Consolodating the Military

[Ashin Varanin]

"In the days of Palpatine, so far as I've been able to ascertain, wielders of the Force either stayed entirely outside the chain of command, or were fully integrated into it, in practical though not formalistic ways. For example, Darth Vader and Inquisitor Tremaybe had specific roles relative to the Imperial war machine. To me, this is ideal.

"Speaking candidly, Kirk, ideals are difficult to pursue. If I lock the majority of the Sith out of what they consider to be their privilege, due to the mistakes and foibles of the previous administrations, they won't take the problem to me. They'll take it to you, and your life will be at risk. Of course, you'd be in the right according to my laws, and I would take full action against such Sith. @[member="Valik"], for example, is still awaiting discipline for his actions at Gravlex Met. But if I advance my timetable and implement these reforms now, the risk is yours to shoulder.

"Then again, you know that. You swim in deep water already; you evaluate every possible threat, or you die.

"The counterargument, of course, is Roche. When we finally make contact with the Republic, when we finally give my bloodthirsty little friends the war they crave, these procedures should be in place already. Entrenched, so far as it's possible.

"I swear to you, Kirk, I'm no Nihilus or Bane, but some days I want to Force Storm this entire Empire into rubble and let men like you rebuild it from scratch. Very few people know my history in the Unknown Regions, though I suspect you might, given your heritage. There was a government there, a Sith faction called the Sith'ari Centrality of which I was a prominent member. It descended into stagnation, stupidity, immaturity and pointless violence, and I destroyed it. All of it. I'm not saying that I have a pattern, of course. Merely take it as proof that if worse comes to worst, I have no problem with killing Sith to preserve those who seek to uphold the chain of command.

"I'll issue the necessary proclamation, honey it with a few promotions, and leave the rest in your hands. If you fail as spectacularly as Tirdarius at Gravlex Med -- feth, it's become a byword for incoherence and failure, and the Mandalorians are almost certain to beat us to Borosk or Yaga Minor because of it -- you can expect no protection from me. That's only fair.

"If you'll excuse me, I appear to have a message...from Praetor Shorn. Whatever he has to say, I'd appreciate your insight-

"Oh.

"Now this puts everything in a new light. When Darth Voracitos began to, shall we say, recycle the Dark Council, it was with my blessing. But if Moffs are being assassinated...by Moffs, perhaps, though the evidence is sketchy at best and backed up only by conjecture and the lack of Force-wielder involvement...well, I find myself wondering who, in this Empire, takes the prerogative of execution upon himself. I'm unfond of backstabbery, as a friend of mine used to say. This makes, oh, three purges in the last three years, and I am deeply uncomfortable with that.

"What do you know of this?"

 

[Soeht]

The Empress seemed to enjoy talking, from Kirk's point of view. Though, it might have been the subject of the conversation and the company he had that made Kirk wish to get this meeting over with. He silently nodded as he listened to @[member="Ashin Varanin"]'s comments about the proposal. At the least, Kirk managed to discern that the Empress was one of reason - and because of that, he had confidence that @[member="Sven Talith"] and himself could get what they wanted from her.

When it seemed that Ashin gave the final approval for Kirk to push ahead with the plan, the Chiss gave a small, appreciative bow. Right after that, the call from @[member="Seth Shorn"] came in. Kirk did not see what the message contained with clarity and only heard some of it. Yet, the Empress's immediate response seemingly did not bode well for Kirk or Sven.

The thoughts within Kirk's mind quickly went through various scenarios for what happened. While Sven and Kirk were conspirators, neither were fully updated on what the other was doing. It might have seemed to be a disadvantage to their organization, yet Kirk thought it could have proved helpful to, at least, his situation in regards to keeping his neck on his shoulders.

"I know little, if anything, about this, Your Majesty," Kirk lied within a second of being asked. No expression of worry or confusion pierced the facade of his face.

"I am to assume Praetor Shorn has video evidence of this assassination?" continued Kirk, "I did not see the playback in full."

 

[Ashin Varanin]

Rytek'irk'intrano, had he but known it, could now join a very exclusive club: Those who had lied to Ashin's face with any measure of success. The Empress adjusted her datapad, and a wavering image presented itself.

