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Palpatine?! [ it's an uncharacteristic outburst of emotion from barriss, and it clearly surprises even herself a little. but she reigns in her emotions, looking around them to make sure no one is too startled by her little outburst, then takes a step closer to hux, lowering her voice. ]

I don't know why I'm surprised. That makes a lot of sense, actually.

[ too much sense. she isn't sure if she feels justified in her distrust of the senate or sick to think of how long things had to go wrong for palpatine to declare himself emperor. ]

Tell me, what becomes of the Jedi Order? How do we take to our senseless war being ended?

[Hux glanced around them for a moment but he already knew who most likely could be within earshot.]

The fate of the Jedi was not a pleasant one. They betrayed the Republic at the end and turned on Palpatine himself.

[There is no sympathy or regret in his expression though. He gestured for her to follow him somewhere they would be less likely to be overheard before pulling the datapad from the pocket of his coat once more.]

The attack left him physically injured but he still appeared before the Senate to warn them and assure the galaxy that the plot didn't succeed.

[ following without complaint, barriss still does her own scan with the force to make sure no one strong in the force is nearby, just in case. when they stop, she's close enough that they don't have to worry about being overheard. ]

I'll be perfectly honest with you: I don't like Palpatine. I never have and I doubt anything would make me. But if the Jedi are so... willing to turn their backs on what they had been fighting for, just as easily as they'd turned away from peace at the start of the war, I suppose this Empire might be a worthy alternative. [ that might be pushing it too far. she sounds a little disgusted. ] A change, at least.

[ they had this coming. ]

Whether you like him or not he was the strong leader who was needed to pull the galaxy together. [Personal feelings are irrelevant when it comes to practical matters like governing the galaxy as far as he's concerned.

No one spoke of Palpatine being a warm, friendly ruler anyway.]

It was. The galaxy was the better for the Emperor's efforts to deal with the last of the Jedi who become traitors and bring an end to the wars.

[Without thinking he slipped into the past tense but the admiration for the Empire, for everything the Emperor had done, is clear in his voice. He was proud of his heritage.]

I wouldn't have thought Palpatine trustworthy. Capable of assuming leadership, certainly, but being reasonable and just where he needed to be? [ she shakes her head. ]

But so long as the war ends and the Jedi are held accountable for our actions, I suppose I have no place to be picky.

Edited (accidentally a letter) 2016-07-13 19:43 (UTC)

I would think your loyalty would be to the Jedi Order first and foremost.

[She didn't seem to embrace the same ideals Kenobi apparently clung to and he barely contained his surprise.

It didn't make sense that this would be some kind of Jedi trick- she had nothing to gain by it as his disdain for the Jedi and the Republic was hardly a secret.]

You don't share the same blind delusions Kenobi does.

I have a great deal of respect for Master Kenobi, but of course a member of the Council would hold to his crumbling beliefs.

[ which nearly makes her feel bad for what she's about to say, when she does still hold so much respect for obi-wan, not to mention her own master and so many others in the order who are just... misguided. luminara forgive her, this is just how this conversation has to happen. it's been building inside her too long. ]

My loyalty is to what the Jedi Order should be, not what we are. Because what we are now is war criminals.

In the present, my time at least, Jedi are all but gone, even Kenobi. There is one left and he'll soon be executed for treason and terrorist actions against the Empire.

[He's confident that eventually they'll get to Skywalker and deal with him. Only then could there truly be stability in the galaxy without concern of the Jedi inciting rebellion and uprisings.

It was far too soon to determine if she could perhaps be a potential ally but it was clear they both realistic about the end of the Republic and the Jedi Order. It was a start.]

Even one Jedi with the wrong notion of what it means to be a Jedi is dangerous. [ there's no telling who this lone jedi is, for her, so she has to assume it's someone too like the council for their own good. ]

The Empire must have done well in dealing with us. I'm sure the galaxy is a better place.

