Private A Clandestine Rendezvous

[Velda Praz]

Cloaked Stealth Reaper Dropship
On final approach to Jutrand
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Velda Praz glanced towards her Principle- Lord Moff Maldor Mecetti. The 'Moff' was from the Empire of the Lost, the interstellar nation to which the Scion of House Mecetti had fled after a scandal regarding Sith Artifacts which forced him from his role as Senator in the GA. The 'Lord' was from House Mecetti, the most powerful and prestigious noble house of the Tapani sector. In ancient times, the Tapani sector had been part of Sith territory. Now, millennia later, they were flying into the heart of the Sith nation.

Everything old is new again, she mused to herself.

What she said aloud was, "When we cross the atmospheric barrier, thermal effects will give away our position regardless of the cloaking device. There will be a period of vulnerability of between thirty seconds and one minute. If they fire anti-air weapons during the transition, there will be little I can do to prevent our destruction. The Stealth Reapers are not properly outfitted for point-defense."

Part of her hoped that the Principle would cancel the operation, order her to return to the Empire of the Lost.

She knew that wouldn't happen, however. Maldor was as careful as someone with illicit desires might be. A care hard-won through the learned effects of carelessness. He avoided danger as much as he could while pursuing his objectives. But he wasn't quite a coward.

Which was a pity.

Her job would be much easier if he was.


Maldor Mecetti

 

[Maldor Mecetti]

Maldor looked to Velda Praz, the guard-dog his mother had assigned to him during his exile.

Although he'd never received confirmation, he was sure her primary duty was to keep an eye on him and report his activities to his mother. The fact that she'd come with a couple-hundred ministry personnel and some very interesting hardware had prevented him from dismissing her from his service. She was too useful, too necessary in the uncertain environment of the Empire.

That was Mom. She knew enough to mix sweets into the medicine.

"Understood," he answered the senior field agent, turning his attention back to the viewport. If death came, it would come soon.

Well... that wasn't true. It could come sooner or later.

He did not entirely trust the contacts which had made him aware of the Sith artifacts he was hoping to purchase here, today. The tensions between the Sith and the Empire were taut. The tensions between Maldor and the Sith were even tauter. More like a garrot wire.

Coming here- even with a Ministry agent and a stealth ship- was placing his life on the edge of a knife.

Fire began to envelop the cockpit. Since atmospheric thermals would announce them regardless, Velda was making a quick entry. Shields were shaped to smooth that entry, but a ship could not descend from the void as speeds exceeding Mach 10 without turning into a fireball.

Well.... they could. But not if they wanted to get down quickly.

The ship shuddered as the burning atmosphere licked at it. The seconds passed slowly. At any moment, a surface-fired missile or turbolaser emplacement might skewer them.

Tick Tock. Tick Tock.

Finally, the fire receded. The ship's cloaking device reasserted itself, making the ship invisible to sensors once more. Either the defenses of Jutrand had been bribed or coerced to permit his entry, or they hadn't been fast enough to respond to the unusual blip on their screens.

Now that blip would be gone. It was too late to shoot him. If this was a trap, the trap would lie within the estate of his hostess.

Unfortunately, that was the more dangerous possibility.

The Sith might not merely want him dead. They might desire to ask him some painful questions before killing him.

As the ship neared the estate- a tall corporate tower- he reached out to the ship's console and sent a coded transmission. Now she'd know he was here, and about to approach the pre-arranged landing pad.

He took a deep breath, hoping he wasn't being a complete fool.

No... he was definitely being a complete fool. He just hoped he'd taken enough precautions to mitigate his foolishness.


Countess Anétresya