Shadows of Bankor

Today felt like a day to hang out for breakfast, rather than just sitting on the ship. Besides, Xanna's cooking was good... it would be a shame if today would be her last chance to have some more of it. Who knew what would happen after tonight?

At least she could enjoy a good bowl of hot soup and fresh bread now.

Bowze prefered to remain in his ice bunker for most of his preparations but since everything was running well he decided to come over to the sword for an inquiry.

Breakfast by Xanna was just a plus

"Good morning Miss Grey" he said as he approached. "Is this seat taken?"

This was either going to be the cause of a scene, or a mess, was her first thoughts as she gave herself a hard-boiled voice-over. Dove hoped for neither this early in the day, but things were the way they were.

"Seat's free, Gunray," she shrugged, gesturing to the chair. "Soup's good too."

Bowze was visibly unsettled by what he perceived to be a rather cold welcome by Dove

Then again everyone was under pressure to be ready for the evening's events

"I am sorry to bother you this morning but since I have you here I would like to ask you something."

Leaning back in her seat with one arm casually on the back of the chair, she gave him a confident smile. "Fire away."

Bowze blew on his soup a bit

''With things comming up I had hoped to clear something that has been mudding the water. My last encounter with Yusandr was less then amicable and could have been the end of our joint efforts if I had not put my foot down.'' he said before tasting the broth

''It seems the commander as been listening to people Inside the resistance that does not consider our new CIS trustworthy and and perhaps are even downright hostile towards us. Have you heard anything about this?''

She raised an eyebrow. If people were hostile, that was news to her, at least.

Sighing, she leaned forward, folding her hands together on the table. "Look... you guys aren't exactly popular considering how you and Flyboy have repeatedly called the Resistance... stupid, foolish, lacking in discipline, and ignorant. I'm pretty sure there's some more words in there too, but it's too early in the morning for me to start calling upon perfect memory recollection, and I haven't had nearly enough kaff yet for that."

She gave him a moment to consider the words before continuing. "And you're surprised that because you've started your own little club, but still expect to command here and use these facilities, that people are just going to be fine with it?" Dove kept her tone calm and neutral, as if she was presenting last week's stock market. And the market was dropping.

Bowze's face became stern ''Ah...well let make things clear, shall we?''

''First of all it is Captain Djanik, or simply Djanik if the rank bothers you. He is well deserving of the dignity of is name. Second...I admit my first meeting with the resistance was rocky but, to be fair, I was not in a right state of mind. I had been shell shocked by the brutality of a genocide and I was not in total control of myself. Even then I presented apologies for my behavior and Mahon had accepted them. I stayed a while an I am the one who gave the instructions on how to lure the inquisitor out of the prison. I left with Jabber after the reunion was compromised by an unkown observer. Now if people decided to hold a grudge against me despite my help and my stated apologies...what can I do?''

He paused for spoonful of soup

''Thirdly...Neither Jabber nor I were told about the meeting in the desert. I only learned it from the Senator and Djanik several hours after the fact. Now, for someone keen accusing other of starting 'their own club' you don't seem to mind that we were clearly not welcomed in yours.
What where we supposed to do, Agent Grey? Lay down in the corner until mommy Yusandr finally allowed us to help her fight the empire? This is a kriffin war: Not preschool. The Empire is the enemy and we will fight them, that's all there is to it. We gathered the allies and ressources we could and put our things in order.''

''Fourth: Djanik is a good man, he cares for those around them and has seen loss far too often in the war thanks to careless commanders. He might have been out of line but that is no reason to draw a weapon on him. Hell, no impolitesse deserves to be threatened by open violence...especially when is comes from a good place.''

''Fifth: When the imperial crackdown came, we came to help. We did everything we could to support those who have been displaced and restore the Sword to be their new home. So you'll forgive us if we think coming here for a bowl of soup once a kriffin' month is fair game. Furthermore Djanik as been training your starfighting squadron...it is pretty fair to think he might need to use the facilities here for that. Unless, of course, you want him to tutor the flight by video chat.''

Soup finished he cleaned the bowl with a paper towel to make sure things would not dry

''We don't ask to be viewed as heroes or saviors. None of us consider ourselves that...but asking for a minimum of dignity is normal.''

