Private The Hope of Communion

[Ala Quin]

The coordinates had been good, but Ala made certain not to test exactly how good. Her ship touched down several kilometres from the suspected Vanguard position, on the far side of a broad stretch of D'Qar wilderness where rolling grasslands surrendered gradually to thick, towering forest. She chose the distance with deliberate care, ensuring that nobody could reasonably mistake her arrival for an assault. If the front door could not be knocked upon politely, she hoped the Force might accomplish what diplomacy could not.

She brought no escort with her, though she did bring a small cushion, reasoning that even monumental moments allowed for basic comfort. Climbing above the canopy, she found a weathered stone clearing. Ala placed her cushion upon a sun-warmed rock, adjusted it twice, and sat down.

Doubt lingered.

The tip could easily be a trap designed to draw the Grandmaster away from Naboo, or the Vanguard truly were here. The sheer weight of that second possibility, a potential reunification of the Jedi Order, rested heavily on her heart.

A tiny avian broke her concentration, settling on a nearby branch. Ala opened one eye, offering a soft "Hello." The creature chirped, hopping suspiciously closer before brave enough to inspect her fingers. For a fleeting minute, the crushing burdens of the Senate, Thyferra, and the Sith were displaced by a small bird deciding if she could be trusted.

When it finally flew away, Ala closed her eyes. She chose not to probe minds or hunt for familiar presences across D'Qar. She had come because a greater will had led her here. Folding her hands loosely into her lap, the Grandmaster surrendered to the Force and waited beneath the shadow of the immense forest. If they needed to find her, they would.

| Outfit: xxx | Tag: Acier Moonbound |​

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: D'Qar

Equipment:
Vanguard Robes | Lightsaber | Shoto | Cybernetic Arm | Tic

This was getting ridiculous.

Ace stood near the edge of the Vanguard base, staring toward the distant shape descending through D'Qar's atmosphere. It disappeared behind the treeline a few moments later, far enough away that whoever was piloting apparently hadn't intended to land directly on top of them.

Still. First Veruna, then Colette, Sibylla, and now this. So much for a hidden base.

So stupid.

Ace continued watching the horizon. Whoever had found them this time had at least possessed enough sense not to come charging toward the base. The transport hadn't looked military, either. There were no accompanying fighters, or anything that immediately suggested an attack.

Ace glanced around. No Briana, Rik, or no Lorn. Of course. He exhaled through his nose and looked back toward where the ship had disappeared. Waiting around for somebody else to investigate didn't seem particularly useful. If whoever had landed meant trouble, better to find out several miles from the base than when they came knocking at the front door. Ace informed the others to remain behind before setting out and Tic followed.

The forest swallowed them quickly. Ace moved between D'Qar's at an easy pace while Tic picked his way alongside him, occasionally hopping over roots too large for his little legs.

Nothing about the surrounding wilderness suggested an ambush, but that didn't mean much. Ace kept his senses open as they walked, though he made no effort to reach particularly far. Whoever had landed wasn't moving toward them. If anything, judging by the direction he'd last seen the transport descending, they seemed content to remain exactly where they were.

Then something brushed against his awareness, causing Ace to slow. Tic made it several steps farther before noticing and turning back toward him.

The presence was familiar, but not enough that recognition came immediately. Ace stood quietly for a moment. He'd felt that presence before, somewhere beneath everything else surrounding him in the Force was the faint impression of someone he'd encountered. That narrowed things down considerably. Unfortunately, Ace had met a lot of people.

He continued forward, and recognition didn't come until the forest began to thin. Ace stepped through the last stretch of undergrowth and into the weathered stone clearing, his gaze settling upon the solitary figure seated atop one of the rocks.

Grand Master Ala Quin.

Ace stopped. For several seconds, he simply stared at her. There were probably several appropriate reactions to finding the Grand Master of the Jedi Order sitting alone in the wilderness a few miles from the secret base belonging to the people who had broken into her prison and freed one of her Sith captives, who left her injured in the process.

Reaching for his lightsaber wasn't one of them. His hands remained where they were. Beside him, Tic tilted his head toward Ala and emitted a low, curious warble.

Ace's expression barely changed.

"Well, this is awkward." Then after a moment, his expression softened. "How're you doing?"

Ala Quin​

 

[Ala Quin]

There was not even a flinch. No flutter of the eyes. No startling or annoyance. She just remained in her meditation pose, eyes closed and enjoying the warmth of the sun and the ties to life all about her.

Her mind reached out, not invasively, and tugged on Moonbound's awareness. A single concept resonating along the momentary connection. A single word. Friend.

