Coruscant Federal District
Jedi Temple
Somewhere a few hundred metres into the Archives
An unlabelled room
Meditation in space had helped Zeya calm herself though she suspected not for long. The same struggle was on her mind when she brought her starfighter back in late in the day and walked through the cavernous halls of the Jedi temple to the archive room. Walking amongst the high shelves of holo recordings and other data many in the galaxy would kill to get their hands on was a humbling experience every time. It also struck her how much could be done with the information, and how much the Jedi were not doing with it. It was this concern that motivated her to step up to one of the archive consoles and begin a search in the philosophy and writing archives regarding the Jedi's role in the galaxy and republic. The usual texts she had read as a Padawan came up - but she had already looked there for answers and found none. A more thorough search than the ones she had already done would turn something up, she hoped.
This particular afternoon, close to evening actually, saw Master Lonwin once again taking up his familiar place in the halls of the Archives, finally in a peaceful place after the exhaustion that had preceded the investigation he had found himself caught up in. After times of stress, Lonwin liked to retreat to his books and spend a day or two simply recuperating from the contents of whatever had occurred before, absorbing himself in the vast contents of the Archives he, for all intents and purposes, called home. Unfortunately for him, today did not count as after a time of stress. It was still firmly rammed into the tumult of events that had started with the bombing of Mercy's Own, and Lonwin was not in the Archives to relax. Despite the serene surroundings, the eccentric Master was still on edge, and he was finding it rather difficult to allow any sense of calm to pervade his being. Padawans and Knights asking for his help, a common occurrence among those who either had not heard of his rather interesting reputation or were simply brave enough to ignore it, were met with increasing annoyance, something he was having some difficulty stifling. Suffice to say, Lonwin's mood was foul. What he really needed was to spend a few days relaxing and regaining his energy. What he had was a murder investigation of the highest possible priority breathing down his neck for information, and a dozen possible leads in a dozen separate directions. Everything from contacts among the Underworld to a particularly suspicious corporate lobbyist nagged at his mind, leaving him increasingly questioning whether getting involved had been a good idea. Thank the stars there's some sort of Force user involved, he thought quietly to himself. I'd have been bored stiff trying to do this otherwise.
The calm around Lonwin was suddenly interrupted by a slight ripple in the force. For the master it was barely noticable, and the padawans and knights in the room who might not be as well attuned to the force probably did not sense it at all. Looking up from his book Lonwin glanced around the room with his eyes and the force trying to figure out what the disruption was. He settled on a woman who had only recently entered the room that was perched over a computer console reading a record or searching the archives for something. The ripples in the force were coming from her, though Lonwin also sensed that she was trying to contain them. Now very distracted from his reading a somewhat annoyed Lonwin stood up from his chair and walked towards the jedi causing the disturbance.
She did not notice Lonwin approach behind her. He stood there for a moment before she sensed him and turned around. She looked him over and her eyes lingered on his unusual light rapier for a moment before she made eye contact.
"Hello... Master. Is there a problem?" she asked him. The ripples in the force around her suddenly contracted as if she was trying to pull the emotions causing them back in.
Lonwin smiled, in what he hoped was a non-threatening manner. It wasn't unusual for the more socially aware Knights to dive for cover as he passed by, and he hoped his presence wouldn't make the student in front of him any more anxious than she already was. The veritable cloud of worry surrounding the young Jedi was already distracting enough to the oversensitive Master as it was.
"Is there a... huh? Why are you asking me that? You're the one projecting a cloud of anxiety halfway across the Archives!"
He softened a bit after that outburst, and grinned at her. Her face was somewhat familiar to him, probably having seen it in some announcement or ceremony or the other. Lonwin made the point of keeping track of new Knights, even if it was just to better-avoid them.
"So, er, Zeya isn't it? What are you freaking out about not finding today?"
Lonwin's statement caused Zeya to pull even more on her emotions, calming the force around her down slightly. Her feelings were still noticeable to the master however. She composed herself and responded to the master.
"I am looking for philosophical guidance, on the role of the Jedi order in the galaxy. I have read all the most common texts, but those no longer... satisfy me."
Through the force Lonwin could sense Zeya trying to contain her emotions in as she said that. Her strong feelings about the subject she was searching for information on would be obvious to him.
