Interview with a Badger

[Rowan Harlow]

It looked like his fame was starting to grow, or perhaps this was the only opportunity the member of Clan Solus could find. Either way, the request for an interview, on a neutral planet and unarmed, was exactly what bump Rowan would need to keep his star rising in the media circles. After some back and forth with the man, a Wyatt Solus, they decided on the venue of the interview that way both knew it wouldn't be a trap of some sort. Despite being a patriot of his country, for the Greater Good he would have to go through this interview in the legitimate way. The people deserved to hear why the sudden aggression was happening, they needed this kick to their decadent asses to get them into gear. If this Wyatt wanted to be the one to give his face to their fear and anger, more power to him.

The place was a popular cafe on Manaan, in the neutral zone where weapons and fighting were strictly prohibited. As a show of good faith, Rowan even had a local police officer pat him down in view of the man he was going to interview to show he didn't have any weapons on his person. He also made sure his cameraman went through the same process. Ordering a drink for himself and his guest, he waited for the two of them to be seated after shaking hands with the man. There were plenty of onlookers, though that was part of the point here. It would be folly to start trouble in the middle of an innocent crowd. Today would be just for the story, which Rowan would begin shooting once the two of them were settled.

"Hello again, viewers! This is Rowan Harlow with a special interview for you this time. Coming from Manaan, I have a member of the Mandalorian Clan known as Solus, the ones that have been allegedly behind the most recent attacks on Iziz and Kuat. I thought this day would never come, yet now I shall allow my special guest to introduce himself to you." Turning from the camera, he gave the Mandalorian a bow and genuine smile to let him know it was his turn to speak. After the introduction he would continue with the first question. "I would be remiss if I didn't start with the hot-button topic. Why have you chosen to start attacking the Republica now, of all times? What has changed that has lit a fire in your hearts, so to say?"

((OOC: Death/Capture/Injury/PVP Disabled))

 

[Wyatt Kebiin-Solus]

Wyatt stood at the entrance of the cafe as Rowan Harlow the reporter known to have an opinionated view on the ruling party, was being checked for weapons just as Wyatt was. He only took the interview request because he felt this man would let him tell the side of the story most probably didn't know existed. For Wyatt this boiling conflict was not about which Drast was going to rule the galaxy or which planets belonged to who, it was about bringing an end to all of the loss of innocent life that had been caused by the Sith.

Wyatt settled at the table after undergoing the same check but his produced all of his weaponry, laying out his Shriek-Hawk blaster rifle, twin DH7 blaster pistols and an ornately hilted light saber. With 'Medriaas' engraved around the top of the weapon where the blade ignites, a simple mosaic inlay-ed in black is carved on the pommel and on the hilt, the engraving is fresh if Rowan or the camera notices the weapon as it is placed beside the rest of his belongings and held by the third party manaan police officer. Clan Solus had just concluded their contract on Manaan when Wyatt got the holo-message looking for the interview so it inclined him to accept the meeting just that much more.

"Hello again, viewers! This is Rowan Harlow with a special interview for you this time. Coming from Manaan, I have a member of the Mandalorian Clan known as Solus, the ones that have been allegedly behind the most recent attacks on Iziz and Kuat. I thought this day would never come, yet now I shall allow my special guest to introduce himself to you."

Wyatt had taken his seat at the table, still helmeted and fully armor clad as he wished to stay personally anonymous beyond who his clan was, he had also instructed for the name bars on the HNN feed to show his name as "The Medriaas Marauder" and with the prompt from the interviewer he spoke up.

"I'm here today to represent Clan Solus and tell you the side of the story you don't get at home."

Wyatt said with an almost awkward tone in his voice, he had rehearsed his opening delivery a dozen times in the lead up but when it actually was time to come out he got a tad uncomfortable but managed.

"I would be remiss if I didn't start with the hot-button topic. Why have you chosen to start attacking the Republica now, of all times? What has changed that has lit a fire in your hearts, so to say?"

"Clan Solus for anyone whose done their homework watching, has never been a fan of sith rule and refused to provide its warriors to the Sith war effort during the seated puppet Mandalore's reign. We did not choose to be agressive, we were forced to protect our way of life under the rule of the Drast dynasty and its gross mistreatment of its peoples culture."

Wyatt practically barked from behind his helmet in rapid response to the probing question, to which he believed he had given the answer the reporter was looking for. @Insalius

 

[Rowan Harlow]

Rowan raised his eyebrow slightly at the name the man chose to use for the name bar. Medriaas Marauder? That was something he would have to look into later, that wasn't something he knew of off the top of his head. Still, he didn't feel that it hurt any to put it there. He nodded with interest as his special guest spoke, glad that they all were able to talk like civilized beings in a peaceful setting. The fact that this member of Clan Solus was speaking to him was a rare thing he appreciated, knowing that if tensions kept rising these kinds of meetings could become impossible. Best to get the view now.

