Post by Bobbi on Sept 17, 2018 20:57:40 GMT -5
Another round of Sadhric talking to Ja'eeth and Kel'dan regarding Tou Nix and how to handle his crimes.
Sadhric:
At one point, Kel'dan would return to his office to find Sadhric there, leaning on a corner of his desk, eyeing a datapad and two floating holos.
Sadhric was dressed just the same as before, only he had at some point pulled back on the coat he'd worn when the blast had hit. That deadness, that anger, had alchemized into a tightly-reined-in mania, and in its transmutation had lost some of its jagged edges.
Ja’eeth:
Ja'eeth had found the time to clean up since the last she'd been seen by The Mechanic. The clothing that had been dirty and rendered ragged was replaced by a darker colored shirt, a light brown, made of a homespun looking fabric. Her pants were made of a similar material, but in a darker shade. Her boots were the same, well worn and covered in spots of dirt. Her hair was pulled back into a tight and high ponytail. The door to Kel'dan's office opened, Ja'eeth's head turned back over her left shoulder, "It's alright, I'm just going to grab a file --" while beneath that Kel'dan's assistant could be heard, "The Mand--" Ja'eeth ignored the rest of what was being said, turning to take a step into the office, where she stopped at the immediate recognition of the man within, the door shutting behind her.
Sadhric:
He did not move--only his eyebrows rose as his eyes met Ja'eeth's over what he was doing.
Ja’eeth:
"Just came in to check something Kel'dan asked me to work on," She'd expected the office to be either empty, or to find Kel'dan there with his head buried in his work, "I won't interrupt..." A hand was waved toward him and his holos.
Sadhric:
"I have here the clans represented by those children," he said. He turned the datapad slightly. "Fewer than I hoped. But enough, maybe. I have decided that they will handle Tou Nix and his associates."
Ja’eeth:
"Have you spoken to anyone from those clans?" The quick stop into Kel'dan's office turned into Ja'eeth closing the distance between herself and Sadhric, with the woman reaching for the datapad once close enough.
Sadhric:
"No. But I imagine they are speaking to one another." He let her have the datapad. She was under scrutiny. "Where is it?"
Ja’eeth:
Taking it, Ja'eeth had just started to look at it when he asked his question. She stopped, lowering the datapad while simultaneously looking at him, "Where is what?"
Sadhric:
"I bet your kids even have holdout blasters. Where's your weapon?"
Ja’eeth:
Switching hands, Ja'eeth put the weight of the datapad into her left to free up her right. It took only a second for her to pull the hem of her loose fitting shirt up enough to reveal a blade that was twelve centimeters in length, held to a slimline belt that looked like it was a piece from something meant to be much more heavy duty than the clothing she was currently wearing. The maglock that kept the blade held to the belt was strong and invisible behind the hide and metal sheath that protected the honed and polished blade. "I opted for something a little less in profile than a blaster. If you'd rather I carry a hold-out, the switch can easily be made."
Sadhric:
Sadhric held his hand out for it. "Give it here."
Ja’eeth:
Single handedly the maglock was undone, the sheat coming free from the belt. It fell against her palm, her fingers closing around it. The covered blade was lifted and placed in Sadhric's waiting hand wordlessly.
Sadhric:
Sadhric took it in both hands and at once unsheathed it.
Ja’eeth:
The edge of the blade was very sharp, There was a good balanced weight to it, the handgrip was black and worked over with a thick rubbery material that carried a texture of a ribbed design, ending in a small pommel that was slightly pyramid shaped with a rounded tip.
Ja'eeth had let her shirt fall back into place, the hem easily straightening itself out.
Sadhric:
"It's been a while since that mess with Jaysten Tekal." He studied the little blade, then he was back to studying her. "Would you kill me if you could, Ja'eeth?"
Ja’eeth:
There were all kind of what-ifs and scenarios that came to mind. She could imagine a thousand plus situations in which she -might- have had to do it. None of them, she realized, involved striking him down in cold blood. Sure, she had entertained the thought of it when their arrangement was new, and grating. Now, all these years later with time and experience behind her, Ja'eeth shook her head, "No, I wouldn't."
