One of You/narrative

“Master Kavar, you must realize that the Mandalorians have to be stopped. Their evil is spreading unchecked beyond the Outer Rim. We cannot wait,” the Jedi said.

Her voice quivered with conviction. She was sure, perhaps not beyond doubt, but sure enough. Such a conviction demanded the respect of the elder Jedi.

“The dark side comes in many forms, my friend,” Kavar said, choosing his words carefully. “You cannot be certain that this is the proper path.”

“No,” she admitted. “But I am certain this path is preferable to the Council's path.”

“How can you be certain?” Kavar asked.

“I feel it,” she insisted. “I feel it in my being. I feel it in the Force.”

“Such feelings should not be ignored, but are you certain these feeling come from within? Perhaps your passion's fire has been fueled by the charismatic words of others?”

“If you speak of Revan, use his name,” she said. “But you know my feelings for Revan, and despite my desire to follow him, you should realize he has little to do with it.”

“If you insist,” Kavar said. “Nevertheless, I sense his mark upon you.”

“Revan's mark is upon the entire Order,” she shook her head. “No. Revan is a necessary figurehead for the cause. His words inspire others; we need as much. Without the support of many Jedi, our cause is doomed. Hence the true evil of the Council's decision.”

“Watch where you point the finger of blame,” Kavar said. “The Council is acting as they see fit. We wish to avoid the tragedy of Exar Kun and Ulic Qel-Droma. It is safer that the Jedi are not exposed to such wanton slaughter.”

“Safer? Safer for the Council, but not safer for the millions dying in the fire of Mandalorian bloodlust. Please, Kavar, we have been friends for too long. Don't throw around words like safe. No one is safe. Not the Cathar, not the Republic, not you, me, or the Council. The longer they sit back, the more will die and the graver the danger becomes. I cannot, in good conscience, allow others to die in order to satisfy my own desire to feel morally superior to the Mandalorians. Our actions will prove our moral superiority.”

“Yet, the Force moves in mysterious ways,” Kavar began.

“What would you have me do?” she asked abruptly.

“Wait. I implore you.”

“If you saw some attacking another, would you step in? If you saw a mugging, a murder, or a rape? Would you wait?” she asked.

“Of course not,” Kavar said. “But that is not the same. We cannot treat the galactic events with the same mindset. The Force flows through everything. It drives and binds. We must wait for it to be clearer.”

“Kavar, let me ask you this,” she interrupted. “Does the Force connect all things?”

“Yes,” he nodded.

“And in the Force, all things are one? Yes?”

“Yes,” he said again.

“Then you and I are the same, in the Force at least,” she said.

“In a manner of speaking, yes,” he agreed.

“Not only are you and I the same, but we both are the same as Atris, Vrook, and even Revan. By a logical extension, we are the same as any Human, as the Twi'leks, and as the Cathar. Why then, should we not be the same as the Mandalorians?”

“I should think, in the Force, you and I are connected to the Mandalorians.”

“But are we one with them?” she pushed.

“Yes,” Kavar said. “The Force binds all living things.”

“Exactly. We are all one and the same,” she said.

“If you're going to suggest that you should wage war on the Mandalorians because they have already attacked you, then I fear you walk a dangerous path of reckless revenge,” Kavar cautioned.

“No,” she said. “Follow me here. If we are the same, then the Mandalorians have started attacking their own self, their own essence or Force energy, yes?”

“Go on,” Kavar said.

“If I go to fight the Mandalorians, I will be doing the same. I will be attacking them, and myself. Thus, I would be committing self harm, perhaps even suicide. But that hardly seems like the proper course of action,” she said.

“I should think not,” Kavar said.

“I could assume that, since all things are connected, that is the equivalent of nothing being the same, or that it ultimately amounts to the same thing. That suggests the Force, even life itself, is meaningless and nothing matters: I have accepted the worst form of nihilism. Again, hardly a course of action worth taking. Certainly, it's not a belief system worth having.”

“What is your elegant solution?” Kavar asked. “You wouldn't be saying these things if you didn't have one.”

“You know me well,” she laughed. “It would seem that the only way forward is a rejection of the premise. We cannot treat this as a galactic event guided by a singularly unified Force that makes us all one. I must be different from the Mandalorians. I must be separate, so that I may fight them as one fights the mugger, murderer, or raper. But that flies in the face of the Council.”

She hesitated.

“I'm okay with that. I can't be one of you anymore. For the sake of others, I must separate myself from them.”

“That is a tall order,” Kavar said.

“Perhaps,” she said, “but it is necessary. I have accepted that. My friend, I'm begging you to accept it too.”

“I can't,” Kavar said. “You know I must remain adherent to the will of the Council. We have to take care. We must remain cautious. I cannot, in good conscience, through myself into war.”

“And I can't stay out of it.”

“I understand,” Kavar said sadly.

She reached to her belt and handed him a lightsaber.

“I think you'll be needing that,” Kavar said.

“Not this one,” she said. “Please, my old friend, take it.”

Hesitantly, he accepted the weapon from her.

“I have a new one now. I wanted something stronger, so it has two blades.”

“Like Exar Kun,” Kavar noted.

“Yes,” she raised an eyebrow. “But mine's silver, like the streams in the Room of a Thousand Fountains. It's something calming and peaceful; it's something beautiful to remind me why I'm fighting.”

“You seem set on your course, then,” Kavar said. “I'm sorry.”

“Me too, but I'd rather hurt you a little than condemn millions to death.”

“Don't lose yourself. There's always a choice. Please.”

She nodded.

“May the Force be with you, Kavar,” she said.

“May the Force be with you...”