A Not-So-Common State of Affairs (Commenor Systems Alliance)

[Darlyn Excron]

Everyone's little speeches, [member="Veiere Arenais"], [member="Bradshaw Ku"], it just prompted small little huffs from Darlyn, as he listened to them quietly. More than once in a while, he'd lift the bottle to his lips and take a swig, only adding to the ever growing cloud of alcohol surrounding him like a thick quilt. Flowery language from the master jedi, as expected, very calm and measured. Brad's little bit was somewhat surprising, admittedly, in Darlyn's mind the boy was still a reckless playboy. Not that the younger man did much to change that perception. Still, he was responsible enough to admit his faults and offer what assistance he could. Darlyn figured that might as well be his cue, as others filed in and took their seats.

The black robed man pulled his legs back, placing the near-empty bottle of brandy on the table as he leaned forward. His already tired eyes managed to darken, his miasma of darkness swelling as he gave Bradshaw his own look, less motherly than [member="Lady Kay"] by far though still quite frustrated. Luckily for him, the anger wasn't directed at him, though the first words to escape his lips most certainly were. "You can assist me by not being a liability, boy. I can't make their streets Ruby red with their commander's body if I'm worried about your safety. Just let me do my job and we'll both be satisfied."

Then he turned his head to Kay and Veiere. "You pay the checks I still work for you. Besides the fact, I like Kay, so for better or worse you're stuck with me. I was here before you wanted to expand Commenor's influence and I'll be here until you're gone. Simple as that. Just don't give me a reason to regret it." With that, he sat back in his seat, keeping his feet on the floor this time. He said his piece, he was a simple man. She paid him to do a job, and he did that job. And he liked her enough to go above and beyond. That was the only reason he was here. He didn't know what tied [member="Virak Ip"] or [member="Silfe Sosuri"] or [member="Natalie LaForte"] here, and he could only guess that [member="Kirie Ito"] was here due to a job like he was.

And [member="Silfe Sosuri"] he would say was here to remain away from home, using her job as a way out of it... At least he knew [member="Darben Skirae"] enough to know he was here with some sense of loyalty to Kay. He didn't know the extent of Darben's feelings to Kay, but he knew the man had been around since before him, which had to count for something. He shifted a bit in his seat as he looked the minister over.. had they ever finished training him with a blaster? The poor man could use it if events went poorly...

[member="Ulic Adraya"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay watched as [member="Natalie LaForte"] came in late. That was her style, it seemed. She couldn't think of a time when the lady wasn't late. Perhaps that was the thing for fashion designers, but it shouldn't really be acceptable. Maybe now her husband would see how little respect some of the Senators had for their positions.

[member="Silfe Sosuri"] was different however. Was she completely dedicated? That still remained to be seen. But what was certainly whispered among some of the staff was her fear of her father back home. Did he beat her? It was hard to say. But she looked frail. Working as a Senator was what kept her safe from him, so Kay had plans to keep her on Commenor. Soon the young lady would find out what that was.

[member="Veiere Arenais"] spoke next. Kay's eyes drifted to the others, to gauge their reactions to what he was saying. She didn't try to sign for [member="Kirie Ito"] , knowing that the young lady was reading lips. Besides, Kay didn't know how to sign all of the words anyways. She looked to her husband when he glanced her way and she nodded with a small smile in response to his own. They were stronger together, and so was their Alliance.

[member="Bradshaw Ku"] stood up, introducing himself to those that weren't aware of his coronation after the wedding ceremony. He spoke from the heart and that softened her gaze. As she was about to answer her son, [member="Ulic Adraya"] walked in. Kay raised a brow as she had never seen the man before. He was quiet and poised, holding himself in the manner of a Jedi. The guards obviously let him in and she was sure to find out who he was soon enough.

Kay looked to [member="Virak Ip"] as he walked in, appearing for all intent and purposes, as though he had gone through a great battle and was healing from injuries sustained from it. She gave him a small bow of her head, ever greatful for his quick military response during the Yutan situation. "Due to recent events, we are returning to our roots as a confederacy. Everyone's positions are being altered to reflect that."

[member="Darlyn Excron"] spoke up to Brad, not sugar coating his words at all. She trusted the Darksider with her life, and his loyalty was always rewarded. They had shared a lot together, various stories of their pasts and the trials that life had thrown at them. Kay needed to see to him soon. He was taking the attack on the Praxeum very hard and rightly so. Yet being drunk wasn't going to keep the pain away.