"I'll address him as I please - I don't answer to him, or you," Dove said calmly with a brief smirk.

"And by your own words, this is a kriffin' war; so I would've thought you would have put such pride and hurt feelings aside, and focused on the first mission at hand; winning this battle." She shook her head, but since he had interrupted her breakfast to preach his agenda, she didn't feel like holding back in prickling at his pride, to see how he would react.

"But I forget - you're a great general. By your own words, it was nepotism that earned you such a title, no? I suppose it is hard to not have such a system around you anymore to sing your praises and put you in the position you believe you deserve."

''Nepotism got me the place, that is true...but I earned the rest. I was a true believer so I took to my duties with zeal. The rest is known to you''

He joined his arms under his robes, pausing for a second

''What is the pride you speak of? Yours or that of your commander? You cannot chime someone for lacking respect only to insult them at every turn. We have put everything on the line, the same way the resistance did. We were excluded but we still came. Tonight we will face death the same way. We may have a different approach but we are here. We have sunk everything we had to rebuild a droid force to bolster your ranks so that the flesh and blood people would have a better chance to return to their loved ones. Have you heard anything of what I said?''

He rose, cleaning his place

''If you choose to despise or deride us...that is your choice and I cannot change it. But know that you are the infantile one here.''

he paused

''I hope you will make it out of it tonight''

He made his /exit

Dove rolled her eyes. Was this a Neimodian-version of a dine-and-dash to only rant off at her? "You clearly believe that bantha poodoo you espouse, but don't forget that Yusandr and the others only pushed back after being bullied enough. And I've never heard a kriffin' apology come from those who have thrown that shit at me, but I carry on, I do my work, I keep my eyes peeled for shitty behaviour that threatens to destroy this Resistance before it even gets a chance to take wing. I don't ask for hollow words of apologies from people who don't understand the work I do."

As the Neimodian got up, Dove crossed her leg over the other to settle herself in on her seat. To her, it seemed he had come to pick a fight, and her mind had not been swayed in any new direction, and her posture reflected that she would not be moved from easily.

"You are too busy to listen to yourself that you don't consider how those words are percieved by others, Gunray. People aren't droids. Before tonight's battle, I'd say you should take a moment to reflect on the why there are so many voices that are unimpressed or upset. It could perhaps change the outcome of things in the future."

At his well-wishes, she could only nod. "Hope we all make it out." Dove was perhaps the one most resigned to a death, but it didn't seem right to correct him that she was willing to give that sacrifice.

Letting Gunray leave, Dove gave him a farewell-wave.

And returned to the cooling soup. (Thread still open)

Passing the Neimodian with a cheerful nod and a hello was Petrus. Indeed, he looked more than a little chipper as he walked into the bistro.

"Good morning, Dove." Petrus said, greeting her with a grin. "How are you doing today? Good? Ooh, soup? I should have some."

Still whistling cheerfully, he helped himself to a bowl, smiling as he inhaled the steam wafting off of it.

Dove looked up from her soup, smiling. "Heya, Petrus... Oh!"

She hurriedly stood to her feet. "... Are congratulations in order?" she asked, her tone careful.

Petrus' jaw dropped, a blush spreading over his cheeks. "What? How did you...?" He stared at her.

There was a short pause.

"Oh!" Petrus cleared his throat. "You probably heard about the Trials." He took a deep breath, then smiled. "Right. Yes. We all passed. Me, Xanna, Floats, Qareme, and Verse. According to Master Surro, we can all be considered Jedi Knights now."

"Oho! Petrus!" She laughed and moved around to give him a hug. "I'm so proud of you! ... Wait... what did you think I was gonna congratulate on, if not this?"

Her eyes narrowed as she searched his face. "What else have you been up to?"

Petrus laughed softly as they hugged. "Thank you. Although really, it's just a title. The test was the main thing. I... learned some things about myself. I feel a lot better now. More confident." Indeed, he seemed more confident.

He looked away, reddening again. "What? Nothing. There was nothing. What else have you been up to, anyway?"

Clearing his throat, Petrus brushed a hand across his face. "Anyway, yeah, thanks. I... never thought I'd make it."

The narrowed eyes studied him silently for a few moments, and then she smiled that very knowing smile she often did. But she said nothing.

