Private Grand Scheme | Ariel Yvarro

[Natasi Fortan]

Natasi uncrossed her ankles.

"Ariel," she began quietly. "The Grand Moff of the First Order will always enjoy the public support of the Supreme Leader, and as this is my government, naturally there is an element of representation. But if you are planning to use me -- use my name -- to justify something, or to get the people on board, my expectation is that you will first get me on board," said Natasi gently. This was not a rebuke, nor was it meant to impose her authority on her younger and more rambunctious cousin.

She simply wanted actions taken and blood shed in her name to be justifiable, by her own standards, not Ariel's or anyone else's.

"There is something..." Her voice faltered a moment as she thought about it, a few more passing before she went on. "Something quite claustrophobic about the positions in which we serve. Our names will remembered long after we die and connected to only the most magnificent of successes. But the failures? Every failure will attach to us, but especially the big ones. The disasters. The lost battles." Natasi looked into her cousin's face. "Every body. Every letter to the family of a serviceman killed. I am not trying to dissuade you, please understand, I merely want to put into context the choices made at this level."

Her mind went to the small collection of awards in her luggage. It would not replace the likes of Vir Aetos or Dante Calgar; small consolation they would be for the next of kin who would receive them with the thanks of a grateful nation, but small consolation was, perhaps, better than none at all.

Ariel Yvarro

 

[Ariel Yvarro]

"Then mine is already marred with blood," she said of her name, "blood of those dead from the Reclamation Campaign, the dead and gone of Dosuun Hegemony." There was a bit Galidraani Steel to the tones that the younger woman spoke with, "I watched countless die as we retook Dosuun. I stood there side by side with every man and woman who dared to retake Avalonia, Prosperia, Gawain, Victoria, and every single city we could take back from those wretched beasts, calyarnr." Mando'a flew from her lips but this time she did not try to hide it.​

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She did what she had to so that Dosuun might be free from the Imperium. Her gaze met once again with Natasi's and once again it was Matidia who stood before the Supreme Leader. In the light perhaps it could be seen, the beskar-armored woman who pushed the Galidraani into battle. "With the steel from the Imperial Palace, I forged my blade, from the underground tunnels that run beneath Avalonia to the overwatch on the Cawood Mountains."​

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"I understand the price that is to be paid and I do not take it lightly."​

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"I know the context, I've been the context, just as you were during the Battle of Castameer and again at Mustafar, and time and time again."​

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Ariel's teeth gritted, and somewhere in there, Matidia's steel was found. "The Fortans have always been fighters, warriors, brilliant tacticians, and a family that does not give up."​

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"So those disasters, those lost battles..." the steel loosened, "the failures are crosses we bear."​

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Getting Natasi aboard any fight, "and yes, I will always consult you in these matters. War, peace..."​

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Her voice trailed off momentarily and it was then that she broke her gaze. Once more her hands moved, she rotated them as one did when they had fought with a blade. Loosening up muscles that had otherwise been tightened. In Ariel's eyes, the memories of those days came flooding back, the realities of war and the fight that took place on Dosuun. Flames scattered across Avalonia, "I remember when I returned to Dosuun."​

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She stood there before Natasi, but Ariel was so far gone...​

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"The flames, the bodies," her nostrils flared, "and I just remember falling on my knees and looking at the destruction that had been brought here." Ariel's eyes welled up, "the work that you put into Avalonia, was gone." She swallowed hard and looked down at the ground and cleared her throat. She nodded mostly to herself and chewed on the inside of her lip. Ariel took a breath to speak, but nothing came out and so she closed her mouth again. "Yeah, I know the cost, I know the context and I assure you."​

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"There is not a day that has gone by that I do not recall the faces and the names of those who died."​

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Natasi Fortan ​

 

[Natasi Fortan]

Natasi was silent in the face of Ariel's response.

Truly, Ariel had experienced much since Natasi died. Perhaps she was still struggling to see the woman of today rather than the girl of their shared past. Perhaps she wanted to protect that girl's innocence. Clearly that impulse to nurture was unwanted. She was truly a woman of the world now, and Natasi had no more lessons to teach her.