Now it was her turn to speak again, to address all that have shown themselves so far. But first she had a sip of her tea. "As my husband has said, dark days are coming. This Contingency has struck not only us, but other corners of the Galaxy as well. Together with our fleets we will patrol our territories and work hard to ensure that we are safe from them. We are also working towards rescuing the Padawan that was kidnapped. The Iron Knights are taunting us with her, almost trying to bait us. So we must tread carefully." There was plenty of other news to go over, but what threatened them was far more important. "Can we count on your continued support?" She'd rather not have Commenor face this threat entirely on it's own for all of them.

 

[Ulic Adraya]

[member="Veiere Arenais"] had already made himself well known to most of the far reaches of the galaxy for his valiant heroism in many cases within the Jedi Order - so while they had never met he was no stranger to Ulic, and Ulic held him in the highest regards out of most of the members in the room.

He quietly listened while the others made their introductions and their intentions for being there clear before finally speaking up after [member="Lady Kay"] had asked if anyone would be providing assistance in this new stage in Commenors life-span.

With his hands folded in the front of his robes still he gave a low deep bow of respect - as was customary with most Jedi; the bow itself was directed mostly to [member="Lady Kay"] and [member="Veiere Arenais"]. When he spoke his voice was low and deep and stoic in nature.

"Greetings, my Name is Ulic Adraya, Knight of the Jedi Order. I've come to offer my services to Commenor in your time of need. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

He stood for a moment after his first introduction - contemplating what he would or should say next. His eyes drifted to the floor for a moment as he pondered the recent events happening in the Galaxy as of late, including the current attack on Ossus.

"I agree with your ideologies when it comes to diplomatic discourse; however, unfortunately I feel that the time for war and battle is on the horizon and the inevitable is that we will have to engage in combat soon enough. My specialty.. No.. My mission is to protect those of whom I serve. I shall not fail you in this mission."

The words rolled off his tongue as if he had practiced this speech a hundred times before coming in - but truthfully it was the ideology of protection that ran deep within Ulic - all the way down to his core. Though, the words that he spoke were not out of arrogance - a hint of humility could be found in his voice as they rolled off his tongue.

 

[Silfe Sosuri]

More people arrived throughout the discourse happening. Silfe paid as much attention to the reigning monarchs, trying to understand the vague answer to her question. They obviously had some plans but her father would not allow for her to remain unless it benefited him in some way. As a Senator, the position his daughter held had given him prestige and formal validation to his own hold over Cyrillia. He wanted to be a monarch there but the native race would never allow it. As such he remained as an unofficial governor. As soon as it was realized that Silfe was no longer a senator, he would lose that power play and she would suffer for it. He would order her to return home soon enough. If she did not inform him, her guard would.

The young woman was distracted from her fear inducing thoughts by [member="Bradshaw Ku"] standing to address those that had gathered. She turned in her seat to look at him as he spoke. Though usually quite stoic in her expressions, she was unable to hide her surprise. Her jaw dropped for a moment before she could school her reaction. Prince of Commenor. [member="Lady Kay"] had a son and [member="Veiere Arenais"] had a step son. She must have read this somewhere but she couldnt recall. Why would a prince act as he had?

Silfe clasped her hands together in her lap as she shook her head momentarily to shake the surprise out of it and then returned to her attentive self. She was about to reply her acquiescence to Lady Kay's question but before she could the Jedi came forward. The Jedi coming forth at this time confused her. This was a meeting held to discuss the rearrangement of government on Commenor and its near neighbors. She had no idea who had or had not been invited to attend. He seemed a stranger to everyone present, so how come the guards let him in? Her brow furrowed wondering how he would be handled.

 

[Bradshaw Ku]

Don't worry your pretty little fancy cape off about me my dear Darlyn, I've got a big, strong, man to protect me now. And he has great hair, so feel free to unburden yourself over me...

That’s what Bradshaw wanted to snipe back facetiously at the Minister’s blunt suggestion that the only way he could be of any use was to be as far away as possible. The big strong man he was flippantly referring to was of course Freeosk, his bodyguard. Though whether the massive Yuzzem had great hair, or just a lot of it, was up for personal interpretation.

That’s what he wanted to say and as the thought bounced around his mind, the edges of his lips started pulling into a smile. That’s what he wanted to say, and boy did he want to say it, but even he sometimes knew when to keep his mouth shut. It was a rare occasion. He’d already jumped into hot water with his mother and stepfather, such a glib remark would only turn the heat up and bring the water to a boil. Besides, he was meant to be a dignified Prince, not to mention a Padawan.