"On that note, if you don't mind, I'd like to ask more ABOUT your culture and society. I don't think many members of the Imperial Republica know about Mandalorian culture and don't understand why you've started to do what you've done. I know there are many out there, including myself, that would like to know more. Perhaps if we had some insight into the life of the Mandalorians, maybe we could come to some kind of understanding, perhaps open some kind of dialogue?" He couldn't control what this Solus said, yet the description of a seemingly exotic people could really turn some attention his way. He just hoped this man wasn't too riled up to go down that line. It wasn't like he was trying to change the subject, he definitely would get back to their grievances. It just made sense to find a place of common ground when speaking of such things, it allowed for better communication.

@Rimrald

 

[Wyatt Kebiin-Solus]

Wyatt shifted in his seat for a moment while listening to the question as it seemed well enough that this reporter genuinely wanted to know about Mandalorian culture, and as he finished his multipart question Wyatt sat up straight and removed his helmet. Looking at Rowan for a moment and then the camera as he began to speak with an even tone.

"That is exactly what the problem is Rowan, your first sentence there... We had been persecuted and subject to 'cultural subjugation' under the sitting Mandalor and his subsequent governing replacements. Do you know what the 'T' shaped visor is representative of?"

Wyatt asked directly to the camera as if addressing all of the Imperial Republica viewers with a questioning tone and look on his face.

"It is the most sacred sign of our faith and homage to Kad Ha'rangir the first crusader, and under Imperial law we we're told it was illegal to don or possess the 'T' visor Rowan. Parents could not instruct their children of the Resol'nare, the age old meaning of what being a Mandalorian is physically and spiritually."

He finished the remark turning his attention back to Rowan for a breathe before continuing to explain why the Mandalorians have openly revolted.

"It doesn't stop there, for the majority of our people were used as front line forces in the conflicts against the Jedi. Most of the clans were forced to provide warriors to fight the Jedi for the Sith, a task they saw the Mandalorian people were better at. Now anyone watching who knows of Mandalorian culture knows it is steeped in pride on the battlefield, but not when we are fighting on the premise of 'cooperate or be killed' for that is without honor."

His final remark got him noticeably hot under the collar but his tone remained an even keel while his face told another story.

"Rowan, do you know what planet I was born on and raised on, and called home until mere months ago?"

Wyatt said, ignoring the piece about coming to some sort of agreement for one it was not in his power to negotiate for his clan let alone all of Mandalore at this time. Secondly he had no interest in seeing civility between the Sith and Mandalorians while a Drast sat in the east and in the west. (@Insalius)

 

[Rowan Harlow]

How interesting. It was indeed a look into Mandalorian culture, though there were a couple of things that even Rowan hadn't known that he was learning through this. These men had been used to hunt Jedi? That was something he'd have to look in to, as for what he knew the Jedi were wiped out five centuries ago. This man made it sound like they had been around for a lot longer. The last question also piqued his interest. He could feel the bubbling torrent of emotion lying just below the Mandalorian's surface, meaning this was something that meant a lot to him. The more emotion in a story, the more it drew viewers, and Rowan couldn't say he wasn't interested in what the man had to say. Perhaps he'd have to do more research on the Mandalorians after this was done, they were more intriguing than he had thought. "I can't say that I do. As promised, I didn't do any digging for dirt after we first talked recently, so everything you say now is as new to me as it is to our viewers. Please, say what you wish, I guarantee that others will watch and listen. Me, especially." He leaned forward, genuinely interested to hear what Wyatt had to say. He hoped the Mandalorian believed him and didn't think he was being mocked, that was the last thing on Rowan's mind.

@Rimrald

 

[Wyatt Kebiin-Solus]

For once Wyatt was pleasantly surprised by a member of these sith governments and organizations as the HNN representative Rowan asked him to go on.

"-I guarantee that others will watch and listen. Me, especially."

Wyatt began to crack a relieved smile as a tone came over him that was lightly condescending but told a painful story. As he started speaking at Rowan and shifted halfway through to the camera.

"I was born on Medriaas, a planet that existed in grid S-4, within the Chorlian Sector in the Outer Rim. At the start of your Drast family fued the sadist that sits on the throne decided to eradicate the planets populace from orbit..."

Wyatt began to choke on his words as his eyes began to water, taking a breath and forming a fist he swallowed hard and continued on.

