Night turned to day on the flotillas of Dac City, Mon Cala's premier site for negotiations with off-worlders. Not only was the city better suited to land-walking, air-breathing species across the galaxy, it also provided the more private, isolationist citizens of the world's depths a reprieve. Dac City was akin to a gate into the rest of Mon Cala: if an offworlder could get past there, then perhaps they may make it to the deeper oceans of the planet.
Today, Commander Jal Widase was manning this proverbial gate. Representatives from the Independent Systems Consortium (ISC) were scheduled to meet with representatives of the Crown to discuss the increased trade between their worlds. As it turned out, the Crown had a great interest in these dealings: the ISC had already proven itself to be a lucrative trading partner, hiring some of Mon Cala's finest engineers to produce weapons systems that brought a great deal of wealth and prestige back to the blue planet. The preparatory meetings for this had been a "who's who" of Mon Cala's political leadership: Captain Ri-Ren of the Royal Guard had overseen the briefing personally. It was a name that meant precious little to those outside of the world, but to Widase, it was enough to pique his interest.
This was the type of deal that could make or break a career. Specifically, his career: Commander Widase had his whole reputation at stake, as he had nearly begged to oversee this deal. Widase had a great deal of respect for the ISC, even before they had become a trading partner. Like some Outer Rim residents, he firmly believed that the Core Worlds' Republic was designed to fail, and that the mid-and-outer worlds were a mere buffer to be sacrificed to the gluttonous, war-hungry Sith. It was emboldening that the ISC would uniquely take a stand of Outer Rim unity. Many agents of the Crown were in agreement - some had even advised the good King to consider pledging this world's allegiance to them.
Today would be a litmus test for such an endeavor. Widase reviewed his datapad notes on his would-be business partners within their conference room, a shell-shaped, glass building that jutted out far above the ocean. He was joined by two members of the Royal Guard. On paper, they were there as a standard security measure, but they would no doubt report the day's proceedings back to Captain Ri-Ren with glee.
A message came into the room over a loudspeaker: "Commander Widase? I believe the ISC representatives have arrived."
He took one look out into the ocean, letting the endless blue waves wash over his turbulent mind, before clearing his throat. "Good. Send them in."
@Nor'baal @Nefieslab