if they have the same goal--and that relationship usually lasts until that goal is achieved. It sounds like you have a good start. Please let the Order know as you need assistance.” Xae nodded and turned to go, but paused and added, “There is one other matter, but...it’s more personal.” “I am willing to hear anything you wish to tell me,” he replied gently, “and keep it in confidence if you’d prefer.” When the young woman turned to face him, her inner struggle was apparent through the Force and on her face. “I have business in the Mandalorian Sector, a promise I made to a bounty hunter claiming to be my half-brother. He’s apparently going through some trials of his own if my new tree-friend is to be believed. He had the chance to capture me twice and even leant his support with the cultists captured and abandoned Master Skywalker’s daughter in space.” She sighed, “I don’t know what his angle is, but he could have captured and turned me in and didn’t when he had the chance. The brother I knew growing up died at the hands of Mandalorians after he attempted to reclaim his daughter from where I’d hidden her. My mother was eaten by her own rancor during my Knighthood trials. My niece...” Xae took a breath as her voice threatened to break, finding her center once again. “Was on Gala when the order to self-destruct was given by Master Dahar.” “I was fine with the Jedi being the only family I had to return to, then this Tros Ardell lands in my life and I don’t know why.” For a moment she looked stunned that she’d so readily spilled her guts to the new Grandmaster, though this one she knew more by reputation than anything else. When she wrapped herself within the Force further, she realized it was because she found she trusted him on a base level. “Perhaps I can leverage what networks he might have access to for additional information on regarding the Cult of Morthos and see what else I might dig up.” She straightened and regarded the Grandmaster for a moment before adding, “Still, a promise is a promise and I will stand by my word to meet him in Keldabe as soon as I am able.” Darex gave a wry smile. “The bonds of family are something that even Jedi cannot ignore. Trust the will of the Force. I believe it has a plan for bringing this Mandalorian into your life, although I cannot see what the end result will be.” He smiled. “It’d be a lot easier if we could know that, wouldn’t it?” He paused. “May the Force be with you...Xae.” The Jedi Knight bowed low as she responded, “And with you Master Trevelian,” before turning and leaving the tree-hut for the final time as a message came to her through the Force. Brothers and Sisters, please hear me. I know not why you fear the coming storm, nor why you grow tense in the shade of great spirits. Despair is natural, yes. Our hearts wish and long for comfort. But, the natural state of the world and the galaxy is in constant flux. Chaos rules the fate we follow. We shouldn’t worry ourselves to death over the flow of time because time will not show us the same kindness. Have faith in yourself. Have faith in your heart and your mind. Whatever fate befalls us this day or the next, we will have the strength to push forward. Do not fear your feelings. Acknowledge them. Know why you feel what you feel and understand why you feel it. Then, through understanding, you will rise above them. Death is hardly a permanent state these days, Xae thought to herself only having just had the same conversation with the Grandmaster. Better check-in with Jaina and let her know. She made her way back to the Serinity with a nod to Roene and the girl that had also interrupted the council meeting and found Jaina still with Tirzah. “Aelyn’s right,” Xae interjected. “Is there anything I can do?”

“‘Mind Walker’?” Xae echoed. If what he was saying was true, and a brother she never really knew was dying, then she wondered what she might be able to do from this great a distance to prevent it. “Mind Walker...a vision. You had a vision, but you don’t think it’s happened yet and I can stop it?” Before the tree-like being could respond, the Exorcist sensed a brief surge of darkness that left her looking for the source and the movement of an auburn-haired Jedi toward one of the shuttles spurred her to follow suit with a quick word of apology to Frond and a promise that they would go. "We need to move her and get help. Please get Master Skye or one of the other Masters and the nearest doctor, even if you have to interrupt the Council," The girl she now recognized as Aelyn was holding a very still Tirzah. The Jedi Exorcist paused just long enough to perform her own scan through the Force. Surprised when she found that the girl hadn’t simply retreated within herself the way she had with Master Quietus’s apprentice. Tirzah - or what made up who the girl was - was gone. “I’ll go get Master Organa and the girl’s mother,” Xae waved over the Wookiees to help move the girl to the Jedi healer’s ship. “Stay with her.” Her mind worked quickly to try to place what could have happened on what seemed a relatively safe place for the girl, utterly surrounded by the light of the Jedi and the beauty of the forests of Kashyyyk. That flash of darkness that had drawn her attention had to have something to do with it. The Jedi Masters would surely know more. As she stepped beneath the shadow of the gathering canopy, she bowed low and offered her apologies for interrupting them. “Jaina, something’s wrong with Tirzah and it’s not like the last time. Aelyn’s with her, but I believe we need Master Organa’s expertise. I sensed a flash of darkness, but it was too brief to isolate and I fear her condition might have something to do with it.” Silently and only to Jaina she added through the Force, I can reach out to Emily or even Quietus if you think they might provide better insight considering the nature of what I sensed.