Post by Leonost Tide on Aug 8, 2018 14:50:24 GMT -5
"Is this a joke to you, Tide?"
Leonost flicked his cool eyes casually to the right, catching the gaze of the Jedi Master sitting across from where he stood in the center of their council chamber. There were five in attendance today. Nothing less for an official judgement. This wasn't the kind of gathering Leonost would have walked into for reporting on his last mission. No this was a group that had summoned him specifically at this time and place for a specific reason. That reason currently unknown to the Jedi Knight as he stood in his civilian attire with his hands clasped behind his back.
"I am afraid I do not understand the question, Master Yost." He answered back easily.
Yost had never been a friend to Leonost, right from the beginning. He was one of the old fashioned minds in the Jedi Order who saw Leon's heritage as a dark smudge on the new Order and its growing repute. A Sith mother and Jedi father was not something to be proud of, it seemed. It was sad that such strong intellectual minds failed to see merging the gap between two factions was a good thing. Certainly, the Jedi and Sith orders respectively would never see clearly, but was it not something to celebrate when enemies could share common ground and put aside their differences long enough to love? There were many in the Order who gave Leonost Tide no never mind.
Master Arlintin Yost, was not one of them.
"You come before us for judgement and wear not a thread of our traditional garb. Do you think that our honored practices are laughable?" Came the irritated response.
Cool brown eyes took in the other faces present with a cursory sweep. Of the five, only one other seemed to mirror Master Yost's sentiments.
Interesting... It appears I will have to dance around this one yet again.
"If I appear before this Council in jest, surely I would be smiling, Master Yost." He started evenly, "In point of fact, I find my current attire more comfortable for uncomfortable situations. Combat and judgments notwithstanding. As for the judgment itself, you have me at a bit of a loss. I came here before you today because I was summoned. Nothing less and nothing more. I was unaware of any rendering that would be held today. Perhaps that could be placed in the realm of unclear lines of communication?"
The last remark drew a small smirk from another Master, because they knew well that Yost had been the one who had initially reached out. There was a fair amount of respect for Leonost Tide among the senior members of the Order. He had proven himself a friend time and time again, as well as a competent leader and strong tactician, often diffusing volatile situations with his words before resorting to his sword. Though his family were known as warriors throughout history, Leon could occasionally slip into the role of diplomat when the times called for it.
All it really did was cause Yost to seethe.
How very un-Jedi like of you...
"That's besides the point. You are here because you have wronged the Order for the last time -"
"Master Yost speaks out of turn, perhaps." Master Zhura cut in, giving Yost a warning look. Zhura was the only Zabrak Master on the council, and not an insignificant voice. He was a man Leon had a great level of respect for, and looked to as something of a mentor after his father and former master had both passed away. "What we mean to say, is that we have summoned you here today, Knight Tide, to try one final time to come to an understanding of your actions of late."
Leonost waited patiently.
"We have received reports that you have been attempting to establish Jedi outposts in the Outer Rim. Can you explain this?"
"Of course." Leon began in earnest, "The reports are accurate. I have been trying to get this council to understand that we are dangerously close to repeating the mistakes of the past. Every time Jedi have consolidated their strength in one place, one enemy or another has risen to strike us down. By establishing outposts of learning away from our present position, we not only ensure survival, but also seem less confined and selfish to the rest of the galaxy. There are still families out there who see us as tyrants, coming to kidnap their special children in the dead of night. We must change public opinion of us quickly if we are to flourish."
Yost slipped forward in his chair and pointed at Leon directly, "That is not your call to make, Tide. It is up to the collective wisdom of this council to lead the Jedi. Not one man. And you speak as though we are at war. The Republic is in full swing! There is nothing lurking out in the darkness of s-"
"You're blind, Master." Leonost cut in, eyes narrowing slightly at the sheer lack of facts leading the conversation, "The Empire is strengthening steadily. We beat them back and retook the Capitol, yes. We reestablished government, yes. But we did not defeat that enemy. They are still out there, getting stronger by the day. I've seen their fleet with my own eyes. I've reported those very findings to this council and nothing was done. Either you trust me, or you don't."
"Enough." Zhura declared. "We have read your reports Leonost, but much of what you have reported can be seen as circumstantial."
Leon finally broke. He scoffed and shook his head, "Circumstantial..."
"We've heard enough of your ranting Leonost." Yost said, sitting back in his chair. "Will you cease these actions, or will this council be forced to intervene?"
Cool eyes turned ice cold as Leon looked up. "I will not cease. My actions have been taken to defend this council. Every overt move I've made has been to protect our very way of life. If you would deny that, then perhaps my father was correct about you all along..."
