Ask Changing The Tide

[Darth Arcanos]

Azar was never one to go anywhere unprepared. He had a briefcase full of samples of his alchemical compositions to do trial runs in local labs on Manaan. With the ISC having lost its hold on the planet, it was wide open pastures for the Sith to sink their claws into a massive market. Over the past few years, Azar extensively studied up on various scientific practices. Bacta and Kolto were chief among his interests, and his own brand of alchemy would prove useful to play in the space.

With the help of some more tech savvy Sith, Azar registered and incorporated a shell company for the Sith to leverage. Aztec Labs is what he called it, shameless about putting his own stamp on it. He had asked for another Sith to meet him in Ahto City. He was adorned in formal clothing - civilian attire he found agreeable that weren’t as blatant as robes.

He had asked specifically Anai to join him on this excursion. Like others, he was curious about her and her insight into their elusive Dark Lord. However, he wasn’t silly enough to bluntly ask for such things. His entire demeanor and the way he carried himself was a night and day difference from the club. He stood taller, prouder, his face rigid and set with purpose.

@Versok

 

[Caerllion of Cyfnos]

Caerllion's trip to Manaan ended up being a last minute decision. He had been instructed to meet with Azar in Ahto City, after the Pureblood's original partner for his mission had some conflicts in her agenda. He hoped that Anai was fine. The Kaleesh was nice and a good Sith.

He arrived on the planet wearing a formal outfit. The Annfyn wanted to be presentable for this mission, because there were some chances of them stumbling with some of the local aristocracy. It would be excellent if, besides their mission, they also start ties with the recently independent planet.

The Annfyn found Azar waiting in the city, dressed in a similar way that he was. It was a stark contrast to the clothes that the Pureblood was wearing in the party of Nar Shaddaa. He even missed seeing some of the other's skin. "Hello, Azar. Good to see you again." Caerllion said, while bowing politely.

@Sreeya

 

[Darth Arcanos]

Azar wasn’t too fussed about the change in mission partners. Anai was better suited to brute force. With Caer, he could likely accomplish a bit more with diplomacy instead of violence. He gave a polite nod and a smile to the other man, pleased to see he dressed the part. Azar’s gaze briefly flicked to the man’s ears, deciding they were adorable and wondering if he could wiggle them.

“I am pleased you can join,” He said as he thought about the plan. There could be some changes and modifications based on who was joining him now, but they could figure it out together, “I am going to be a representative from Aztec Labs and I will present some prototype samples to the people at New Hrakert Station,” It was the above ground station connected to the rift for manufacturing kolto. He turned to look at Caer, “I had originally asked for Anai to join me to strong-arm the competing labs into silence, but I imagine you have craftier ways of doing so,” He said with a smirk.

“There is one other main supplier that we need to shut down to make us look more lucrative. That’s where you’ll come in,” Azar explained, “It’s called Liran Tech. I’ll let you decide how you want to take them out of the equation, but the less attention it draws to us the better.”

@LouJoVi

 

[Caerllion of Cyfnos]

The Annfyn paid close attention to Azar's explanation of his plan. If Anai's role was to scare the competition with her imposing presence, Caerllion would need to do it in another way. He wasn’t the most bulky Sith around here. Being honest with himself, he was starting to not care about it anymore.

"Indeed. I know some ways of making them stay in silence, or even making a fool of themselves." Caerllion smiled at Azar, his pupils flashing red briefly. From the classic counter argumentation to outright telepathic control. "You only need to choose and I'll do it. I don't have Anai's muscles, but I know many ways of being scary."

A devious smile appeared at Caerllion's lips when the Pureblood said that it was up to him what they were going to do regarding the Liran Tech. "A good scandal would be perfect to take them out. Perhaps someone finds a toxic substance in their products, because the leadership decided to use cheap material. It would destroy their reputation and any interesting of others working with them."

"Depending of the damage, you can even buy what remains of their company at some point." having a base in Manaan would help the distribution of Azar's product.

@Sreeya

 

[Darth Arcanos]

Azar’s brow rose and he rubbed his chin in thought, “Buying out the competition sounds incredibly compelling,” He agreed. He handed over a datapad, “Here’s all the data I have on Liran Tech so far,” Azar explained. If Caer looked through it, he would see it was a smaller warehouse located a few blocks away, “They have been working on a new formula and it is…volatile. A little 'accident' at their facility ought to help us out,” He said with a smirk.