"Understood," Natasi said shortly. She was silent a moment, then she added: "I can see that it is not necessary for me to belabor the point, and I apologize. I trust you to do what you feel is the right thing. Always." Perhaps they might not always see eye-to-eye on what that thing was, but Natasi had to believe that they would both be operating from a place of deep care for the First Order, not to mention for each other. Natasi licked her lips lightly and picked up her teacup, sipping the remains of her tea from the delicate china.

She set the cup down and rose to her feet. Her cousin stood across the table, and Natasi rounded the table, putting her arm around Ariel's shoulders and turning her towards the balcony. "The Avalonia I built is gone, but look what you've achieved. Different, but no less impressive. Perhaps even more impressive, given the state of things when you arrived. I couldn't be prouder of you, Ariel." She squeezed her cousin's shoulder gently, then released her and walked to the edge of the balcony, resting her elbows on the railing as she surveyed the city of her cousin's creation.

"Is there anything you need from me before I leave for Galidraan?" she asked. Natasi knew better than to bore Ariel with the details of her trip, given that it was primarily to settle the children back into their routine, so she didn't elaborate further. "You won't need me, but if you want to talk, you have my frequency. It doesn't even have to be about government business," she added with a chuckle. It felt strange to be leaving Dosuun, though she had done it before, many times. But it wasn't leaving Dosuun, she realized: it was leaving Ariel, her closest living relation outside her children, whose presence had been more or less constant since Natasi's resurrection.

Dusk was beginning to settle over the city, bathing it in a warm golden glow.

Ariel Yvarro

 

[Ariel Yvarro]

Reality had been a cruel and harsh master in the years of Natasi's absence. It had shaped the way Ariel viewed the galaxy and how she responded and Ariel heard the tone in her cousin's short reply. "I-" the younger cousin began but stopped when Natasi rose from her seat and walked toward her. She allowed Natasi to turn her toward the balcony and followed her toward the edge, there she listened. "I didn't mean to come across so coldly." Ariel apologized to her cousin delicately, quietly as she looked out across Avalonia as it stood. ​

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Once more Natasi reiterated just how proud she was of what Ariel had accomplished. "I know you have the interest of the nation at heart," and mine although it went unsaid the implication was there. The ambiance of the city became the backdrop, a symphony to remind them once more of what was at stake. For all the good and right in the galaxy, the price to be paid for their way of life laid out before them. The two standing on the edge of the balcony overlooking the city, two generations of rulers side by side. ​

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Galidraan. "Not unless you can bring a swift end to Sith rule," which while her cousin was magnificent and talented, there were somethings that were beyond their control. Galidraan's fate was one of them. "You'll give my best to George and Reima won't you?" Ariel knew without it being mentioned some of the reasons for Natasi's trip to Galidraan. Ariel remained there surveying the city beside her cousin. "I always need you cousin," she added, and there perhaps for the first time, that day was there something of love in her voice, a familial love. The woman chuckled when there was mention that she could call Natasi for anything. "Yes, of course, shall I ring you at the twenty-eighth hour to inquire on how to soothe a crying babe, again?" It was a quiet joke at Ariel's own expense. ​

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Her having called Natasi to ask what she should do with a wailing Ivalyn, even with Lucinyia's help it seemed the new mother had been at a loss. The smile on Ariel's face was brief as she turned her attention to Natasi once again, "but thank you, I shall certainly keep that in mind while you're away." ​

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"So." Began Ariel, "about all those statues..."​

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Natasi Fortan ​

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[Natasi Fortan]

"I'll put you right through to nanny," said Natasi with an indulgent smile. The Supreme Leader hesitated and glanced over towards her cousin. "I'm afraid I was never really... all that present for George and Reima when they were babies." She twisted her fingers together anxiously, her gaze sweeping out over Avalonia again, reminiscing. "With the war on, I was lucky to get a few hours of sleep. Thank goodness for nanny."