That was the straw that broke the gundark's back. Yost was on his feet with a look as though he'd been physically struck across the face. "How dare you!"
"No, Master. How dare you. You claim to be protectors of the peace, but you fail to see what is directly in front of you. We face a threat now that is as real as it has ever been, and you sit here and do nothing. The peace you protect now is false, and I will not stop at words when we are on the brink of annihilation."
"It is finished then." Zhura said sadly, shaking his head. "Leonost Tide, you are a Jedi no longer. You are hereby stripped of rank and privilege, and exiled from this order."
"You will surrender your lightsaber at once, and leave these halls forever." Yost declared triumphantly.
Leon took a moment to get over the ball of ice that hit the pit of his stomach. So this was how it was going to be? Yes, perhaps his father had been right all along. They were naive, to a fault. Always had been. Leonost had just wished with his being that he could help guide them down a different path.
After what seemed like an eternity, Leon stood straighter, lifting his chin and plucked his saber from his belt. "Very well," came the even tone again, almost emotionless. He held the hilt out to his side and thumbed the activation switch, forcing plasma to life in that recognizable snap-hiss. The 1.3 meter shaft of purple energy hummed to existence while it's master stood waiting, "Who among you would care to claim it?"
That seemed to shut Yost down. His palm dropped to his own saber, but Leon saw the hesitation there. Yost had been itching to take on Leonost for years. But had backed down after word of Tide's skill trickled back to him from eye witnesses. "We will have that weapon, Tide. Whether we have to take it by force or not."
Leon snorted derisively. "I earned this weapon. I built it with my own hands, after months of planning and gathering. If any of you wish to claim it, you too, will earn it."
"This is pointless Yost," Zhura said before his fellow Masters could rise. "Let him keep it, misguided he might be, but he's right in that at least he has earned the right to carry it."
Yost was furious, "Remember Master," Leonost said with a touch of cunning in his tone as he powered down the saber and returned it to his belt, "There is no emotion, there is peace."
"Get out." Was all he received in response.
Leon bowed to him mockingly and turned on his heel, but stopped before hitting the door and turned back thoughtfully. "This demeans you. All of you. What you have done here today is indicative of this order and its failings. May you all reap the whirlwind that you've called down upon you."
With that, Leonost left the chamber, and wouldn't set foot in the Jedi Temple again.
Leonost flicked his cool eyes casually to the right, catching the gaze of the Jedi Master sitting across from where he stood in the center of their council chamber. There were five in attendance today. Nothing less for an official judgement. This wasn't the kind of gathering Leonost would have walked into for reporting on his last mission. No this was a group that had summoned him specifically at this time and place for a specific reason. That reason currently unknown to the Jedi Knight as he stood in his civilian attire with his hands clasped behind his back.
"I am afraid I do not understand the question, Master Yost." He answered back easily.
Yost had never been a friend to Leonost, right from the beginning. He was one of the old fashioned minds in the Jedi Order who saw Leon's heritage as a dark smudge on the new Order and its growing repute. A Sith mother and Jedi father was not something to be proud of, it seemed. It was sad that such strong intellectual minds failed to see merging the gap between two factions was a good thing. Certainly, the Jedi and Sith orders respectively would never see clearly, but was it not something to celebrate when enemies could share common ground and put aside their differences long enough to love? There were many in the Order who gave Leonost Tide no never mind.
Master Arlintin Yost, was not one of them.
"You come before us for judgement and wear not a thread of our traditional garb. Do you think that our honored practices are laughable?" Came the irritated response.
Cool brown eyes took in the other faces present with a cursory sweep. Of the five, only one other seemed to mirror Master Yost's sentiments.
Interesting... It appears I will have to dance around this one yet again.
"If I appear before this Council in jest, surely I would be smiling, Master Yost." He started evenly, "In point of fact, I find my current attire more comfortable for uncomfortable situations. Combat and judgments notwithstanding. As for the judgment itself, you have me at a bit of a loss. I came here before you today because I was summoned. Nothing less and nothing more. I was unaware of any rendering that would be held today. Perhaps that could be placed in the realm of unclear lines of communication?"
The last remark drew a small smirk from another Master, because they knew well that Yost had been the one who had initially reached out. There was a fair amount of respect for Leonost Tide among the senior members of the Order. He had proven himself a friend time and time again, as well as a competent leader and strong tactician, often diffusing volatile situations with his words before resorting to his sword. Though his family were known as warriors throughout history, Leon could occasionally slip into the role of diplomat when the times called for it.
All it really did was cause Yost to seethe.