Or, at least, you'd think they would be obvious. Lonwin, however, wasn't the most perceptive of individuals when not in the grips of some streak of paranoia, and at this point was tired, stressed, and vastly overworked. Reading emotions took energy, which meant that the Master was skimming emotions off the top without much interest in what lay beneath. This meant that he completely skimmed over Zeya's deeper concerns and fixated on her words. Oh thank the stars, she must have just been reading ontological philosophy, he thought to himself, relieved at the prospect of getting this problem resolved quickly. While it was technically the duty of the Masters of the Archives to aid any Jedi in need of assistance, he found himself desperately wanting to be finished with this so that he could get back to work, or perhaps to sleep.
"Ah, old Jedi philosophy! That's wonderful stuff, very interesting if you start delving into the niche bits. Unfortunate bit's that most of the information is spread across a couple of sections of the Archives, despite my efforts to get a proper philosophy section organised, so you're going to have to do a bit of walking and preplanning. What part are you interested in starting with?"
Zeya considered her answer for a moment.
"I am looking for writing on the Jedi's role in the galaxy. Recent events have left me looking for a new perspective on things."
Master Lonwin probably had his own opinion on those events - and his own reading suggestions. Lonwin seemed to be the talkative type, and not the exceptionally conservative judging by the lightsaber on his belt. Zeya wondered if an older Jedi like him had at some point held the doubts about the order that she did.
Lonwin looked at the young Knight, a tinge of humour touching his eyes. The young Knight seemed troubled by what had happened recently. Seeing that look in the younger members of the Order wasn't exactly unusual at this point. It'd be unusual for a such a young Jedi not to be unsettled after that horrific scene at Mercy's Own, especially if she'd been there herself.
"Well, there're a couple of different ways you can approach that particular one. One would be to look at it from the point of view of what our official mandate and ideals are on the matter, in which case you'd be in the law section about 10 chambers down. I'm guessing you want the philosophical takes though, which means you aren't in quite as much luck on the way things are laid out. You should have access to the files, since you're a Knight, but I know the UI of our search systems still needs some revision so I can understand why you'd struggle to pull them up without knowing their names so far. Master Pathorrh's tomes are generally considered a good starting point if you're trying to brush up on the general philosophy of the Order's interactions with the galaxy, considering how much of an influence he had on most post-Ruusan thought. Personally, I'd also recommend Grand Master Kouratur's Eclectic Dissertion as an insight into pre-Ruusan thought, but that's a rather deep rabbit hole to look into. Of course, if you'd like a modern interpretation, I'd be more than willing to give you my views on the matter. Can't say they'll be too, er, in line with usual orthodoxy though."
Zeya wrote down the names of the masters Lonwin was suggesting onto a data pad in her hand as he said them. She had heard of none of them before, but what interested her most was Lonwin's own thoughts.
"I will read what you suggested, but what are your own thoughts? I have to say mine have not been so... in line either."
A chair rolled slowly across the room, neatly putting itself in place just as Lonwin sat down onto it. While it may have looked effortless, he'd had considerable practice replicating the stunt, something that had been punctuated by the chair often scything out his legs after being pulled with too much force, or him sitting too early and making a fool of himself. As ever, he made no sign of recognising that his ostensible "effort-saving" manoeuvre took more effort than manually fetching the chair. He lent back into the chair and clasped his arms in his lap.
"As I see it, the Order's far too involved with politics for its own good, especially since, at the moment, it is totally incapable of actually controlling what's going on in the wider galaxy. We're hopelessly vulnerable and completely at the mercy of the whims of whoever happens to be Chancellor, and considering how rare it is that non-Jedi actually understand the mandate of the Order, I reckon that's a very bad thing. Being involved in politics itself isn't necessarily a bad thing, to be fair. Hell, the Order outright controlled the entire galaxy as feudal lords all the way up to Ruusan, but we were always the ones in control of what was happening. These days, we're being pulled along by our ears. If the Council really knew what was good for the Order, they'd use the opportunity right now to pull us out of galactic politics entirely, leave ruling the galaxy to the secular government. Our role should be using our abilities to help everyone, not playing around as glorified ambassadors trotting around Naboo and a million other rich worlds trying to settle financial disputes. It feels less like we're actually trying to help the galaxy and more like we're trying to cater to patrons by now, as if we even need the damn money."
The usually placid, or even cheerful, Master's face was creased with a frown, betraying how prickly of an issue this truly was to him. He didn't quite look angry, simply annoyed.
