Location: Mount Meru, Jedi Temple...Meru City, Alleyway
Allies: [member=Bryn'jarr Astaris] | [member=Ashmedai]?
Enemies: Agents of Evil
Neither Alyona's visage nor body language betrayed any thought or emotion in response to Ashmedai's words. His discourse was rife with simple truths, anecdotes on violence and the ever-changing nature of sentient life and society. His was an analysis of civilization that had stood for millennia, and catered to those idealistic minds that favored upheaval and drastic change. Alyona could not speak for Ashmedai himself, though the more positively-minded Sith Alyona had encountered in her time often used the concept of the greater good to justify violent revolution or the destruction of societies. These were not sentiments Alyona could bring herself to share. If violence begat violence, then violent conflict would solve nothing. Neither would taking up arms against the Republic, which had done more than its fair share of providing and protecting the people of the Galaxy within its reach.
Thrice now Ashmedai had mentioned Jedi genocide, and Alyona grew increasingly perturbed. Responsibility for the events at Ruusan was shared in equity by the Silver Jedi and the Sith, though it had been Sith that opened the Netherworld portal and swallowed myriad living souls. The Silvers had indeed invaded Ruusan, though Sith ideologues had made history by pillaging peaceful populations and she could hardly blame the Jedi for reacting so strongly to a Sith organization cropping up in their neighborhood.
People, of course, chose to see whatever supported their narrative, yet the Republic hadn't even been involved in that conflict. Alyona understood that pushing the burden solely onto the Silvers served the purpose of painting the Triumvirate a rising star, but it had nothing to do with the Republic, or Deneba. And the Triumvirate was suspected of having connections to the slaughter wrought by the Black Tie Syndicate on Mimban recently. Despite these faults in her adversary's expressed thoughts Alyona remained silent for the time being.
She wanted to listen to the man, learn about his perspective on as many things as possible, though the stances he was presenting Alyona had heard floating through the discourse regarding GR relations with foreign entities for ages. The One Sith had, time and again, invaded and conquered Republic worlds, all the while denouncing the Republic as aggressors and war-mongers. Still, Alyona understood; entities such as the One Sith could only survive on violence, they used the excuse of personal empowerment to fuel war campaigns that traversed the Galaxy and back again.
Alyona sighed and shook her head; this was only leading toward the same tired circles of discussion she'd encountered before. There had to be a way to switch gears and Ashmedai himself provided one as he inquired after the Republic's interest in Deneba. Alyona was opening her mouth to respond when the wind whipped up to speed drastically, tugging at her clothes and abrading her naked skin. With no warning aside from the order to hold her breath, the Sith Lord moved to her side; as she sensed no malice in his presence in the Force, Alyona made no attempt to avoid him as he wrapped a powerful arm around her waist. His grip grew tight against her leather belt and she felt the inertia as Ashmedai reached for and connected with Bryn. Alyona's hazel eyes caught Bryn'jarr's own as the world around them seemed to vanish in a blanket of white.
Instantaneously, Alyona found herself stepping through the white and into a dark-walled alleyway, her heeled boots clacking dully on the ferrocrete ground as she retook control of herself. The wind whipped through her hair, setting her ashen locks loose from their light braid. She reached out to steady herself and Bryn, placing a hand on his shoulder as Ashmedai threw himself against the nearby wall to catch his breath. His chest was heaving, and Alyona could see the energy that he'd sacrificed transporting them from the mountain top.
His cryptic words, "This is but the beginning..." Alyona barely caught over the sound of her own released breath. She glanced at Bryn'jarr, ensuring he was unarmed. Neither of them were. Stepping to the rue's mouth, Alyona looked in the direction of the mountaintop. She'd known the battles raging around them were heating up, but the Sith Lord must have picked up on something coming that she hadn't sensed. The mountain's peak was currently surrounded in a mass of swirling dust and debris. It reminded her briefly of the sandstorms on Jakku that continued to feast on the skeletal remains of vessels long passed.
"My Lord..." Alyona breathed, somewhat winded herself by the rush of it all. "I must thank you." She said to him, turning away from the mountain and returning to the man's side. He was already recovering, and for a slight moment, Alyona reflected on how ripe the time was to strike. She glanced at Bryn, but otherwise didn't make a move, other than to cross her arms and step passed the Sith Lord as she decided now was the moment to go on the intellectual offensive.
Alyona could hardly keep the small smile from her lips. It was not an unkind or condescending one, but a smile of pride. "We came for the same reason we arrive at any new world: We were invited."
Alyona took a deep breath and prepared to explain. "My Lord, I'm afraid many people lack a comprehensive understanding of how the Republic functions. When a world desires membership, and the benefits thereof, they make a plea to the Galactic Senate, whom reviews it, and decides whether or not to accept. If they do, the world is inducted, and our governments brought into union. From there, the Republic sends military forces industry officials to provide security and establish the trade and general infrastructure of whatever system or world we have adopted."
Alyona rubbed her hand against her forehead. "Our reasons for adopting this world are fairly innocuous. Deneba's small population expressed a willingness to participate more fully in Republic markets, and the Meru Enclave provided another place of study for the Jedi." At this point, she felt slightly exasperated, as she struggled to understand how such things could be seen as so evil.
"For every world we accept, we find ourselves defending five others, my Lord." Alyona's tone grew more firm, more aggressive. "What is a government supposed to do in a Galaxy where rabid monsters seek to murder and slay for no reason other than their own enjoyment? And now these monsters have armies, and fleets and can extend their reach to the stars beyond! They strike from darkness, killing innocents, putting blood out on the streets of Republic worlds, and you look to us as if we are somehow to blame for a millennia-long conflict instigated by those who seek violence on a whim?"
Alyona set her jaw, crossing her arms over her chest. "No, my Lord, the Republic is not the enemy here, nor on any other world that joins us of their own free will. You say we have proven ineffective, and yet how are we expected to provide for our people when under continuous onslaught by your murderous progenitors? Yutan will provide you an adequate example, I hope." Alyona took a moment to calm her thoughts. "Yutan requested membership within the Republic specifically in the hope of routing out and ending a cult of Force Sensitives that spent their nights murdering innocent people and strewing their entrails in the streets. Their people wanted answers, and protection, and we provided them with this." Alyona sighed, leaning against the wall next to Ashmedai. "Look, for every murderer you name I can give you a saint, my Lord, so there's no use arguing back and forth in that manner. You say you are here to help, for which I am grateful, but in pursuit of enforcing our own ideals we cannot forget what to expect of others. Expect the Republic to be wary of you, and perhaps even lash out, given the right motivation. If this attack on Deneba is not quashed and the true culprits identified and held responsible, it is very likely that your Triumvirate may take the blame, and then we will have needless war between our two peoples." Alyona turned and spat onto the ground. "And for nothing more than what amounts to a clerical error."
Here, the young woman made a clear intellectual stand. "Ideology aside, we both seem to agree that spilling innocent blood is a crime, even when done in response to previous killing. I feel there are a few other tenets we might concur on as well, such as the enslavement of sentient beings and freedom of thought. So let us focus solely on these tenets for now and use them to form the basis of a relationship between the Jedi of the Republic, and the Sith of your Triumvirate. This, my Lord, is an entirely possible goal."