How very un-Jedi like of you...
"That's besides the point. You are here because you have wronged the Order for the last time -"
"Master Yost speaks out of turn, perhaps." Master Zhura cut in, giving Yost a warning look. Zhura was the only Zabrak Master on the council, and not an insignificant voice. He was a man Leon had a great level of respect for, and looked to as something of a mentor after his father and former master had both passed away. "What we mean to say, is that we have summoned you here today, Knight Tide, to try one final time to come to an understanding of your actions of late."
Leonost waited patiently.
"We have received reports that you have been attempting to establish Jedi outposts in the Outer Rim. Can you explain this?"
"Of course." Leon began in earnest, "The reports are accurate. I have been trying to get this council to understand that we are dangerously close to repeating the mistakes of the past. Every time Jedi have consolidated their strength in one place, one enemy or another has risen to strike us down. By establishing outposts of learning away from our present position, we not only ensure survival, but also seem less confined and selfish to the rest of the galaxy. There are still families out there who see us as tyrants, coming to kidnap their special children in the dead of night. We must change public opinion of us quickly if we are to flourish."
Yost slipped forward in his chair and pointed at Leon directly, "That is not your call to make, Tide. It is up to the collective wisdom of this council to lead the Jedi. Not one man. And you speak as though we are at war. The Republic is in full swing! There is nothing lurking out in the darkness of s-"
"You're blind, Master." Leonost cut in, eyes narrowing slightly at the sheer lack of facts leading the conversation, "The Empire is strengthening steadily. We beat them back and retook the Capitol, yes. We reestablished government, yes. But we did not defeat that enemy. They are still out there, getting stronger by the day. I've seen their fleet with my own eyes. I've reported those very findings to this council and nothing was done. Either you trust me, or you don't."
"Enough." Zhura declared. "We have read your reports Leonost, but much of what you have reported can be seen as circumstantial."
Leon finally broke. He scoffed and shook his head, "Circumstantial..."
"We've heard enough of your ranting Leonost." Yost said, sitting back in his chair. "Will you cease these actions, or will this council be forced to intervene?"
Cool eyes turned ice cold as Leon looked up. "I will not cease. My actions have been taken to defend this council. Every overt move I've made has been to protect our very way of life. If you would deny that, then perhaps my father was correct about you all along..."
That was the straw that broke the gundark's back. Yost was on his feet with a look as though he'd been physically struck across the face. "How dare you!"
"No, Master. How dare you. You claim to be protectors of the peace, but you fail to see what is directly in front of you. We face a threat now that is as real as it has ever been, and you sit here and do nothing. The peace you protect now is false, and I will not stop at words when we are on the brink of annihilation."
"It is finished then." Zhura said sadly, shaking his head. "Leonost Tide, you are a Jedi no longer. You are hereby stripped of rank and privilege, and exiled from this order."
"You will surrender your lightsaber at once, and leave these halls forever." Yost declared triumphantly.
Leon took a moment to get over the ball of ice that hit the pit of his stomach. So this was how it was going to be? Yes, perhaps his father had been right all along. They were naive, to a fault. Always had been. Leonost had just wished with his being that he could help guide them down a different path.
After what seemed like an eternity, Leon stood straighter, lifting his chin and plucked his saber from his belt. "Very well," came the even tone again, almost emotionless. He held the hilt out to his side and thumbed the activation switch, forcing plasma to life in that recognizable snap-hiss. The 1.3 meter shaft of purple energy hummed to existence while it's master stood waiting, "Who among you would care to claim it?"
That seemed to shut Yost down. His palm dropped to his own saber, but Leon saw the hesitation there. Yost had been itching to take on Leonost for years. But had backed down after word of Tide's skill trickled back to him from eye witnesses. "We will have that weapon, Tide. Whether we have to take it by force or not."
Leon snorted derisively. "I earned this weapon. I built it with my own hands, after months of planning and gathering. If any of you wish to claim it, you too, will earn it."
"This is pointless Yost," Zhura said before his fellow Masters could rise. "Let him keep it, misguided he might be, but he's right in that at least he has earned the right to carry it."
Yost was furious, "Remember Master," Leonost said with a touch of cunning in his tone as he powered down the saber and returned it to his belt, "There is no emotion, there is peace."
"Get out." Was all he received in response.
Leon bowed to him mockingly and turned on his heel, but stopped before hitting the door and turned back thoughtfully. "This demeans you. All of you. What you have done here today is indicative of this order and its failings. May you all reap the whirlwind that you've called down upon you."
With that, Leonost left the chamber, and wouldn't set foot in the Jedi Temple again.