"I'm roughly seventy-five percent certain that this is our friend Sven Talith, whose skillset was so useful to me on Gand before the Moffs decided to elevate him to one of their own. I don't have time for this, Kirk. I name you Grand Moff of Sectors Eight, Nine and Twelve. Get your house in order."

 

[Soeht]

A casual observation of the image revealed that the suspicion that Sven could have been involved was possible. Kirk noticed that it did not catch the man in the act - just that he was guilty by being there. The quality of the image was not the best, too, which Kirk could have used to present some doubt over the identity of the man in the photo. While the likeness was similar to Sven, Kirk knew that many of the trillions upon trillions of beings in the galaxy could look just as Sven - the term doppelganger existed for a reason. Kirk realized that there were so many excuses he could give to make it seem as if the Praetor's investigation was not complete - yet he knew that acting out of his way to protect Sven when the Empress was "seventy-five percent" sure of Sven's involvement would have posed issues.

The promotion to Grand Moff was a somewhat bittersweet surprise to Kirk. It seemed to him that the Empress viewed highly of him, as did other Sith Lords, yet this also meant many eyes were now upon him. Yet, he did enjoy the fact that, in three years, he went from being a direct subordinate of a Grand Moff to becoming one.

The fact that he now was in charge of Sector 12 did not pass Kirk, though. Sven had been in charge of that region. He also knew that Tirdarius ruled over Sector 9. Seeing as how he was certain the Empress would view both in a somewhat negative light, the command to "get his house in order" took on a rather lofty meaning.

With yet another appreciative, short bow, Kirk then responded to Ashin, "Your Majesty's will shall be done."

Then, Kirk took a half step to his left - turning his body slightly away from the Empress. He procured a hand-held holoprojector from a rear pocket with his left hand.

As he performed this action, Kirk gave a quick explanation with, "While information is limited, and this is assuming the Praetor immediately sent his message upon acquiring the image, the crew on Sven's flagship should have information on his whereabouts."

After a quick sequence of button presses, he turned back toward the Empress and held it between him and her. The projection of an Imperial officer appeared, and he immediately recognized Kirk. The Empress was hidden from his view, so the officer just gave a quick salute.

The officer introduced himself, "Lieutenant Presley, Communications Officer of the Decaying Corruption."

Kirk always wondered how a ship could get such a name.

"Where is Moff Talith?" immediately questioned Kirk.

The response of Sven's crew would have been heard by the Empress - either providing an alibi for the Moff or condemning him.

 

[Sven Talith]

The officer looked at Kirk for a few seconds and then seemed to peer over his shoulder and ask a question. The man then immediately turned back towards Kirk and gave an answer, his face perfectly straight and quite clear.

“The Moff is currently in his quarters sir, would you like me to patch him in?”

It was a simple answer, and perhaps one that would surprise both Kirk and the Empress, it was however also the truth. Sven lay within the bed in his quarters, apparently sleeping and dead to the world. An alarm sounded immediately after Kirk confirmed that he wished to speak with Sven. The Young Moff rose from the bed quickly and put on a pair of pants. Slowly he walked over to the communications console within his quarters. He flipped a switch and then answered the call, the image of the communications officer quickly being replaced by a shirtless Sven.

“Moff Kirk. May I ask why you're calling me at this ungodly hour?” It was quite clear from his appearance that Sven had been sleeping for several hours. His hair was disheveled and his eyes seemed to contain quite a bit of sleep in them.

 

[Soeht]

There was no expression of surprise on Kirk's face with the Lieutenant's response. He immediately requested to be patched to talk to Sven.

"You should be used to such a call," replied Kirk. Time was not the same on every planet or ship - and even everywhere on the same planet.

"There is news of someone assassinating a Moff, though," continued Kirk, his tone being casual rather than accusative.

 

[Sven Talith]

Sven's face became a mixture of shock, fear, anger, and indignation. It wasn't clear why this was, but it was almost entirely certain that these emotions were genuine. The Young Moff looked at Kirk through the call, and then seemed to change his expression again, this time to a straight scowl, again it wasn't quite clear why this was his expression but it was genuine.

