Receiving messages from several different quarters, all relaying a varying degree of success in their missions, Tirdarius had to be pleased that at least the capture of Gravlex Med was proceeding apace, even if not quite according to plan. No doubt the Empress would be displeased with the latter, but he was quite prepared for that contingency. Success was at least something, and it could not be doubted that, once they had both come under mutual threat, both the Sith and the Remnant fleets had responded superbly to the attack, working together quickly to neutralise their common foe. That certainly makes things a little easier.
Gravlex Med had surrendered, and the commanding officer of several trooper squads on the ground had conveyed the unfortunate news that the Prime Minister had been victim of an unfortunate and rather coincidental assassination. Unfortunate insofar as he died before he had chance to fall victim to my wrath, the Sith Lord thought vengefully, having fully intended to make that kill himself, once the planet had been secured. That bastard was responsible for the death of too many of our people. Even if he hadn't given the orders, the world's leader was no doubt responsible for the work of his subordinates, whether he truly had control over them or not. So their attack on us was his fault, and it was for him to pay the price.
As things stood, it looked like one of their boots on the ground had gotten their first. Not that I'd blame them for that. It had been a job that needed doing.
"Tirdarius to @[member="Viera Kisep"]," he said, activating the commlink and connecting the two command vessels. "Congratulations on our first mutual victory," Tirdarius observed, thinking it only best to consider it as such. "Please convey my instructions to stand down to both of my subordinates. I'll be expecting their report aboard my flagship presently," he noted, realising that something untoward had obviously happened aboard the other ship during the stand-off. "If any of your ships require assistance, I'll see to it that mine offer what they can, though I think both of our fleets will require some time before they will be back up to full strength," he concluded, deactivating the comm between the two ships.
Turning to the second communications holopad on the bridge, he listened carefully to the report of the Chiss Moff, nodding in satisfaction at the clipped and concise way it was delivered - typical of all the best military officers. "Thank you for the report, Moff @[member="Rytek'irk'intrano"]," he remarked calmly. "Feel free to be as heavy-handed as you deem appropriate, should they offer any further resistance. They forfeited our protection when they started firing on our ships, so I leave their fate to you."
The holoprojectors shut down with the conversation between them at an end, and Tirdarius took a moment to sit back in his command chair, exhaling a soft sigh that was both partly resigned to the fact that blood had been shed and would continue to be, now that the gloves had been taken off, but also a sigh of relief that the worst was over - the planetary defenses had fallen and Gravlex Med was now effectively under joint Sith-Imperial control, which was as it should be. Still, there was one final report left to be made, and he couldn't necessarily confess that he was looking forward to it, even though success was theirs nonetheless.
After all, it doesn't do to keep the Empress waiting. And although Admiral Kisep had indicated that she had informed the Empress of circumstances here, she would no doubt be expecting a similar report from Tirdarius himself, given that he had overall command of the field. Best snap to it, then.
"Captain, open a channel to the Empress. Put her through to my private meditation chambers," he instructed, standing from his chair and making his way purposefully down the long walkway that split the Command Bridge in two, moving towards the sizeable chamber towards the back, locked with a mechanism that only a Sith could open through use of the Force, the large double doors sealing behind him once he was within.
The room was sparse in decoration, cold and austere in a way that only a Sith's private rooms could be. The furnishings were near enough non-existant: a desk with a chair at the far end, but the room itself was dominated by a large holoprojector, usually used to view Starcharts or a full-sized map of the Galaxy, but one that could also be used for holotransmissions. He waited for a moment until a series of lights blinked along the array, then stepped onto the holopad in front of the projector, one that would scan and then project his own image to an identical projector in another part of the Galaxy, the gap bridged by their own communications network.
"I have come to make my report on Gravlex Med, my Empress," (@[member="Ashin Varanin"]) he said, dropping obediently to one knee, placing both his hands above it in a gesture of respect: one of the few times he could be said to have done such a thing. "I have just received word that the Prime Minister has been executed by our forces, and the planet has now entirely fallen into our hands. Our fleet is securing the surrounding space, and any remaining resistance down there is even now being mopped up by co-ordinated efforts between our own troopers and those of the Imperial Remnant," he said calmly, his expression absent of the rage that had struck at him when the defenses first lashed out at both fleets. "Gravlex Med is ours," he concluded, waiting to see what the Empress would do next.