A few moments passed. Almost like Ala was trying to live up the the moniker he had granted the moment. Awkward was an easy state for her to maintain. Before having to maintain the air of dignity and resolve that the title of 'Grandmaster' required, awkward was something she was quite fond of...at least tactically.

Old habits died hard.

"I am sorry for what happened," she finally said, not directly answering him, but she was getting there.

Her eyes finally opened, as a distinct melancholy fell over her.

"Were you aware that Lorn had fallen to the dark side?" There was a noticeable waver in voice, a sorrow that words could not describe. "I am saddened to report...that Lorn Reingard...is..." The word caught in her throat, not a mite of deception resonating through the Force. "...Lorn is dead."

| Outfit: xxx | Tag: Acier Moonbound |​

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: D'Qar

Equipment:
Vanguard Robes | Lightsaber | Shoto | Cybernetic Arm | Tic

The word brushed gently against Ace's awareness. Friend. He'd felt it shortly before stepping fully into the clearing, a quiet impression carried through the Force rather than anything invasive. It had done little to explain why the Grand Master of the Jedi Order was sitting on a cushion in the middle of D'Qar's wilderness, but at least it answered one question.

Apparently, she hadn't come looking for a fight.

A few moments passed after Ace spoke. He waited patiently, making no attempt to fill the silence while Ala remained seated with her eyes closed.

Tic was considerably less patient. The little droid tilted his head one way, then the other, producing several increasingly confused chirps as he looked between Ace and the meditating Grand Master.

Then Ala finally spoke, and she... apologized. Ace's brow furrowed. For what? If anybody standing in this clearing had reason to apologize, it certainly wasn't her. He and Lorn had been the ones who broke into Shiraya's Sanctuary, freed Her, and Ala had been the one who'd gotten hurt for trying to stop them.

Before Ace could question her, Ala continued. His expression fell by a fraction. Lorn had fallen to the dark side? No. That wasn't true.

Ace knew what the dark side felt like. He'd spent several months immersed in it and surrounded by people who had surrendered themselves to it too. He knew what it could turn someone into. What it could make reasonable. How quietly the line between using it and belonging to it could disappear.

Lorn hadn't crossed that line, but that didn't mean Ace hadn't been worried about him. Lorn's behavior lately had given Ace more than enough reason for concern. There were things between them that still hadn't been said, and things Lorn had done that Ace wasn't willing to simply overlook because of everything they'd been through together.

They still needed to talk about it. When he woke up.

Then Ala said Lorn was dead, and Ace's brow rose. Oh, so that was what she'd been apologizing for. He studied her for a moment, searching for something that would make the statement make sense. Through the Force, he found no deception. No deliberate attempt to mislead him. The sorrow coming from her was real. She genuinely believed what she was saying.

A short breath escaped through Ace's nose, carrying more disbelief than amusement. "What're you talking about? Lorn's not dead. I dragged his ass off Thyferra myself." His gaze remained fixed on Ala. "He's still hurt pretty bad."

There wasn't any uncertainty behind the words. Ace had carried Lorn away from that battlefield with his own arms. He'd watched Kitt help take his weight when the evacuation ship arrived. Whoever told Ala that, clearly was misinformed. Or lying. Or stupid.

Things between Ace and Lorn weren't exactly good right now and hadn't been for a while. Shiraya's Sanctuary had driven a wedge between them, and what Lorn had pulled on Thyferra had only pushed it deeper. Ace was angry with him, and worried about him. There were moments lately when he barely understood what the old man was thinking anymore.

None of that meant Ace had stopped caring. Lorn hadn't abandoned him when he'd lost his way. He'd been given plenty of reasons to. Ace had given him more than enough opportunities to decide he wasn't worth the trouble, and Lorn had remained anyway.

Now Lorn seemed determined to return the favor by giving Ace every reason imaginable to cut him off. He wouldn't.

Ace owed the old man that much.

Ala Quin​

 

[Ala Quin]

Even before he spoke the words, Ala heard them through the ripples of confusion through the Force. Immediately, her heart fluttered, hands trembled and she began sputtering as she sought the words for the moment.

"No..."

She stalked away a few tiny, halting steps. And then cast an accusatory glare back at Acier. But no, he wasn't lying. She could feel the truth of it in his tone as much as in the Force. Her glare faded into confusion mixed with relief.

"But...I...I killed him myself." Her voice trembled, mind racing to put the disparate pieces together. "The ship would have exploded...you weren't there."