"Of course, the Council doesn't want to hear a word of it. They are, after all, supposed to be the guiding light of the Order, and don't ever seem to take dissent or disagreement as valid. So, naturally, we'll stay involved, keep on intervening in conflicts and political messes that have nothing to do with us, until eventually we run into something that soft power cannot save us from, at which point our pathological need to hang onto the remaining power from what we lost after Ruusan will come back to bite us. You're free to form your own opinions on that one, but, if you wanted my opinion, there it is."
Zeya was glad to hear that Lonwin agreed with her, in part. She wondered if her own late master would have agreed with him and then responded.
"That thing with the chair was impressive, I hope you can teach me how to do it. I agree for the most part with what you said, but the Jedi have a responsibility to improve the galaxy and change it because they have the power to do so. The issue is not politics are only good when the Jedi control them or even are completely on their own - the Jedi can make mistakes on their own - it is that the Jedi for all our claims to supporting balance and peace have always supported the opposite. The Republic tolerates the most brutal gang warfare on its own capitol planet and much worse on countless others. Senators have always treated their jobs as ways to enrich themselves and in many cases the supposedly democratic Republic keeps senators from planets which aren't democratic at all in its government! Even the trade federation has representation while the innumerable people who have lived, worked, and died for them have no representation or real rights at all. When the Jedi ruled over the galaxy as feudal lords before Ruusan things were not better. Billions died in Jedi civil wars and billions more died of the chaos they are dying of now."
Zeya paused and considered how much she actually trusted this master in front of her. He didn't seem the type to report anything slightly out of line she said, so Zeya continued.
"The Jedi have failed on every level in bringing balance to the galaxy. The Jedi tolerate and support the worst imbalances. I have seen the slums on and Ord Mantell, my homeworld. It strikes me that if I was not taken in by the Jedi I would be dying in those same slums, probably little more than a slave to some massive cartel with a senator or to the business interests of the senator that is supposed to represent me. No regime like this will last forever. What happened at Naboo is nothing compared to the daily horror of virtual or literal slavery that the majority of the galaxy's population experiences under the Republic."
The ripples in the force around Zeya had turned from slight disruptions into more of a cloud of emotion, an expanding one at that.
"Soon the galaxy will change. It must change. All that is needed is some spark to ignite the fuel that the Republic has drenched itself in. If the Jedi are blind to this than the Jedi might very well be destroyed, and it worries me how blind the council is to this. Corde Vane's death was very disturbing to me because the little information that was released about one of the political enemies of the Jedi council being killed in suspicious circumstances implies the council had something to do with it. Maybe I am younger and less familiar with the way the council works, or maybe the council did have... a part in that. Regardless, the tolerance the council has of the evil that has always controlled the Republic means that they tolerate imbalance and allow it to grow. Knowingly or not, the council serves the evil they are supposed to guard against"
At this point the expression on Zeya's face was tense, and the usual calm she tried to present herself with was gone.
Lonwin chuckled, unperturbed by Zeya's intensity. Truth was, this wasn't the first time he'd had this sort of conversation, and almost certainly wouldn't be the last. Troubled young Knights these days were a common sight, most of them with some conviction that the world actually cared about their morals. As if the Force itself actually cared. He rather liked poking fun at them, in a gentle sort of way. It helped them try think on their feet instead of swallowing the usual "Council isn't doing anything" attitude, if nothing else.
"It seems you already have your mind made up about our role in the galaxy, young Knight. I can see now that you aren't really looking for old books on philosophy by dead masters to try inform your views. You're looking to test your views, to try challenge what you're convinced you understand with the hope of proving to yourself that you're correct. It's an admirable impulse to have. You'd probably have made, or could well make, a fine Academic, with proper training to focus your thoughts of course."
The eccentric Master stroked his beard thoughtfully. He was vaguely aware that his work was going undone, but something about this particular conversation seemed rather important. It might at least serve to give Zeya some direction on how to introspect on her beliefs as she'd formed them. Besides, work could wait a bit. It wasn't like he didn't deserve a little break, after all.
"Your mistake has mostly been to look to books for counterargument, not people. A book cannot argue back. You can always win an argument with a book, and if you don't you can simply close to damn thing and forget about whatever it said that incensed you. If you're looking for a challenge, go find other Jedi, and try grapple with their beliefs instead. You'll find that a lot more thought has usually gone into their actions than you'd originally imagined."
Lonwin smiled happily, and steepled his fingers in front of his chest. He absentmindedly swung his chair back and forth as he spoke, his engagement keeping him from noticing his usual mannerisms.
