Day of Defeat

[Eugen Aker]

Pantera-class Stealth Frigate Nighshade, in transit

The Galactic Alliance's latest defeat against the First Order was still fresh in Jyoti's mind, but she didn't fret. She didn't have the time, as other crises cropping around Alliance space required an immediate response. Like the Silver Jedi not too long ago, the Galactic Alliance was now experiencing the full dreadful might of the Sith and Imperials.

Some referred the new round of conflicts as the Great Galactic War, but for the Jedi who had known little but constant warfare for her entire adult life, it was just another day. However, if there was something a little different about this time around, at least forces of light were putting up a united front this time, instead of allowing each other to be picked one at a time like before. For once she was hopeful that everyone would finally get their act together as they were now on the same page on a common threat.

There were a few days between her next assignment with her Alliance partners, so she and her crew had some downtime until the next mission. She left them to their own devices while she devoted most of her free time studying the findings collected by the the SJO and SIS on the new interdiction platforms deployed by the First Order. The exact mechanics of operations eluded her, but slowly the engineer was beginning to piece together clues about their operation.

Besides her personal research sessions, there was one more matter that Jyoti wanted to resolve quickly. Allyson was still attached to her unit, so she wanted to use the opportunity to clear the air. Jyoti knew she hadn't left a very good impression on the Corellian during their first meeting over Sullust, and she regretted the words she had said in anger, even if she hadn't necessarily been wrong to say them with their mission in mind.

No formal meeting had been scheduled, just Jyoti informing Allyson that they should talk at some point about her problems, Jyoti usually able to be found in the operations center or adjacent to it. As of now, no official disciplinary action have brought against the Lieutenant, under the understanding that she would eventually reach out for help.

[member="Allyson Locke"]

 

[Allyson Locke]

Space Stations, if Ally didn’t have to be in a space station for the rest of her life she would be just fine with that. Once again, the space station she was on was lost and exploded or whatever else. Her mind made sure the fog out the ending of the battle. She dug into her pockets and realized she had dumped all of her glitterstim. There was a frustrated groan as she rested her head on the glass of the door that lead to the operations center. She had been summoned by Jyoti the last woman she wanted to see right now.

Their interaction before the mission wasn’t the best and Ally wanted to get out of this unit, but it seemed SIS had made sure to lend her to Jyoti longer than necessary. Shaking her head, she opened the door and kept her hands in her pockets. Talking to a few of the people inside they instructed the agent towards the room where Jyoti was located. Ally had her aviators from the rogue squadron on her face as she entered the room and remained by the door as it closed. Reaching up, she pulled the aviators from her face and folded them into her pocket. They weren’t under anything official, so she didn’t salute the woman instead she remained against the wall near the door.

“You asked to see me.”[member="Jyoti Nooran"]

 

[Eugen Aker]

The door to Jyoti's cabin led directly to a spacious living room/office, with her bedroom sealed behind another set of doors.

She was at her desk when Allyson entered, working through research on S-threads, something that could help circumvent the First Order's new interdiction platform. Off duty, she was back in white Jedi, comfortable as pajamas. Her hair, usually tied up in a braid, had been s loose.

"Lieutenant Locke," she greeted as she turned in her seat to face Allyson. "Thank you for seeing me today. Now please, have a seat and make yourself comfortable." She motioned for Allyson to take one of the free seats before her desk.

So far, Jyoti was doing good about remaining composed, but her stomach was now full of butterflies as she had Allyson to herself for the first time in a while. By now she would have pounced the other way woman for a hug as a Arisa. It pained her greatly that she couldn't under her current alias. They were both back at square one until she admitted the truth.

If she ever could.

She flipped her monitors with a mental command as she waited for the Corellian to take her seat. The door would also lock from the inside, so they weren't disturbed as she spoke to Allyson. Short of some crisis springing up during transit to the Unknown Regions, she was completely free for the moment.

[member="Allyson Locke"]

 

[Allyson Locke]

[SIZE=10pt]An eyebrow raised as she heard the request from the General. Allyson didn’t move right away, she remained by the door with her hands in her pockets. This was such an odd request from the woman, she wondered if Jyoti was just going to scold her some more about the glitterstim. It was probably better to just get this over with than to prolong it. The General was a busy woman and so was Allyson. She had holo calls to make especially to a certain Borleian girl. Allyson’s slender frame moved from the door and sat down in the chair that Jyoti had offered her. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]A casual flick of her head, the brown locks brushed out of her face as she relaxed back in the chair. Hands rested in her lap as she sighed heavily, she knew she was going to get a tongue lashing from Jyoti and then from Kaili. At least in the long run, she didn’t get blown up by the space station this time around. Allyson showed her slight annoyance as she brushed her loose strands of hair from her face and shrugged. “Alright I’m comfortable.” [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]Adjusting in the seat, she smirked. “You’re being awfully nice to me right now. You can yell at me and get it over with.” [/SIZE][member="Jyoti Nooran"]

 

[Eugen Aker]

Allyson took her seat, but not before spouting off her quips and making it clear that she didn't want to here right now.

Jyoti had forgotten just how cheeky Allyson could be. Such an attractive quality while courting the woman in the past, but currently just irritating and a little hurtful as she tried reaching out. All the while, she maintained her poise against the verbal jabs; she would not be easily ruffled.

"I like to be nice, but then I usually don't have to worry about my junior officers being irresponsible around impressionable subordinates." Now it was her turn to smirk, but only to mock Allyson as she mirrored the Corellian's expression.

