Dose Makes the Poison [Geneviève Lasedri]

[Gir Quee]

Newgale, Anobis

A breeze drove down the rugged mountains, across the prairie plains, and into the streets of the village of Newgale, bringing in the mixed scents of fragrant mountain flowers and earthy quinto grains. Gir took a strong breath of it, and promptly coughed. I've been on starships far too long...there aren't any air filters in nature...I wonder if ECHO makes any immune system boosters, I could probably stand to invest in them, given how often I find myself visiting random worlds...but that's the nature of my works. The blonde man strolled into the streets of the agrarian outpost of Newgale, set near the footsteps of the Elati mountains and at the edges of the great southern plains. It was an odd mesh of the world's two cultures, where miners and farmers managed to somehow tolerate, and even thrive together as neighbors.

But members of both cultures seemed to be far more interested in Gir himself than their erstwhile rivals. The man's faded trenchcoat, one of his few remembrances of his father, barely concealed the business clothes beneath; a far cry from the durable and utiliarian working clothes of most of the passersby that almost openly gawked at him. By Gir paid them little heed, instead intently looking at the various signs of the village's downtown establishments. Finally, his sapphire eyes settled on the checkered pattern on the Newgale Corner Club.

The man promptly walked into the restaurant, finding himself before a middle aged hostess wearing a similarly checkered dress. He glanced around. I guess this is what settles for upscale on Anobis...but perhaps this is just a meeting point before we actually get down to business. Gir cleared his somewhat inflamed throat.

"I have a reservation for two, under the name of Quee," said Gir.

The hostess glanced down at her datapad, "All right hun, if you'll just follow me to the table in the back."

[member="Geneviève Lasedri"]

 

[Geneviève Lasedri]

Geneviève had selected the meeting world of Anobis, partly for its reduced culture--a lack of cams and particularly suspicious people was always a plus with her. But, more importantly, it was located just on the outskirts of Republic and Mandalorian territory (She seemed to be skirting about those nations a lot lately.) and had resources that might be worth exploiting.

Clad in brown leggings, a white shirt, and her Viola Coat, ECHO Esprit's owner blended in with the crowds better than she did on most other worlds, even though the black trenchcoat was a little prominent. Some people even stared at her as if they had seen this exact getup just moment before and wondered if some gang was assembling. Fortunately for them, that would prove false. Just another business meeting on a backwater world--the kind that always ends up affecting the galaxy.

She found her way to the 'high-class' Newgale Corner Club and thought it more of a comfortable environment, rather than a snotty, elitist club with its strangely flavored foods. No, this was what she wished was high-class everywhere. Entering the building, there was a minor delay before the hostess arrived to usher her to the reserved table. The woman hesitated, eying her trenchcoat for a moment before taking her to the designated booth without even asking for Gen's name. It was not difficult to figure out how she had known.

This [member="Gir Quee"] was not exactly what she was expecting, but that is what one gets when expecting anything. A blond man, about her age; about her height; about her taste--as in, she certainly approved of his attire. They should get along nicely.

"So good to see you again," she greeted for show, immediately taking a seat.

 

[Gir Quee]

"And you as well," said Gir reflexively, looking up from his menu at [member="Geneviève Lasedri"].

Not at all like the old tabloid holos of her back at Chandrila.

But years do wear a person, as do their lessons.

The man took a moment to scan the horizon, checking out the clientele and glancing at the windows. But aside from a few furtive glances by some of the younger children at the window, there didn't seem to be anyone interested in the two executives. While Gir doubted that anyone would really be after him, he was out of the safety of the Republic, where his rank and that government's rule of law protected him more so than the blaster pistol concealed at his waist. It was an odd sensation. While he wasn't scared, he felt as if he was putting himself a bit out of his comfort zone. But he knew that the meeting would certainly be worth the momentary unease he felt.

He was sure of it.

"How was your trip here?" asked Gir, eying her intently.

 

[Geneviève Lasedri]

"A few trivial stops," she answered, her brown eyes--one artificially colored--flitting about as she scanned the room and skimmed through the menu. She never went anywhere without a weapon on her--or several--but this environment so far had shown itself to be devoid of surprises and she was nearly comfortable at this moment. Except for strange glances at the two people in matching trenchcoats, Gen sensed no overly interested outside parties. "I've never visited before, however. You've kept safe, I assume?"

Gen had already made up her mind over what she would order, but she trained her eyes on the face of Quee as he perused the available selections. He had chosen to meet with her and work out a business partnership of sorts, but she would take note of his decision process with the food to judge how it was he made choices in the market. There were other medicine producers out there, after all.