With that, he waved to the Annfyn and made his way over to New Hrarkert Station. Azar knew Selktah could be skeptical of outsiders, so he was sure to bring them some treats. He had applied some alchemy to said treats to make them more..agreeable. He smiled as the male Selkath walked out to greet him.

“Azar, correct?” The Selkath said.

“That’s correct,” Azar said smoothly, “It is an honor to be here,” He presented the treats, “Please, allow me to offer you some treats I've baked myself” He said with a smile.

“Of course, come in,” The Selkath said, leading the way to the meeting room. Soon enough, Azar was sitting across two Selkath. They both nibbled on the sweet treats and looked completely hooked. They shamelessly began to gorge themselves on the cookies. Azar’s brows rose. Did his concoction work out better than planned?

“So..” He muttered as the Selkath bashed the cookies. Azar told himself to make cake next time - clearly baked goods were a huge hit, “Thyferra has been the market leader with bacta for years. The ISC holds the monopoly on it as demonstrated by their sanctions,” Azar continued, “What I offer is a chance to have kolto become a powerhouse again to be on par with bacta, if not surpass it outright. As an additional benefit, there is no requirement for Manaan to fall under any government regime.”

The Selkath looked at him with glazed over eyes, “We are thrilled to see what you have to offer! Shall we head deeper into the facilities for the demo?"


Roll: 1/20 on difficulty level of opposition

@LouJoVi

 

[Caerllion of Cyfnos]

Caerllion picked the datapad and read the information that it contained. There was the address of the warehouse and what Liran Tech produced here. Indeed, all the products in the building were very volatile. After finishing reading, the Annfyn turned to look at the Pureblood. “This can be easily arranged.” he said, before a similar smirk that his fellow Champion had appeared on his lips. “I’ll be careful to not destroy the entire place, just in case of you wanting to buy what remains.”

With the information that he needed, the two Sith parted ways. Caerllion followed the address that was present in the datapad, moving through the streets while he tried to not attract attention for himself. Unfortunately, the occasional Selkath that he saw would still look at him. Their species was still too distrustful of outsiders.

Well, they had that in common with some Annfyn.

When he arrived at the right place, Caerllion saw the warehouse. To his surprise, there wasn’t any security outside. It was as if they didn’t expect anyone to sneak into the place. The Annfyn shrugged, it only made his job easier. Moving cautiously, he circled around the building, until finding a door in the back.

Using the Force, he was able to unlock the door. Once inside, he would prepare to cause a little accident.

@Sreeya

Roll: 1/20 for external defenses of the warehouse

 

[Darth Arcanos]

Meanwhile, Azar was led to the inner chambers of the facility. He opened the briefcase and took out several vials, presenting the vibrant blue liquid. He extracted some into an eyedropper, dropping a few spots into a dish under a microscope, “If you observe, the properties of the kolto you harvest is enhanced-”

“-In real time..” The Selkath observed as he looked through the eyepiece, “How did you create this?”

Azar was silent, one of the Selkath observing through the microscope while the other was looking over some notes. He waved his hand and easily influenced their minds one after the other, “It was an arduous, but well documented process,” He said simply, “I have enough for an initial control group if you’d like to get it into testing.”

“Well..” The first Selkath scratched a fin, “We have an existing contract with Liran Tech that’s not due to expire until next year,” He mused dejectedly, looking at his fellow scientist, “However, we can certainly test it on some synthskin of different races now to see if your product integrates.”

“That sounds perfect,” Azar said with a smile, walking with them. He quickly drew up his EZPhone, typing to Caer about his status. He needed Liran Tech to get out of his way as soon as possible.

@LouJoVi

 

[Caerllion of Cyfnos]

While Azar was busy showing his products to the Selkath, Caerllion was sneaking inside the warehouse. The Annfyn had used a piece of cloth to cover his mouth and his eyes were now yellow due to the Dark Side. He moved along the shadows projected by the machines and other equipment that the Liran Tech use for the creation of their products, avoiding being spotted by any possible camera. The Annfyn avoided being seen by workers, while watching them from afar.