She had to admit, there was some fun playing this frosty Echani.

"Look, I'm not here to bust your ass. I'm not going to scream at you and treat you like a child." She glanced over at the door. "Rank went out the window as soon as you stepped into my cabin. I just want to speak to you woman to woman right now and try to understand what's going on with you. While doing so, it would be greatly appreciated if you could dial back on the snark. Sound good?"

[member="Allyson Locke"]

 

[Allyson Locke]

[SIZE=10pt]Allyson watched and listened. Jyoti wasn’t her usual ‘General Nooran’ self. It was an interesting change that the young Corellian took note of. Maybe the General was someone Allyson could trust for a change. The slouched posture she had been keeping, adjusted and the Corellian sat straight up. Deciding to do what the General had asked, she made herself at home. The jacket was shrugged off her shoulders and placed casually around the backside of the chair. She now sat in her unregulated white V-neck t-shirt with her dog tags hanging low around her neck. Her arms didn’t return to being crossed over her chest, instead they fell into her lap. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]“Alright, I’m sorry for the attitude. Just a lot has been on my mind along with the mission on the station. I’m sure you heard what happened the last time I was sent onto a station…” Allyson shifted uncomfortably. Having to basically detox from the consistent glitterstim intake was hard on her, but with the stim shots she was receiving they helped her along with the sleep aids she was taking as well. At this point, she really wanted to be with Kaili – but the higher ups had passed a message to the doctors and they decided that for the remainder of her detox she was to stay in the Alliance facilities. Sighing softly, she shrugged. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=10pt]“That’s really it, just a lot of stuff is going on General.” Along with her post-traumatic stress when it came to the space station infiltration, Allyson was also dealing with Kaili wanting her out of the Alliance and the SIS. Knowing that the next few missions she had coming up were her last – there was a feeling that she didn’t want to feel. A sort of guilt built up in her chest as she knew that walking away from this would cause a lot of strain on the forces. She liked to think she was important to the cause…but she was only a Lieutenant. [/SIZE][member="Jyoti Nooran"]

 

[Eugen Aker]

With the discipline of a Jedi Master, Jyoti kept her gaze at eye level after Allyson removed her jacket.

It was hard. Everything about this private meeting was surreal. Having to bottle up her true feelings for the woman and keep up the literal face of a stranger, who she just wanted to embrace right now as they were alone.

She nodded along as Allyson began to open up about her issues. From their time together on Kiara and beyond, she knew how severely the Corellian had been affected in her mission on Anoat. With her case of PTSD and related drug habit, she really didn't have any business operating right now. That just reflected the dire state of the Galactic Alliance right now, who needed everyone they could grab, especially Allyson, a strategic asset with her powerful technopathic and astrogation abilities. Powers that could win entire wars.

They wouldn't let her go, not easily.

"Yes, I've reviewed your file," Jyoti said with a nod. "I commend you for your ability to overcome your condition for our last mission. We may not have been able to break the First Order's blockade, but the data we were able to collect make the mission a success in my book. Wars are never won over a single battle. I can assure you, next time, they won't be able to pull that trick again. Not on my watch."

While she would never admit it aloud, the First Order's blockade was a good thing for the Galactic Alliance in the long run. It roused them from apathy and showed them that there was no reasoning with the First Order, who almost gleefully broke their treaty with no hesitation.

The Galactic Alliance would either rise to the challenge or die as at the Galactic Republic before it.

"I accept your apology. I should apologize for my behavior back then too. I just hate seeing such promising officers ruin their futures with that garbage."

She hated seeing her lover destroy herself with the glitterstim, like she had seen countless others before on the streets of Plexis. That was the real reason she had snapped at Allyson.

"I'm glad you're now seeking assistance, so that's a start. If it would help, then we can talk about your problems. I am a Jedi before an agent."

[member="Allyson Locke"]

 

[Allyson Locke]

Hearing the apology from the General made Allyson feel uncomfortable. The woman had every right to yell at her the way she did, in the end if that drug hindered Allyson’s abilities – she could have gotten them all killed. Either way, the girl nodded accepting the apology. Slender fingers brushed aside stray strands of chocolate strands of hair as she began to feel more comfortable with the other woman, sitting there felt as if she had done this many times before this. Jyoti felt easy to talk to, Allyson figured it was because the woman was a jedi. Most had the ability to show empathy and at times control the emotion in the room.

Allyson wondered if Jyoti had chosen to do so for this situation. Either way, Ally would have been grateful. Hearing the option to vent her personal issues sounded tempting, but she felt they were inappropriate for the General. Waving her hand, Allyson shook her head. “Its not really anything General. Just stuff at home and being called for this.” Shrugging, Allyson would eventually gloss over the interrupted vacation.

“I was told I was going to be on medical leave for some time till my reevaluation. So, I decided to spend some time with my girlfriend, uh…” Allyson wondered if Jyoti would recognize Kaili’s last name with the Marshall being Aela Talith. She continued briefly, “Kaili. We were on Borleias. HQ said that you personally requested me to be on your team. Also, apparently I’ve been officially transferred to be under you command till you grow tired of me.”

Sighing softly, Allyson once again brushed her hair from her face. “I’ll have to make that up to you along with all the others. Maybe we can talk about my availability a bit more? I don’t know, I know this job is a lot, but its straining me and Kay.” It was obvious that the entire situation was a struggle for the officer to put into the open. She paused, and a slight smile spread across her face. “That woman is a handful. Love her though.” [member="Jyoti Nooran"]