Post by Bobbi on Sept 27, 2018 11:23:48 GMT -5
In the wake of the gathering, Ja'eeth had made herself scarce just long enough to see to her headache. Once that was done, though, she was back at work responding to a summons by Sadhric. Time to talk. Kel'dan's office had been cleaned up, the crates of hard files were gone which left the room feeling a bit larger than it had before, occupied by a large desk, a side table and a few chairs as the rooms only furniture. Ja'eeth was coming in, just casting a glance toward her right where Kel'dan's assistant usually sat, responding to something the woman said to her before the door to the office opened. The exchange was quick and quiet, Ja'eeth's attention going to the room she was stepping into. She was dressed as he had seen her at the meeting, still the same rough spun clothing, her blaster unmoved from its holster at her hip. Her hair was worn in a tight braid, a deviation from the pony tail she'd worn it in earlier, pinned down tight against the back of her head and running to her neck. Immediately on entering, she'd be flicking at the control panel for the door, bringing it to close behind her. Her usually bright green eyes were slightly glossy due to the pain killer she'd taken, but they were no less keen when she found herself focusing on where Sadhric stood, "Manda'lore." It was a tight and formal greeting she gave him.
Sadhric:
The Mechanic looked over his shoulder as she came in, and then flicked away a swarm of holos and turned to face her fully. Since the door was closed, he said, "I had to do that. I'd have said all of that anyway in private, but even knowing what I think you were trying to do, that needed to happen out there."
Ja’eeth:
"I know," She was coming to stop mid-room when she responded, "I was expecting a response to it. I thought it better to take my chance with that than to let you -- -our- guest have the chance to run his mouth and make anything worse. I'd do it again if I had to, whatever the consequences that would be to come from it for me. That's not why I asked to speak with you, though." There she paused and weighed her words for a moment, "I don't trust him, and it has nothing to do with his name."
Sadhric:
He sniffed slightly as he listened to her, and dabbed a finger at the barely-there spot on his lip that had hours before been a full swollen split, not taking his eyes from her at all until she seemed to be done. "What did you see?"
Ja’eeth:
"They say you can tell a lot about a man by the way he treats his dogs. The same is very much true for how he treats people he views to be below his station. He is courteous enough when he thinks he has an ear that will hear him, that he can affect and use. When it comes to someone else, someone without visible station or known authority his attitude is quite different. The man you spoke of in the courtyard is not the same person that stepped off of that ship earlier today. There was a stark contrast in how he treated me, and how he spoke with Kel'dan and even, perhaps, how he would chose to speak with you. He's not genuine, at all."
Sadhric:
Sadhric nodded. He folded his arms. Radiated skepticism. "It's not that I don't believe you, Ja'eeth, but rather that you have a nasty habit of being vague. So why don't you give me context and details, to help me out."
Ja’eeth:
"I am making an attempt to not sound petty," she said, "Because I very much want to believe that this is all that it is. Me being petty, but still, if there is something going on... When the ramp lowered this morning, and he spotted me and just one other person there waiting for him," Ja'eeth gave the name of the Hapan Peacekeeper, "He seemed disappointed, disgusted, and annoyed. When I offered to show him and his research team to the barracks here on site, he asked why better accomodations were not made available to a visiting dignitary. I informed him that it was the best we could do, and that it could have been worse. His attitude at that point was something like ' Well, if this is what I'm getting, I guess I have to take it.' When Kel'dan showed up, late mind you, the Prince's attitude changed. He was suddenly quite open to conversation and accepting of things -- until Kel'dan brought up the lack of his name, to which Nikolaus made a jab about changing it to something else. When I told him it was a matter for you, and for the clans, he claimed it had been a joke."
Sadhric:
"What else?" The Mechanic looked around with a frown. He wasn't going to plant himself behind Kel'dan's desk, so he went to sit in one of the sparse office's two other chairs even though it didn't look even slightly comfortable. "Keep talking. You're going to think I'm being rude, but I'm listening to you."
Several holos popped back into existence in front of him.
Ja’eeth:
Ja'eeth had not moved from where she had come to a stop, but did watch him take that seat before beginning her reply. He was right, it did seem rude to her, but she pressed on. "He informed us that his research team would likely be present on world for an estimated two to six months, but would not tell us what they are here to research," Her tone changed slightly, "Which, if its between you and him -- that's fine. But not even Kel'dan knew of it, and he dodged answering those questions quickly. We took him on a tour, settled his people into barracks, and I didn't see him again until the Ordis incident. I offered him my assistance as per our conversation, but was dismissed when he found out I hold no official authority. He said to me "You have no authority in any official capacity. I have no use for you." and that was that. I told him if he feels that way, then he should bring it up to your attention so neither of us have our time wasted in the future."
Sadhric:
Moving only his eyes, Sadhric peeked over a holo at her, moving it down gently. "No," he said first. "It was not something between us. I knew he was coming with an agenda, but I didn't ask what form it would take."