Sadhric:
The knife flipped. He offered it back by the blade. "You sure?"
Kel’dan:
Kel'dan was late returning to his office... And it was preceded by the discernable noise of the door disengaging its lock. Always open from the inside, but able to be locked from the outside. Usually, Ti'ya kept it locked so people couldn't barge in... But Sadhric and Ja'eeth were both exceptions to that. The door opened automatically for them both... And he walked in at a steady pace. Never was he unarmed-- and he went straight to the table where he disarmed his weapons when he had guests.... He hadn't glanced at them until he had disarmed himself. And even then, he glanced back and forth between them and the knife. He said nothing, though he gave them a questionable look.
Ja’eeth:
Taking the grip into her hand, Ja'eeth was aware that Kel'dan had come in. The very obvious sound of the door opening, and Kel'dan removing his weapons, gave it away. Her mind turned that way, just for a second, but she was looking at Sadhric, "Yes, I'm sure." Every word she'd spoken to The Mechanic had been in Mando’a since having found out he could speak it. This was no exception.
Sadhric:
He used that language, too. His gaze flicked to Kel'dan. "What about you, brother of Ker'dan? The question of the moment: If you could, would you kill me?"
Kel’dan:
"No," he said bluntly. "I never really wanted you dead."
Keldan, too, spoke their native language since that was what he walked in on and what was spoken to him.
Sadhric:
The Mechanic fell into a thoughtful silence for a moment. "I need to know that the two of you have some inkling of what a balancing act this is."
Ja’eeth:
With the knife now back in her possession, Ja'eeth held it down by her right leg, tip toward the floor. Sadhric still had the sheath. Her head turned toward Kel'dan, seeing him standing there, listening and watching him talk to Sadhric, and then The Mechanic was talking to them both. How to show that they understood? "There isn't much that is keeping this from folding in on itself," she said, "But what -is- there requires the trust, and cooperation from everyone involved with you playing the lynch pin."
Kel’dan:
Kel'dan pulled out the last knife and laid it on the table... And turned to face them fully. He had that expression on his face that said that he was thinking... He wasn't looking at Ja'eeth as she spoke. Rather, he was looking at the chair behind the desk. "We need you. We can't do this without you... You are essential to this. As she said, the lynch pin. Cooperation and trust you have from us. Now, we gotta get everyone else on board."
"It has always been a precarious balance-- and anything could tip the scales... So yes. I understand."
Sadhric:
I don't think you do. Sadhric regarded them. Pushed off the corner of Kel'dan's desk. The holos vanished; he handed Ja'eeth the little sheath. Walked the length of the office. He could not look at the two Mandalorians, just as he could no longer look at Solomon Tekal or Ava Azalee, without being certain that they only grasped the topmost surface. He'd always felt separate from other sentients, but this new sensation had him feeling like he'd tripped in to an altogether more dangerous aloneness. He either had to do more talking, and better, than he'd ever conceived of before, or none at all and leave. And he wasn't ready to commit. Was not ready. Might never be. And so everything stayed in an unwholesome tension. Somewhere in that desert, he found something to say. "I am going to call together the heads of the clans to which those children belong. Their injuries are minor enough, but that plainly did not have to be the outcome."
Ja’eeth:
Words could only do so much. Understanding could only go so far. The datapad was placed on the edge of the desk, Ja'eeth taking the sheath and slipping the blade away as Sadhric made his way across the office. Lifting the hem of her shirt with her left hand, she secured the maglock with her right while turning to watch him. Sympathizing was not the same as understanding, she knew, and for just a split second she thought she had seen a deep -something- on The Mechanic's face. She opted to stay quiet this time.
Kel’dan:
Kel'dan circled the desk, fingers trailing along its smooth surface... "May I ask what happened with Nix?" he asked softly.