A few deep, ragged breaths followed, as Ala sought for some calm, but found only questions. Pieces. Fragments of thoughts. Memories returned of her initial inclination that something about Lorn was not right, that she had then dismissed as the corruption of the Dark Side. But it was all...so very much.

The mission to D'Qar had taken a sharp turn.

Ala stepped forward, pulling the distance between her and Moonbound to only a couple of metres.

"Take me to him," she said, in a less than commanding tone. "Acier. Take me to see Lorn."

| Outfit: xxx | Tag: Acier Moonbound |​

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: D'Qar

Equipment:
Vanguard Robes | Lightsaber | Shoto | Cybernetic Arm | Tic

Okay. Now this was getting weird. Ace's expression finally betrayed some of his confusion as he stared at Ala. She'd killed him herself? His senses remained open, searching for something beneath her words that might explain the contradiction, but once again he found no deception. Ala believed everything she was saying.

For a fleeting moment, Ace genuinely wondered if the Grand Master was losing her mind. His gaze lowered, studying her more carefully. The trembling hands. The halting steps. The way her breathing had turned ragged as she tried to make sense of what he'd told her. None of it looked rehearsed. The relief was real too, tangled beneath all that confusion.

Whatever had happened, Ala genuinely believed she'd killed Lorn. But that was a problem for later.

When she stepped closer and asked him to take her to Lorn, Ace didn't answer immediately. His eyes dropped toward the ground. There were plenty of reasons to say no. This was still supposed to be a hidden base, and Ala Quin was still Grand Master of the Jedi Order. Walking her through the front door wasn't exactly an insignificant decision.

But she already knew they were here. She'd deliberately landed several miles away rather than approaching the base directly. She'd come alone. She hadn't threatened him, tried to force her way inside or even searched for the Vanguard through the Force. Whatever else was happening, Ace couldn't sense any ulterior motive from her, and she was clearly distressed about Lorn.

Ace glanced back toward her. Maybe this could be something else, too. After Shiraya's Sanctuary, Ala would've had every reason to want nothing to do with either of them. Ace hadn't forgotten the sight of her going down during the prison break, or that he and Lorn were responsible for putting her in that position in the first place.

He couldn't undo any of that, but maybe letting her see Lorn for herself could be some kind of olive branch. Ace exhaled through his nose and Tic looked up at him expectantly.

"Okay. Follow me."

The journey back passed without incident. Ace led Ala through the same stretch of wilderness he'd crossed earlier, Tic keeping pace beside them until the base gradually emerged through the trees. Their arrival didn't exactly go unnoticed. Conversations stopped. Heads turned. More than a few people stared openly when Ace walked back with the Grand Master of the Jedi Order following behind him.

Ace noticed. "It's fine."

That reassurance didn't stop the staring, but it was apparently enough to keep anybody from doing something stupid.

He continued onward. The medical facility was quieter than the rest of the base. Sterile light replaced the daylight outside as Ace led Ala through its corridors, passing recovery rooms and scattered medical personnel until they reached the section where the most severely wounded from Thyferra were still being treated.

Ace slowed near the entrance. Beyond the transparisteel stood a cylindrical bacta tank, its interior illuminated by the cold blue-green glow of the fluid within. Lorn floated inside.

Bruising and the remnants of injuries sustained on Thyferra were still visible across him, but the bacta had already begun its work. He looked like hell, but he was alive.

Ace stopped several steps behind Ala and said nothing, there wasn't anything he needed to say. He simply watched her, keeping a quiet, attentive eye on the Grand Master as he allowed her to move past him and see for herself.

Lorn Reingard was here. Alive.

Ala Quin​

 

[Ala Quin]

Besides wiggling her fingers in several aborted attempts to greet the droid, the journey back to the compound was fairly uneventful. But upon entering the Vanguard base, humble as it might have been, Ala immediately felt like the villain.

A cold, unwelcoming spirit washed over her. Even with Acier's commendation, she felt the cold stares, the suspicions and she noticed the general mood of the place diminish immediately. For the majority of the Jedi in his place, Ala was a portent of doom for their movement.

All she could do was fight against the feeling of smallness that overwhelmed her. How could she be expected to keep an Order together when so many of its warriors looked at her as the enemy?

Entering the facility behind Moonbound, Ala thought to ask more questions, but the sight of Lorn in the tank of bacta stopped her mouth, even as it hung open in shock.

"But...but..."

Quick half-steps took her to the glass of the tank, before tear streaked eyes glanced back at Acier for explanation, but she waited for none. Instead, Ala dropped to her knees...leaned forward and pressed her forehead against the glass...and closed her eyes.