"And you like ECHO?"

[member="Gir Quee"]

 

[Gir Quee]

Gir nodded in affirmation to her question, “Safe enough.”

He spared a quick glance at her before turning his gaze back to the menu.

Perhaps this is why Salmakk prefers me to do this part of the job.

It's just like going into battle.

While Gir could and did his homework on [member="Geneviève Lasedri"] to the best of his ability, it was altogether a whole different thing to encounter someone in person. Sometimes their reputation was well-deserved as their actions and intents matched what was known to be in the past.

But sometimes they didn't.

And that was a wild card that Salmakk hated dealing with, and one which Gir was forced to confront every time he lead his people and their starships into battle.

The man's eyes darted across the menu. He had managed to read through most of it before Gen had arrived, and had finally narrowed it down to two options: the Club daily special, a braised nerf fillet with tossed salad composed of local greens and a local version of a breadroll, and a more Corellian-inspired dish, which combined a locally harvested salmon steak served on a dark, spicy rice bed along with a smattering of sauteed vegetables. He decided to go with the daily special, if only because he had seen a similar version of the latter dish at several space ports on his way to the world.

"And you like ECHO?"

Gir pondered the question and its intent. He had not had any personal experience with ECHO products, though he knew of people who had. They had been satisfied, and the company's general reputation didn't give him a particular reason to disregard their statements. Still, it seemed curiously probing to the man, just like an opposing captain testing Gir's formations with a brief skirmish before a big fight. But it didn't anger the man, but made him even more curious about her.

“I'm hoping that I like ECHO,” replied Gir, “because the vast majority of people that I've talked to, and all of what I have been able to research, suggests that ECHO is a well-run company. To be sure, there are other pharmaceutical companies out there that can provide other similar products. But your product looks the most promising, and the best fit for our project.



Have you decided what you're going to order? I was looking at their number 12, but I think I'm going to go with their daily special. It sounds a bit more unique and local...”

 

[Geneviève Lasedri]

She raised her eyebrows as Quee detailed his findings of ECHO Esprit. The list seemed amusingly short--albeit flattering, in a sense. That her small company had made an impression on anyone in the medical field was reassuring and brought hopes of a bright, industrious future, especially with a talented underling recently selected.

"I always did believe in flexibility--as far as product is concerned." Passive-aggressive was her game in these sorts of deals, finding decisions to be much more favorable with exerted confidence but select subtleties and caveats to keep the other party on their toes. Should they stumble at any point, an obvious advantage would present itself for her use later on. There were no hard feelings, of course. If there were, she would be avoiding business altogether. It was just wise to let the other know that she was no pushover. "I might say I'm slightly curious about this Lucerne Labs. Innovation is always a bit of a struggle."

Geneviève wished to peek into Quee's mind, probing for signs of hesitancy or betrayal. She was still only moderately developed in this practice, however, and the man was no fool. It would be difficult to read him in this manner. But an opening may come to provide itself should her games sufficiently distract him. There was nothing too suspicious to press for, however.

"The Number 8 sounds dignified. Though I think I'll have it sans the dioche sauce. Too early to jump for the best things." She smiled slyly.

[member="Gir Quee"]

 

[Gir Quee]

Gir raised an eyebrow. Too early for the best things? Sometimes that's true...

"Innovation drives a lot of companies these days," mused Gir, setting down his menu, "including Lucerne Labs. Our founder, Matthew Lucerne, was obsessed with combining technological innovation along with crowd-sourcing to find and produce solutions for the just causes within our galaxy. I like to think that my adopted brother and myself continue to lead his company in the same vein that he started it with. But we've grown a bit past that start-up culture into more of a formalized company now. Many of the people he crowd-sourced with now work directly for Lucerne Labs, instead of contributing as a side job. We can fully support their dreams and financial independence as more of a traditional company now, but I feel that the nature of Lucerne Labs will always be to support the just underdogs with the best that our minds can devise. But look at me, I'm prattling now. Did you have any particular concerns about Lucerne Labs as a business partner that you wanted to ask about? Starting out partnerships is always the uneasy part of things before mutual expectations are more implicitly understood..."

The hostess came back and Gir promptly gave the woman his order.


[member="Geneviève Lasedri"]

 

[Geneviève Lasedri]

In turn, Geneviève ordered her meal, including a couple glasses of rather heavy alcoholic beverages--not to actually drink, of course. But there were reasons.