Ja’eeth:
"He brought a group of ten with him," She was now looking at him from over the edge of the other side of that holo, "One of which seems to have the job of recording everything she sees and hears. The others are researchers, as I've said, but I don't know of what. I was going to have their actions restricted to within The Aud, and restricted to, and within, The Aud.I did not want to follow through without speaking to you about it first."
Sadhric:
"Ja'eeth." He tipped his head toward her, eyes fixed, voice very low.
Ja’eeth:
Sadhric was held in her attention unwaveringly, she waited for him to continue.
Sadhric:
"Why don't you come sit down and tell me why a pack of Hapans doing research scares you." Because that was obviously the word for part of what he was seeing.
Ja’eeth:
She wasn't one to hesitate very much, but there she did. It was a small jerk of a motion, arrested just as it started. Why did they scare her? The thought of that question brought the stall to her motion as the idea of being afraid of them seemed to be something she was considering. "This happens to occupied nations?" She asked, starting with that, "Research teams, that is? It just doesn't seem right to me, to have them come here undeclared until their arrival. If Nikolaus were not up to something, why would he have not told you before he brought them with him?" still putting her thoughts together on the matter, Ja'eeth did move to take the remaining seat, "I don't think it's the research team, itself, but rather the prince's motives for having them here. What information is he hoping to gather in a day, or a week, let alone two to six months. Do we really live so differently than the rest of the galaxy?"
"What secrets does he think we hide that the Hapan occupying forces would not have seen, or will not see in that time?"
Sadhric:
"It shouldn't come as any surprise that there are factions within the Consortium that aren't satisfied with how the matter of your sovereignty has thus far been handled. I knew he represented that opinion. I even told you and Kel'dan. Hapes. The Chiss. Any number of others. They were coiled up during the war, and now that there is no war that energy has nowhere to go. So they find places. They'll pick. Don't be afraid," he said mildly. "I know this is not your sort of war, but it is exactly my sort."
Ja’eeth:
She given a nod while he spoke. He had told her and Kel'dan. She had not been expecting it to look like this, though. She hadn't expected it to look like anything. Ja'eeth had simply not known what, if anything, it might have looked like. The woman across from Sadhric sobered slightly, "I'm glad for that," She said in her rolling Mando'a of this being exactly Sadhric's sort of war, "because I feel completely out of my depth, here. How do you ever manage to put up with a war like this? How do you fight it without going mad?"
Sadhric:
He just grunted. "There's something else about it."
Ja’eeth:
"Something else?"
Sadhric:
"Yes. Humans aren't static, Va'lor."
Ja’eeth:
"You mean that it's not quite so difficult if you look for the changes in the way people act?"
Sadhric:
"No. We've changed points, now. What I mean is: it is very tempting to try to nail down the nature of another being, but not always the tact that produces the best results. Because they can change their nature, of course. At least in terms of what we're talking about. You, for example, are both the woman who followed orders and abducted someone I care about. You aren't that same woman now, and yet of course you are, and it's in that apparent contradiction that we can now work together. With Nikolaus...." He got quiet, cocking his head, eyes tracing something distant off to one side. "He's been through a lot. Trauma has a lot of power. If you think of him as a man in flux, you realize that he might become anything. He could become just like his father. Or he could revert to what he was in his earliest youth--since--" Sadhric laughed a little. "--he's still quite young. Or he might become something altogether different. Better. Who can say? In a time of flux, you might see a snobby child in the morning, but by afternoon an honorable man. You have no power, really, over which dominates, but you can attempt to offer to him that which you would like to see, and there's a chance he might just reflect it back at you."
Ja’eeth:
She was listening, it showed openly on her face. "Like you did earlier today..." (sorry so short! I'll be back soon! Need to pick up Will!
Sadhric:
"That wasn't just for Nikolaus, but yes: like I did earlier today. Will it hold? Was it real? Who in the Hells knows. We'll find out. Can't freeze up on unknowns, though. Not if you want to get anything done."
Ja’eeth:
The concept, she realized, was not really a new one to her. Beyond seeing Ker'dan do it, Sadhric, and numerous others, she was realizing she did much the same thing with Ja'dan. Niko was quite different than a boy who had seen very little in the way of what real harm could do. He'd grow to be a warrior, and would see his share of fighting, but for now he was just a boy living the sheltered life that his parents provided. Nikolaus while still being young, was quite a bit older than Ja'dan and had seen much for his all of his youth. She rolled her shoulders back, her expression pensive. "Let's hope it sticks. I could respect the man I saw in the courtyard."
Sadhric:
The Mechanic shrugged. "I have no intention of being Mand'alor by Kel'dan's rules. With me fighting for primacy like some animal. Fuck that. Nor am I going to allow Keldabe to become just another extension of Hapan political intrigues. Fuck that, too. If Nikolaus pursues his research, so be it; I haven't locked down Mando'ade movement and I'm not locking down his, either. We do not chase shadows."