Comforted with the knowledge that he at least could have shot Darlyn back with his own quip, Bradshaw simply gave the former Head of Palace Security a smile that betrayed the irreverent thought stewing beneath, and took his seat.

[member="Darlyn Excron"] and he never did have a friendly relationship. At best, they would try to one up each other with smart aleck remarks, at worse, the former Head of Security could barely stand him. No wonder, considering the Minister didn't suffer fools kindly, and usually playing the part of the fool, he only suffered Bradshaw because he was related to [member="Lady Kay"]. In spite of all that, he didn’t dislike Darlyn. The man served and protected his mother long before he came back and he was loyal to her. He did his job well. How could you truly dislike someone who helped to keep your mother alive? You couldn’t.

Now sitting, he watched as the chamber began to fill with yet more force users he didn’t know. One man, a human, had the poise and humility of a Jedi. The other was a Zabrak who wore strange garb and entered and sat laboriously as if injured. Even still, the man radiated inner strength and… something darker. He was no Jedi. The Jedi introduced himself and pledged himself to the Commenor Systems Alliance. It was a welcome announcement, to be sure. If his stepfather thought darker days were coming, then darker days must indeed be upon them. They would need all the help they could get.

Still, the meeting had quickly evolved into something of a war room and the force users outnumbered any former senators, even if some of them were also senators. It seemed, the force of the impending threat swamped the discussion about, as Bradshaw would’ve put it, the particular shape of the government.

With so many force users in the chamber, he decided to probe the force as deeply as he could. He was surprised when the first person he felt wasn’t one of the powerful force users who’d just entered, or even his stepfather or mother, but was, instead the woman sitting closest to him, [member="Silfe Sosuri"]. Maybe it was just a function of distance, but Bradshaw could feel surprise and frustration rippling off her. Diving deeper he found fear and anxiety underlying it all. What was she anxious or afraid of? The Iron Knights? No, it was too deep and too personal. It had to be something else, but he didn’t know nearly enough about her to translate the feelings into something more tangible.

Could he have made her anxious or uncomfortable by hitting on her? It didn't seem likely, but he didn't know what else could be bothering her. He turned to her and whispered, “Sorry about earlier I… got a little carried away.” A smile, “Wasn’t a very good pick-up line was it?” He said and chuckled at his own expense.

——————

In the hallway just outside the chambers, Freeosk decided to do a few push-ups. After all, one didn’t maintain the amount of muscle mass that adorned his body by just standing around waiting for others to finish a meeting. The massive Yuzzem, on all fours, shifted his weight onto one arm and looked up at the guard he felt staring down at him. The human was confused by the beast, and also a little scared. “What? Never seen someone exercise before little human?” The giant boomed, putting the guard on the spot. The guard didn't know how to reply, instead he nervously cleared his throat and looked strait ahead, hands clasped professionally behind his back. Freeosk resumed his exercise. When you grow up enslaved in a gladiatorial coliseum, you quickly learned to make use of every free moment, or you died.

- [member="Veiere Arenais"] - [member="Ulic Adraya"] - [member="Virak Ip"] - [member="Kirie Ito"] - [member="Darben Skirae"] - [member="Natalie LaForte"] -

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay looked to [member="Ulic Adraya"] as he introduced himself. A Knight of the Jedi Order? She glanced sideways to her husband [member="Veiere Arenais"] , wondering if he knew of the man and if he had somehow brought him in. As Ulric continued, she returned her attention to him. He spoke in such a manner that reminded her of some characters in one of her mystery holo-novels. But that wasn't entirely a good thing. Still, the young Jedi Knight seemed to sense what others had. Their Alliance space won't be able to escape war for much longer. She bowed her head to him. "Welcome to Commenor, and thank you for your support. War may very well reach within our borders. It is our hope that we are well prepared for when the time comes." And that would mean expanding on their fleets. Hopefully [member="Corey Brave"] and the Gyndine shipyards were up to the task.

She studied [member="Silfe Sosuri"] and [member="Bradshaw Ku"] while they interacted with one another. Kay didn't need to reach out with the Force in order to see the worry and fear in her eyes and in the way that she held herself. It seemed to have taken hold the moment that she thought that she was out of a government position. What Veiere had told her helped to give her some relief, but not entirely. Hopefully her confidence would grow soon enough.