There she stayed, for how long...she could not tell. Instead, she fell into the Force. Her wearied mind seeking answers that failed to materialise. But one thing she knew, as the long moments stretched out, that this truly was Lorn. Even if it would never truly be the case again, this was her Lorn. Who it was that had beaten her to the point of being broken and nearly senseless, the person whom she had driven her shoto blade through, that had not been Lorn at all. The Dark One had manifested some goulish facsimile, but not truly Lorn.

After what may have been minutes, or over an hour, Ala finally leaned back, and picked herself up slowly from the ground.

The tears had dried. The redness of her eyes had subsided. The only thing that remained was an unsightly red mark on her forehead from where she had been leaning against the tank. She seemed to either not know, or care about the blemish.

"You know that this is all over now," she said — very clearly not a question — without turning to look at Acier just yet.

"The amnesty is over in a few days. A few former Vanguard have already taken up the offer and been welcomed back into the Order."

Finally, she turned back to look at the young outcast, whom she truly desired to embrace as one of the Jedi. "But someone has to answer for the wrong that was done. And Lorn is the one to do it. He would say so himself. You know this as well as I do. He has always had a martyr complex."

Hands clasped behind her back, she stood — dwarfed by the bear of a man in the tank behind her — and retained the calm that she was acquiring with her role. "Darth Carnifex was behind Her's machinations that brought about the incident at the Jedi prison. Lorn broke you out of prison...I will plead your case. Seek a pardon for you...entrance into the Jedi Order..."

She sighed, gently, understanding the enormity of the ask.

"...but you must turn yourself in to Republic authorities. Do this the right way."

| Outfit: xxx | Tag: Acier Moonbound |​

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: D'Qar

Equipment:
Vanguard Robes | Lightsaber | Shoto | Cybernetic Arm | Tic

Ace remained where he was while Ala approached the tank, respectfully giving her whatever time she needed. Lorn had never spoken about it, but Ace wasn't blind. He remembered the way the two had spoken on Naboo. Lorn's reaction after Her had harmed Ala. And now, seeing Ala's response to finding him alive...

There was something deeper than friendship between them.

Ace didn't comment. When Ala finally pulled away, he noticed the change almost immediately. It was almost like watching her switch between two people. A moment ago she'd simply been Ala. Now the Grand Master was back.

Ace listened quietly. The news that some former Vanguard had accepted the amnesty drew little reaction from him. That was their right, and after everything that had happened recently, he couldn't exactly blame anyone for losing faith.

His gaze shifted toward Lorn when Ala said someone needed to answer for what they'd done. She was right about one thing. Lorn would probably volunteer himself for it. The old man had enough of a martyr complex to carry as much blame as anyone would let him. But something about that didn't sit right with Ace.

His attention returned to Ala, expression unreadable. It shifted slightly at the revelation that Carnifex had been behind Her's machinations. Then came the offer. A pardon. Entrance into the Jedi Order. Turn himself in and do things the right way.

Ace was quiet for several moments. All he could hear was betray Lorn. And what did the right way even mean? His expression hardened slightly. Not with anger, but resolve.

"I don't want to be part of the Jedi Order."

Ace had accepted that he was a Jedi. But being a Jedi and serving the Order were different things. He wanted to serve people, not spend his life bogged down by institutions and Jedi politics.

"And... I can be doing more out there than stuck in a cell or serving your Jedi Order." He gestured loosely toward everything beyond the walls around them.

"You can't even guarantee a pardon. If I end up spending the rest of my life in a cell, I can't really go out there and make a difference." His gaze briefly lowered. "I won't be able to properly atone."

A short silence followed, then Ace looked back toward Ala.

"What gives any of you the authority to decide what the 'right way' is?"

Ala Quin ​

 

[Ala Quin]

Ala didn't bristle. If anything, her expression softened. She regarded him for a long moment before the names began to fall from her lips, steady and unhurried. "Tommas. En'Cleva. Gor. Seraphine. Dandria. Pol. Flemdon. Elias. Nima. Erid. Veyra. Jan. Miri. Bevlyn. Gates. Zatt. Zari." She took a breath, letting the last one take the full moment to register. "Isla Reingard." She didn't need to consult a datapad. The roll call lived in her head.

"Children," Ala said softly. She had walked over to stand beside Acier, and turned to look at the tank, at Lorn. Without permission, she wrapped her arm around Acier's and rested her head against him. "Younglings, just some of them. Every single one entrusted to us by someone who believed we would protect them. That when the galaxy grew cruel, we would stand between them and the dark. Some of their parents are dead. Some are a galaxy away. All of them believed the Jedi could give their children a life they couldn't."