Ja’eeth:
So, that's what that meant. She had heard him say it before to Kel'dan, and now she knew, "Understood," Was her response to that, the word very much filled with the meaning that she did hear, and knew what he was saying.
Sadhric:
He centered the holo again. Through it, while reading, he asked: "What kind of assurance do you need that I am doing my duty here?"
Ja’eeth:
"I do not doubt," Ja'eeth told him, watching the barest of reflection from the holo he was reading against the surface of his faintly blue tinted lenses. Behind that, due to the color of his glasses, and the way the holo image reflected, she could barely make out the outlines of his eyes as he read. "That you are doing everything you can, Manda'lor."
Sadhric:
It got the oddest little smile. "Bit of a change, isn't it?"
Ja’eeth:
Ja'eeth's nod was vague, but present, "I'm still not quite to sure what to make of it at times." She told him, still trying to see the outlines of his eyes beyond the tint and reflections.
"What do you think of it?"
Sadhric:
He lifted his head. "Honestly?"
Ja’eeth:
"Honestly."
Sadhric:
I hate every minute.
It wasn't true enough to come out of his mouth. He thought a little longer, relaxing back into the uncomfortable chair (time to order better furniture for Kel'dan), shoveling aside the discontent obscuring something truer.
"This may be the most difficult thing I've ever tried."
Ja’eeth:
"You've not done anything like this before?" She looked both surprised and amused by that, but measured that out a moment later, "I don't know why that surprised me. I can't imagine there being many moments when a man might be in a situation like this within a single life time."
Sadhric:
He smiled politely. "No, nothing like this."
Ja’eeth:
"You're doing well, I think," she told him, not quite sure how the compliment would go over. He'd been there for several days now, as a constant presence, and that had rubbed away -some- of the awkwardness she felt in situations like this, but more often than not she was still not quite sure how to approach him unless it was business. Unless it had to do with something that wasn't like this.
Sadhric:
"Either kind or patronizing of you to say," he laughed, shaking his head, "but we'll see how well I've done in a century, and probably in no meaningful way before that."
Ja’eeth:
There were hooks at the corners of her lips, pulling them into a wiry looking smile, "I was aiming for kind," Ja'eeth told him, the Mando'a she spoke not a bit broken by the amused expression she wore just then, "This is the hardest part of it, isn't it? Laying the groundwork, the foundation for the future?"
Sadhric:
"That could be said of anything, I think."
Ja’eeth:
It could. He was right. She nodded and then asked, "How are you hoping this will go?" She had been about to say 'end', but changed her mind the last second. That was a bad way to ask this question.
Sadhric:
The Mechanic stared at her, brow creased comically.
Ja’eeth:
A little laugh came from the woman, "What? I'm serious. Beyond the main goal of building peace here, how do you see this going?" Realizing that may have been to broad, Ja'eeth gave a little wave with her right hand, "Your involvement in our future here, I meant."
Sadhric:
Rather than answering, he asked: "How many Tou Nixes do you think there are? Or how many unseen zealots, ranting about Mandalorian ideals who have not challenged me, or voiced anything actionable--who are, in essence, cowards hiding with bombs in basements?"
Ja’eeth:
"We know of three for sure," she said, shifting to get more comfortable in her seat while trying to look like she wasn't. The change to her posture was minor. It was becoming clear that either the chairs had been purchased for decoration, or Kel'dan had never thought they'd be sat in for so long, "Six, if we go by the security footage of the effigy burning. I'd think there is likely to be many more than that."
Sadhric:
He was shaking his head. "I meant: among your folk as a whole."
Ja’eeth:
"I don't know," Her voice carried the depth of honesty, " saying -a lot- is my best shot at an answer right now."
Sadhric:
"A lot of cowards," he said, looking to her for a yea or a nay.
Ja’eeth:
"Yes," there was a tough nod that came from her. "That's becoming harder and harder to deny."
Sadhric:
"Do you think your people can face the holes in their cultural self-image?"
Ja’eeth:
"I hope that we can. We've lived for so very long ignoring the disparities between what we thought we were, and what we actually are, but like you said humans aren't static beings. We can adapt, we can learn from our mistakes, we can do things better. We can close those holes and improve ourselves."
Sadhric:
"You're not just humans, though," he pointed out. "But I take your point. And I note your cynical refusal to say you think they can." He nodded to her. "Advice, then, regarding Nikolaus: For now, we give him some room. He's earned some room from someone, and we have the strength to offer it."
Ja’eeth:
The pensive look returned, pulling at the scar across the bridge of her nose, her glossed over green eyes focusing and unfocusing on the way the holo light shifted across Sadhric's face, "Aye, Mand'alor. I will be more tolerant."
Sadhric:
Her tone made certain things plain, and he met her eyes. "You think you're owed an apology from him."
Ja’eeth:
"No, no apology is needed," she shook her head, "I would, though, appreciate the same level of respect from him as I am giving. We don't know each other, but that should have little bearing on things like that. That's all I would want. Its all I could ask of anyone."