Kay cleared her throat a bit as she looked to the others present. "Due to recent events, we'll be expanding our military. This is by no means a draft. People will have a choice to serve. There are many studying medicine at the University that will be able to help out as well and help prepare the medical wings of our vessels. We haven't changed our mandate, we are not a warring government, but we cannot be caught unprepared either. Who knows if our allies would come to our aid. We'll have to be prepared for the chance that they won't. Commenor survives, that has been our motto for centuries. And it has never been wrong."

[member="Darlyn Excron"] [member="Darben Skirae"] [member="Natalie LaForte"] [member="Virak Ip"]

 

[Darben Skirae]

Darben was surprised to hear anyone say that, and even more so that it was [member="Lady Kay"] saying it. Expanding their military? He scarcely knew of these 'recent events', as he normally wished to stay far away from any violent events, or anything dangerous. And what [member="Veiere Arenais"] said about darker days...if they were trying to scare Darben, they were doing really well. Even though he knew they weren't.

They did have many allies, but he didn't know much about their military infrastructures, only their trade enterprises. And now he had to worry even more about the ever looming threat of war, more than ever. He couldn't think of anything to say, except, "You...You still have my support" he quietly said. He couldn't think of anything else he could say. Everyone hear sounded like they had experience with such situations, he felt like he and Mute were the only ones not so experienced. He himself was not even the least prepared for war.

[member="Bradshaw Ku"] [member="Silfe Sosuri"] [member="Ulic Adraya"] [member="Darlyn Excron"] [member="Natalie LaForte"] [member="Virak Ip"]

 

[Ulic Adraya]

Ulic listened to [member="Lady Kay"] as well as [member="Darben Skirae"] and took note of what each said and the tone of voice they said it in. Lady Kay seemed reserved about a lot of things - especially in direct regards to the Jedi Knight. That was okay though, Commenor seemed to have an automatic sense of trust for the Jedi which was a lot more than other factions. Perhaps it had something to do with [member="Veiere Arenais"] being their king. Regardless, for those who didn't trust him - Ulic had plans to change their minds.

The Jedi's gaze shifted to [member="Darben Skirae"] having sensed anxiety growing internally within the man. He spoke lowly so that only those close by the two would be able to pick up on what he was saying. After all he didn't want to embarrass the man after just meeting him.

"Often times i've found that in war, it's not the 'Warriors' that are the ones who tip the scales. Warriors fight and die in the name of a cause, it's the people behind the scenes that are the true saviors of the battle."

The Jedi Knight now stared up to Lady Kay, ready to address what she had said to him. He bowed his head slightly, but his torso remained up-right and he withdrew the hilt from the side of his belt. He didn't ignite it, but rather held it in his hand, the top part of his knuckles facing up as his head remained bowed.

"It is my pleasure to serve you Queen and King of Commenor. My blade is yours to command, and if there is anything that I may do to ensure that Commenor is fully prepared when war reaches her borders you need but simply command it of me."

His voice was stoic and resolute in the affirmation of his ideals and his pledge to Commenor. Although, with all the brash stoic words he could muster he knew it meant nothing in the face of humility. He truly believed that vowing in such a way in front of other nobles and senators of Commenor was a show of humility in and of itself.

 

[Silfe Sosuri]

As the Prince sat down and turned to her, she automatically turned in to hear what he had to say. She was glad he wasn't hitting on her more in such a serious meeting. He had respected her wish to remain attentive. She smiled wide in amusement at his question. It had not been a very good pick up line. The smile itself, lit up her face, making her appear more pretty than she had been. Meanwhile his joke had caused the anxiety and uncertainty to push the back of her mind allowing her to reset herself from her turbulent emotions and be less outward about her confusion. "I think there are better pick up lines surely, but I thank you for respecting my dismissal of it."

She turned back to Lady Kay and watches as Ulic spoke more about his dedication to the King and Queen. Her brow knitted in confusion. Was a Jedi supposed to serve anyone specifically? Silfe knew very little of the Jedi and their internal politics. She had done some research upon finding that she was going to be a Senator to Commenor Systems Alliance, but it did not prepare her to know answers to that kind of question.

Silfe still had yet to announce her support of Commenor's decisions and she needed, as the ally she was, to do so. The young, frail former Senator stood with all the pride and nobility of her position. Here she stood strong and tall, a representative of her people, both human and Cyrillian alike. She represented them and could not cower in the face of war. "Even without a Senate, Cyrillia is an ally to Commenor. With inevitable war coming to this portion of the galaxy, we need to stand by our allies. Cyrillia is quite prepared to defend itself and wishes to extend that same protection in the form of state of the art droids to add to your planetside protection and military as needed. We have a cache of droids ready for such an occurrence and after the initial shipment, we can discuss further trade. The first shipment is of course, a gift to Commenor."

