[center]~|Day 1, 18:10-18-40 GST|~
~| Aboard the Kaggath, Main Prison Complex: Tolun Fi & Jakali |~[/center]

Footsteps could be heard outside of the prisoners bunk rooms, the source of the steps revealed himself a moment later as the door came open, a tall man in a long black cloak taking two steps inside, hooded eyes scanning the room for the next interrogation victim. The eyes were drawn to the Kaminoan, yes, that was the one. He raised one hand, and lightly grasped onto the long necked being, getting the attention of Tolun Fi.

“Come.” He simply stated, loud enough for the Kaminoan to clearly hear him. He didn’t need to say anything else, well, not in the room his was currently in. Surrounded by Jedi with wandering ears. He enjoyed leaving them in the dark anyway.

The Kaminoan felt the unpleasant sensation of a telekinetic force choke engulf his slender neck, although the intent seemed to be to get his attention more than inflict pain. Unfortunately, it was not helping his breathing any. The message was clear; comply, or it gets worse, and as a consular, speaking with unpleasant individuals to mitigate conflict was simply a part of the job. He looked towards the Kel Dor who had addressed him as the Sith arrived. “It would appear someone else has an interest in my mind. I suspect this will take a few moments.” he said, following the man out into the turbolift, hands folded behind his back as he attempted to stand in a dignified manner; the lift wasn’t designed for someone of his height, however. 

“Your people certainly are wasting no time interacting with your captives. May I ask why I was selected so soon?” he asked, wondering if this had anything to do with Darth Nyiss’ proposition. 

“Lets just say that you interest me, I have not seen many of your kind before, none that were Jedi. That itself nearly peaks my interest.” Jakali said in his usual calm, composed tone. He folded his arms behind his back and waited for the lift to halt. As soon as it did he glanced briefly at Tolun Fi before gesturing with his hand for his captive to exit the lift right as the door came open, revealing another hallway. 

“Curious. I’ve found most Sith to be very ethnocentric, with the race of the corresponding name being the ideal and near-humans being merely tolerable, and everyone else gross affronts to their sensibility. You’re surprising, to say the least.” Tolun Fi answered in an equally measured voice, simply stating facts, not challenging the man’s moral philosophy. Not yet, anyways. He exited the lift, thankful for the increased headspace, and he walked alongside the Sith in graceful, measured steps. “It is not surprising you have not encountered Kaminoans before, we are a very isolationist species who are not fond of outside intervention, save for business transactions. As far as I am aware, I may be the only Kaminoan Jedi on record. I imagine most force sensitive Kaminoans are simply purged once discovered, given the arbitration from the genetic purity that is strictly enforced. My parents were strangely compassionate, I believe.”

“Perhaps they were intrigued by the uniqueness of a situation? There are plenty of Force sensitive humans, I am one of many, it is standard practice to allow a child to be taken by either the Sith or Jedi once their gift has been discovered. In my case it was the Sith, which I am quite grateful for,” He said, speaking with his eyes forward as they walked, eventually another hallway could be seen, this one with a small set of stairs, which Jakali ascended. “Tell me, do you place much faith into odds? Whether it be statistics or even gambling?” He asked, shifting the topic.

“Perhaps. Even an emotionless species such as mine sometimes exhibit cracks in the armour, so to speak. It’s always easy to condemn a child that is not your own, and my condition as a force sensitive was not known outside my family. I imagine the Jedi being summoned to collect me was an act to stave off the inevitable, but I cannot say for sure. Secrets are currency, in a way. There may have been others like me. My apologies if this offends, but when I was first introduced to the galaxy at large, I found humans to be something of an improper mess, with such unchecked diversity and physical dimorphisms between various races it was a bit like finding a mutt species. It was not remarkable at all your people harbour many force sensitives, how could you not? Nothing was consistent about you, and you were everywhere, each world creating new conditions and variations of your species. Now I simply find it a curiosity.” Tolun Fi pondered the man’s query for a moment before responding. “Statistics never tell lies, if accumulated properly and accounting for all possible variables from the sample population. Gambling is chaotic and an irrational emotional stimulation that I simply cannot understand the appeal to, let alone how it destroys people’s lives so effortlessly. Why do you ask?”

“Pray that you never venture to Nal Hutta or Tatooine then. The most common sight on those worlds, aside from the murderers, rapists, thieves or poor are the compulsive gamblers. To them statistics are just a miniscule part of their addiction.” Jakali said, as he glanced to Tolun Fi as they reached the top of the stairs, in front of them a medium sized circular room, a large thick glassed window on the opposite end of them, some chairs set around it giving whoever was in them a first class view of the sight below.