“Which one...and how the hell did they let it happen?” Sven asked quickly and with genuine concern in his voice as he seemed to pick up something from the floor. Within seconds it was obvious that it was a uniform jacket. He slipped the coat over his naked torso and began to button it, with eagerness he looked back towards Kirk expecting an answer from him.

 

[Soeht]

"Moff Vintel of Sector 11," answered Kirk, "And how I do not know."

Another fault Kirk believed the Praetor's message had was that it did not specify the method of Vintel's assassination. Not even Kirk knew what happened. Of course, that meant that Kirk's "investigation" would have required the Praetor's input. Whether the Praetor intended this or not was unknown to Kirk and he did not assume either case.

After a second of thought, Kirk the said, "The investigation has just begun, I assume. For now, locking down the movements of other Moffs to ensure their safety is the best suggestion I can think of. And, that includes you and I."

 

[Sven Talith]

Sven frowned, though again the cause of the frown could not be really told. Presumably it was because he was now apparently in danger. The young Moff shook his head and then seemed to press a few keys on the console before him checking on several bits of information as his uniform jacket hung open. He read for a few seconds. Vintel had been on Serenno, a world that currently his flagship was no where near.

“My flagship is currently several hundred thousand light years from the nearest planetoids. Were on patrol near the Toprawa sector. If anyone can get to me here...they deserve the kill.” Sven said listlessly. He was perfectly safe on his flagship, for more reason than one in fact but of course he did not mention that. He turned about, as if looking at something moving behind him.

After a few seconds he turned back towards the communicator and then spoke to Kirk again. “Is that why you woke me up? To tell me of Vintel's death? Because honestly I never cared for the man.”

 

[Soeht]

Within a second after Sven declaring his dislike of Vintel, Kirk said to him, "That overconfidence is most likely why Vintel is dead. Also believe it or not, I'm now Grand Moff and responsible for Sectors Twelve and Nine. Confirmation should arrive soon. For now, I urge you broadcast your coordinates to my flagship and make your way to the Horuset system."

Maybe Kirk should have mentioned to Sven earlier that patrol duty for Moffs was odd.

"To avoid further deaths should this assassin continue to target Moffs, you and Moff Rackham are under my watch," said Kirk. Coincidentally, Moff Rackham of Sector Nine was on the list of assassination targets.

"That is all I have to say," informed Kirk.

 

[Sven Talith]

Sven raised an eyebrow, he was in charge of sector 12 now? Interesting, that kind of put him out of a job. The Young Moff however decided not to comment on that fact and instead just nodded his head at Kirk. Further assassinations by his hand would be foolish at this point, of course he had other means of getting the job done. The former assassin looked to the movement behind him again, and seemed to mouth something unintelligible to the Empress and Kirk then turned back towards the Chiss.

“I will inform my captain of this new course of action.” Sven said to Kirk as he keyed in another console code and pulled up a line to his captain. It would take his ship several hours to reach Horuset, but they would get there eventually. “You'll receive our coordinates soon. Now if you'll excuse me Grand Moff, I have quite the trip ahead of me.”

With that Sven turned off the Holo-communicator. He leaned back in his seat tipping his head over the back of it a slight smirk formed on his face as he did so.

 

[Soeht]

Now that their conversation was finished, Kirk relaxed his hand and let it drop to his side.

Looking at the Empress, Kirk informed her, "I will have Moff Talith detained as soon as he arrives in the Horuset system."

The Chiss figured that the best way to get Sven out of this mess was to assume the role of an investigator. By appearing to be doing his best to prove Sven's guilt, Kirk reasoned that he would avoid suspicion while also manipulating the evidence in Sven's favor. Maybe the Praetor would be a decent fall guy for Kirk. It also helped that this was not Kirk's first time framing someone for the death of an Imperial official.

"I will contact Praetor Shorn and attempt to see what evidence he has and how Moff Vintel died," continued Kirk, "It should provide some clarity for the situation."

Then, Kirk awaited for the Empress to give him permission to leave.

 

[Ashin Varanin]

"Tread lightly, Grand Moff. The chief sin of Gravlex Med was bound up in ignoring the former Imperial Remnant. Also, do make sure that Moff Talith understands that your appointment as his overseer is not a demotion for him. Work closely with Praetor Shorn. At least one of you three is quite possibly playing me for a fool. Good luck, and dismissed."