Sadhric:
Sadhric pivoted just enough to glance at Kel'dan over his shoulder. "He's either an idiot or the best actor since Moonrider bamboozled Murra Tekal." His humorless lopsided smile lasted half a second. "I'm going to go with 'idiot.' He gave me a few partial names, some vague and frankly boring half-reasons for why he was babysitting an explosive, as well as a deeply unsatisfying claim that he and his comrades did not even have a target. I tried to listen to him. But I realized something.
"It didn't matter what he said. He could have spat in my face and shouted that he'd been itching to rip my heart out since the Praetorian War, and it wouldn't have made any difference. If he'd foamed at the mouth and vowed death to every Hapan on Mandalorian earth, and begged the Chiss to 'bring it' because death is better than this--no difference. In the end, it all comes down to whether I'm willing to kill because some asshole violated my order. This"--he dropped to a carrying whisper--"is where the balancing act lies. And it has nothing to do with him no matter what lies or truths came out of him."
Kel’dan:
Kel'dan was quiet as he looked at Sadhric, watching him while he spoke... He closed his eyes and took a deep breath-- letting it out slowly. "Yes." When he opened his eyes, he glanced at Ja'eeth and back to Sadhric. "It comes down to how you follow through with your threat." he drummed his fingers across the desktop, then sighed.
Sadhric:
A nod. That tight deadweight dread.
Not dread of the prospect of killing. Dread at how easily he'd always killed. How easily he might do so again. How little it would really take.
"I have profited for years on making few threats and following through on each of them when it was time." He'd also become a nimble dancer around his own threats, so that in some cases conditions would never be quite met. This was different. "The last thing I need is whining Mando'ade, sore that I smacked off their beskar'gam, thinking I've lost my nerve. It would cost them greatly to think that."
Kel’dan:
He nodded slightly. "It can't be ignored." He then fell silent, with an unasked question-- So, what are you going to do?
Sadhric:
"No." Sadhric pulled himself back toward the problem-solving mode he knew so well. "Ignored, the crumbling begins. The bites. Every malcontent or would-be challenger will come out of the woodwork. It mattered less when I wasn't here--which, by the way, was one of my main reasons for not being here while you were fuming about neglect. Not here, I could 'miss' provocations. Now I am here. So I've got to go a different route. I don't want Buffton's path. Poetic justice that it may be, I'm not going to dig up a Jackel and let the pain roll. I don't believe that is really 'justice.' Nor will I leave my hopes to rest on the enlightenment of your brutish people. The answer has to be...
"... to trust, when there is no reason to trust. A show of respect to the clans to which those children belong. I will give them what information I have and turn the matter over to them. Whether they are in on this stupidity or not."
Ja’eeth:
The answer was a lot of things, and it was also most certainly complicated. Ja'eeth and Kel'dan had talked a bit earlier about what it could mean, and they had discussed the potential for problems from appearing too lenient in the face of breaking an appointed law under the circumstances. She stayed quiet, and she listened. Her observations were locked into the way both men spoke to each other, in the way Kel'dan still seemed to be holding himself under the heavy weighted bar he called 'self control', and not just holding himself there but suffocating beneath it. Sadhric's control was of an entirely different sort. It moved with him, the tight locked reptilian grace of someone who fed on the control, who lived every moment with it in mind. Someone who wasn't struggling within themselves in the same way. "When will you be contacting them?" She asked, bringing her voice back into the conversation.
Sadhric:
"Soon. I wanted to...." One corner of his mouth hooked back. "... hear your reactions and thoughts. The pair of you."
Ja’eeth:
"I think that the alternatives, as I see them, could potentially be far more violent than speaking with the clans, and letting them have their choice on the matter. If the Peacekeepers are willing to let the business fall to the Mando'ade, then it should be brought to the clans. I think it is fitting to let them decide. But what will be done if they decide to do nothing? -- However unlikely that might be."
Sadhric:
"The Peacekeepers answer to me." That was true to a point. Enough of a point for this moment. "And that is the point. What the clans choose to do, in pursuit of the truth, in dealing with any involved, is how I learn who they are. This Tou Nix and his friends, whether he spoke the truth or lied, were neither courageous nor competent. Difficult to speak of honor when you've let spineless fools carry on being spinelessly foolish."