“Humans are quite curious, you are correct with that.” He said as he observed what was going on below them in the Arena. Five men, all humans, four on one side, one alone on the other, two of the men had metal staffs in their hands, while the lone figure watched them carefully. Each of them scarcely clothed, really nothing more than the bare necessities for modesty. Around them in the Arena were blood splatters, still there from the previous bout, though the combatants from that had since been dragged out.

“Which would you side with between this group? The four strong side or the lonesome figure watching them carefully?” He asked Tolun Fi, crossing his arms as he watched the scene below, the combatants not yet going at each other.

“I’ve been fortunate so far to have avoided Tattooine in my travels. The climate simply does not agree with my physiology. Nal Hutta, however, was exceedingly unpleasant.” The Kaminoan agreed. He gave a cursory glance around the room, reflecting it looked like an auditorium or observation platform of sorts. When they approached, it became clear that it was a spectator’s box for some kind of arena. The man wanted him to see this; Tolun Fi considered the possibility he set this up for his benefit.

“I would say the one. The four appear to be slaves, given their lack of garment and crude weapons. They would not be set against a single opponent if it weren’t a somewhat balanced fight, if I have learned anything from spectator events such as this, since it’s simply poor entertainment. If somebody wanted to watch a crowd beat a single man, they simply have to walk the lower levels of Coruscant for a short length of time. The single fighter appears to have some measure of consideration, I would venture to guess they are a trained combatant. And given that both of our respective orders produce warriors that can single handed defeat numerous opponents, I am somewhat surprised you would have to ask.” The Kaminoan replied, glancing to the man.

“Sound reasoning, we shall see, please, have a seat.” He said, then sat down in the chair, motioning for Tolun Fi to do the same as the fight began. After a minute of the men trying to intimidate the other side one made a move, one of the four with a staff launching himself forward, his weapon rose at an angle over his shoulder. As he swung the lonesome man ducked to the ground right as the staff end whizzed over him, almost catching the top of his head as the man darted forward and tossed an elbow into the gut of his attacker.

“Predictable. The first attacker goes down quickest.” Jakali said as the the man went down with a grunt of surprise and pain, his weapon bouncing once against the metal floor before it was scooped up by the single man who took a few steps backwards, giving himself more ground.

Tolun Fi sat down next to the man, careful to pull his robes forward so they would not snag. As if on cue, the men began their melee, which the Jedi watched impassively, studying the movements of the combatants. He said nothing to Jakali’s remark as he watched the first fighter go down, expertly dispatched by the lone fighter. It was an an unpredicted outcome. “The others may end up turning overly cautious, I believe.” the Kaminoan observed.

“Which may lead to defeat.” Jakali added as the next action in the fight occurred, this time two of the men moved forward, one with a staff, the other bare handed. They each moved to a side, one left, the other right. An apparent flanking maneuver which their target seemed to notice as held a defensive stance, his staff clenched horizontally in front of him. Then the unarmed opponent sprinted forward, charging towards his enemy. His allie still standing at the side for the moment. 

The lone figure countered, apparently surprised at the bold frontal charge, he quickly moved the staff, swinging it at the attacker’s legs, one end hooking on his opponent’s left ankle. But as he made the move the other staff wielder lunged forward, his weapon smacking into the left knee of his target right as his allie hit the floor hard, his skull hitting the metal ground hard as the lonesome man gasped in pain, falling to the floor, his weapon clanging against the ground.

“Their boldness seemed to have worked there.” Remarked Jakali as the battle raged on, the one man left with a staff aiming the end downwards at the grounded foe who stared upwards, a hint of fear in his eyes, his knee busted. The weapon came down, towards the grounded man’s chest, but the injured opponent saw it coming and rolled to the right, swinging out his injured leg, knocking his attacker off his feet as his weapon went backwards, rolling towards the last standing of the four who eagerly scooped it up right as their group target rose to his feet weakly, picking up his own weapon.

“Not an unexpected result. The larger group does have the larger numbers, the somewhat incapacitating blow may be a bit much for the warrior to surmount. He does have a commendable spirit; a lesser fighter might have simply succumbed to fate, or not have the talent to react effectively. Who is this man? He appears to be trained. One of the guards at the Temple, I presume?”

“Yes, that is one of the temple guards, beaten, dragged onto one of the Sith ships and thrown in here for entertainment. The four others are simple servants, all of them are fighting for their lives.” Jakali said as the fight continued, the single slave moving forward and thrusting his staff forward which his opponent blocked, taking two steps backwards. He then swung his own swing, downwards towards a leg, but the servant saw it coming and maneuvered away. 

He thrusted forward twice more, now the aggressor. The trained guard blocked each thrust with his staff, despite the knee injury he still was able to defend, just move gingerly. But the servant continued forward, another swing which was blocked as the guard continued moving backwards. Then he went on the offensive, his staff blasting out and smacking into the servant’s stomach, causing the man to grunt in pain and almost fall over. 