 

[Sven Talith]

It was several hours after that Sven's ship arrived within the system Kirk had...suggested he go to and Sven found himself on board a shuttle heading towards Imperial Headquarters upon the world. The Young Moff knew what was about to happen, Kirk had been quite clear about that in their conversation. The Dreadlord's son stood patiently at the foot of the boarding ramp, watching through a window as they drew into the planets atmosphere and down to the world below. There was a slight smile to his face as the ship came into a landing, as if he knew something no one else did.

“Sir, we've received a transmission to come out unarmed when we land.”

One of his stormtroopers walked up next to him, clearly concerned. The man was an alien, Sven guessed Togruta from the way his helmet bent and shaped himself. Alien Stormtroopers were not uncommon within Sector 12, and this man being here did not surprise him.

“I believe they mean to arrest you sir.”

“Yes, I was afraid of this.” Sven said casually to the stormtroopers with a shake of his head. He put a hand on the man's shoulder, and then smiled at him. “I have committed no crime, there is nothing to fear. They will detain me only for a short time. You serve the Empire, not me.”

The stormtrooper gave Sven a nod, and then backed up into the cabin. Several of his brothers gave a nod as well to the young Moff and then proceeded to disarm themselves. Seconds later the shuttle came down for a landing above Imperial Headquarters. As soon as the small shuttle landed a ramp was lowered with Sven standing at its top, at the bottom stood four Stormtroopers and a detachment of regular Imperial guards.

“Moff Sven Talith, I'm afraid you will have to come with us.”

Sven stared at them, and then simply walked down the ramp and towards them. There was no sign of anger or hate on his face, just simple abdication. “I'm unsure of what I have done Commander, but I will do as you ask.”

The Stormtrooper commander looked strangely at Sven, but then gave a simple nod in return. The group quickly surrounded Sven and led him inside.

 

[Soeht]

After one final bow, Kirk departed from the throne room. He thought on the words of Ashin, though he did not discern the meaning behind them all - the mentioning of the Imperial Remnant being what he thought was strange to say. Yet, the rest was clear to him.

Before long, Kirk got on a ship to Korriban - where Sven would have been detained and where Moff Rackham would have been summoned. The other Moffs of the Empire were quickly contacted by Kirk's agents. Their locations were sent to the Chiss upon confirmation that he now held the rank of Grand Moff - and the Chiss realized that the Royal Guard was attempting to round up the Moffs. Kirk was never contacted by them, though.

While en-route to the Horuset System, Kirk sent a message to @[member="Seth Shorn"]. He asked for the Praetor to meet with him - either in person or over Holocomm - in order to facilitate a quick investigation into Moff Vintel's death. The missive would have informed Praetor that Kirk's men held Sven Talith in custody.

 

[Sal Katarn]

Seth received word of Sven's detainment with a grim sense of accomplishment. At least one part of the investigation was getting somewhere. Shorn opened a transmission to Moff Kirk out of expediency. A small hologram appeared in front of the Chiss, clad in the accoutrements of a Royal Guard, but lacking the helmet. Long locks of black hair were pushed neatly back over the ears. The small figure fixed the Moff with an adamantine gaze.

"Moff Kirk." The Praetor's voice held a hard intensity, as it usually did. The granite fervor of a fanatic? "I received your update and I have just sent you our intel. In brief, it appears the Moff was killed with high explosives. We have several witnesses to the explosion, though the investigation is still ongoing. As you can see from the intel, a masked figure was caught on holocam. Our techs traced him back through further use of external holocams and we captured an image of Moff Sven, unmasked and preparing for the assassination. Compare the images. They match perfectly in height, proportions, and apparel. Nothing is conclusive until a ruling of a court of law, but it appears we have found the murderer."

Shorn left out the fact that they knew nothing of how exactly Sven got to the planet. In two places at once, apparently. Or possibly more worrisome, why a Moff would enact the assassination in person.

 

[Soeht]

"Good work, Praetor," replied Kirk after @[member="Seth Shorn"] explained a bit of the situation. The words were hardly sincere, though.