Kel’dan:
He let out a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding. "Gods, I was hoping you were gonna say that."
Sadhric:
Sadhric arched a brow. He made a little gesture for Kel'dan to go on.
Kel’dan:
"It is as you say... And giving control of law enforcement back to the people will go a long way," he said softly. "I had had that thought a little while ago, but honestly didn't know how you'd respond to it." He walked the rest of the way around his desk and sat down in the chair. When he was nervous, he tended to stand or pace. " That had been my thought-- you need to trust them to enforce your laws, as they are theirs, too."
Sadhric:
"Let's not get ahead of ourselves. This is not giving control of law enforcement back to the people. They handle clan affairs within their clans already, and aren't bothering to hide it. Anything more, they have not earned. This is... a first foray. A way to know them that I prefer right now, in this specific situation, over my usual methods of making sure I know people. Your point is good, though; I'm glad you thought of it. In the future I want you to voice such thoughts if you can do so with perspective."
Ja’eeth:
Standing at the end of the desk, Ja'eeth was in an odd position to see both Sadhric and Kel'dan. She'd turned, giving either of them a profile view of her form, head turning every so often to look at who was speaking. After a few moments of that she crossed through the conversation toward a stack of hard crates where she turned and pulled herself up, using this as a vantage point to see both of them as they spoke.
Kel’dan:
"But I meant in the long run," he said, nodding. "It's a step in the right direction... Encourage the Aud-- not the Hapans-- to keep an eye out for this kind of thing. And report it instead of overlooking it... Which I'm sure has happened more times than I care to think about. And they would see it more readily than the Hapans, I think."
Sadhric:
"They're already keeping an eye out--you should know that better than anyone." But that comment from Kel'dan brought on a sardonic look from Sadhric.
Kel’dan:
He smiled back at him. "I know, I know... Sorry," he said, sounding genuinely apologetic. He shook his head. "But I'm on board with this... Its a really good place to start."
Sadhric:
A nod. "Help me make sure it works."
Sadhric:
At one point, Kel'dan would return to his office to find Sadhric there, leaning on a corner of his desk, eyeing a datapad and two floating holos.
Sadhric was dressed just the same as before, only he had at some point pulled back on the coat he'd worn when the blast had hit. That deadness, that anger, had alchemized into a tightly-reined-in mania, and in its transmutation had lost some of its jagged edges.
Ja’eeth:
Ja'eeth had found the time to clean up since the last she'd been seen by The Mechanic. The clothing that had been dirty and rendered ragged was replaced by a darker colored shirt, a light brown, made of a homespun looking fabric. Her pants were made of a similar material, but in a darker shade. Her boots were the same, well worn and covered in spots of dirt. Her hair was pulled back into a tight and high ponytail. The door to Kel'dan's office opened, Ja'eeth's head turned back over her left shoulder, "It's alright, I'm just going to grab a file --" while beneath that Kel'dan's assistant could be heard, "The Mand--" Ja'eeth ignored the rest of what was being said, turning to take a step into the office, where she stopped at the immediate recognition of the man within, the door shutting behind her.
Sadhric:
He did not move--only his eyebrows rose as his eyes met Ja'eeth's over what he was doing.
Ja’eeth:
"Just came in to check something Kel'dan asked me to work on," She'd expected the office to be either empty, or to find Kel'dan there with his head buried in his work, "I won't interrupt..." A hand was waved toward him and his holos.
Sadhric:
"I have here the clans represented by those children," he said. He turned the datapad slightly. "Fewer than I hoped. But enough, maybe. I have decided that they will handle Tou Nix and his associates."
Ja’eeth:
"Have you spoken to anyone from those clans?" The quick stop into Kel'dan's office turned into Ja'eeth closing the distance between herself and Sadhric, with the woman reaching for the datapad once close enough.
Sadhric:
"No. But I imagine they are speaking to one another." He let her have the datapad. She was under scrutiny. "Where is it?"