Then, the Annfyn finally found his target. Large barrels containing the volatile substance. A smirk appeared on his lips, now he only needed to find the perfect victim that would cause the 'accident'. Sneaking some more inside the warehouse, he saw a male Selkath walking out of the building. He slipped after them.

Outside, he saw the Selkath smoking a cigarra. Caerllion had found the perfect target. Moving his hands, the Annfyn stretched the Dark Side toward the alien, wrapping it around his mind and whispering orders there, commanding him to use his cigar lighter to ignite the chemicals.

His body went stiff, and after throwing the cigarra away, the Selkath walked back inside the warehouse, passing next to Caerllion without even noticing him. With that settled, the Annfyn walked away from the place. He wanted to watch the show from a safe distance. When he was walking in a nearby alley, a large explosion shook the entire street. The Annfyn turned to see the warehouse on fire, while a large dark cloud of smoke rose toward the sky.

A message from Azar arrived on his EZPhone and the Annfyn wondered if the Pureblood had foresight. He took a picture of the accident that he caused, right in the moment that firefighters were arriving. Caerllion sent it together with a message saying: "Things are on fire right now. Hope that you are going well with the interview."

@Sreeya

 

[Darth Arcanos]

Azar was in the room demonstrating the product on trials on manufactured wounds. There were various scenarios presented - open wounds, minor bruises, burns, and several other lesions. Azar’s variant cured them all rapidly. The Selkath marveled at the results, having no clue that the drug had sinister properties to it. It could seep through skin and into the bloodstream to create a terrible addiction and need for it, which would ultimately lead to doctors overmedicating. The goal was to keep the galaxy hooked on the product and have it fly off the shelves.

The Selkath began to get pinged the same time Caer contacted him. Azar watched as the men rushed to answer their comlinks, confirming that Liran’s production plant had a mechanical disaster and an industrial fire. Azar put on his best shocked face, listening as they expressed their concerns.

“This is just awful.. We have shipments we need by the end of the week,” One of them said to the other. Azar purposely remained quiet. After a moment, they both inevitably looked at him.

“How soon can you get this into production?”

Azar expressed fake shock, “Well, it would be prudent to do a few more trials-”

“Look, we’ve seen it can work. We’ll set you up with a lab. Can you get a small batch into production?”

“Yes.”

Prototype testing: 12/20

@LouJoVi

 

[Caerllion of Cyfnos]

Caerllion had joined the crowd that had formed to watch the fire consume the Liran Tech. The Annfyn had removed the cloth from his mouth, burning it once there wasn’t any trace of it besides a pile of ashes. His eyes were also back to their normal black color. This way, he was only another civilian that was curious to see what had happened.

The firefighters were using long hoses to spray liquids that, in theory, would end the fire more efficiently than the water. Unfortunately, the chemicals that were feeding the flames seemed to negate the effects of the substances being thrown at it. Without any other choice, they were forced to use water.

In the Annfyn thought that was hilarious how an aquatic species like the Selkath were struggling to end a fire in a city that was surrounded by water. At this moment, part of the warehouse collapsed. "The building is totally gone, half of it is falling down." he sent the message to Azar. "You can still buy the land, though."

By this point, Caerllion was sure that his job here was done. He slipped away from the crowd, who gasped in unison when another wall collapsed. The Annfyn walked toward the building where Azar was showing his product to the Selkath, with the intention of waiting for the Pureblood outside. Meanwhile an ominous dark mass of smoke rose behind him.

@Sreeya

 

[Darth Arcanos]

By the time Caer returned, Azar was waiting outside the building with a satisfied smile on his face. He could see the plume of smoke even from here, “Well, property value will be a steal at least,” He teased, chuckling. Azar was in a great mood from how things went, but it did mean that they would have to rapidly start producing his serum.

“The prototype worked,” He explained, “It passed all the tests. Because Liran met such an unfortunate accident, they want me to produce live shipments,” Azar said, “This went off far smoother than I could have expected.”

He gave Caer an appreciative smile, “Thank you for your help. You will be compensated from the revenue from the first shipments.”

