For My First Act...

[Kay-Larr]

Kay chewed the inside of her cheek. She couldn't give too much away. The less people that knew about it, the better. And she wasn't quite sure how much [member="Jorvan Hatha"] could be trusted. Although there were a bunch of different strategies currently underway all at once, it couldn't really quite hurt to give a little bit of information out. And besides, if he had rescued slaves on numerous missions, then he could have other ideas that could help.

"We'll be checking all of the warehouse districts and bringing security and screenings back to the levels that they were, starting with warehouse district 12. The illegal goods there won't be getting to market, I can tell you that. One way or another, they'll all be destroyed, then no one can profit from them. If the Crime Lords set up traps, well that's okay. We have traps of our own."

She had another sip of her tea, thinking about what he had said about people getting hurt or killed if there was an all out turf war between the gangs. "I don't want any innocents hurt and I know that they could be with that strategy. It's not being implemented yet. But innocents will die and be harmed if I don't do anything to try to stop the Crime Lords from ruling our streets. I don't want the Commenori to live in fear for their lives everytime they leave their homes. I don't want any to die because of the spices that the gangs have them hooked on and blackmailed with. I won't see Commenor become another Tattooine or lower levels of Coruscant."

It was a dangerous game to play and she knew that. But what choice did she have? It was moments like these when she was glad to not have anyone special in her life to blackmail her with. She was only putting herself in danger and if they wanted to confront her, then she'd be ready. Besides, she had an ace up her sleeve that most didn't know about.

 

[Jorvan Hatha]

[member="Lady Kay"]

Jorvan raised an eyebrow as she mentioned her plans for the warehouse districts. She wanted to fix the slack in the screening and security that went on, but Jorvan thought it was fine just as it is. No, it wasn’t just fine for him, it was fine for everyone. There was a good bit of money being made there and Jorvan wondered if Kay knew how many people off the streets were being fed and bringing home money because of the illegal operations that went on there.

But Kay wouldn’t care about those people. The criminals weren’t Commenori in her eyes. Just pariahs who used and abused the innocent citizens. But not all criminals were bad and not all crime lords ruled over their territory unjustly.

Of the crime lords that Jorvan had assembled under his banner, many were bat-chit crazy and had a love for bloodlust that put most Sith to shame, but when Jorvan gave them a territory to lord over, every man, woman and child that lived within their territory was treated like family and looked out for. That was why when Jorvan took over cities and districts, there was never any problems with the locals or the police. The locals knew he would look out for them for any problem. The police knew they would get their pay-off every first and the fifteenth.

Crime lords and the government of any nation could co-exist, but Kay thought only one could live and the other had to be destroyed.

Flawed thinking.

Warmonger in the making if that was her attitude when it came to her enemies. Had she even sought out a peaceful solution first?

Jorvan thought he would test the waters before he gave Chacha and Flex the order to prepare the sects for confrontation with the Commenori police and military.

He rose to his feet with his hands behind his back. He looked at the sky for a bit and then he smiled as he heard the laughter of his daughters and the yipping and purring of the Gwaii Cat.

He looked back at Kay and he grinned a little. “Before you start all of these operations and commit yourself to a war on crime that might not be necessary, what would you say if I arranged a meeting between you and a few crime lords?”

He was being risky with his next words, but there was no gain without a little risk.

“Truthfully, I’m acquainted with a few in this city. Not that I go out of my way to befriend them, but people know me and they know the brand of Lusha. Once they heard that I planned on opening a branch here, many offered their services as muscle for protecting my clients and many just wanted to get in the entertainment business period. There’s plenty of money to be made there, you see?”

Jorvan stroked his beard and looked at her thoughtfully. “How about I arrange a sit down between you and the major players of the underworld on Commenor? Maybe there’s a common ground you both could find before things escalate to a war? You speak of covert operations and amping up screening and security, but that won’t be enough honestly. Once you publically began a war against the crime lords, they won’t just sit there and take it quietly. There’ll be anarchy. They’ll do whatever it takes to make you cower from your position, and that would probably include shooting up police stations and whatever else that would make you look bad in the public eye. Before all of that happens, let me negotiate for you and see if we can settle this in an amicable matter. How about it, madam president? Will you give me that honor and opportunity?”

Or will you choose death, Jorvan silently thought. Although he still wasn’t sold on the idea of having to eliminate Kay just to control the Commenor underworld.

He waited for a reply while returning to his seat and pouring himself another cup of tea. It was her move.

 

[Kay-Larr]

It was at times like these when she missed her late husband. He had a fantastic strategic mind and he would know fully well of what route to take. Right now she was being guided or rather told what to do by General Santiago. War was what he excelled at, and perhaps even thrived for. But did she really want a war on their streets? Of course not.

Kay listened to [member="Jorvan Hatha"] as he spoke, raising a brow slightly as he asked to arrange a meeting. But how did he know the Crime Lords? No sooner had she thought of that question before he had answered it straight away. That answer seemed to make some sense.

And then he warned her of what could happen. Kay furrowed her brows in thought as he spoke of the Crime Lords going after everyone else to make her look bad. As she had no one for them to harm, then attacking everyone else was the only alternative. And that would be torture, especially if she had to watch.