Sadhric:
"I suspect you'll find he doesn't think much of his title, either. He wields it like a shield he doesn't trust to save him. I imagine his uncertainty leads him to throw himself a bit too far into the role."
Ja’eeth:
"It makes him look spoiled," She said after a moment, no trace of bitterness to her voice. It was a calm statement, given with some hint of apology, "That is why I called him a babe. No other reason than him flaunting the weight of his title -- well, that and I took a guess that it would take Clan Ordis' attention off of him. But mostly that. I am sorry I insulted him. And I am sorry it happened under your roof."
Sadhric:
He made a little sound or wry-humored disgust. "Gone are the days when only I represented me. I'm still getting used to it."
Ja’eeth:
"You miss those days." She was guessing, judging the tone of his voice.
Sadhric:
His stillness over the next second was profound. "Of course I do," he finally said, low-voiced and gazing at her steadily. "This is a vicious little fate."
Ja’eeth:
He'd see her eyes still focusing and unfocusing on him through the dulling effects of the drug she'd taken, "Vicious, yes." She agreed, "But why do you think its fate?"
Sadhric:
"I didn't say it was fate. I said it was a fate. Big difference."
Ja’eeth:
The bob of her head conceded to that little letter that made a big difference, "What would you be doing right now, if you weren't here?"
Sadhric:
The Mechanic gave her a look like he was about to send her out. It held for several seconds. Slowly he cocked his head in a private kind of concession. "All right," he said, drawing out the second word.
He rose from the chair and with that motion the room was suddenly filled with overlapping silver lines, lines that echoed each other, lines that spun away on their own. Lines that seemed to flow or eddy, to catch unseen objects, none corresponding to anything in Kel'dan's office.
"You can't tell scale from this," he said, head tipped back as he traced elements of it all with his eyes. It swirled around him; he turned only after a moment at an easy pace. "But this is--part--of our galaxy. Mapped."
Ja’eeth:
The look came over him, one she was familiar with. It took her a breath to brace for it, her hands positioned on the chair, ready for for it. It had been a tiny motion of her hands moving to rest on the sides of the chair, and then a shift away from that as it didn't come. Ja'eeth watched him rise, her attention soon to shift to the room around them as the silver lines came into full view around them. She'd seen holos before -- who hadn't? This was something close to that, and yet entirely different. Slowly she rose, her own eyes following a set of lines that spanned off to her left, overlaying the backdrop of the office, catching on another line and curling back around and toward the other end of the space around them. "-Mapped?-" She echoed, looking his way for a brief moment, bringing her right hand up to trace a section of line through the air. The voice she spoke with was stunned. This was not a type of holo she'd seen before. She was choosing, but it was hard. Ja'eeth didn't know where to look first.
Sadhric:
"Mm." Sadhric was still looking around, himself, but after a moment he called up a little panel and focused there instead. "Represented like this, it doesn't mean much, but backing it is more raw data than I think has ever been collected in the history of... humanity, at least. And I got it in the blink of an eye."
Ja’eeth:
She turned in the space, taking in the entire image as it filled the office, twice before looking his way, "You said 'the blink of an eye'?" She'd switched to basic. Her native tongue was lacking in how she thought it could express her astonishment. -More raw data than he thought had ever been collected in history-, at least that of human beings. "How? It wasn't the lines that caught her, it was the number of them, the scope that the holo represented.
Sadhric:
The holo began to change. It condensed, streaming toward the center of the room. Yet more and more filled it. It was zooming out, and the result was a tightening of every weave until the middle of Kel'dan's office started to look like a slivered out blob. "That's a big question to ask in a little room," he said distractedly. "But it's caught not just space but ghosts of long ago--" His expression brightened. "--maybe ghosts of futures, too! Hard to say, just yet."
Ja’eeth:
The initial movement of the holo as it pulled toward the middle of the room caused Ja'eeth some slight sense of dizziness, like she'd turned her head too fast and had to let it all catch up. It was over just that quickly, Ja'eeth turning to step toward the blob, "Ghosts?" She was back to Mando'a, "--History?" From where she stood near the silvery blob, Ja'eeth looked his way.
Sadhric:
"Yes." Sadhric sighed and the holo winked out, leaving them in the bland office again with all as it should be. He cracked a humorless smile. "That's what I would be doing. Pursuing all of that." The smile unraveled.
Ja’eeth:
The disappearance of the holo pulled her eyes back toward the center of the room. Where the blob had been was now nothing but empty space, the lines and all their criss-crossing sections that overlapped the office had gone with it, leaving just an office behind. Ja'eeth was quiet in the wake of the room settling back into what it should have been, what it had been. She was trying to think of something to say, but 'something' was feeling inadequate. The best she could come up with sounded very shallow to her, "I, ehm -- its an impressive pursuit." How lack luster and weak that sounded to her. She looked his way, hoping that the sentiment was clear.