Ja’eeth:
Taking it, Ja'eeth had just started to look at it when he asked his question. She stopped, lowering the datapad while simultaneously looking at him, "Where is what?"
Sadhric:
"I bet your kids even have holdout blasters. Where's your weapon?"
Ja’eeth:
Switching hands, Ja'eeth put the weight of the datapad into her left to free up her right. It took only a second for her to pull the hem of her loose fitting shirt up enough to reveal a blade that was twelve centimeters in length, held to a slimline belt that looked like it was a piece from something meant to be much more heavy duty than the clothing she was currently wearing. The maglock that kept the blade held to the belt was strong and invisible behind the hide and metal sheath that protected the honed and polished blade. "I opted for something a little less in profile than a blaster. If you'd rather I carry a hold-out, the switch can easily be made."
Sadhric:
Sadhric held his hand out for it. "Give it here."
Ja’eeth:
Single handedly the maglock was undone, the sheat coming free from the belt. It fell against her palm, her fingers closing around it. The covered blade was lifted and placed in Sadhric's waiting hand wordlessly.
Sadhric:
Sadhric took it in both hands and at once unsheathed it.
Ja’eeth:
The edge of the blade was very sharp, There was a good balanced weight to it, the handgrip was black and worked over with a thick rubbery material that carried a texture of a ribbed design, ending in a small pommel that was slightly pyramid shaped with a rounded tip.
Ja'eeth had let her shirt fall back into place, the hem easily straightening itself out.
Sadhric:
"It's been a while since that mess with Jaysten Tekal." He studied the little blade, then he was back to studying her. "Would you kill me if you could, Ja'eeth?"
Ja’eeth:
There were all kind of what-ifs and scenarios that came to mind. She could imagine a thousand plus situations in which she -might- have had to do it. None of them, she realized, involved striking him down in cold blood. Sure, she had entertained the thought of it when their arrangement was new, and grating. Now, all these years later with time and experience behind her, Ja'eeth shook her head, "No, I wouldn't."
Sadhric:
The knife flipped. He offered it back by the blade. "You sure?"
Kel’dan:
Kel'dan was late returning to his office... And it was preceded by the discernable noise of the door disengaging its lock. Always open from the inside, but able to be locked from the outside. Usually, Ti'ya kept it locked so people couldn't barge in... But Sadhric and Ja'eeth were both exceptions to that. The door opened automatically for them both... And he walked in at a steady pace. Never was he unarmed-- and he went straight to the table where he disarmed his weapons when he had guests.... He hadn't glanced at them until he had disarmed himself. And even then, he glanced back and forth between them and the knife. He said nothing, though he gave them a questionable look.
Ja’eeth:
Taking the grip into her hand, Ja'eeth was aware that Kel'dan had come in. The very obvious sound of the door opening, and Kel'dan removing his weapons, gave it away. Her mind turned that way, just for a second, but she was looking at Sadhric, "Yes, I'm sure." Every word she'd spoken to The Mechanic had been in Mando’a since having found out he could speak it. This was no exception.
Sadhric:
He used that language, too. His gaze flicked to Kel'dan. "What about you, brother of Ker'dan? The question of the moment: If you could, would you kill me?"
Kel’dan:
"No," he said bluntly. "I never really wanted you dead."
Keldan, too, spoke their native language since that was what he walked in on and what was spoken to him.
Sadhric:
The Mechanic fell into a thoughtful silence for a moment. "I need to know that the two of you have some inkling of what a balancing act this is."
Ja’eeth:
With the knife now back in her possession, Ja'eeth held it down by her right leg, tip toward the floor. Sadhric still had the sheath. Her head turned toward Kel'dan, seeing him standing there, listening and watching him talk to Sadhric, and then The Mechanic was talking to them both. How to show that they understood? "There isn't much that is keeping this from folding in on itself," she said, "But what -is- there requires the trust, and cooperation from everyone involved with you playing the lynch pin."