"Let's play along with a little thought experiment here. Imagine you are the Grandmaster of the Order, with at least a respected say in our decisions even if you don't have the final word on the matter. You can see that the Republic is crumbling. Rent-seeking has crippled the bureaucracy, planets are openly secessionist, and the Jedi Order is increasingly having to run about shoring up bulkheads to stop the whole settlement from exploding around everyone's heads. Obviously, something needs to be done, but how exactly do you intervene? You're not exactly in a very good space to do anything. The Order's split down the middle along a frankly ridiculous ideological schism, Republic arms of government don't trust us anymore, and, whatever we've done so far, it hasn't even seemed to delay the inevitable. Your options aren't very good either. If you withdraw from politics entirely and let the whole thing collapse, it could set off a civil war that kills trillions, and leave a good chance that whatever faction comes to power will explicitly blame us for what happened. We may be strong, but we're by no means invincible, and any military worth its salt will comfortably be able to wipe us out. Not a good choice hey?"
Lonwin left a second for his words to sink in, before continuing.
"Or we could fix the problems directly, by massive, direct intervention into politics. Start up some populist movement set on "revitalising" the Republic, maybe, or even just overthrow the Chancellor in a coup. That's essentially what you're advocating for. The Order numbers between 10 000 and 100 000 depending on your metric, and we're currently trying to spread our aid across tens of millions of worlds. To manage permanent, fundamental change, we'd have to take the political reins. And then what? The galaxy came damn close to shooting us before Ruusan, and we willingly signed away all of our control after that to make sure nobody decided to get rid of the Jedi as soon as the Sith were dealt with. If we try to take back power now, who says the Judicials don't just come in and kill us before we go through with it? If we fail, there's no way we'd be able beat the Republic. They have orbital support and a combined arms force that can be stretched out to trillions of personnel. There's no way that could ever end well for us. So then what can we actually do? The route the Council has chosen is to keep propping up the Republic and hope that Senate gets its act together, but, as you said, Coruscant burns while we wait. Personally, I feel like we should put our backs behind the Militarists and get them to start picking up all the reins of power that Senate dropped earlier on because we could pick up the slack, but even that's still not exactly a guaranteed success, and the only thing it ends up doing is affording us a way to exit stage left. The practicality of it all is awful, but it is what it is, and while your idealism for what we should be doing is admirable, you're eventually going to have to consider what we can do instead, and I'm afraid that particular vista isn't very pretty. So, what's your choice on what we're to do going to be?"
"I don't care about any abstract idea of political power. Power is always used for some purpose - how can it be abstracted from that purpose? The Republic uses its power over countless worlds to loot them for the core, the Sith used what they had to fight for more loot and authority for themselves, and the Jedi don't have power at all because we refuse to use it. The Jedi are incapable of governing as well. Our leadership lives in a literal ivory tower. We are utterly disconnected from everyone else in the galaxy, both spiritually and physically. The best thing we can do is take the right side of the struggle when it makes itself open and before that work to ensure our own survival. At absolute minimum right now the Jedi should be aiding the people that live in the galaxy rather than the people that just rule it, which is something we do not do despite our unimaginable wealth. The council knows this. You and I know this."
Zeya paused for a moment, unconsciously running her hand across her lightsaber.
"The militarists in the senate are the wing of politics most devoted to maintaining the status quo. Words have failed - to continue pillaging the galaxy requires violence. To resist that requires violence. I reject the idea that I am filled with some type of idealism - I have only stated fundamental facts about the Republic and where it is going. The Jedi are incapable of leading any type of government the way we exist now, and maybe have always existed, so we must choose a side to support when the Republic breaks. I worry that the council will choose the wrong side."
Lonwin frowned again, this time slightly irritably. Zeya's beliefs weren't entirely uncommon to see, but they could constitute a danger should they ever prove to dictate policy.
