Laborious Demands

[Gaz Fallwen]

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Velmor
1425 local time​

The two Sith were supposed to meet at 1430, but Gaz had figured it never hurt to be early, even if it's only a little. It generally tended to leave a good first impression, and left him some time to clear his head before beginning the mission, and he knew he'd need a clear head for what came next.

They would have to do diplomacy, which was the one damned thing no one--not his father and not his Sith tutors--had taught him. Then again, who actually even used diplomacy nowadays? There were a handful of wars the Empire was in, so many that he was losing track of them, and they expected him to serve as a diplomat on some Mid Rim no-name planet. Maybe if they deployed diplomats every time something bad happened, the Sith wouldn't be killing one another, but that was the sort of thing you could get executed for saying.

He lit up a spice cigarette as he waited for the other Sith in the courtyard of Velmor's grandest palace, which was, by galactic standards, a shack. Compare it to even the smallest palace on Alderaan and you would be comparing an outhouse to a skyscraper. But hey, he wasn't one to judge. He'd grown up on some no-name moon.

The clock slowly turned to 1430, which meant it was showtime. Taking a few more puffs of the cigarette, he put it out with two fingers as the other Sith arrived, but didn't throw it away yet. There were no trash cans around, and he didn't want to litter. @One For Sorrow

 

[Alastair Valkyrion]

Alastair strode into the courtyard with his usual calm and determined gait, his long black coat flowing behind him and his ornate armor glinting in the light.

He did not know the Sith he was to be on this mission with, but he was never shy about new people. So he walked straight up to the man and extended his hand in greeting.

"Alastair Valkyrion, I hope you have not been waiting too long."

Alastair enjoyed dealings such as this, he had been looking forward to meeting and hoped that his partner on this mission would be equally enthusiastic about it.

He paused and placed his left hand comfortably on the pommel of his sword, his usual resting posture.

"Any thoughts on a strategy?"

Always good to know what one's partner was thinking.

@The Matt

 

[Gaz Fallwen]

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The Sith that approached Gaz was rather easy to spot, considering the amount of Dark Side corruption he'd already gone through. This guy's a heavy-weight, was the first thought that floated into his head, although he supposed that was for the better. Having a good Sith by his side was good if the negotiations went to crap.

"Gaz Fallwren," he replied, shaking Alastair's hand. "No worries, I just got here."

The two began strolling toward the entrance at a leisurely pace, escorted by a servant who allowed them some personal space. "I'm no foreign affairs expert, but I guess it wouldn't hurt to try to be as amiable as possible at the beginning. If they put up resistance, we can tighten up." Gaz reached the door first, but the servant opened it. He turned to his partner. "You know what they say; velvet glove over an iron fist." @One For Sorrow

 

[Alastair Valkyrion]

A solid strategy, from a partner whom Alastair thought was going to make an excellent ally. From what the Vahla Sorcerer could tell this Gaz Fallwren was at least well mannered and seemed intelligent, and from the scent Alastair detected a fan of spice cigarettes. Everybody had their vices.

"Indeed." he mused in response. "If only we had some sort of leverage, a trump card. Something we could pull if it starts to go against us."

Something other than a sword, preferably. he thought to himself.

He hoped this would go smoothly, as much as he enjoyed a good negotiation he also liked winning. Though he was not above using the force to help...persuade...people.

 

[Gaz Fallwen]

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The two entered the castle, greeted by another servant in a massive foyer. Guards approached, to pat them down, but Gaz simply shook his head at them. They looked at each other for a moment, confused.

"Empire business," he said, his voice hard. They backed off after that, shuffling away back to the doors of the palace. Gaz spoke as the Sith walked down the hall toward the meeting room.

"Our status as Sith should probably be enough leverage. We could threaten to have the fury of the Empire brought down on them and they'd probably fold." He took a moment to think. "They mentioned something about corruption during the briefing, so the interest of the people isn't something they're interested in. Might also be helpful to threaten that we'll have them exposed."

They reached the doors a few seconds later, just enough for Alastair to say something. The servant, who had been trailing them out of earshot, approached and put his hands on the handles, looking at them expectantly.

 

[Alastair Valkyrion]

As the two guards approached and attempted to pat them down Alastair had been about to tell them to consider otherwise when Gaz shook his head, the guards considered not listening but Alastair shifting from his relaxed posture to his grip tightening around the hilt of his sword as Gaz proclaimed that they were on Empire business set them straight.

As they walked and Gaz spoke he smirked his usual semi-cocky smirk. "Indeed, if worst comes to worst we can threaten orbital bombardment. One that would rival the destruction of the Jedi temple on Jedha back when the Empire was new, they do not however need to know that we do not have the authority to call that in," he chuckled. "Though, corrupt individuals are far more likely to fear exposure. Definitely a good angle to work with, well thought Gaz."

As they reached the doors Alastair watched the servant approach them, and wait for a queue from the two Sith woth his hands on the handles. The Vahla sorcerer looked to his comrade to be sure he was ready and then nodded to the servant to indicate that he should proceed and usher them in to the meeting.

 

[Gaz Fallwen]

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"Thank you." At least he had a partner with head. It was hard to find someone capable of critical thinking in the Old Empire sometimes, although the lower levels weren't as crazy as the higher ones. There were still Acolytes that knew how the world around them worked. As wise as higher ranked Sith were, sometimes they let bloodlust and power-hunger get ahead of that. Sometimes that lead to civil wars.

The two Sith entered the meeting room, a dining room that had been converted, a lavish table being the center piece, surrounded by luxurious decorations covering the walls, from hunting trophies to paintings. Surprising, rang through his head. Output is decreasing, but they're surrounded by luxury. Definitely a good point to bring up eventually.