She drew a slow breath, the weariness of her position plain in her aura. Her eyes dropped to the floor as she continued. "So yes, I make judgements. I decide who trains them, who leads them into danger, and what risks we take with their lives. I decide when we fight, when we retreat, and whom we trust. I am sorry my certainty offends you, Ace. But those children need me to be as right as I can possibly be. I don't have the luxury of stepping back because the burden of authority makes you uncomfortable. They need someone to decide. Their families demanded it."

Her gaze drifted to the bacta tank, finally landing on Lorn. "And I have decided to judge people by what they do. Even him."

"I love Lorn. With all my heart." Her voice trembled. The facade of Grandmaster dropped, and the broken-hearted woman peeking through.

"I loved him when he walked away, when he broke you out of custody, and when he let the Sith manipulate him. I loved him even when he broke a Sith out of our prison and nearly got me killed. But none of those are his worst sin." She turned fully to the tank, her eyes resting on Lorn's suspended form. "He abandoned his daughter. Again. And when he did, who did he trust for her care?"

She looked up at Ace, face streaked with tears, even visible through the mop of curls that tried to hide her face. "Us. The very institution he rejected, yet trusted to protect his child. So yes, I will judge Lorn by his actions, not by the man I remember, and certainly not by how much I love him. And I will do the same for you."

Her eyes narrowed, gaze piercing. "Who told you that you were a Jedi, Ace?"

| Outfit: xxx | Tag: Acier Moonbound |​

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: D'Qar

Equipment:
Vanguard Robes | Lightsaber | Shoto | Cybernetic Arm | Tic

Ace listened as Ala began listing names, his expression remaining mostly unchanged. Only one drew even the slightest reaction from him.

Isla Reingard.

His eyes shifted briefly toward Lorn before returning to Ala. He continued listening as she explained the responsibility she carried. Ace understood it. He didn't envy her either. Having that many people depending on every decision you made sounded exhausting.

His dark eyes tracked her until she moved beside him. When Ala wrapped herself around his arm and rested her head against him, Ace only glanced down at her briefly before looking forward again. Lorn floated silently in the bacta tank ahead of them.

Ace understood why Ala needed that certainty. She was Grand Master. When it came to the future of the Jedi and the people entrusted to them, somebody had to make those decisions, and she couldn't afford to constantly second-guess herself. But that wasn't what Ace had been asking initially.

"Okay." Ace eventually said. "But why does that mean I have to accept your judgement about what I should do with my life? Why's your way the right way?"

He wasn't dismissing the responsibility she'd described. Those children needed someone responsible for them, and Ala had accepted that burden. Ace just wasn't one of those children.

The weariness surrounding her through the Force was difficult to miss. He remained quiet as she continued, her admission that she loved Lorn confirming what Ace had already suspected. He didn't react, keeping his gaze on the bacta tank while she spoke.

Her point about Isla made sense too. Lorn could distrust the Jedi and still believe his daughter was safer with them than here. Ace could understand that much. Believing the Jedi were too passive didn't automatically mean dragging a child into the Vanguard was somehow better.

Beyond that, Ace wasn't particularly interested in judging him. He wasn't a father. He'd never even known what having one was like. There were probably better people to appeal to about Lorn's failures as a parent.

When Ala finally turned her attention back toward him, Ace lowered his head to meet her gaze. He noticed the tears streaking her face but said nothing. Then came the question.

"Who told you that you were a Jedi, Ace?"

His eyes drifted back toward Lorn. "He did." Ace answered quietly. "I'm just claiming it now."

His eyes found her again.

"You about to tell me I'm not?"

Ala Quin ​

 

[Ala Quin]

She listened. She felt it. She understood it. But he was still wrong.

Lorn had committed multiple crimes. Led an uprising among the Jedi Order. Almost got the person he claimed to love killed. And walked out on the responsibilities to his own daughter, and even still Acier clung to his attachment to Lorn.

Her head leaned against his arm again. She did not look at him.

"Over four hundred mothers and fathers who have entrusted their children to our care gives me the insight to say you are a being dumbass, Acier Moonbound," she said it with such natural calm, that it was hard to tell if she was trying to insult him or not.

"The Vanguard is not building the future. It is just lashing out against the present circumstances," she said, barely above a whisper.

"Your actions define you, Acier. Lorn believes you to be a Jedi. I can sense that you have doubts about him even now. Prove him right. Help us heal the wounds."