Letting go of the hug, she slid back to her seat. "So what was it like? The trials?"

Petrus' blush deepened just a little. It was pretty clear that Dove could tell where all his morning energy was coming from.

The blush faded. Petrus sat up, clearing his throat. "It was... really intense. And really personal. I don't really know what I was expecting. I knew it was gonna be a challenge. But..." He took a deep breath. "I didn't expect so much of the challenge to come from myself."

He chuckled, shaking his head. "I guess that makes sense, huh? It's not how many blaster bolts I can block that makes me a Jedi. It's... who I am."

"Honestly, I thought they were gonna quiz you guys," she remarked honestly, somewhat surprised (and somewhat not) that it had seemed to have been some personal, spiritual, thing.

"But you did it! Am I to understand correctly that you're gonna be teaching and guiding others then?"

"I don't know." Petrus admitted honestly, a thoughtful frown on his features. "That's what it might have meant before. A Padawan of my own. More trust, more duties. Maybe solo missions, maybe not."

He spread his hands. "I don't know what it means now. There's only two masters left that we know of, and one of them is a three-thousand year old hologram of a..." his lips pressed together for a moment, "-radical Jedi sect. So, yeah, uncharted territory here."

A spoonful of soup and a brief smile, quickly returning to a thoughtful frown. "Maybe we get to figure it out for ourselves a bit. What being a Knight means, or even what being a Jedi means. It wouldn't be the first time."

"Well... it could be that with the way things are now, maybe it's up to you guys to reinvent the wheel, so to speak. Usher in a new era for your Order." She wasn't sure how the Jedi felt about that kind of stuff, considering the Order had remained unchanged for nearly a thousand years, after the great changes of the Ruusan reformations. Had Vaya been here, she probably would've gotten an earful on the great many changes of the Order.

"... A thousand year old holo-master? Wow... I really wish I could see this temple sometime, Petrus," she remarked with a wistful sigh. "It sounds pretty spectacular."

"Maybe." Petrus said. "I mean, it's not like we can help doing that, right? Anyone we teach is gonna be learning based on our understanding of what it means to be a Jedi. It's gonna be our own takes on it." He chewed his lip a moment. "And you know, there's a few things that I think I'd choose to teach differently, not just that maybe I have a different opinion on than others."

He made a vague gesture with one hand. "You probably could, if you wanted. It wasn't just Jedi that discovered it, after all. Vaya was there, and Ru'ni and Sinn'ya. Spectacular... I suppose." He looked at her curiously. "I didn't think you were interested in, y'know, Jedi stuff."

She looked a little surprised. "Is that so? You're making it sound like me and Mia have rubbed off on you if you're gonna be doing things differently."

Dove sipped her soup and took a bite of breath. It wasn't that she thought it was that it was limited to Jedi only, but she understood that traffic had to be limited, to prevent the Empire from finding it while they were still there.

"It's not that I'm interested in temples as such... but, come on, a secret moon temple? Sounds like something out of a holo-drama. Wasn't there one in Warrior's Heart that one time? Or was that underwater...?"

Petrus shrugged. "Yeah, sure. You, Mia. Lots of people. The other Jedi; I mean, these specific ones." He smiled. " Everyone in the resistance, pretty much."

He gazed off into the middle distance. "But it's more than that. The Jedi used to be the guardians of the Republic, sorta. But the Republic... was kinda messed up, I think. I mean, now it's the Empire. So I feel like our place in the galaxy is different. And maybe we should plan for that."

Petrus shook his head, then took a bite of soup. "Huh? Oh yeah. There was one, on one of the... planet's moons..." Petrus blinked. "Dove, Warrior's Heart was set on Bankor." He looked at her, his eyes wide. "That's... coincidence, right?"

"You know I agree that the old Republic was messed up. Heck, I don't even know if I want a new Republic if the Empire is defeated, somehow. All I know is that I don't want what we got now, or what we had right before." Her fingers deftly broke off some of the bread, using the pieces to sop up the remains of soup.

As Petrus fixed her with the wide eyes, she kind of paused herself. "I mean... I've heard of stranger coincidences, but... maybe there's something more to it?" If so, that sounded like an intriguing mystery to maybe look into on a quiet day. Maybe Vaya would have some good ideas about it.