"I still have the holo-calls from my family, friends and loved ones trying to make sense of why the planet had been blockaded and then attacked. There we're 3.7 million innocent people on that planet Rowan, and your leaders blew it to Kad Ha'rangirs come for what?"

Wyatts tone was regaining its normal cadence as his eyes filled with hate, and he continued to unknowingly educate the better part of the galaxy under Imperial rule of the events merely months ago right under their noses.

"Now do you understand why people are trying to dismantle their ability to make war? We do not want more bloodshed we just want the Drast's to answer for their crimes."

Wyatt said finishing his remarks and settling back in his seat, moving his hands to be wedged between his armor and bodysuit, drumming his fingers out of view of Rowan in a mix of anger and nerves. He could very easily have just made himself target number one...

 

[Rowan Harlow]

Now the name Medriaas made sense, it was a planet's name. Or was. As he spoke, Rowan furiously tapped at his datapad to try to find what information he could. There was nothing officially, even that the planet existed, yet on some far flung conspiracy sites the name popped up from time to time. If just given that, Rowan would have scoffed it off as the drivel of the insane, yet the man in front of him had told only the truth. He'd made sure to probe him gently as he spoke with the Force, just to make sure. This horror on Medriaas had happened, though Rowan couldn't find anything about it at all. That definitely set off some red flags for him, as this had happened just as he was graduating from the Academy on Alderaan. He'd had no part in it whatsoever, and if it were true...Those would be thoughts for later. For now, he had to deal with this bombshell of a reveal. Genuinely sorrowful at such a loss, he took off his hat and held it over his heart as he tried to hold back a tear, having thought of how he'd felt if the same had happened to his homeworld.

"I know it probably means little coming from me, a member of the Republica, but I'm so sorry for your loss. I can't even begin to imagine how painful that must have been, and such an act would definitely inspire such retaliatory action." He made a show of jotting down the galaxy coordinates that Wyatt had given just now, where Medriaas used to be. "This is something I didn't know of, nor do I think many of our viewers knew of either. Some may scoff at this, as I cannot find any record of such an attack on the Imperial Network, but you have given the coordinates of the planet. At the very least, I'll take a crew there and see what I find. Even if one is an enemy, some actions are never right. Is there anything else you want to say, to get off your chest? The Republica is watching, this may be your only chance."

@Rimrald

 

[Wyatt Kebiin-Solus]

Wyatt sat still as the words came from the reporter seemed heartfelt, there was genuine empathy for the situation he was only made aware existed moments ago yet he expressed resentment for his leaderships actions. He simply shook his head in in answer to the posed question if he had any other remarks to make on air. He then stood and walked out of the frame of the cameraman, picking up his equipment and fixing weapons back to holsters and slings as in his eyes the interview was over. But he looked over to Rowan with a look of 'I have something to tell you, but not on air' as he waited for Rowan to tell the camera man to cut his feed or turn things back over to the studio.

Wyatt continued securing things as he shot a glance around to make sure none of the local law had gotten keen on taking him in after the Solus debacle that took place only days ago where they captured a Drast in the streets. Wyatt was hopeful whatever rebellion in its infancy or in hiding had gotten something out of his message, because no matter if a Solus could take five Imperials with him at his time of death it would not be enough for the Mandalorian people to handle a galactic war on their own.

Wyatt felt a massive relief having told the literal galaxy of the events of Medriaas, a planet erased.... For now. (@Insalius)

 

[Rowan Harlow]

At a gesture, Rowan made sure for his cameraman to cut the feed, he'd clean up and make an ending later. It was obvious that Wyatt couldn't speak any more, which was perfectly fine for what he probably just had to relive. Again, this was all information that would draw the attention of the people of the Republica, which would only help further with his own personal goals. His plot with John Donald was almost at it's end, after all. At the very least, he wouldn't be just an unknown taking over once the other executives were in his pocket. But for now, he slid over to the table with all the weaponry and gear that Wyatt was now putting on. If he wanted a private word, that would be the place. He took his time putting his weaponry back, enough time for Wyatt to tell him what he needed.

@Rimrald

 

[Wyatt Kebiin-Solus]

"This is the contact info I used for clients in my past life, if you get messages from it... They'll be exclusive headlines you may or may not choose to use but all I can say is keep your eyes open for some interesting things with a certain female Drast and some footage about one of your separatist Sith adversaries."

Wyatt said as he put his helmet back on and dropped the holo-business card that had obscure holo-net contact info and an alias listed. With that he did not stay for a response, he made his way out the door and towards the spaceport to catch his ride off of this planet before any locals got keen to his presence.

//Exiting Thread.