 

[Mythos]

The shadows trailed Mythos, he walked among them hiding his force signature as well as hiding his eyes behind shade sunglasses not posing as a security guard but actually being a security guard. He was head of security for this senate gathering and held a pride in doing so. Lightsaber neatly tucked into his suit, blaster pistol visible as his side arm and several facial features distorted with makeup, Mythos was not about to let his identity become known at any cost... yet he was doing the job Kay allowed him to do, train her guard and protect her at all cost. This was also a training exercise for her personal palace guards that today donned suits instead of armor and blaster pistols instead of rifles. They kept out of the eye of the public, sticking to the sidelines and keeping close to Kay, Mythos however made his way through the crowd and began eyeing everyone with equal suspicion and trust but every once in a while his eye would shift to the grandmaster [member="Veiere Arenais"]... he had never seen him before yet surely he knew who Mythos was and that he was indeed here. That was the man who fought for his people, not being from his people and did his best to save an unsavable planet. He was worthy of service, he reminded Mythos of another certain Grandmaster he had fought long ago... Ironic...

The Minister of justice reminded Mythos of someone he met before... James Justice, his attitude and demeanor brought a smile to Mythos' face . Hard headed and fiery, looking out for number one, he could understand that even if it did come with a a lack of judgment and intelligence or forward planning. Mythos could teach the kid a few things but that remained to be seen... if he didin't know any better he could have sworn the Zabrak hwalked with the dark side of the force. No sith here, but he could feel the lingering shadow of the dark side manifest itself in the air... he wondered... "Do you notice some among us, not just myself use the dark side of the force... does that not concern you?" He spoke to her, telepathically using his arts of mentalism learned from Sage Bane. "After all Kay" He finished, shooting a smile that cut through the crowd. "We are known to cause trouble..."
[member="Lady Kay"] [member="Silfe Sosuri"] [member="Ulic Adraya"] [member="Darben Skirae"]​

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay smiled a little and nodded in appreciation as [member="Darben Skirae"] gave his support. She didn't think it'd be any other way. He wouldn't be here otherwise. "Thank you, Minister Skirae." He hated conflict as much as she did, but they had to be able to defend themselves. And after what happened with him and Mute, she knew that he'd understand in time.

Her attention turned to the newcomer, [member="Ulic Adraya"] as he spoke up, pledging his loyalty and his service in the protection of their people. It was admirable, and something from a holonovel. Who'd of thought that it was real and that people really were that way? "Thank you, Ulic. There'll be much for you to do."

[member="Silfe Sosuri"] spoke up next and what she said made Kay smile. "Thank you. It is important that we all keep our economies going. This isn't a call to cease all activities and focus solely on one, but more so a need to put focus on something that was generally put to the side. I'll be happy to discuss further trade with Cyrillia with you, as well as other matters after we've concluded here.""

Kay glanced over to her husband. [member="Veiere Arenais"] had remained silent for a time, lost in his thoughts, or perhaps just observing. This meeting was going far better than her Senate meetings. It was more productive. Perhaps that was due to his presence that seemed to command respect, whereas hers did not.

A voice in her mind caught her attention next. [member="Mythos"] had joined them. From what he had said, she now knew why he stepped forward a bit. He was concerned. Kay smirked a little while she sipped her tea, answering his telepathic whisper with one of her own. ~I am well aware of the Darksiders here, and I trust them. There are none here with ill intentions. We are of course, a neutral state. You'll find all types walking around here. That in itself might make your job more difficult.~

She then looked to everyone in attendance. "I plan on reaching out to the other worlds near us, those that are sovereign from other governments and see if they could use our help in both trade and protection from the warring powers out there. With the increase in trade that that'll bring, it'll boost our economies. Their arts and cultures can also expand our knowledge. The more we know...the better."