This just wasn't fair. Every time that she had tried to be proactive and be the aggressor to stop the bad guys, her plans failed? Perhaps it was the Galaxy telling her that it was the wrong path for her. She never ran into these types of problems while freeing slaves, so why is it that she had problems with this?

Jorvan was right though. His avenue was the proper starting point. "Alright...I'll meet with them and talk with them face to face if you can arrange it. There'll be no weapons, no traps, no police or military. We can have it outside of the city in an open field." This way if there was an ambush, she'd be able to see it coming.

 

[Jorvan Hatha]

[member="Lady Kay"]

He was surprised that she agreed so soon. Then again, this wouldn’t be the first politician that he had talked back from a cliff. He was invested in Kay in many ways and a war with her government would have been regrettable, but he was glad that she was giving him an opportunity to have his cake and eat it. There was no need for her to have a war on crime, when Jorvan could take over the streets and rule it in an effective manner. In fact, the Commenori citizens wouldn’t even notice his presence in their cities, such was the way of the Red Wave who preferred to move low-key, rather than be a public entity that everyone could point fingers to.

He leaned back in his chair and offered her a genuine smile. “I truly think you will do wonders for this planet. I’m glad you know where to be flexible where others would stand rigid and see everything collapse around them from their stubbornness.” He looked away from her for the moment to watch his daughters for a while and then he said, “I’ll arrange the meeting, but I think you misunderstood me on something. Rather than you attend the meeting, I was under the impression that you would send a representative in your place. You have to be mindful of your appearance, madam president. Criminals aren’t people you should openly associate with. Send a subordinate. Send someone competent who you can trust. I assure you the crime lords will do the same because they would be foolish to meet you out in the open and expose their identities. Sure, there are some that are well-known, but the ones that you should look out for are the ones with no names.”

Like me, Jorvan thought. Sure the Red Wave were known and Chacha and Flex had earned a notorious reputation, but Jorvan had always remained in the shadows. At least now he did. The days when personally stalked the streets and put in work were long behind him.

He looked at Kay and a peculiar smile appeared. “But we’ve talked long enough about business don’t you think? How about you show me what you do for fun in this priso….I mean presidential palace. Surely, there’s a game room or a theater room or something in this place for entertainment? I mean you can’t sit at your desk all day can you?”

While he waited on her answer, he thought of how lively she had been at Asha’s concert. Surely there was something that she did for fun by herself. Sitting here and drinking tea couldn’t possibly be it. Or could it?

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay wasn't so sure that she liked the idea of [member="Jorvan Hatha"] going out there to meet with the Crime Lords on his own, let alone to have the other Crime Lords not go along themselves and just have others handle the negotiations. There was too many middle men for it to not work out the way it was intended. "Thank you for your concern regarding my....reputation. But negotiations are best handled with the leaders directly. Otherwise there would be too much waiting, too much back and forth going on for anything to work out. If I had wanted to go that route, well, I'd just contact them through the holo-net instead. It is best for us to see eachother face to face." Do the Crime Lords lack the courage that she has? No. More than likely they just prefer to keep under the radar. But that wasn't going to work on Commenor. And besides, it wasn't as though she was going to broadcast the meeting to the Galaxy.

She raised a brow as it was his turn to change the subject this time. And he called this Palace a prison? Kay looked to the Palace. Maybe it was. But it came with the position, as well as the loss of her privacy and most of her free time. She could hardly take a bath for long without someone interrupting and wanting her for something. "There is a theatre room, and the ballroom for entertaining VIP's. Though to be honest I'm still trying to get used to the place and where everything is. And I haven't had much spare time to go out on my speederbike, let alone watch a holo-movie. Perhaps later when I get better into the swing of things, I'll be able to find some time." She figured that Jorvan wouldn't really like that answer, but it was her life and not his. People wanted her to take this position so that she would settle down and not get into too much trouble. Well, what better way than to keep her busy working every waking hour?

 

[Jorvan Hatha]

[member="Lady Kay"]

She had a point. He supposed it was too soon for her to enjoy the luxuries that came with the office.

He looked at the time and said, “Well, I don’t want to hold too much of your time when I know you’re a busy woman. How about we meet again, after you’ve met with the crime lords and decided your next course of action?”

While he said that, he was already waving his daughters over so they could get ready to go. He had already accomplished his goals for the day. It was time to return home and get to work on protecting his warehouses from whatever secret operation that Kay had in the works against the crime lords. The others might be caught off guard, but he wouldn't be. He would be prepared for whatever Kay might throw at him, although she still didn't know that he was an enemy to her goals at this point.

 

[Kay-Larr]

It had been a long afternoon and she did have work to catch up on, though she was planning on working on it through the night if she had to. It was the price to pay for trying to get some free time. But it was all a part of her position. Sometimes she missed the freedom of not being in politics. Yet each time she got out, she was thrust back into it as it was the best way to help people.

Kay got to her feet as the girls came running over, followed by the Gwaii Cat that walked casually behind them with his tail held high. "Alright. Enjoy your time at your cabin with your girls." She wasn't quite sure if she was to walk them out or to just leave them. She decided on the former. As soon as they reached the lobby however, Kay's attention was grabbed by one of the Minister's assistants. She looked to [member="Jorvan Hatha"] , "Sorry, duty calls. Have a safe trip back."

There was plenty to think about, plan and prepare for. She just hoped that what she did was going to make everything right again.