With a few gestures of his hand, Kirk then told Shorn, "Thank you for your efforts to make light of the event and ensure the Empire's safety."

The intelligence Kirk received seem okay, from just a glance. Though, it was mostly just reports - which Kirk managed to quickly read. The quick minded Grand Moff thought of some things to make the Praetor dance in circles.

"Though, there may be a problem. High explosives planted in the Moff's bedroom," pointed out Kirk, "Our suspect caught on cameras within and outside the building."

Tilting his head to the right, Kirk lifting up his left hand and touched his lower jaw. His eyes turned to his right in thought, which Shorn would not have been able to tell through the blue hologram projection of himself - especially since Kirk was a Chiss.

Turning back to the small holoprojection of Praetor Shorn, Kirk then said to him, "If there was a visual of him within the building, why did the guards not act? No alarms were raised, according to your report. No one died before the explosion. Traffic cams near a fortress's compound - surrounded by forests I imagine just as the other palaces I have visited on that planet."

Then, Kirk continued his thought with, "I require an explanation of how you traced him. It seems strange how so much video evidence could be acquired while Sven infiltrated a secure compound in the dead of night with ease."

After a pause, he concluded with, "Perhaps the fortress's security should be detained for questioning as well."

 

[Sal Katarn]

The figure's jaw muscles clenched. He did not answer to the Moffs. Even a Grand one. However, let it not be said that Seth Shorn could not be cordial.

"Yes, those are other questions we are investigating. There are a multitude of cameras within the fortress. The figure was only seen on them for barely a second in each. And sometimes nearly undetectable in the shadow. My guess is human error. The guards did not see the flash of movement on a screen of more than a hundred cameras. Further, the initial reports I am currently looking at also show that the Moff of Sector 11 was cutting expenses in security in favor of more, ah... lavish decor. The success of the assassination had more to do with the laxity of the Moff than anything else. As for the other images, they came from the two satellites orbiting the planet. One was fixed on the fortress and surrounding area. Even Moffs must be monitored."

 

[Soeht]

"Leave nothing to chance unless you wish to endanger the Empire," replied Kirk.

After folding his hands behind his back, Kirk continued talking to the Praetor, "Fact is, you noticed Sven entering the fortress. I noticed him. Your staff most likely did. Out of possibly hundreds of cameras and hours of footage, he was noticed by at least one living being.

"And none of the, possibly, dozens of guards and, possibly, electronically linked droids noticed him for well over minutes? From the evidence you have brought up, at least one person in the guard likely conspired with the assassin. Either they ignored the surveillance cameras or doctored them after the fact."

With no insight in Sven's plans, Kirk actually believed his words for a second. He knew he might have been leading Praetor down the path to seal Sven's fate, if all this evidence was true. Yet, it would deflect attention from Kirk, and with his new title he could possibly bully the troublesome Moffs from here-on-out. Cutting ties with Sven would have been a little disappointing to Kirk, yet the man was not a drinking buddy - at least not yet.

"Anyone assigned to security must be detained for questioning," suggested Kirk, "Not doing so would be foolish."

 

[Sven Talith]

So this was prison, Interesting. Sven sat within a small cell in a dungeon on Korriban. Dark red lights were the only thing allowing him to see. He sat upon a hard metal bed with no pillow and the walls of the cell were entirely made of stark durasteel. The young Moff had long since given up trying to find a way to get into a more comfortable cell, his guards weren't exactly keen on letting him out. He yawned knowing that he wouldn't be here for long. Slowly Sven began to tap on the side of a bed in a rhythm, playing a little tune with the soft metal clanks.

“Wow. Prison is really boring.” Sven said out loud to himself as he laid down on the bed. He continued tapping on the hard metal bed, carving out a tune. There was absolutely nothing to do here. At least on an outer rim world he would have some sort of entertainment, maybe a few fights...a stabbing.

Here however he had nothing, just an empty cell and a metal bed. The Moff closed his eyes, it was at times like this that he wished he had the patience to meditate or do something of the sort, but nope here he was bored in prison.

He wondered if anyone would try to interrogate him...that could be fun.