There was, however, a significant lack of people in the room, in the sense that no one was in there yet. The servant's voice spoke out from behind them. "Our king will be meeting with you shortly." Ah, making the Sith wait. Wise strategy.

Gaz took a seat after shrugging, and looked around at the paintings to pass the time, although a minute later the doors opened again and the king entered. Here we go. @One For Sorrow

 

[Alastair Valkyrion]

Alastair nodded in response to Gaz's thanks, manners seemed to be a rarity amongst those in the Old Empire and the Vahla was pleased to have a companion on this mission who was polite and intelligent.

His thoughts on the paintings and other luxury in the room were in the same line as Gaz's, so much less output and yet all this? Something just didn't seem right about that.

Alastair sighed impatiently as the servant said there be a delay, not out of actual impatience but a display. A warning that the Sith were not to be kept waiting. Whether because of that or just how things were timed the king came in within a minute.

"Ah, your highness. Good. Now we can get down to business." Alastair started before any of them sat, he wanted the Sith party to hold the co trol of the pace of this negotiation. "And I absolutely must compliment you on this magnificent room."

Not a full blown accusation, but enough to let the king know that they had noticed.

 

[Gaz Fallwen]

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The king looked condescending from the start, and Gaz could tell he wouldn't like the man. He entered covered in a fur robe, gold necklaces dangling underneath his fine shirt, made out of a soft-looking material. His crown was fixed atop his head, which looked as if it had been done moments ago--which it probably had been. All in all, the king looked like a pretentious asshole.

"Why, thank you," he replied, the sarcasm flying over his head. "Ours is a planet of abundance."

Gaz couldn't believe how dumb the guy was, but hopefully that would make this easier. "Ah, it definitely seems to be," he said, butting in. The king turned his gaze toward him as he sat down across from them. "Which, I suppose, is why we're here. It seems as though production has dropped drastically recently, but reports indicate otherwise."

The king looked uncomfortable. "We tribute what we can," he replied, tensing up a bit. @One For Sorrow

 

[Alastair Valkyrion]

Alastair sat, not pulling his chair in to the table in case he needed to stand quickly, but taking advantage of his height to lean forward and place his elbows on the table with his hands clasped in front of him.

"Do you now?" he asked flatly, raising his left eyebrow. He knew pompous asses like this, grew up around them. This "king" thought himself far more impirtant than he truly was. The title was only there because the Empire allowed it. "You yourself just stated that you are a planet of abundance, however as my colleague stated, production has dropped drastically."

Alastair leaned back in his chair and pointedly looked around the lavish room. The King was already nervous, the Valha sorcerer could see it on his face and feel it through the force. He knew that all they had to do was apply the right pressure and the man would crack.

"Actually, let me rephrase that. There has been a drastic decrease in delivery, production however, is clearly still in full swing." he paused for a moment to let his very subtle accusation set in, never taking his eyes off of the king. "A truly concerning discrepancy."

@The Matt

 

[Darth Victress]

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Spoiler

Due to lack of progress in weeding out the culprit behind decreased tribute, the Emperor has dispatched Sith Crusader, Arianna Marris to personally deal with this situation.

Condescending kings, corrupt politicians, and Sith who had grown too dependent on the machinations of politics to make necessary changes. It was no surprise that Velmor had decreased its tribute delivery, largely because the Empire had grown to adopt a relaxed and more benevolent attitude with its vassals. However, such was to change; if a galactic war was upon us, the Dark Lord had to ensure that all subservient nations were contributing appropriately and as for now, Velmor's king was not in that category. As the two sith agents continued to bicker in the conference room with the ruler, a sudden breeze of chilling air swept through the entire chamber. Its temperature continued to plunge downward, almost as if they were being exposed to the harshest of winters; lights momentarily dimmed as the wicked wails of tortured souls resonated around them.

Suddenly the doors flicked open as the incinerated remains of the King's two royal guards came flying into the room; the charred corpses reeked of burnt flesh as they crumbled into numerous pieces and ash as they rolled towards the Majesty. The King was obviously in shock, standing to his full height as he began to yell but found that in fact his voice and trachea seemingly collapsed inwards. Skin tone slowly turning to blue as he gasped for air and fell to his knees; through the broken doors, entered a small and lithe figure, the sorceress herself grabbed in ebony armors and cloaks.

Arianna cast the two acolytes a look of annoyance before turning her full attention upon the king, a sinister smile coming to her face as she spoke. "Your majesty, what a pleasant surprise. I am afraid that you have been wasting my colleagues' time. In fact, you have sullied your entire cabinet with so much corruption that you feel that you no longer are required to deliver tribute to our Dark Lord..Well, you are most certainly entitled to your opinion.." She smiled before those green eyes flashed with the corrupted essence of golden hue, the crusader drawing into hate and anger in order to fuel her gruesome powers. Right hand flung outwards as green, unholy energies cackled around her ebony shrouded figure before shooting from her fingertips in the form of a punishing, green lightning. Electricity connected into the flesh of the King as he howled in agony, flesh burning and staining whatever pathetic aroma had existed before. As the force lightning attack intensified, so did the screams and horrors before they finally relented as the king's corpse collided upon the ground, all his internal organs essentially incinerated.

"Our future discussions with your successor will be more fruitful.." She stated, as the young prince soon walked into the room and sat upon his recently deceased father's chair. A smile larger than life apparent on his young face, glad to have been promoted so early. Arianna turned towards the two acolytes, "The Prince will return tributes to their original level, approximately a 35% increase compared to current exports." She smiled towards the young prince before turning and leaving.

// end thread