[member="Virak Ip"] [member="Bradshaw Ku"] [member="Darlyn Excron"] [member="Natalie LaForte"]

 

[WolfMortum]

Veiere had taken the back seat for a time, listening to them all talk among themselves. Kay was the politician between the pair of them, Veiere's coronation as King had been taken under the pretense that he could not be in wedlock of Kay and not be forced into the position over Commenori leadership. His beloved wife had always encouraged him for his ability to lead people and to care over others as a good King should, though his distaste for politics in general often came between them when discussion matters of the Systems Alliance's future advances. Veiere was very much the hands on sort of man, preferring to brush aside the complicated stuff and just gun right for the heart of the issue or objectives at hand where as in politics, it was a lot of sugar-coating facts to best cater to everyone's ideal dreams and pursuits, pretending that everyone could have their cake and eat it too. The Galaxy wasn't as selfless as it should have been; as it was required to be for the kind of lives he and his wife hoped to bring upon those under the banner of the CSA. Realistically, Veiere's ideals were wholly unrealistic. Each world that rallied to them relied upon the politicking that he was seeing first hand here today, the same political garbage that had led to the Senates decline and Yutan's ill advised bid for indepenance before they were engulfed in conflict by those that sought to pick off the people while they were most vulnerable...

[member="Darben Skirae"] and [member="Ulic Adraya"] pulled him out of his thoughts, the latter of whom was rather more upfront with how he felt, speaking very passionately yet none the less something he and his wife could most appreciate, Veiere offered them both an approving nod before turning to glance to [member="Lady Kay"] as she sought to respond to [member="Mythos"]'s pointing out that there were in fact darksiders among them. It was here that he felt it best to intervene with his own take on the noted suggestion for concern. "You all know me, I assume, to be a member of the Jedi Order..." He turned to glance to Mythos first before looking around those gathered there to gauge their reactions. He expected it was common knowledge that this was what seperated he and Kay so and often saw there to be distance between the two where Veiere was off-world so frequently; "I do not judge people by alignment in the Force but by Integrity of Character. I never have...-I've fought alongside to protect members of the Sith in their bid to defend a world from the oppression of others...-I've saved lives of darksiders; they of whom have equal right to live and are as significant in the natural flow of the force as any other, Force sensitive or otherwise...-The Systems Alliance does not lay prejudice on race, culture, beliefs nor doctrines of any sort. We have a justice system and it is by Acts of valor or disregard that people will be judged...-Otherwise you can rest assured; The Force Praxeum will accommodate you if needs arise".

[member="Lady Kay"] | [member="Bradshaw Ku"] | [member="Silfe Sosuri"] | [member="Ulic Adraya"] | [member="Darlyn Excron"] | [member="Natalie LaForte"] | [member="Virak Ip"] | [member="Darben Skirae"]​

 

[Natalie LaForte]

"With all due respect, [member="Veiere Arenais"], I don't feel comfortable knowing that one of our Heads of state, or at least the person who is married to the Head of state, is ascribing himself openly to the Jedi Order. If we're a neutral state, shouldn't the two people who lead us not make their religious beliefs the forefront of who they are in the government? Of course, if you say otherwise then go ahead but it just seems like blatant hypocrisy to me."

Not that she was too concerned, she knew both Veiere and [member="Lady Kay"] were professionals and could easily separate what they believed in from their political lives, although she was tailing behind what [member="Mythos"] said. The Sith weren't the only bad people in the galaxy. The organised Jedi Orders have probably collectively ruined just as much as they've helped. She also noticed the comment about the expansion of the millitary and was quick to jump on that.

"In response to the military expansion, would it not be wiser to seek artificial beings to serve us rather than put people onto the front lines? They're cheaper, require less maintenance and will always obey orders. I don't really see the benefit of putting people who have dreams and aspirations at the forefront of a mobile death machine, and droids don't have the emotional obligation of telling families you just got their son or daughter killed because the establishment said so."

A controversial stance probably, but she was interested in perhaps setting up a deal between her own company and Commenor Systems Alliance, not to mention, she'd be more than happy to sell at a reduced price.

[member="Bradshaw Ku"] - [member="Silfe Sosuri"] - [member="Ulic Adraya"] - [member="Darlyn Excron"] - [member="Virak Ip"] - [member="Darben Skirae"]

 

[Bradshaw Ku]

Good, he thought as [member="Silfe Sosuri"] tacfully agreed that his pick-up line had been bad. She smiled prettily, and he could feel some of her anxiety wash away, or at least bury itself deeper. She stood to make her own declaration. He hoped her anxiety had gone the way of the former, rather than the latter route. But he couldn’t tell.

Once she sat again after having diplomatically pledged Cyrillia’s assistance to the CSA during the oncoming war and even offering up a free shipment of state of the art droids, Bradshaw would turn to her again.

It seemed everyone was going to get at least one chance to make a grand gesture, even he had made one, despite such a thing running entirely contrary to his usual mode of operation. Terrifying and heroic times, he supposed, coaxes sober words out of even the least serious or responsible among the galaxy. One couldn’t help but be swept along by all the grim faces and a mood so stoic he might’ve wondered if he’d slipped into a room full of Spartans, that is, if he’d known of such people.