She squeezed his arm. A sob could be heard breaking apart the next words. "I know it's hard for me to ask you to trust me when he decided not to...but I am asking you to make a better choice than he did. Be the Jedi he sees in you. You cannot atone for your sins by running from consequences. You only get to choose what you do next, Acier. You don't get to choose what it costs."

| Outfit: xxx | Tag: Acier Moonbound |​

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: D'Qar

Equipment:
Vanguard Robes | Lightsaber | Shoto | Cybernetic Arm | Tic

Ace lowered his head and closed his eyes, a faint smile creeping across the corner of his mouth. Something about the complete calm with which Ala had called him a dumbass caught him off guard.

"Probably."

He lifted his head again. When Ala dismissed the Vanguard, Ace glanced down at her.

"Maybe. But it's trying to be proactive instead of waiting to react to the next crisis. There's value there." His gaze returned to Lorn. "If me and Lorn hadn't been on Ghorman, we'd have never been able to warn the Republic that the Sith were planning to strike Thyferra."

They'd lost. There wasn't much point pretending otherwise, but Thyferra had at least been given a fighting chance. Without that warning, the Sith could've descended upon the planet completely unopposed.

His jaw tensed slightly when Ala told him his actions defined him. Not because the words irritated him, but because they resonated. Ace continued staring toward the bacta tank when she mentioned his doubts about Lorn.

"It's not doubt." He corrected quietly. "I'm worried about him."

Then Ala's voice broke. Ace turned toward her, watching for a moment before his gaze slipped away in thought.

Consequences.

What did accepting them actually look like? Spending the rest of his life rotting inside a cell? Execution? Was that really worth more than being out there, trying to correct some small part of the mess he'd helped create? Helping people who couldn't help themselves. Opposing the Sith instead of waiting behind bars while they hurt more people.

"I..." Ace started, then hesitated.

His eyes returned to Lorn.

"I can't make a decision for Lorn without letting him have a say. He didn't give up on me when he had every right to." His brow furrowed. "I at least owe him the chance to make the choice himself."

A short silence followed.

"Then after... whatever decision he makes, I'll..."

Ace stopped, teeth catching his lower lip. Could he actually promise it? Could he tell Ala that once Lorn made his decision, Ace would willingly turn himself over regardless?

Every part of him resisted the thought. Not because he believed there should be no consequences for what he'd done, but because disappearing into another cell still felt like wasting whatever good he might be capable of doing now.

The words never came.

Ala Quin​

 

[Ala Quin]

Her fingers tightened gently around Acier's arm, the smallest reassurance she could offer. She understood his words, but more importantly, she understood his reasons.

"Ghorman mattered," she said softly. "You mattered there."

She looked toward Lorn, her lips pressing together. "But if we had still been talking…if the Order and the Vanguard hadn't torn themselves apart, that warning would have reached us sooner. People died in that extra time it took us to respond." There was no accusation in her voice, only profound sadness. She rested her head against his arm.

"We are running out of time. The amnesty ends in days." She hated saying it, hated that their reality had devolved into deadlines and consequences when she simply wanted the hurting to stop. "You forced our hand. The Council couldn't leave the door open forever after what happened."

Her gaze fell. There was no need to rehash the bitter truth. Lorn had broken Acier out of Republic custody, and they had broken a Sith out of Jedi custody. Whatever righteousness the Vanguard once claimed was now buried beneath that wreckage. But Ala didn't voice it. She simply looked up at him, pleading. "I am not asking you to decide for Lorn," she said, her hand slipping down to take his properly. "I'm asking you to decide for you."

A fragile smile touched her lips. "If I can get you that pardon, what you do with it is your choice. You owe no allegiance but to do the right thing...no allegiance to me or the Order." Her eyes shimmered. "I would like you to come back. But more than that…"

The smile broke at the edges as her breath caught. "…I would like to call you my brother."

She leaned into him, closing her eyes. "I just want to stand beside you."

| Outfit: xxx | Tag: Acier Moonbound |​

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: D'Qar

Equipment:
Vanguard Robes | Lightsaber | Shoto | Cybernetic Arm | Tic

Ace's gaze lowered toward the floor. Yeah. Ala had a point. If the Order and the Vanguard hadn't spent so much time at odds with each other, maybe Thyferra would've gone differently. They might've had more time to prepare, instead of relying on scattered warnings passed between people who barely trusted one another anymore. Maybe they'd actually have stood a chance against the Sith.

"Yeah." Ace said quietly.

His eyes shifted toward Ala again when she reminded him how little time remained. A few days. After that, whatever opportunity the amnesty offered disappeared with it. Ace understood.