Sadhric:
He didn't really look at her again. Didn't nod. There was a movement that might have been a faint shrug. He just wandered out of the office.
Ja’eeth:
He moved like a statesman, a stiffened man who could give himself, or the world around him, any leeway as he left the office. Straight and firm, the more human version of himself locked back away under a different face, a different person. He was gone from the room, and she made a quick decision to follow after. The demolitions expert didn't know what she'd say, that thought catching up to her a moment later as she reached the threshold of the office door and stepped through. That was the only thing that brought a hitch to her steps and made her stop in the wake of Sadhric Tlin.
Sadhric:
The Mechanic looked over his shoulder as she came in, and then flicked away a swarm of holos and turned to face her fully. Since the door was closed, he said, "I had to do that. I'd have said all of that anyway in private, but even knowing what I think you were trying to do, that needed to happen out there."
Ja’eeth:
"I know," She was coming to stop mid-room when she responded, "I was expecting a response to it. I thought it better to take my chance with that than to let you -- -our- guest have the chance to run his mouth and make anything worse. I'd do it again if I had to, whatever the consequences that would be to come from it for me. That's not why I asked to speak with you, though." There she paused and weighed her words for a moment, "I don't trust him, and it has nothing to do with his name."
Sadhric:
He sniffed slightly as he listened to her, and dabbed a finger at the barely-there spot on his lip that had hours before been a full swollen split, not taking his eyes from her at all until she seemed to be done. "What did you see?"
Ja’eeth:
"They say you can tell a lot about a man by the way he treats his dogs. The same is very much true for how he treats people he views to be below his station. He is courteous enough when he thinks he has an ear that will hear him, that he can affect and use. When it comes to someone else, someone without visible station or known authority his attitude is quite different. The man you spoke of in the courtyard is not the same person that stepped off of that ship earlier today. There was a stark contrast in how he treated me, and how he spoke with Kel'dan and even, perhaps, how he would chose to speak with you. He's not genuine, at all."
Sadhric:
Sadhric nodded. He folded his arms. Radiated skepticism. "It's not that I don't believe you, Ja'eeth, but rather that you have a nasty habit of being vague. So why don't you give me context and details, to help me out."
Ja’eeth:
"I am making an attempt to not sound petty," she said, "Because I very much want to believe that this is all that it is. Me being petty, but still, if there is something going on... When the ramp lowered this morning, and he spotted me and just one other person there waiting for him," Ja'eeth gave the name of the Hapan Peacekeeper, "He seemed disappointed, disgusted, and annoyed. When I offered to show him and his research team to the barracks here on site, he asked why better accomodations were not made available to a visiting dignitary. I informed him that it was the best we could do, and that it could have been worse. His attitude at that point was something like ' Well, if this is what I'm getting, I guess I have to take it.' When Kel'dan showed up, late mind you, the Prince's attitude changed. He was suddenly quite open to conversation and accepting of things -- until Kel'dan brought up the lack of his name, to which Nikolaus made a jab about changing it to something else. When I told him it was a matter for you, and for the clans, he claimed it had been a joke."
Sadhric:
"What else?" The Mechanic looked around with a frown. He wasn't going to plant himself behind Kel'dan's desk, so he went to sit in one of the sparse office's two other chairs even though it didn't look even slightly comfortable. "Keep talking. You're going to think I'm being rude, but I'm listening to you."
Several holos popped back into existence in front of him.
Ja’eeth:
Ja'eeth had not moved from where she had come to a stop, but did watch him take that seat before beginning her reply. He was right, it did seem rude to her, but she pressed on. "He informed us that his research team would likely be present on world for an estimated two to six months, but would not tell us what they are here to research," Her tone changed slightly, "Which, if its between you and him -- that's fine. But not even Kel'dan knew of it, and he dodged answering those questions quickly. We took him on a tour, settled his people into barracks, and I didn't see him again until the Ordis incident. I offered him my assistance as per our conversation, but was dismissed when he found out I hold no official authority. He said to me "You have no authority in any official capacity. I have no use for you." and that was that. I told him if he feels that way, then he should bring it up to your attention so neither of us have our time wasted in the future."
Sadhric:
Moving only his eyes, Sadhric peeked over a holo at her, moving it down gently. "No," he said first. "It was not something between us. I knew he was coming with an agenda, but I didn't ask what form it would take."
Ja’eeth:
"He brought a group of ten with him," She was now looking at him from over the edge of the other side of that holo, "One of which seems to have the job of recording everything she sees and hears. The others are researchers, as I've said, but I don't know of what. I was going to have their actions restricted to within The Aud, and restricted to, and within, The Aud.I did not want to follow through without speaking to you about it first."
Sadhric:
"Ja'eeth." He tipped his head toward her, eyes fixed, voice very low.
Ja’eeth:
Sadhric was held in her attention unwaveringly, she waited for him to continue.