But the meeting’s enchantment was quickly wearing thin. He could only talk about taking action for a short time before wanting to actually do something. To the pitiful degree that could be said for his attention span during the meeting, it was rapidly getting worse. He remembered why he very nearly hadn’t come. As he turned again toward Silfe, he also remembered why he was glad he had.

He wore a bright smile as usual, but unlike the one he typically put on, this one had much less of the sarcastic bite of the smuggler searching for banter, or the façade of a playboy making a move, instead, his smile was unintentionally unarmed and sincere.

“Hey! You’re not supposed to agree with that,” he whispered to the former senator, “But I deserve it. I don’t suppose you’d be so kind as to forget about my youthful indiscretion and give a fella a second chance for a first impression, would you? You know, before we’re all conscripted into a galaxy sized war. Maybe over a cup of my mother’s world-famous tea? Or zipping along on a speeder?” A shrug, “Whatever’s more your speed.”

Before Silfe could answer, Bradshaw couldn’t help but overhear [member="Natalie LaForte"]'s objection to [member="Veiere Arenais"] stating that he was a member of the Jedi Order and her argument for putting droids on the front lines over people.

“Oh, c’mon, if we were any more neutral, we’d still be stuck in our bedrooms worried about which side of the bed to crawl out from,” the Prince countered Natalie good-humouredly, “there aren’t two people in the galaxy more willing to give anyone and everyone a fair shot no matter what their various affiliations. I think the fact that this room is about as grey through the force as a Kaminoan’s fashion sense speaks to that. As for putting our best robo-foot forward, we’d obviously rather get hunks of metal vaporized before real people, so if this is your coy way of saying you’ve got a massive droid army tucked away somewhere for a rainy day, you should say so.”

He turned back to Silfe and rolled his eyes, “Politics. You can’t live with it, but… well, actually, that’s it. You can’t live with it.”

- [member="Lady Kay"] - [member="Mythos"] - [member="Ulic Adraya"] - [member="Darben Skirae"] - [member="Darlyn Excron"] - [member="Virak Ip"] - [member="Kirie Ito"]​

 

[Silfe Sosuri]

Silfe had carefully sat back down after Lady Kay's acknowledgement of her planet's gift of droids. Her father would not exactly be pleased, but since it would lead to more business from this war, he wouldn't fight it either. Cyrillia was primarily a droid manufacturing planet. Their main business was export goods of the mechanical nature, but Silfe wondered what other business [member="Lady Kay"] wished to discuss after the meeting. She sat back and relaxed, knowing she would learn soon enough.

Her attention was drawn back to [member="Bradshaw Ku"]. His second attempt at flirtation was far better than his first but before she could respond, [member="Natalie LaForte"] spoke up at first disparaging the King due to his Light Side affiliation and then brought up the idea of more droids. Silfe blinked rapidly. The woman was obviously not a diplomat and likely not very good at making the case for her own business. If she wanted a contract with Commenor, she should not have insulted the King of Commenor and then bring up droids as though Silfe herself had not just offered a massive shipment to Commenor for free. Her only thought was that her father would laugh at such foolishness.... all the way to the intergalactic bank.

She turned to Bradshaw as he spoke and smiled warmly. "I'm afraid, I like living with it. About your offer though, I could forget about your youthful indiscretion and give you a second chance for a first impression, if I thought my first impression of you was inaccurate, but I don't mind a good cup of tea and a second impression. Everyone should be given the opportunity to be complex. Something tells me you are more than a playboy... though... I think you like being a playboy the most."

[member="Mythos"] - [member="Ulic Adraya"] - [member="Darben Skirae"] - [member="Darlyn Excron"] - [member="Virak Ip"] - [member="Kirie Ito"] - [member="Veiere Arenais"]

 

[Bradshaw Ku]

He gave [member="Silfe Sosuri"] a playful sigh, a show of mock exasperation in response to her saying that she liked living with politics. He couldn’t escape them. Them being the whole lot of people afflicted with that curious malady which drove them to enjoy politics: the empty schmoozing and relentless manoeuvring, and of course, all those meetings. Oh, so many meetings.

Who knew politicians were so numerous? He hadn’t. Granted, he never looked, and before returning to Commoner and re-joining his mother, he didn’t exactly converse in the same circles as all the suit wearing, slick-talking, parliamentarians. Now, he couldn’t throw an Ewok anywhere in the system without hitting a politician, not that he would do such a thing. [member="Veiere Arenais"] didn’t like politicking either. He made up for it with the Jedi way. It wasn’t politics, but the stern, hardworking nature of the Jedi Order hadn’t agreed with Bradshaw either.