Jakali leaned forward in his chair, carefully watching the fight unfold. He was surprised by the next scene, one of the grounded servants apparently still conscious grabbed the guards leg and held on for dear life, distracting the man enough so that the remaining slave could muster one more blow through pained breath. His staff impacted with the guard’s skull, shattering the man’s nose on impact as the man went down, crumbling to the floor, still alive yet blood seeping from where the staff hit.

“Interesting. Both sides had everything to fight for. Numbers overcome experience that time.” Jakali simply said as two guards entered the Arena, three others behind them as the guard rose their weapons towards the standing servant who quickly dropped his staff and rose his hands in the air before all five of the combatants were dragged out of the Arena.

Tolun Fi was grateful for the fight to have ended; it ultimately was a waste, and it was a tasteless disregard for purposeful life. It wasn’t, however, anything more or less cruel than he’d seen before. He’d presided over some much more abhorrent instances before, and he knew that there wasn’t always a right answer, just the lesser of two wrongs. There was a chance that most of the men would survive, assuming they received medical care, and the Sith were loathed to depart with their playthings. Tolun Fi expected that the wounded trooper would be called upon to fight again, and again, until he received a fatal blow. It wasn’t much of a life to look forward to. “That was unpleasant. I assume that because it was not a Jedi down in that fighting arena that you have other plans for us than sport.” he observed. “Why were we captured? Keeping captives is a much more burdensome exercise than simply executing your enemy. I also can’t help but notice my lack of bonds. That’s a remarkable amount of trust for a sworn enemy.”

“That is for Lord Nyiss to decide. She has grand plans for the Jedi, I am eager to see how they unfold,” Jakali said, as he looked at Tolun Fi. He was partly bluffing, he wasn’t entirely sure why they had captured the Jedi, but there had to be some dark plan for them, there always was. “You already are weaponless, I feel it would just add more insult to have you in chains and paraded around behind me. Others may do that, I take no pleasure nor comfort in such things.” Jakali added, speaking honestly for once.

“I had the pleasure of meeting her, in the Temple. Your manners are rather akin to hers.” The Kaminoan observed. “You have a remarkable amount of respect and empathy, for a Sith. Because of that, I am content to speak with you as a peer and not insult you by being indignant or defiant. Wasteful exercises, given the circumstances.” he looked at the man, curious. “You sound like you have some reservations about others in your order.”

“Her lordship casts quite the striking figure. It would be improper of me to speak unkindly about my fellow Sith, I will just say that I do not approve of some other their methods or ideals. I am sure you will encounter the others soon enough and draw your own conclusions,” Jakali said. “I am grateful that you are not demeaning to me like the last Jedi I conversed with. They did not return my politeness. It was surprising to me in a way, yet expected in another. Those in my order are vilified and feared by many of the Jedi, often misunderstood, well some are.” He added. 

“Tell me, what are you thoughts on the Sith? Someone such as yourself must have a wider view than others within your order.” He asked, genuinely curious of what the Kaminoan thought of the Sith.

“Likewise, I sometimes find others in my Order wanting in some aspect or another, but that just might be the Kamonian speaking rather than the consular. I’ve spent my life trying to understand people and their motivations, and a constant is strong emotion leads to some rather poor decisions. However, indulge me for a moment and put yourself in the position of the captive Jedi. The Temple is sacked, many are killed, including several that are considered friends, and after seeing the Sith at their worst, you awaken to find yourself a captive, not knowing where you are or what is intended for you. Not long after the drugs begin to wane, Sith begin to collect the prisoners for interrogation purposes. You need to understand that you are an ambassador for what your order does, and one proper individual stands against innumerable crimes in just the past 12 hours or so, I presume. I admit I have no idea how much time has passed since I was put under, but given my metabolism and the common anesthetics available, I estimate between 4 to 7 hours since I was taken offworld and now.” he said, adjusting his position so he could face the Sith easier. He did not have to collect his thoughts to answer the inquiry.

“The Sith represent chaos, and the Jedi represent order. Where you let your emotions guide your decisions, the Jedi strive to let logic and reason guide our hands. If the galaxy had no Jedi, the Sith would strive to conquer the galaxy, likely subjugating anyone who wasn’t considered pure enough Sith blood. If there were no Sith, the Jedi could let civilizations take their course and act as the peacekeepers and diplomats that we are meant to be. It is because of the Sith many of our best minds are dedicated to the art of the lightsaber more than resolving conflict elsewhere with the less enlightened. Unfortunately, the Jedi and Sith are two sides of the same token, and one side must always be down. A balance, the token standing unaided on its side, is impossible while one or the other exist, and simply put I think the Sith are misguided and needlessly hateful. Like the Jedi who are forced to fight to simply preserve our Order and peace in the galaxy, I believe there are many amongst the Sith whose potential is simply wasted because they belong to a dangerous ideology that promotes treason, treachery, and selfishness to achieve any measure of success. I imagine you’ve had to do quite a few unpleasant things to reach your station and fend off more than one attempt on your life thus far.” The Kaminoan said. 

