Message in a Holo

[Ara Zambrano]

Location: Spaceport of Avalonia, Dosuun

The spaceport buzzed with a flurry of activity, ships preparing to leave, others just arriving. Cargo was being transported from every direction as the Disciple walked confidently through the mess. Clad in her typical black and red attire and cloak, the only new addition, a simple half mask covering all of her face save for her eyes. As she boarded the borrowed transport, a small group of crew and troopers launched into action, saluting the girl before heading to their stations.

Her footfalls echoed down the ship's length as she headed straight for the control room and the ship's comm system. As the doors slid open, she wasted no time in ordering the rest to clear the room.

"Out. Now."

The crackling hiss of the vocalizer an alien sound to her. In short time, the room was clear save for the pilot of the ship.

"Your orders, sir?"

"We will not be departing for Val'hala today. You and your crew have two days off. Be ready to depart immediately when you return."

A quick salute and the pilot cleared the room, leaving the young Ren alone with the instrument panel. Sighing, she pulled the mask down, enjoying the freedom of a deep breath not tempered by the metallic tang of the mask. Stepping up to the panel, she activated the ship's holo system.

"Master, I need to speak with you. Immediately."

She leaned forward, palms resting on the panel in front of her. Now to find out what Talon Ren would ask of her in regards to the man, [member="Connor Harrison"], seeking information on their order. And to see how much trouble she was about to be in.

[member="Kriel Firin"]

 

[Kriel Firin]

Kriel was teaching a class on the perils of Force Drain. It appears one of the Disciples had learned it and was earning honour points within his peers by teaching them.

It was a highly addictive practise and was not something to be undertaken lightly. Kriel had taught one of his Disciples the technique – but only when he became a Knight. He hoped the lesson had been fruitful – sometimes something being banned was even more enticing to the young and foolish.

As he left the training room, he was paged by one of his current Disciples. “Give me a few minutes,” he responded and headed to his private chambers.

Once there, he connected to Ara via the holo-projector. “Greetings Ara – what is it that is so urgent?”

[member="Ara Ren"]

 

[Ara Zambrano]

She ducked her head once in greeting.

"Master."

She debated launching right in on the topic of the former Jedi, but protocol said she should report on her mission first.

"The mission was successful. The smuggler is no longer a concern and the map safely in First Order possession. I was planning on staying here on Dosuun through the Military ball, if you are agreeable."

She shook her head, she was being idiotic, avoiding the true topic. Her hands gripped the panel in front of her a little tighter.

"I called to report on an ex-Jedi seeking information on the Ren. Says his name is Connor Harrison."

She left it at that. Simple, she wondered what his reaction to the name would be, if it even mattered who.

[member="Kriel Firin"]

 

[Kriel Firin]

Kriel nodded his recognition of his Disciple. He chose to remain silent and waited for her to lead the conversation. Her voice had sounded urgent and so he was sure she was about to impart something of note, so he allowed her free rein to speak.

He duly listened and was pleased that her mission had been a success – but surely this was not the reason for the conversation. And the ball? Hardly a reason for urgency.

“Stay and report back – intelligence, even on our own is never a bad thing. Who comes across as trustworthy is always useful to know.”
And then he paused again, assuming she was saving the best – or the worst – to the end.

And once he heard, he knew she was right to ask his opinion on the subject. “The name means nothing to me, but that isn’t necessarily important. If he’s noteworthy, his name will appear on a database somewhere. What is concerning is that he has any information about the Ren.”

He paused and his Disciple knew him well enough to know he was considering the information and the best next step.

“Ex-Jedi or spy? In a sense it matters little. The First Order has many Force users that follow the command of the Supreme Leader. If he wishes to join the ranks, so be it. Please share any information you can recall on the First Order. But withhold information on the Ren."

"Tease out of him what he knows – and how he knows it. Our strength to date is our ability to remain largely undetected. Our operations are covert and our ability to serve the Order is primarily in that capacity.”

“I trust you to manage the conversation and to deny anything that is feasible to. Share only what you have to – see this as an extension of your current mission.”

“Is there anything else?”

[member="Ara Ren"]

 

[Ara Zambrano]

Ara shook her head, knuckles white as she gripped the control panel in front of her. It was time to come clean, to an extent. She should have walked away long before she did. Instead, she had new scars and aches, and had to find a way to let Talon Ren know that he'd insisted on meeting with him. Or the Supreme Leader. This had the makings of a royal chewing out all over it.

She smiled sheepishly at the holo.

"I can answer some of those questions already. We...spoke earlier today. He knows the Order has Force users working for the greater good. He suspects they- we- work in the shadows to further the Order's goals."

She paused, glad they were speaking over holo and not in person.

"He says he has seen the Ren in action, although he has never met one in person." She smiled ruefully, the irony not lost on her. "He also persisted in his questioning of the Ren despite my denials and reassurances that the stories he had heard where just that- legends."

She paused, considering how best to word his request. She held up the comm chip to [member="Connor Harrison"]'s ship.

"He asked that I contact him regarding someone who could offer him more information than I could."

She winced, waiting for her master's reaction. She should have walked away. She should have walked away. She should have walked away.

[member="Kriel Firin"]

 

[Kriel Firin]

Kriel listened and marked off responses in his mind, waiting for a gap in the information to share his thoughts.

“His knowledge of the Force is accepted; he was a Jedi after all. But just as I can’t tell a Sith from a Dark Jedi, he can’t tell a Ren from a Sith. So he could be fobbed off with the story that the people he sees are simply Sith – secretive in the way the Sith assassins were in their day. Or the Jedi Shadows for that matter. They wore masks to protect their true identity after all.”

“And Ren in action?” Behind the mask he smiled. “He has seen Force users in action. Maybe even Force users in masks. But that does not make them Ren per se. What differentiates us is our philosophy.”

“But I see you have been placed in a difficult position. I would not recommend you divulge any further information – but then, I don’t see a point in flat denial if, as I suspect, he will continue to search and a loose cannon is far more likely to share our secrets. And given you know him already, it makes sense for you to be part of that conversation.”

“So I propose we both meet him, or I can do this remotely. Whatever works best.”

[member="Ara Ren"]

 

[Ara Zambrano]

Ara ducked her head, glad for the moment that she had done as expected.

"Whatever you think is best, Master. Shall I arrange a meeting here in Avalonia?"

She could arrange the meeting a few days after the ball, especially if he attended as she believed he would. If not, well she had his information and could contact him that way if the need arose.

Her lips tugged up in a smile as her master echoed something she had said to Connor when they had parted ways. If he kept asking around, he'd get himself killed in short order. This was the best option for all of them.

"I will take care of it. Thank you, Master."

She shut the holo off after another respectful bow and slumped into the chair. Her vision was spotty again and her arm burned more now than it had before. Time for a shower and then a rest. Soon [member="Connor Harrison"] would have the meeting he requested. This would be interesting.

[member="Kriel Firin"]

 

[Kriel Firin]

Kriel considered her proposal. He was expecting an immediate request for information, but a few days of delay allowed him time to reflect on the situation and to understand a little more about the Force user that was doing the requesting. He was aware that any publicly available data was to be considered suspect, but at least it would give him a measure of the person he was due to meet.

“Yes. Avalonia is perfectly fine.” Kriel had no intention of inviting him to one of the Ren’s academies and so the location of his Disciple was ideal.

He nodded as she exited the conversation and then sat for a while, his fingers steepled. After a few minutes, he moved once more – this time he moved to his desk and accessed a tablet. Time to do some investigating of his own.

[member="Ara Ren"]