Lion El' Jonson
Mar 6th, 2004, 06:31:55 PM
Lion stood before the Jedi Council, looking uncomfortable. It wasn't because he was afraid of them, he'd done that several times before, and knew them to be understanding.
He was wearing his spotless white New Republic Admiral's uniform, 5 stars displayed prominently across each shoulder. However, he wasn't uncomfortable because of the uniform either; wearing it was practically habit for him now.
Lion was uncomfortable because he was submitting his temporary resignation from the Jedi Order, turning his back on the people that had been his friends for three years...because he knew what he had to do. Because he had to serve the greater good. Because, potentially, the most disasterous event since the Yuuzhan'Vong Crisis had finally reared its head.
He got a quick nod from the Council scribe, and stepped forward into the light, into the center of the room. His eyes swept across friends, unknowns...but he forced himself to concentrate.
"Masters of the Council, I've come before you today to tender my temporary withdrawal from the Jedi Order." he said, looking for signs of a reaction. There were few that he could see, no startled gasps of air...perhaps they had guessed what he was here for from Lion's choice of dress. Maybe it was from his straight military posture..."...Or perhaps they'd pulled it from my thoughts" he said to himself, slightly disconcerted. He continued.
"In the years of my training, Master Dasquian has always instilled in me a sense of serving 'the greater good', in the hopes that one person could make all the difference. Now, I must honor that."
He fell silent for a second, debating whether or not to divulge highly-classified military material to non-military members. "They should know the whole story" he thought. He shook his head and continued.
"What I am about to tell you threatens my rank, my position, and my credibility...but I trust all of you to keep this quiet." Nearby the doors, one of his Noghri guards, Gharatakh, made a whisper of movement. He took a deep breath and continued. "For months now we've been tracking Remnant movements, convinced that they were up to something; however what it was they were doing eluded the minds of our greatest minds. The Imperial forces have been deploying large forces on seemingly unimportant missions, conducting hit-and-run missions against relatively small targets...I refer you to the downing of the Intelligence Gunship Lendrir two weeks ago. Despite this, we were still unable to decipher what the Imps were doing, and concluded that they were playing Sabacc close to their vest...however, now we know."
He stopped talking for a second to collect his thoughts, then continued.
"Less than 3 hours ago, the Imperial Sovereignity layed down their cards...and they had a Pure 23 Sabaac Run. Numerous attacks have been reported against outposts along the NR-Sovereignity Neutral Borders...and those hit-and-runs that nobody was able to decipher; they turned into a road. A road from which an Imperial Battlefleet had moved along, undetected...until this morning, when they launched a massive assault against Bestine IV, our major military presence in the Bestine system."
He stopped to let that information penetrate, and was gratified to see some real stirrings of interest in the eyes of the Council.
"The wheel has been set in motion...and unless the New Republic do something to stop it, disaster will occur. Bestine's shields and planetary weapons were captured by Imperial Special Operations Forces, and most of the major naval assets were blown out of the sky. The Golan II battlestation was disabled in the initial volley, whereas the MC-80b Cruiser Mon Lorrar was blown apart by two Aurora-class Star Destroyers. I met with Naval High Command two hours ago, and was commissioned by Admiral Ackbar to be the tip of the spear....and it is for that reason that I must leave the Jedi Order."
He ended his speech, and looked up at the Council expectantly.
He was wearing his spotless white New Republic Admiral's uniform, 5 stars displayed prominently across each shoulder. However, he wasn't uncomfortable because of the uniform either; wearing it was practically habit for him now.
Lion was uncomfortable because he was submitting his temporary resignation from the Jedi Order, turning his back on the people that had been his friends for three years...because he knew what he had to do. Because he had to serve the greater good. Because, potentially, the most disasterous event since the Yuuzhan'Vong Crisis had finally reared its head.
He got a quick nod from the Council scribe, and stepped forward into the light, into the center of the room. His eyes swept across friends, unknowns...but he forced himself to concentrate.
"Masters of the Council, I've come before you today to tender my temporary withdrawal from the Jedi Order." he said, looking for signs of a reaction. There were few that he could see, no startled gasps of air...perhaps they had guessed what he was here for from Lion's choice of dress. Maybe it was from his straight military posture..."...Or perhaps they'd pulled it from my thoughts" he said to himself, slightly disconcerted. He continued.
"In the years of my training, Master Dasquian has always instilled in me a sense of serving 'the greater good', in the hopes that one person could make all the difference. Now, I must honor that."
He fell silent for a second, debating whether or not to divulge highly-classified military material to non-military members. "They should know the whole story" he thought. He shook his head and continued.
"What I am about to tell you threatens my rank, my position, and my credibility...but I trust all of you to keep this quiet." Nearby the doors, one of his Noghri guards, Gharatakh, made a whisper of movement. He took a deep breath and continued. "For months now we've been tracking Remnant movements, convinced that they were up to something; however what it was they were doing eluded the minds of our greatest minds. The Imperial forces have been deploying large forces on seemingly unimportant missions, conducting hit-and-run missions against relatively small targets...I refer you to the downing of the Intelligence Gunship Lendrir two weeks ago. Despite this, we were still unable to decipher what the Imps were doing, and concluded that they were playing Sabacc close to their vest...however, now we know."
He stopped talking for a second to collect his thoughts, then continued.
"Less than 3 hours ago, the Imperial Sovereignity layed down their cards...and they had a Pure 23 Sabaac Run. Numerous attacks have been reported against outposts along the NR-Sovereignity Neutral Borders...and those hit-and-runs that nobody was able to decipher; they turned into a road. A road from which an Imperial Battlefleet had moved along, undetected...until this morning, when they launched a massive assault against Bestine IV, our major military presence in the Bestine system."
He stopped to let that information penetrate, and was gratified to see some real stirrings of interest in the eyes of the Council.
"The wheel has been set in motion...and unless the New Republic do something to stop it, disaster will occur. Bestine's shields and planetary weapons were captured by Imperial Special Operations Forces, and most of the major naval assets were blown out of the sky. The Golan II battlestation was disabled in the initial volley, whereas the MC-80b Cruiser Mon Lorrar was blown apart by two Aurora-class Star Destroyers. I met with Naval High Command two hours ago, and was commissioned by Admiral Ackbar to be the tip of the spear....and it is for that reason that I must leave the Jedi Order."
He ended his speech, and looked up at the Council expectantly.