@LouJoVi

 

[Caerllion of Cyfnos]

When Caerllion arrived at the meeting place, Azar was already here waiting for him. With the smile on Pureblood's face, the Annfyn understood that everything had occurred according to the plan. "Indeed. After the damage, they'll be desperate to have money in a feeble attempt to save themselves from bankruptcy."

The Annfyn smiled when Azar explained his success. It was always good to see the Sith Order succeeding after the split. "Excellent! I would say that this moment deserved a celebration. Perhaps drinks? I'll pay for them." Caerllion offered, not sure if the Pureblood would have the time for it. After all, he would need to rush with the production.

The mention of the revenues being given to him made Caerllion nod in agreement. "Thank you. I need to say that my part in this business was fun. You can contact me if you ever need help again. I'll be happy to help again." it was rare for him to cause destruction, since he was more inclined to participate in diplomacy. This chance was welcome one.

"By the way, are you interested in another investidor for the Aztec Lab? I have funds that my mother left as an inheritance and part of it could be applied in your business. I see a great future for it." the idea of increasing his own fortune was a one that interested the Annfyn.

@Sreeya

 

[Darth Arcanos]

Azar smiled at the suggestion, “Drinks sound great,” He said, walking with Caer wherever he suggested. Azar’s gaze panned towards the smoke rising in the distance and the sounds of emergency speeders rushing to the scene. It was watching his enemy go up in literal flames and it put Azar in a great mood.

“I will certainly contact you,” He said, “Not often I get to work with one of the Sith from the old guard,” He said with a smirk. He knew Caer was there among the ranks of Altair and Tempest herself before she donned the armor of the Dark Lord. Azar wouldn’t press for any intel, but the Annfyn was a good ally to have.

“I am always looking for investors, but I don’t wish to give out stake in the company just yet,” Azar said with a grin, “So unless you wish to be an angel investor, I’m afraid I must decline for now.”

He kept a respectable distance from the railings that overlooked the oceans. His uneasiness around the water was abundantly clear. Azar glanced back at Caer, “If you don’t mind me asking..what are you, exactly?” He asked curiously, pointing to the ears. Out in the wider galaxy, there were trillions of races and Azar would never learn about even a fraction of them.

@LouJoVi

 

[Caerllion of Cyfnos]

"Excellent! I saw a nice looking bar while coming back here. It's just down the street." Caerllion guided Azar toward the place, which he had considered good looking enough for someone from nobility to visit. While they walked, another vehicle full of firefighters passed next to them. The smoke now looked like a large cloud in the sky, being a statement of the destruction below.

The sight of it made the Annfyn proud of having been able to successfully cause so much destruction.

"You talking this way makes me feel old." Caerllion said playfully. Indeed, he probably was one of the few Sith that still remained in the Order from the time prior to the split. If he wasn’t wrong, the Annfyn was part of the last group of Acolytes promoted to Champion by the deceased Empress. "If you are interested, I can tell some stories of the good old times." he was nearly sure that the Pureblood could be curious about how the Sith Empire was.

In his position, Caerllion would be curious.

"If you decide to give out stakes in the company, feel free to contact me." while he liked Azar’s company, Caerllion wasn't going to invest in it without having a financial return, at least not at the moment. He decided to help in other ways, perhaps through future missions and collaborations.

He smiled at Azar's question. With how pointed ears were common in other species, it wasn’t a surprise that the other Sith didn’t know what Caerllion was. The Galaxy was full of species and no one was capable of knowing every single one. If he didn’t have interacted with Cyutadakyr when she was an Acolyte, he would be oblivious to the existence of Purebloods and considering that the Potiomaster was some offshoot of the Zeltron, which had more red skin and facial protuberances.

"I'm an Annfyn from the planet of Annwfyn in the Pacanth Reach. My people are an offshoot of the Sephi. Hence the ears." he said, while gesturing to them, as if showing his point. With a bit of concentration, he was able to lower them slightly and briefly, giving him the appearance of being sad. "Our ancestors abandoned Thustra because they refused to be emotionless stone slabs like them."

Since Azar had asked him about his species, Caerllion thought that he could do the same. "I heard that your species is organized into castes. How does it work? Is someone capable of moving from one to another?"

@Sreeya