Courtesy Call

[Moor Todan]

As they approached the docking bays under the supervision of Selkath officers, Moor admired the immeasurable beauty of Manaan world-spanning ocean. Waves of a deep royal blue crept towards Ahto City before running away, only to repeat the process in a cycle that caused droplets of salty water to spray onto its surface. The shell-shaped dome at the center artificial island was surrounded by hangar and landing zones.

The news that a representative of the Senate would be meeting the leaders of galaxy's sole kolto providers had reached the ears of anyone who cared. Precautions had been taken by the Grand Army's special forces to ensure the politician's safe return to Coruscant once his mission had been completed.

The might of the Republic was behind him as Moor stepped out of his transport, his diplomatic mission on Manaan having been approved by the Galactic Senate mere days before. Concerns had been raised by the senator following internal changes in the aquatic planet's government, and he had ventured out of Republic space to reiterate the intergalactic union's commitment to good relations with the Selkaths' homeworld. His instructions were clear: he was in no way to try to persuade Manaan to violate the neutrality stance it had adopted eons ago.

Since his presence had been expected, Moor was escorted onto a hovercraft guarded by a couple of security droids. They made their way past the city gates and stopped only when they reached a governmental complex. A crowd was assembled to greet the politician as he got off the vehicle. Most were traders hoping that his visit would bring new business opportunities to Manaan. Moor took time to greet them before making his way in the building where he would be meeting his Selkath counterparts.

Moor's schedule had been meticulously planned by the Senate's administrative staff and Ahto City Civil Authority (ACCA). He would first be meeting Quarna Llesh, who a series of deaths had left undisputedly in control of operations on the surface. The Senator suspected Hutt involvement, for their activities in Republic space suggested that they would soon be making a move to expand their territory, and Manaan was a prime target for such an endeavor.

 

[The Storyteller]

Quarna Llesh was not happy with any of this.

In his mind, Manaan was getting far too much foreign attention. Sure, some of that foreign attention had been... beneficial to himself, but it was still attention that he would prefer his planet didn't have. Attention meant more people thinking they knew what was best and sticking their noses in. They all wanted kolto but none of them knew what the hell they were doing so they needed them and they would bleed them dry if they thought they could get away with it.

Thank the Force his people had amazing pain killers because he was already getting the start of a headache and the senate's representative wasn't even here yet. Oh wait... no, he was getting messages telling him that he was, in fact, here.

Fantastic.

He made sure that his aids saw the senator in and Llesh himself remained seated behind his desk for the time being. As soon as the senator arrived he would stand from behind his desk and gesture to the seat across from the desk from himself,

"S-senator Todan!"

...

Force damn it! He had done it again, gotten himself so worked up he'd stuttered over his words. He had been too on edge before this meeting - that was what it was.

"Would you care for any refreshments...?"

No! Why did he trail off like that?

Oh Force... he was making a meal of this already wasn't he?

@Aberforth