[Tethys Carrack]

Tethys stands with a hand braced against one of the transparisteel viewports, watching the sky from above. A fat crescent of Bankor is visible, its horizon crowned with a rough green patch she recognizes as the Viridian Sea. No visible sign of the darkness hiding there, though. Beyond the planet, the larger of its two moons floats into view.

She turns away from the viewport a little, wondering who else might be taking a last look before the drop.

[Niall Organa]

In fact, Captain Niall Organa of the Republic Armed Forces was just drawing up to the viewport next to her. He looked clean, fresh, sharp, and alert, as well as ready for whatever the day would bring. Besides the pistol in its holster on his belt, he had the shield he now wore to battle strapped to his back.

Her glance drew his attention; he looked towards her, his lips curling up into a hint of a smile when their eyes met. "Knight Carrack." Niall said, inclining his head. "I hope I didn't disturb you."

[Tethys Carrack]

"Not at all..." as she turns, she recognizes his face from the staff meetings "...Captain Organa. There was nothing to disturb. You could say I was killing time, if the expression were not so violent."

[Niall Organa]

Niall's lips parted to respond, but that response made him pause. "So it is." He said, blinking. "I'd never realized that before, somehow. And for such a non-violent activity, usually." He gave the mysterious woman a smile.

He looked back to his viewport. "I suppose I'm doing much the same thing. It seems peaceful, doesn't it? You can't see any sign of the devastation from here." He sighed. "But one doesn't forget."

[Tethys Carrack]

"No. Someone with much more sensitivity than me could feel it from up here, but to me it is just... pretty. The mind has to fill in other details." She glances across the observation deck to the viewports on the opposite side and adds, "I chose to look this way and not at Kryze's ships. At least on the planet, life outmasses death."

[Niall Organa]

"Indeed." Niall said, his lips quirking. He followed her gaze, back across to the other side. "As it happens, I made much the same decision. And for much the same reason, although I'm sure I'd put it another way."

He glanced over to her, one eyebrow going up. "May I ask," he began, "-are you one of those Jedi who are sometimes gifted with visions of the future?" He asked, smiling ever so slightly.

[Tethys Carrack]

Tethys shakes her head slightly. "It's never happened to me. Perhaps it will, some day. Though in all honesty, I do not envy the Jedi who experience it frequently." She gives him a quizzical look. "Why do you ask?"

[Niall Organa]

"Mmm." Niall looked back out the nearby viewport, at the planet below. "Perhaps I'm just an optimist. But I'd rather like to think that I can." He sighed pleasantly, looking at the world below. "From here, we can't see the devastation, but we can imagine it. But we can also imagine it being repaired. People returning to their homes. Life flourishing once more."

He glanced back at Tethys, smiling again. "I hope you don't think that's silly. I'm afraid you've caught me in a rather strange mood. Although not an unpleasant one."

[Tethys Carrack]

"It's not silly. That is one possible future." She still stands angled toward the viewport, mostly looking at the planet again. "A likely one, even. Though like all visions, it may not come to pass--or it may come to pass in a different way than you expect."

[Niall Organa]

Niall sighed. "Well. That's certainly true. There's a lot that hasn't turned out the way I expected it to."

His expression grew more serious again. "Is this your first time doing this sort of thing? Fighting a war? I know lots of Jedi were active against the Sith, just a few years ago. One of my childhood friends, Alysele Cortess, fought against them."

[Tethys Carrack]

"Mm. No. I was never on a battlefield before this," she admits. "During my apprenticeship my master was much engaged with keeping the peace on the Outer Rim... we saw refugees often, but we weren't with the Republic fleets."

[Niall Organa]

Niall nodded understanding. "I suppose I was just wondering..." He chewed his lip for a moment. "Is it at all strange? Being a Jedi in war, that is. I've talked a bit to my friend about her experiences. But..." Again, he chewed his lip. "She was a little evasive. Perhaps that means I shouldn't be asking you about it. Nevertheless..." He spread his hands.

[Tethys Carrack]

"It's strange for anyone, is it not? Our sense of the contradictions may be more acute, though." She frowns slightly. "For anyone, it is equally important to remember that fighting is a means and not an end."

[Niall Organa]

"Not everyone." Niall said. "I've met a few that take to it as naturally as an acklay takes to water. The Mandalorians, for instance. Even the ones on our side." He pursed his lips thoughtfully. "I have a hard time picturing a Jedi who would do the same."

"But yes." He nodded. "On that note, I'd say we agree. Our goal is to help the people of Bankor, not to kill the enemy. Sometimes, soldiers forget that. This time..." He nodded. "I think we've been doing well. Helping however we can. It's been an honor to be a part of this task force."

[Tethys Carrack]

"It's not that one can't take to it. It's that, all else being equal, one shouldn't." Tethys shrugs one shoulder. "The galaxy is lucky there are not many Force-sensitive Mandalorians."