Sadhric:
"Why don't you come sit down and tell me why a pack of Hapans doing research scares you." Because that was obviously the word for part of what he was seeing.
Ja’eeth:
She wasn't one to hesitate very much, but there she did. It was a small jerk of a motion, arrested just as it started. Why did they scare her? The thought of that question brought the stall to her motion as the idea of being afraid of them seemed to be something she was considering. "This happens to occupied nations?" She asked, starting with that, "Research teams, that is? It just doesn't seem right to me, to have them come here undeclared until their arrival. If Nikolaus were not up to something, why would he have not told you before he brought them with him?" still putting her thoughts together on the matter, Ja'eeth did move to take the remaining seat, "I don't think it's the research team, itself, but rather the prince's motives for having them here. What information is he hoping to gather in a day, or a week, let alone two to six months. Do we really live so differently than the rest of the galaxy?"
"What secrets does he think we hide that the Hapan occupying forces would not have seen, or will not see in that time?"
Sadhric:
"It shouldn't come as any surprise that there are factions within the Consortium that aren't satisfied with how the matter of your sovereignty has thus far been handled. I knew he represented that opinion. I even told you and Kel'dan. Hapes. The Chiss. Any number of others. They were coiled up during the war, and now that there is no war that energy has nowhere to go. So they find places. They'll pick. Don't be afraid," he said mildly. "I know this is not your sort of war, but it is exactly my sort."
Ja’eeth:
She given a nod while he spoke. He had told her and Kel'dan. She had not been expecting it to look like this, though. She hadn't expected it to look like anything. Ja'eeth had simply not known what, if anything, it might have looked like. The woman across from Sadhric sobered slightly, "I'm glad for that," She said in her rolling Mando'a of this being exactly Sadhric's sort of war, "because I feel completely out of my depth, here. How do you ever manage to put up with a war like this? How do you fight it without going mad?"
Sadhric:
He just grunted. "There's something else about it."
Ja’eeth:
"Something else?"
Sadhric:
"Yes. Humans aren't static, Va'lor."
Ja’eeth:
"You mean that it's not quite so difficult if you look for the changes in the way people act?"
Sadhric:
"No. We've changed points, now. What I mean is: it is very tempting to try to nail down the nature of another being, but not always the tact that produces the best results. Because they can change their nature, of course. At least in terms of what we're talking about. You, for example, are both the woman who followed orders and abducted someone I care about. You aren't that same woman now, and yet of course you are, and it's in that apparent contradiction that we can now work together. With Nikolaus...." He got quiet, cocking his head, eyes tracing something distant off to one side. "He's been through a lot. Trauma has a lot of power. If you think of him as a man in flux, you realize that he might become anything. He could become just like his father. Or he could revert to what he was in his earliest youth--since--" Sadhric laughed a little. "--he's still quite young. Or he might become something altogether different. Better. Who can say? In a time of flux, you might see a snobby child in the morning, but by afternoon an honorable man. You have no power, really, over which dominates, but you can attempt to offer to him that which you would like to see, and there's a chance he might just reflect it back at you."
Ja’eeth:
She was listening, it showed openly on her face. "Like you did earlier today..." (sorry so short! I'll be back soon! Need to pick up Will!
Sadhric:
"That wasn't just for Nikolaus, but yes: like I did earlier today. Will it hold? Was it real? Who in the Hells knows. We'll find out. Can't freeze up on unknowns, though. Not if you want to get anything done."
Ja’eeth:
The concept, she realized, was not really a new one to her. Beyond seeing Ker'dan do it, Sadhric, and numerous others, she was realizing she did much the same thing with Ja'dan. Niko was quite different than a boy who had seen very little in the way of what real harm could do. He'd grow to be a warrior, and would see his share of fighting, but for now he was just a boy living the sheltered life that his parents provided. Nikolaus while still being young, was quite a bit older than Ja'dan and had seen much for his all of his youth. She rolled her shoulders back, her expression pensive. "Let's hope it sticks. I could respect the man I saw in the courtyard."
Sadhric:
The Mechanic shrugged. "I have no intention of being Mand'alor by Kel'dan's rules. With me fighting for primacy like some animal. Fuck that. Nor am I going to allow Keldabe to become just another extension of Hapan political intrigues. Fuck that, too. If Nikolaus pursues his research, so be it; I haven't locked down Mando'ade movement and I'm not locking down his, either. We do not chase shadows."
Ja’eeth:
So, that's what that meant. She had heard him say it before to Kel'dan, and now she knew, "Understood," Was her response to that, the word very much filled with the meaning that she did hear, and knew what he was saying.
Sadhric:
He centered the holo again. Through it, while reading, he asked: "What kind of assurance do you need that I am doing my duty here?"
Ja’eeth:
"I do not doubt," Ja'eeth told him, watching the barest of reflection from the holo he was reading against the surface of his faintly blue tinted lenses. Behind that, due to the color of his glasses, and the way the holo image reflected, she could barely make out the outlines of his eyes as he read. "That you are doing everything you can, Manda'lor."