“Chaos is but freedom at its most unchained. Unchained chaos is exactly that, without point. Sith represent freedom, emotional and otherwise. Part of one's humanity is emotions, anger, sadness, love, without these men are but machines meant to be born, live then perish. Jedi try to push their system of values throughout the galaxy, yet sit in their temples while planets burn, men die, women are ravaged and children are enslaved. They have the nerve to label my order as heretical and launch a crusade in order to wipe us from the galaxy like a plague. True order comes through actions that stop these, the Jedi will only move to stop when these occurrences have happened, while the corpses rot on the floor. When these conflicts never occur, then that is order,” Jakali said. “While I do not agree with your views, I am grateful that you allowed me to hear them.” He added.

“And humans, or any other species, is welcome to express themselves as their culture and biology dictates. Serving an Order isn’t unlike serving a military, where one must exhibit control over oneself to better the cause. The Sith seem to think that by tapping into primitive emotion as a source of strength, they free themselves, but nonetheless you still serve an order, with set rules, expectations, and punishments for transgressions. You and I are no more or less free than one another, all that is different are the particulars of our respective stations. I assure you, I have done much more than sit idly by in a temple, as you put it, but rather I have prevented some of those cataclysms you seem objecting to, if not outright repulsed by it. 

“The assault on the Jedi Temple was strategically and tactically brilliant, and I am certain historians will commend it several generations from now, but it wasn’t just the Temple that burned, was it? Coruscant burned, men died, I can only assume lust is an emotion that some Sith used to ravage some women, and many of the Jedi you hold captive are children, some haven’t even made their vows to the Order. It would seem that these things you accuse the Jedi of doing have shrouded your own eyes from what your own order has done. Had the Jedi been the Sith’s only target, the entire planet need not have burned. Neither side is innocent of crime, anyone who’s taken a moment to look at history holocrons could tell you that, but one crime does not justify another. I share your mutual sentiment that it is pleasant to discuss our respective philosophies as peers, but I must ask if you can truly say the Sith are a force for good in the galaxy, especially with what you must have seen.” Tolun Fi said, his voice even and articulate, the tone pleasant.

“Some actions are necessary. A part of a grander plan. I can assure you that her lordship’s intentions are a necessity. I can acknowledge the sins of my Order, but I am not responsible for those sins, if I were able to stop them then I would, but I am unable to. Sith embrace all emotions, for every angry individual that strikes down an innocent there is another that falls in love with a different innocent. To create good, sometimes one must sacrifice. For every single killed, a hundred more will be saved.” He replied, almost copying Tolun Fi’s calm tone.

“Never underestimate what a single individual can accomplish. You have more power than you think. Power doesn’t always mean physical strength or the amount of followers one has. Something to consider, at least. In the coming days, or even weeks, I expect some of your compatriots will engage in some rather unpleasant activities with the captives.” Tolun Fi gestured to the area, the blood still glistening in the light. “And there will be unchecked cruelty. The ends don’t always justify the means, and if you do not understand the plan you are ordered to follow, then perhaps it is worth considering what power you have versus what is being taken from you. We Jedi won’t be the only victims, just the obvious ones. I suspect you will hear screaming, and see more blood, and I humbly request you consider what we spoke of. Jedi do not torture those we disagree with, or harm them for standing for something we do not agree with. It’s only when we are left with no choice do we have to take lives.” He paused, staring at the blood. “To think, we’ve accomplished something here by simply listening. Perhaps if others did the same, there would be no need for war.” 

“Sometimes the right decisions are not the most morally correct ones.” Jakali replied, one of his hands tapping the arm rest on the chair as the words from the Kaminoan sunk in slightly. He rose from his seat, and the Jedi followed suit. “A sentiment I happen to agree with. Not everything is black or white, nor the correct path always clear. Sometimes one must make a choice they feel is right and stick with their convictions. Right or wrong, at least one acted.” 

The two returned the way they came, returning to the prison block wordlessly. A brief pause in the turbolift as they both collected themselves. Tolun Fi spoke first. “Although I did not catch your name, I must thank you for the rather stimulating conversation. It has given me much to consider, and I should hope we will have future opportunities to engage in discourse once we had some time to reflect. I wish you well, and may the Force be with you.”

“It is Jakali. Perhaps we will speak again.” He said before the Jedi was nudged back into the bunks with the others, the door shut and Jakali was gone from the area, moving down the hallway.

Tolun Fi looked at the Kel Dor, Alat, offering a measured blink. "Similar minds, indeed."