He exhaled through his nose, running a hand through his ashen locs before looking toward Lorn again. When Ala's hand slipped into his, his attention dropped toward their joined hands. He blinked quietly for a few seconds.

Decide for you.

That was easier, at least. Ace didn't have to decide Lorn's future for him. Whatever the old man chose when he woke up would be his decision to make. Ace only had to make his own. Then something else Ala had said settled in his thoughts.

You owe no allegiance but to do the right thing..."

His gaze remained on Lorn. The pardon wasn't guaranteed, Ace understood that. Turning himself in meant taking the risk that Ala couldn't convince the Republic to grant him one. But if she could...

He could be free to help whoever needed him without constantly looking over his shoulder. No Republic hunting him. No Jedi hunting him. He wouldn't have to weigh every attempt to help someone against the possibility that his presence might make things worse simply because he was a wanted fugitive. He could just do what he'd been trying to do anyway.

Then Ala told him that she'd like to call him her brother. That finally pulled Ace's attention back toward her. For a moment, genuine surprise showed across his face.

She barely knew him. Ace had been a Sith Knight. He'd committed atrocities across the Core, escaped Republic custody, and then helped break another Sith out of a Jedi prison in an incident that had left Ala herself injured. And yet... she still wanted that kind of kinship with him. Still stood there holding his hand and telling him that she wanted to stand beside him.

Compassion wasn't as foreign to Ace as it once had been. He'd received more of it than he'd ever expected to deserve. It still surprised him every time.

Silence settled over the medical room. The quiet machinery surrounding Lorn's bacta tank hummed steadily in the background. Beside Ace, Tic looked up at him and chirped curiously, little head tilting as though waiting to hear what he would decide.

Ace stared at Lorn for several moments longer. Then he looked at Ala.

"Okay." He said quietly. "I'll go."

Ala Quin​

 

[Ala Quin]

Nothing was said for the longest time. Instead, Ala just pressed into his arm. He was young, but he was strong. Stronger than he realised, and definitely the type of man that the Jedi Order needed. Even without a vision, Ala could foresee him becoming a great Jedi, maybe even one of the greatest. All Acier needed was...time. Time to heal. Time to realise what wouldn't heal. Time to heal it anyways. And then time to accept responsibility. He was still young.

Ala could understand why Lorn believed in him. And despite her former lover's misdeeds, she chose to trust Lorn's judgment.

She watched him — Lorn, not Acier — as he floated in the bacta. The wounds were starting to knit together, though the scaring would be extensive. Her mind wandered to the days where he would hold her. Those big arms could wrap around her, each arm on its own. And she felt so safe. The warmth of his presence. The brokenness of his soul that slowly knitted back together while they shared quite moments of closeness.

He had been enough for Ala. It would always break her that she was not enough for him.

"I know you love him," she whispered, wiping a few pesky tears on Acier's sleave. "He is so easy to love."

Again, the tiny Master looked up at the young Jedi. "I promise I will do everything I can to bring him back from his darkening path. Even if it is just to you...I'm not blind enough to think he will come back to me."

Again, she wiped tears on his sleeve, permission to do so or not. And then she let go of him.

For a moment, after walking over to the bacta tank, Ala simply stood there with her palm outstretched to the glass. She did not search his mind, nor implant a thought, nor manipulate his emotions. She simply emitted her heart, her love, her sadness. For not a single moment did she push it past any barrier, she just let the feelings resonate.

"If you are coming with me today," she finally said, "you will need to organise someone here to set up a meeting with Lorn when he awakes...and pray that it is in the next two days..."

| Outfit: xxx | Tag: Acier Moonbound |​

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: D'Qar

Equipment:
Vanguard Robes | Lightsaber | Shoto | Cybernetic Arm | Tic

Ace allowed the silence to linger. He'd always enjoyed quiet when he could find it. There was usually enough noise in his life without feeling the need to fill every empty moment with more.

He didn't react when Ala pressed closer against his arm, beyond briefly glancing down at her. Ace thought he understood her a little better now. Ala had a good heart. Maybe too good of one for the position she'd found herself in. He knew enough about leadership to understand how heavy responsibility could become when someone genuinely cared about every person depending on them.

But maybe that was exactly what the galaxy needed right now. He remembered how quickly she'd changed earlier. One moment she'd been Ala, crying against Lorn's bacta tank. Then she'd stood and the Grand Master had returned, composed beneath the weight of everything expected of her. Ace hoped that, eventually, she'd let more of the real Ala bleed through.

Her voice finally broke the silence. Ace blinked and turned his attention toward Lorn. He didn't deny what she said.