[ and maybe someday, someone else will figure out what being a jedi is really supposed to mean and things will balance themselves out again. that's all barriss wants for the future: jedi being what jedi were meant to be. ]

Edited 2016-07-13 22:16 (UTC)

Very dangerous. This one Jedi murdered the Emperor in order to bring back the chaos of the Republic and the Senate.

[There is a flare of strong anger in his words- he had remembered the fall of the Empire well enough and later learned the rest as he grew up. He had been young at the time but he could never forget how everything had changed overnight, how stability become utter chaos so quickly.

It was what gave him strength to do what he needed to do in order to bring back control of the galaxy once and for all.]

It's taken thirty years after the Emperor's murder to start to undo the damage which has been done by attempting to re-establish the Senate.

[ she's glad to hear that palpatine was murdered in the end, but she keeps that opinion to herself. in her opinion, the senate was like the jedi: not able to be reborn until it was entirely cleansed. but this man clearly worships palpatine, so that's not a conversation she's going to have. ]

Because the last Senate worked so well. Unless it was approached in some way that corruption could be kept out of it, I can't imagine it working. Not just twenty or thirty years after the cesspit I'm familiar with.

Well, I disbanded the Senate once and for all. It had been the same cesspit it had been during the Old Republic.

It won't be a problem in the future.

[Granted it was by blowing up the entire star system along with the Senate but it was always good to be certain when it comes to governments founded on terrorism and corruption.]

Good. That is a reassuring thing.

[ yes, her feelings on the matter are complicated, because all of his history does put an end to people she personally cares for, but... it's hard to pick and choose who to hate when groups as a whole deserve it. barriss looks away from the source of all this knowledge for a moment and lets out a breath. ]

I hope that you and your colleagues manage to maintain order better than those who have come before you.

[He never thought he would ever hear a Jedi agree with him that it was for the best that the Republic, the Senate along with it, was gone for good. This was still such a bizarre experience in many ways.]

That is my hope as well. It will not be an easy task but it's one we are dedicated to. The strength of the Empire has endured even through dark times, I have every confidence we have the ability to succeed where the Republic failed many times.

[And despite all he's sacrificed and been through, Hux is proud to be a part of that and to have dedicated his life to restoring order to the galaxy once more.

That moment of watching the Republic perish in fire made all his sacrifices worthwhile.]

May the Force be on your side. [ she's not sure if the force takes sides or if that's just something jedi think to make themselves feel better, but barriss likes to think that the force would want order over all. that's balance, isn't it? ]

I don't think I caught your name.

[He would have appreciated the comment if the Force didn't have to come in the form of Kylo Ren, the cause of so many headaches.]

Hux.

[He doubted the name will be familiar to her. Based on the timeline he believed his father would still be just a junior officer in the Republic army and he didn't recall the name of the Jedi General his father had served under.]

I thank you, Hux, for being more honest with me than my fellow Jedi were.

[ now she wants to talk to them, to ask them what they know, what their excuses are. but that will wait. for now, she gives hux a gracious nod. ]

It was... a fortunate pleasure to meet you.

The Jedi have every reason to lie, as I'm sure you understand.

[Hux saw no reason to lie as she understood the situation just as he did. He gave her the same nod in return.

He was certain that at eventually she would learn of the Hosnian System but it wasn't a concern at the moment.]

Likewise. I hope we are able to speak again soon.

[He's going to be watching the Jedi closely now, curious as to what is going to happen now.]

[ the jedi really do have every reason to lie, don't they? it's an organization centuries in the making, revered and renowned for ideals they can no longer keep up with. barriss has been trying a long time to avoid putting words to her feelings, but this conversation has her wanting to say something instead.

for someone so bottled up, this is huge. ]

I'm certain that we will. Enjoy your time planetside.

[ one more overly formal extended nod and barriss turns to head back to the more populated area they came from. ]

[This conversation could benefit them both in the future. And Hux wondered what it would be like to work with a Force user who wasn't a hot mess most of the time.]

You as well.

[He clasped his hands behind his back, another nod before he turned sharply to head back towards where he could return to Heron.

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