Kel’dan:
Kel'dan pulled out the last knife and laid it on the table... And turned to face them fully. He had that expression on his face that said that he was thinking... He wasn't looking at Ja'eeth as she spoke. Rather, he was looking at the chair behind the desk. "We need you. We can't do this without you... You are essential to this. As she said, the lynch pin. Cooperation and trust you have from us. Now, we gotta get everyone else on board."
"It has always been a precarious balance-- and anything could tip the scales... So yes. I understand."
Sadhric:
I don't think you do. Sadhric regarded them. Pushed off the corner of Kel'dan's desk. The holos vanished; he handed Ja'eeth the little sheath. Walked the length of the office. He could not look at the two Mandalorians, just as he could no longer look at Solomon Tekal or Ava Azalee, without being certain that they only grasped the topmost surface. He'd always felt separate from other sentients, but this new sensation had him feeling like he'd tripped in to an altogether more dangerous aloneness. He either had to do more talking, and better, than he'd ever conceived of before, or none at all and leave. And he wasn't ready to commit. Was not ready. Might never be. And so everything stayed in an unwholesome tension. Somewhere in that desert, he found something to say. "I am going to call together the heads of the clans to which those children belong. Their injuries are minor enough, but that plainly did not have to be the outcome."
Ja’eeth:
Words could only do so much. Understanding could only go so far. The datapad was placed on the edge of the desk, Ja'eeth taking the sheath and slipping the blade away as Sadhric made his way across the office. Lifting the hem of her shirt with her left hand, she secured the maglock with her right while turning to watch him. Sympathizing was not the same as understanding, she knew, and for just a split second she thought she had seen a deep -something- on The Mechanic's face. She opted to stay quiet this time.
Kel’dan:
Kel'dan circled the desk, fingers trailing along its smooth surface... "May I ask what happened with Nix?" he asked softly.
Sadhric:
Sadhric pivoted just enough to glance at Kel'dan over his shoulder. "He's either an idiot or the best actor since Moonrider bamboozled Murra Tekal." His humorless lopsided smile lasted half a second. "I'm going to go with 'idiot.' He gave me a few partial names, some vague and frankly boring half-reasons for why he was babysitting an explosive, as well as a deeply unsatisfying claim that he and his comrades did not even have a target. I tried to listen to him. But I realized something.
"It didn't matter what he said. He could have spat in my face and shouted that he'd been itching to rip my heart out since the Praetorian War, and it wouldn't have made any difference. If he'd foamed at the mouth and vowed death to every Hapan on Mandalorian earth, and begged the Chiss to 'bring it' because death is better than this--no difference. In the end, it all comes down to whether I'm willing to kill because some asshole violated my order. This"--he dropped to a carrying whisper--"is where the balancing act lies. And it has nothing to do with him no matter what lies or truths came out of him."
Kel’dan:
Kel'dan was quiet as he looked at Sadhric, watching him while he spoke... He closed his eyes and took a deep breath-- letting it out slowly. "Yes." When he opened his eyes, he glanced at Ja'eeth and back to Sadhric. "It comes down to how you follow through with your threat." he drummed his fingers across the desktop, then sighed.
Sadhric:
A nod. That tight deadweight dread.
Not dread of the prospect of killing. Dread at how easily he'd always killed. How easily he might do so again. How little it would really take.
"I have profited for years on making few threats and following through on each of them when it was time." He'd also become a nimble dancer around his own threats, so that in some cases conditions would never be quite met. This was different. "The last thing I need is whining Mando'ade, sore that I smacked off their beskar'gam, thinking I've lost my nerve. It would cost them greatly to think that."
Kel’dan:
He nodded slightly. "It can't be ignored." He then fell silent, with an unasked question-- So, what are you going to do?
Sadhric:
"No." Sadhric pulled himself back toward the problem-solving mode he knew so well. "Ignored, the crumbling begins. The bites. Every malcontent or would-be challenger will come out of the woodwork. It mattered less when I wasn't here--which, by the way, was one of my main reasons for not being here while you were fuming about neglect. Not here, I could 'miss' provocations. Now I am here. So I've got to go a different route. I don't want Buffton's path. Poetic justice that it may be, I'm not going to dig up a Jackel and let the pain roll. I don't believe that is really 'justice.' Nor will I leave my hopes to rest on the enlightenment of your brutish people. The answer has to be...