Sadhric:
It got the oddest little smile. "Bit of a change, isn't it?"
Ja’eeth:
Ja'eeth's nod was vague, but present, "I'm still not quite to sure what to make of it at times." She told him, still trying to see the outlines of his eyes beyond the tint and reflections.
"What do you think of it?"
Sadhric:
He lifted his head. "Honestly?"
Ja’eeth:
"Honestly."
Sadhric:
I hate every minute.
It wasn't true enough to come out of his mouth. He thought a little longer, relaxing back into the uncomfortable chair (time to order better furniture for Kel'dan), shoveling aside the discontent obscuring something truer.
"This may be the most difficult thing I've ever tried."
Ja’eeth:
"You've not done anything like this before?" She looked both surprised and amused by that, but measured that out a moment later, "I don't know why that surprised me. I can't imagine there being many moments when a man might be in a situation like this within a single life time."
Sadhric:
He smiled politely. "No, nothing like this."
Ja’eeth:
"You're doing well, I think," she told him, not quite sure how the compliment would go over. He'd been there for several days now, as a constant presence, and that had rubbed away -some- of the awkwardness she felt in situations like this, but more often than not she was still not quite sure how to approach him unless it was business. Unless it had to do with something that wasn't like this.
Sadhric:
"Either kind or patronizing of you to say," he laughed, shaking his head, "but we'll see how well I've done in a century, and probably in no meaningful way before that."
Ja’eeth:
There were hooks at the corners of her lips, pulling them into a wiry looking smile, "I was aiming for kind," Ja'eeth told him, the Mando'a she spoke not a bit broken by the amused expression she wore just then, "This is the hardest part of it, isn't it? Laying the groundwork, the foundation for the future?"
Sadhric:
"That could be said of anything, I think."
Ja’eeth:
It could. He was right. She nodded and then asked, "How are you hoping this will go?" She had been about to say 'end', but changed her mind the last second. That was a bad way to ask this question.
Sadhric:
The Mechanic stared at her, brow creased comically.
Ja’eeth:
A little laugh came from the woman, "What? I'm serious. Beyond the main goal of building peace here, how do you see this going?" Realizing that may have been to broad, Ja'eeth gave a little wave with her right hand, "Your involvement in our future here, I meant."
Sadhric:
Rather than answering, he asked: "How many Tou Nixes do you think there are? Or how many unseen zealots, ranting about Mandalorian ideals who have not challenged me, or voiced anything actionable--who are, in essence, cowards hiding with bombs in basements?"
Ja’eeth:
"We know of three for sure," she said, shifting to get more comfortable in her seat while trying to look like she wasn't. The change to her posture was minor. It was becoming clear that either the chairs had been purchased for decoration, or Kel'dan had never thought they'd be sat in for so long, "Six, if we go by the security footage of the effigy burning. I'd think there is likely to be many more than that."
Sadhric:
He was shaking his head. "I meant: among your folk as a whole."
Ja’eeth:
"I don't know," Her voice carried the depth of honesty, " saying -a lot- is my best shot at an answer right now."
Sadhric:
"A lot of cowards," he said, looking to her for a yea or a nay.
Ja’eeth:
"Yes," there was a tough nod that came from her. "That's becoming harder and harder to deny."
Sadhric:
"Do you think your people can face the holes in their cultural self-image?"
Ja’eeth:
"I hope that we can. We've lived for so very long ignoring the disparities between what we thought we were, and what we actually are, but like you said humans aren't static beings. We can adapt, we can learn from our mistakes, we can do things better. We can close those holes and improve ourselves."
Sadhric:
"You're not just humans, though," he pointed out. "But I take your point. And I note your cynical refusal to say you think they can." He nodded to her. "Advice, then, regarding Nikolaus: For now, we give him some room. He's earned some room from someone, and we have the strength to offer it."
Ja’eeth:
The pensive look returned, pulling at the scar across the bridge of her nose, her glossed over green eyes focusing and unfocusing on the way the holo light shifted across Sadhric's face, "Aye, Mand'alor. I will be more tolerant."
Sadhric:
Her tone made certain things plain, and he met her eyes. "You think you're owed an apology from him."
Ja’eeth:
"No, no apology is needed," she shook her head, "I would, though, appreciate the same level of respect from him as I am giving. We don't know each other, but that should have little bearing on things like that. That's all I would want. Its all I could ask of anyone."
Sadhric:
"I suspect you'll find he doesn't think much of his title, either. He wields it like a shield he doesn't trust to save him. I imagine his uncertainty leads him to throw himself a bit too far into the role."
Ja’eeth:
"It makes him look spoiled," She said after a moment, no trace of bitterness to her voice. It was a calm statement, given with some hint of apology, "That is why I called him a babe. No other reason than him flaunting the weight of his title -- well, that and I took a guess that it would take Clan Ordis' attention off of him. But mostly that. I am sorry I insulted him. And I am sorry it happened under your roof."