"He's like my brother." His gaze lingered on the older Jedi.

Lorn was even more of an idiot for allowing things between himself and Ala to become what they were now. Ace barely knew her and could already recognize how much of a blessing having someone like Ala in your life could be, especially for men like them.

Although the irony wasn't lost on him. He'd ended things with Fatine, so maybe he wasn't exactly qualified to criticize Lorn for being an idiot.

When Ala promised to do everything she could for Lorn, Ace glanced toward her.

"He loves you." Ace corrected quietly. His eyes returned to Lorn. "He almost lost himself when he saw you hurt."

It wasn't a promise that Lorn would come back to her. Ace couldn't make that promise for him. But whatever had happened between them hadn't erased what Lorn still felt.

Ala wiped her tears against his sleeve again. Ace looked down at the damp spot with a raised brow as she released him and walked toward the bacta tank. He exhaled through his nose, apparently that was his sleeve's job now.

His attention shifted back toward Ala when she mentioned arranging a meeting with Lorn once he woke. Ace didn't need long to consider who he trusted with that. Briana Sal-Soren came to mind first. Then Kitt Solo .

"I have two in mind." He answered.

Ala Quin​

 

[Ala Quin]

Ala had seen the video of what happened after Her had struck the Grand Master down. Lorn's response had been visceral, primal...dark. Even now, she tried not to think about it. Acier called it evidence of his love. But Ala saw something destructive. Something that she could not permit to be excused.

Ala Quin had no desire to be loved like that.

And that was yet another reason to sorrow. Perhaps Lorn was already gone too far, though if there was anyone that would give him a chance, it was her. But her opportunities were far more cautious these days. She could not throw herself into redeeming a dark side stray like she used to, not with all the younglings to protect.

She didn't respond to Acier aside from pursed lips and a soft nod, not of acceptance but acknowledgement.

"Gather your things. I can wait for you at my ship. Though I warn you...it is rather small."

As she walked past the young Jedi, Ala looked up to him and smiled, though it seemed strained. Her mind struggled against the Lorn she loved, and the violent man she had witnessed beat the Sith Lord.

"I will get you that pardon. And maybe then...I can show you a really neat bakery on Narglatch Street in Theed...best Naberrie tarts on Naboo..."

| Outfit: xxx | Tag: Acier Moonbound |​

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: D'Qar

Equipment:
Vanguard Robes | Lightsaber | Shoto | Cybernetic Arm | Tic

Ace watched Ala leave before looking down at Tic. The little droid chirped up at him, apparently expecting to follow as he always did. Ace stared at him for a moment.

Ace remembered Genarius. He'd left Tic with Isobel Serraris without so much as a goodbye before disappearing into the Covenant. He wasn't doing that to him again.

"You're coming with me." Ace said, crouching slightly toward him. "I'm not leaving you this time. You stay with me until you can't."

Tic answered with an enthusiastic series of chirps.

A faint smile crossed Ace's face. "Yeah. Then you'll have to stay with Sibylla again."

He doubted she'd mind. Sibylla had looked after Tic during his time in the Covenant, and Ace was certain she'd do it again if things didn't go the way Ala hoped. Hopefully it wouldn't come to that.

There wasn't much to gather. Ace had never owned much to begin with, and life over the past year hadn't exactly encouraged collecting possessions. He packed what little he actually needed, secured his weapons among his belongings rather than carrying them, and made sure Tic was ready.

His attention caught on something else before he finished. The beskar chainmail shirt Aether had given him. Ace hadn't actually worn it yet. For a moment, he simply looked at it before reaching down and adding it to the rest of his things. Might as well bring it.

Then came the harder part. Ace informed the others what was happening. He wasn't disappearing without explanation. He'd made the decision to leave with Ala and turn himself over to Republic custody. She intended to argue for his pardon, but there were no guarantees, and Ace wasn't going to pretend otherwise. Whatever happened from there, this was his choice.

He also left instructions for Briana to be notified when she returned. Between her and Kitt, Lorn would have people Ace trusted to explain the situation when he eventually woke.

After that, there wasn't much left to do. Ace stepped outside with Tic following close behind and made his way toward where Ala had landed. Her warning about the size of the ship hadn't been an exaggeration.

Ace stopped near the vessel and stared at it for a moment, then glanced down at Tic. Then he adjusted the small pack over his shoulder and approached the ship.

Whatever happened after this wasn't something he could control. Ala would make her case. The Republic would make its decision. Maybe she'd get the pardon she'd promised him. Maybe she wouldn't.

It was a leap of faith.

-END-​

Ala Quin​