"... to trust, when there is no reason to trust. A show of respect to the clans to which those children belong. I will give them what information I have and turn the matter over to them. Whether they are in on this stupidity or not."
Ja’eeth:
The answer was a lot of things, and it was also most certainly complicated. Ja'eeth and Kel'dan had talked a bit earlier about what it could mean, and they had discussed the potential for problems from appearing too lenient in the face of breaking an appointed law under the circumstances. She stayed quiet, and she listened. Her observations were locked into the way both men spoke to each other, in the way Kel'dan still seemed to be holding himself under the heavy weighted bar he called 'self control', and not just holding himself there but suffocating beneath it. Sadhric's control was of an entirely different sort. It moved with him, the tight locked reptilian grace of someone who fed on the control, who lived every moment with it in mind. Someone who wasn't struggling within themselves in the same way. "When will you be contacting them?" She asked, bringing her voice back into the conversation.
Sadhric:
"Soon. I wanted to...." One corner of his mouth hooked back. "... hear your reactions and thoughts. The pair of you."
Ja’eeth:
"I think that the alternatives, as I see them, could potentially be far more violent than speaking with the clans, and letting them have their choice on the matter. If the Peacekeepers are willing to let the business fall to the Mando'ade, then it should be brought to the clans. I think it is fitting to let them decide. But what will be done if they decide to do nothing? -- However unlikely that might be."
Sadhric:
"The Peacekeepers answer to me." That was true to a point. Enough of a point for this moment. "And that is the point. What the clans choose to do, in pursuit of the truth, in dealing with any involved, is how I learn who they are. This Tou Nix and his friends, whether he spoke the truth or lied, were neither courageous nor competent. Difficult to speak of honor when you've let spineless fools carry on being spinelessly foolish."
Kel’dan:
He let out a breath he hadn't known he'd been holding. "Gods, I was hoping you were gonna say that."
Sadhric:
Sadhric arched a brow. He made a little gesture for Kel'dan to go on.
Kel’dan:
"It is as you say... And giving control of law enforcement back to the people will go a long way," he said softly. "I had had that thought a little while ago, but honestly didn't know how you'd respond to it." He walked the rest of the way around his desk and sat down in the chair. When he was nervous, he tended to stand or pace. " That had been my thought-- you need to trust them to enforce your laws, as they are theirs, too."
Sadhric:
"Let's not get ahead of ourselves. This is not giving control of law enforcement back to the people. They handle clan affairs within their clans already, and aren't bothering to hide it. Anything more, they have not earned. This is... a first foray. A way to know them that I prefer right now, in this specific situation, over my usual methods of making sure I know people. Your point is good, though; I'm glad you thought of it. In the future I want you to voice such thoughts if you can do so with perspective."
Ja’eeth:
Standing at the end of the desk, Ja'eeth was in an odd position to see both Sadhric and Kel'dan. She'd turned, giving either of them a profile view of her form, head turning every so often to look at who was speaking. After a few moments of that she crossed through the conversation toward a stack of hard crates where she turned and pulled herself up, using this as a vantage point to see both of them as they spoke.
Kel’dan:
"But I meant in the long run," he said, nodding. "It's a step in the right direction... Encourage the Aud-- not the Hapans-- to keep an eye out for this kind of thing. And report it instead of overlooking it... Which I'm sure has happened more times than I care to think about. And they would see it more readily than the Hapans, I think."
Sadhric:
"They're already keeping an eye out--you should know that better than anyone." But that comment from Kel'dan brought on a sardonic look from Sadhric.
Kel’dan:
He smiled back at him. "I know, I know... Sorry," he said, sounding genuinely apologetic. He shook his head. "But I'm on board with this... Its a really good place to start."
Sadhric:
A nod. "Help me make sure it works."