Sadhric:
He made a little sound or wry-humored disgust. "Gone are the days when only I represented me. I'm still getting used to it."
Ja’eeth:
"You miss those days." She was guessing, judging the tone of his voice.
Sadhric:
His stillness over the next second was profound. "Of course I do," he finally said, low-voiced and gazing at her steadily. "This is a vicious little fate."
Ja’eeth:
He'd see her eyes still focusing and unfocusing on him through the dulling effects of the drug she'd taken, "Vicious, yes." She agreed, "But why do you think its fate?"
Sadhric:
"I didn't say it was fate. I said it was a fate. Big difference."
Ja’eeth:
The bob of her head conceded to that little letter that made a big difference, "What would you be doing right now, if you weren't here?"
Sadhric:
The Mechanic gave her a look like he was about to send her out. It held for several seconds. Slowly he cocked his head in a private kind of concession. "All right," he said, drawing out the second word.
He rose from the chair and with that motion the room was suddenly filled with overlapping silver lines, lines that echoed each other, lines that spun away on their own. Lines that seemed to flow or eddy, to catch unseen objects, none corresponding to anything in Kel'dan's office.
"You can't tell scale from this," he said, head tipped back as he traced elements of it all with his eyes. It swirled around him; he turned only after a moment at an easy pace. "But this is--part--of our galaxy. Mapped."
Ja’eeth:
The look came over him, one she was familiar with. It took her a breath to brace for it, her hands positioned on the chair, ready for for it. It had been a tiny motion of her hands moving to rest on the sides of the chair, and then a shift away from that as it didn't come. Ja'eeth watched him rise, her attention soon to shift to the room around them as the silver lines came into full view around them. She'd seen holos before -- who hadn't? This was something close to that, and yet entirely different. Slowly she rose, her own eyes following a set of lines that spanned off to her left, overlaying the backdrop of the office, catching on another line and curling back around and toward the other end of the space around them. "-Mapped?-" She echoed, looking his way for a brief moment, bringing her right hand up to trace a section of line through the air. The voice she spoke with was stunned. This was not a type of holo she'd seen before. She was choosing, but it was hard. Ja'eeth didn't know where to look first.
Sadhric:
"Mm." Sadhric was still looking around, himself, but after a moment he called up a little panel and focused there instead. "Represented like this, it doesn't mean much, but backing it is more raw data than I think has ever been collected in the history of... humanity, at least. And I got it in the blink of an eye."
Ja’eeth:
She turned in the space, taking in the entire image as it filled the office, twice before looking his way, "You said 'the blink of an eye'?" She'd switched to basic. Her native tongue was lacking in how she thought it could express her astonishment. -More raw data than he thought had ever been collected in history-, at least that of human beings. "How? It wasn't the lines that caught her, it was the number of them, the scope that the holo represented.
Sadhric:
The holo began to change. It condensed, streaming toward the center of the room. Yet more and more filled it. It was zooming out, and the result was a tightening of every weave until the middle of Kel'dan's office started to look like a slivered out blob. "That's a big question to ask in a little room," he said distractedly. "But it's caught not just space but ghosts of long ago--" His expression brightened. "--maybe ghosts of futures, too! Hard to say, just yet."
Ja’eeth:
The initial movement of the holo as it pulled toward the middle of the room caused Ja'eeth some slight sense of dizziness, like she'd turned her head too fast and had to let it all catch up. It was over just that quickly, Ja'eeth turning to step toward the blob, "Ghosts?" She was back to Mando'a, "--History?" From where she stood near the silvery blob, Ja'eeth looked his way.
Sadhric:
"Yes." Sadhric sighed and the holo winked out, leaving them in the bland office again with all as it should be. He cracked a humorless smile. "That's what I would be doing. Pursuing all of that." The smile unraveled.
Ja’eeth:
The disappearance of the holo pulled her eyes back toward the center of the room. Where the blob had been was now nothing but empty space, the lines and all their criss-crossing sections that overlapped the office had gone with it, leaving just an office behind. Ja'eeth was quiet in the wake of the room settling back into what it should have been, what it had been. She was trying to think of something to say, but 'something' was feeling inadequate. The best she could come up with sounded very shallow to her, "I, ehm -- its an impressive pursuit." How lack luster and weak that sounded to her. She looked his way, hoping that the sentiment was clear.
Sadhric:
He didn't really look at her again. Didn't nod. There was a movement that might have been a faint shrug. He just wandered out of the office.
Ja’eeth:
He moved like a statesman, a stiffened man who could give himself, or the world around him, any leeway as he left the office. Straight and firm, the more human version of himself locked back away under a different face, a different person. He was gone from the room, and she made a quick decision to follow after. The demolitions expert didn't know what she'd say, that thought catching up to her a moment later as she reached the threshold of the office door and stepped through. That was the only thing that brought a hitch to her steps and made her stop in the wake of Sadhric Tlin.