There was only one politician he actually liked and calling her mom had more than a little to do with that. Now, though, it seemed he liked two and while he hadn’t gotten a second first chance, she offered the next to best thing.

“A tea party it is,” his relief and enthusiasm couldn’t be concealed, “How’s this sound, I promise to try and forget you’re a politician; if you promise to try to unpeg me for a playboy? And if we fail in that, at least we can remember there’s more? For the sake of that complexity. Deal?”

Why did he like her so much and why was he this interested in playing tea with her like a couple of old folk? Tea was [member="Lady Kay"]’s obsession, not his. So why was he trying so hard just to salvage an opportunity for potentially the lamest date he could think of? Hell, it wasn't even a date. Maybe because he didn’t think it was going to be lame at all. He’d forgotten himself, in that, the playboy had been promptly shoved into the backseat and gagged, and in it’s place, he’d allowed for genuine interaction.

There was something about her he couldn’t put his finger on. Something different. Was it this complexity she spoke of?

- [member="Natalie LaForte"] - [member="Mythos"] - [member="Ulic Adraya"] - [member="Darben Skirae"] - [member="Darlyn Excron"] - [member="Kirie Ito"] - [member="Virak Ip"]​

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay looked to [member="Natalie LaForte"] while she spoke of having a problem with [member="Veiere Arenais"] being a Jedi. It was people like that that had caused her to hide her own Force Sensitivity. There was a great distrust among Force Users and non-Force Users. Although Veiere had tried to convince her to embrace her gifts, there were many reasons that she couldn't do so. "Who I chose to marry wasn't for anyone to decide but me. I wasn't bound to ask for permission. No matter what, there was bound to be someone that has an issue with whomever I chose. I respect everyone elses' beliefs and do not impose a particular view over anyone else, and nor does Veiere. We are a government that covers a wide range of people. I hardly think that it's hypocritical for someone of Veiere's character to be in a position of power. He won't abuse it."


The topic was switched then to droids being used as cannon fodder for military operations. Kay had a slight issue with that, given that she knew of a few sentient droids that she had a great respect for, [member="Ultimatum"] being one of them. She saw them as more than just hunks of metal with programming. They were another form of life. But still, there was a point to what Natalie and [member="Bradshaw Ku"] were saying. "If there are people that wish to serve in the military and navy, I don't think it'd be a good idea to stand in their way or have them all replaced with droids. Such a thing could be very dangerous."

She took note of Brad and [member="Silfe Sosuri"] speaking amongst themselves. It only concerned her in the way it would if Brad was her own flesh and blood. Neither of them knew Silfe very well just yet. And given his position as Prince, he had to be careful. There was sure to be plenty that would take advantage of him, just as he might of done. The last thing that she wanted was for him to have his heart broken.

[member="Darben Skirae"] [member="Kirie Ito"] [member="Darlyn Excron"] [member="Mythos"] [member="Virak Ip"]

 

[Silfe Sosuri]

She smiled warmly at [member="Bradshaw Ku"]. Somehow he had garnered the smile without seemingly much effort. He was easy in her company and she couldn't tell if it was her charms or just because he was in a boring meeting he would rather not be in. He was witty and self deprecating and had they not been in such an important meeting, she could imagine that they would find much laughter in each other's company. The prospect of spending some time with him outside of this setting appealed to her greatly. As long as her father did not show to impose his order on her before she had the chance, she might actually have some real human interaction with someone not designated to be her tutor or an opposing political or business faction.

"I give my solemn promise to keep a relatively open mind about your playboy ways. It is a deal."

If only [member="Lady Kay"] knew how far from thinking of breaking her son's heart, Silfe was. Besides the fact that she never thought of herself as any kind of catch enough to break someones heart in the first place, she was just wanting one last hoorah before her father found out the Senate had been dissolved and recalled her back to their home on Cyrillia. Soon enough her chance at finding friendships, enjoying her work, and maybe finding herself were going to slip away. There was a part of her that desperately wanted to hold on to every precious moment before her world became black and lonely monotony once more.

- [member="Natalie LaForte"] - [member="Mythos"] - [member="Ulic Adraya"] - [member="Darben Skirae"] - [member="Darlyn Excron"] - [member="Kirie Ito"] - [member="Virak Ip"]