"And who, exactly, is qualified to make the call on what the right side to take is? You, a Knight barely out of her teens who doesn't even know how to navigate the Archives? Give me a break. The Jedi Order even deigning to notice non-members is already an expensive act of charity, and arguably oversteps our mandate vastly. We're supposed to be an Order of monks dedicated to following the will of the Force. The Force, I'm afraid you will find, does not give a single shit about the Republic, or whether the Militarists are going to keep it going or not. It isn't just our damn leadership in the ivory tower, the entire Temple is one, for good reason too. The last time the Order truly involved itself in the wider galaxy, it led to the Light and Darkness War, a conflict so unimaginably destructive that entire continents are stained white with the bones of the soldiers and innocents who died in the battles we fought, to "help" the galaxy. Your vision of us getting involved is nothing more than a complicated and destructive suicide method for the entire Order. We shouldn't be involved with what happens to the Republic in the first place, and allowing that to happen has already become an expensive mistake. We are not incapable of governing out of some limitation, we're unwilling to, because the last time we tried that method it kicked off a forever war that lasted 1000 years and ended up killing a quarter of the galaxy's population. Our "side" will have to be whoever keeps power. Nothing more, nothing less. Trying to suggest that we should abuse our power to dictate the course of the galaxy isn't just naive, it's arrogance of immense proportions. I imagine you'll be able to see that once you're exposed to what the world really is."
Zeya mirrored Lonwin's expression. The accusation that she had not seen what the world really was struck her as exactly what Lonwin had described her as - arrogant.
"The right side to take is obvious for anyone to see. You see the problems just like I do! The will of the force, whatever it is, is not this. The Jedi cannot section themselves off from the galaxy and they can't rule it either. It follows that we must support people who would at least improve something. My 'vision' as you called it is the only way the Jedi can survive. Much of the galaxy already sees us as servants of a corrupt and evil government. What do you think the trillions of people on this planet think when they see Jedi defend the senators but never the people they are supposed to represent? That is what the world really is. I haven't been around as much as you have, but I have spent much of my time outside the temple looking at what the world really is. What I have seen is deeply disturbing to me. Our side needs to be whoever will stop the galaxy from degenerating into a tyranny of the out of touch senators or much worse. I think the seeds for this movement have already been planted."
Lonwin's frown deepened further.
"Perhaps they are obvious to you, the Knight who hasn't had to make a serious decision in her entire life, but to those who have to actually make the decisions, or indeed any decisions at all, things are not so clear. You have never been forced to choose between 3 different forms of suffering. Hell, I doubt you even know what a political settlement [is. All that you're doing right now is running along with your smug assurance that your way is the only way, that everyone else in the galaxy is blind while you are the only one to see. Do you really think I haven't seen the suffering around us? I've spent half my life out in the field, trying to piece together something to help the galaxy, to help those in need. You may have big ideas about how important you are, but you haven't seen the things I have. The craters that stretch past the horizon. The battlefields where the ground has been melted to glass by the heat of war. The planets surrounded by so much debris that the ring is visible from another star system. The graveyards we made. What you're advocating for would burn the galaxy to ashes, and, contrary to what you may think about phoenixes, nothing grows on ground scorched by turbolaser fire. You may think you know what our Order does. You may think you know better. It simply demonstrates that you have never been faced with the consequences of the actions of similar such Jedi, who all thought they knew better. Do not be so foolish as to assume that you are the only person in the Order who might know the right course of action. It would be a mistake that would be your undoing, young Knight. Tread very carefully in the halls of knowledge you yourself do not hold."
Zeya restrained herself from responding in the aggressive way she wanted to. Lonwin was someone who had seen much, but Zeya suspected he had seen some things more than others.
"That type of thing will happen soon regardless. The Jedi will be involved one way or the other. The relatively short horror of a brutal war is not greater than the ten thousand year horror of starvation, poverty, and violence. The graveyards that have all the victims of that war are small compared to those that have all the victims of the longest war in history that has been fought against them by the people in that senate building not too far from here. What I am advocating is trying to prevent that apocalyptic vision, and I spoke to you about it because I want to learn how to do that. If I was smug and arrogant I wouldn't want advice - I wouldn't even be here. I came here to learn. The terrible things you describe to me must be prevented and if the Jedi are in a position to do something to stop that from happening we must. I will tread very carefully in the future."
Zeya bowed her head to him in a gesture of respect and began to walk out of the archives with a data pad of Jedi philosophy in her hand and some new ideas in her mind. The rippling in the force around her caused by chaotic emotions no longer existed.
Lonwin, from his little swivel chair, watched her stalk off, a wake of annoyance dragging behind her. If she'd put any sort of effort into it, a little raincloud would have materialised above her head, leaving a trail of water to match the thunder her mood left. He could sense a disconcerting feeling of clarity from her, as if she'd finally come to a decision in the clouds of her hesitation. There was only one thought in his mind as he watched the Knight leave.
Stars above, what kind of arrogant gits is the Order producing these days?