"I'm less concerned about what you do than with whom you associate," she responded after the waitress had retreated. "There's bad press, and then there's bad company. I'd rather you misuse everything I might supply you and destroy the filth of the galaxy than have you follow the proper medical instructions yet leave me to the wolves.

"The truth is, I don't trust you. But I don't distrust you like anyone else. I like independence, and I'm seeing that your business does, too." She leaned back, eying Quee with an almost mischievous look, though it was more of a dare, indicating her readiness to be skeptical should he err in this conversation. "That being said, what's the plan for my product, should I give it to you?"

[member="Gir Quee"]

 

[Gir Quee]

Gir nodded at the question as he finished chewing his food. That is the one problem with using meals for meetings...you can't eat and talk at the same time...He swallowed. A fair and reasonable request. Gir set down his fork.

"We plan to use it as the payload of a defensive weapon," said Gir plainly, "there's a lot of troublesome beasts out there these days; to the point that I hear that there's a whole guild dedicated to catching them, whether it's space slugs or colossus wasps on the space lanes or some long-forgotten sithspawn raiding a colonist's settlement, they are a problem. Sure, people can use conventional weapons on them, but it's messy and inefficient at best, and dangerous to everyone else involved in the worse case scenario. It's almost a guaranteed stream of revenue given how universal the problem is, and a lack of nonlethal competitors means that it will probably sell well to those looking to capture or relocate their beasts. Do you think that will inadversely affect ECHO Espirit Industries?"

[member="[FONT=tahoma][URL="http://starwarsrp.net/user/4660-genevi%C3%A8ve-lasedri/"]Geneviève Lasedri[/URL]"][/FONT]

 

[Geneviève Lasedri]

She was quite aware of this Guild of Beast Hunters, having known the founder of said enterprise for a fair amount of time. The big cat was lost from her group now, but they kept in touch on rare occasion. She was also quite aware--and irritated--of the massive creatures the One Sith had used to topple the Republic's civilization on worlds such as Alderaan. The cause she deemed was reasonable. It could only help her company out, so long as this project was marginally successful. Besides, necessity is the mother of invention, and there were things that needed inventing.

"The only thing I'm worried about is the developing phase, to be frank. My opinion is that you need to get rid of these things anyway you can, but I suppose this method should also be effective if it's carried out properly." She took a bite before continuing, not too impressed with the taste but not really picky about it. "But--as I was saying--the development may take some time. I'll admit I'm no expert in this medical business, but I do know that I can't expect instant results for just any new drug." Surely he would understand.

[member="Gir Quee"]

 

[Gir Quee]

I wonder if they put any additives in this...it certainly has more of a umami taste than it should...but perhaps its the local herbs or seasoning? He thrust the thought into the back of his mind for later inquiry. He swallowed his current piece of meat and looked up at [member="Geneviève Lasedri"].

"I would be more concerned if you had told me it would instantly work," mused the blonde man, "we at the labs still have work to do with the projectile and its guidance systems. Most of the off the shelf guidance systems are designed to track artificial constructs or hit static positions. This part too will be a challenge for us. But if there wasn't a developing phase for the product or products, then it probably would not be terribly enterprising or profitable. Do you have any particular concerns about the developing phase?"

 

[Geneviève Lasedri]

"Not especially," Gen admitted. "There's a galaxy of material to work with, as I've discovered. Great works are never accomplished except on the shoulders of others, as you may have heard once or twice." Did she accept that herself? In a way, yes. While it was she who had taken the initiative and 'done the job right', it was hardly something she could justify as impossible without her presence. Unlikely, but not impossible.

"The fact is that a drug along these lines is most probably something that would meet market acceptance without any attachment to this military venture. But I'm not in this for the profits so much as I am for the cause. Otherwise, I might not be here." That was all this company was ever intended for--the cause, not the collateral. It just happened that one needed a little bit of both to keep things running. "I don't know that I believe the Republic is capable of beating back the Sith as it is. But if you're looking to change that, then you will have my support.

"The only good Sith is a dead Sith."

[member="Gir Quee"]

 

[Gir Quee]

Gir held back the urge to snort in agreement, and instead let a wry grin crease his face, "Unfortunately, that would seem to be the case these days. And unfortunately, they seem to be rather hard to kill as well. But am I certain that we can take their beasts down in numbers once we both have fully developed our respective products."

The man glanced at his plate and began to carve up the last remaining portions of his meal.

[member="Geneviève Lasedri"]