Looking over (or, technically, 'down') at the planet again, she sighs faintly. "It has been easier for us than for the locals. We arrived fresh, with ample resources, but many of them have made compromises one way or another. They will have much to resolve before they can truly restore order."

[Niall Organa]

Consciously or unconsciously, Niall's grey eyes followed the motion of that one shoulder. Tethys reminded him a little bit of Aly in a way, the tall grace, the cool demeanor. He wondered if she owned any heels... straightening, Niall cleared his throat. "Quite." He said. "The Sith are bad enough. Although I never had the misfortune to face one in battle." He paused. "For more than a second, anyway."

He followed her gaze back down to the planet. "Yes." He said softly. "It's much easier to be virtuous if you're never tested. The Resistance has very much been tested." Slowly, he nodded. "Your right. The decisions they will make in the coming months will very much determine the sort of people they are. Fortunately, I think it's possible to choose to be good." He looked back to her. "Would the Jedi concur?"

[Tethys Carrack]

"Of course. But it's not always an easy choice." She taps one long finger on the transparisteel, thinking. "In this case, it may require acknowledging bad choices in the past. Or setting aside the bad choices of others."

[Niall Organa]

Niall sighed, his already serious features growing moreso. "You're right there too, I'd say. It's often not an easy choice. If it was, it would hardly be a choice, would it?"

He pursed his lips. "I suppose some people forget that not making a choice is also a choice, in a way. Or letting other people make a choice for you." He grimaced. "I wouldn't want to cede that sort of responsibility to someone else, if I could avoid it."

[Tethys Carrack]

"I'm of the same mind. Someone who says she had no choice... quite often, she is not being honest with herself."

After a moment, Tethys looks away from the viewport and back at Niall again. "You seem to be high in the formal chain of command, Captain Organa. Do you know what sort of resources the Republic plans to commit to rebuilding Bankor?"

[Niall Organa]

Something about that sentence appeared to have a significant sobering effect on Niall. He nodded slowly, his expression serious. "You're quite right, Knight Carrack." He said softly. He turned, looking out the viewport once more.

He turned back, though, when Tethys turned to him. "Mmm. High enough." Niall said, his lips quirking. And the Commander did seem to take a liking to him. "You ask a difficult question." He said, pursing his lips. "The task force has limited resources. I would say that what we can commit to Bankor is inversely proportional to what we expend liberating it. Things have been going..." his lips tightened, "-fairly smoothly so far. If they continue, the rebuilding may be relatively quick."

He took a breath. "I hope to do more to aid it, after the war is over. I intend to speak to the Alderaanian government. We'll see if anything comes of it." He sounded relatively optimistic.

[Tethys Carrack]

She nods once, slowly. "Even a sliver of your homeworld's wealth and training could make a great difference. Though I imagine Bankor's citizens will be wary of becoming indebted to a more prosperous world... well, if any planetary government can defuse such suspicion, it would be Alderaan." The corners of her mouth quirk up.

"I plan to stay on-planet for at least a few months, if I'm not called away. I hope having a Jedi in the vicinity might help to keep the reformation of the planetary government on an even keel... but I don't command any actual resources. Perhaps we should exchange contact details."

[Niall Organa]

"Hmmm." Niall smiled at that description of his homeworld's character. It was one of the nicer ones he'd heard. "I take it you're familiar with Alderaan. Have you ever visited? It's a lovely place."

He nodded. "I'd be happy to exchange information." He pulled out his datapad, pulling up its contact page before handing it to her. "And your idea sounds like a good one. I've certainly appreciated your influence at the various meetings. It was very..." He pursed his lips. "Moderating. And I mean that as a compliment." In case it wasn't clear.

[Tethys Carrack]

"Thank you," Tethys says, raising an eyebrow a bit as she takes his datapad and taps in her own codes. "It is what we do... in theory, at least. Forestalling conflict in a war zone has turned out not to be as oxymoronic as one might think," she adds with a small half-smile.

"Everyone is familiar with Alderaan, but I've never actually visited. My apprenticeship was mostly spent on the Outer Rim."

[Niall Organa]

"Nor as futile." Niall agreed, matching her smile. "I suppose that is the goal of so many things the Jedi do. End conflict."

"If you've never visited Alderaan, allow me to recommend it to you now." Niall smiled. "It is a very peaceful place, with a great deal of natural beauty." He cleared his throat. "I've spent a bit of time on the Outer Rim... although as large as it is, I'd be very surprised if we actually had any overlap."

[Tethys Carrack]

"Sullust? Clak'dor? Medth? Dac?" She shakes her head slightly. "You are right, it is too big for that to be likely, and your kind of business and mine don't overlap so often. I'd like to find a time for a peaceful place." Her half-smile turns a bit wry. "The difficulty in being a troubleshooter is that you generally leave just when things start to be peaceful."