This was a typical upbringing for children of their class; Natasi didn't know the details of her cousins' infancies, but she suspected that her aunt had some maverick ideas about childrearing. Still, she couldn't see Fiolette as a touchy-feely kind of mother, especially considering that she had unceremoniously dropped her girls in Natasi's lap when Ariel was just a child and the others only a little older. Still, Natasi didn't like to dwell on the past. Fiolette was Fiolette, and for the time being was without the means to meddle with Natasi's plans. Perhaps now that her own daughter was Grand Moff, the First Order would be safe.

"If I can give you some unsolicited advice," she said, smiling wistfully and glancing back to her cousin. "The best piece of advice I can give you about motherhood is this: you will make mistakes. Small mistakes. Big mistakes. Catastrophic mistakes. But as long as you love them and they know it, they won't remember the mistakes. Even my parents, who I idolize as ideal parents, made mistakes. We argued. I'm sure I was a right little madam." Natasi chuckled and shook her head. "I can't remember a single cross word. Just Life Days and birthdays and picnics and tea with granny."

Natasi stopped and looked sidelong at her cousin. "By the Balance, am I just a complete cliché or what?" She turned fully to Ariel, her eyebrows furrowing. "What about the statues, Ariel?" she asked sternly.

Ariel Yvarro

 

[Ariel Yvarro]

Ariel gave her cousin a soft, warm smile as she turned to lean her elbows on the balcony's edge. She watched as Natasi twisted her fingers rather anxiously, quietly she followed Natasi's gaze as far as she could. "Yeah," agreed Ariel, "thank goodness for her, but then those were different times, quite different." She added while turning to match her cousin's stance. Ariel knew of the upbringing or at least the type of upbringing her cousin had been afforded.​

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"Mum was, well... Mum." Ariel concluded, "she wasn't around much growing up and dad tried, but it often fell to Lucy to take care of me and Ryssa." The youngest of the three Yvarro sisters knew what had become of the oldest. "Lucy lost her childhood to raise us, and sometimes I ask her if she wishes it had gone another way. I see it in her eyes, y'know?"​

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She shook her head quietly, "... I don't want Ivy to go through that. Any of it."​

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It was then that Natasi offered up some advice. Mistakes, yeah - there were a lot of those so far at least as a parent, and it brought Ariel some comfort to hear her older cousin speak of making mistakes. Her cousin, a right little madam? Perish the thought, the brunette smiled inwardly as her gaze swept across the city's skyline. "Thank you Natasi."​

"No, not at all," discouraged Ariel - her cousin was not a cliché, and then there was that stern voice. The same stern voice that Ariel recognized from when she was younger, "is it just me or did we suddenly go back in time and I'm like twelve again getting caught in the larder." She remarked with a sheepish smile and a hand scratching the back of her neck. "Well, nothing, you see I just you know - they needed buffing and I had them buffed, is all..." Her voice trailed off and the sheepish smile turned into a grin. "Also, apparently there was a warehouse full of statues made of Dosuunian marble..."​

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"Listen, you didn't want all those statues, did you?"​

Natasi Fortan ​

 

[Natasi Fortan]

Natasi scrutinized Ariel, her eyebrows knotting anxiously for a moment as she spoke of her other. It was easy for the older woman to forget, for how complicated her own relationship was with Fiolette Yvarro, it must have been all the more complicated for Ariel as well. Natasi had always made a deeply conscientious effort not to penalize Ariel for the many and varied ways in which Fiolette had transgressed in the past, and she hoped against all hope that Ariel gave herself the same breathing room.

"I won't pretend to know how your family dynamics work," she said after a few moments. "My brother died thirty years ago, and we were both adults by that time, so we could fend for ourselves. We were close, but I'm sure there are resentments there. And, as awful as it sounds, if he had lived we wouldn't be here. His death rather knocked the stuffing out of us -- papa and I. He died for a Sith Empire whose particulars are no longer remembered by anyone, and the thought still makes me so angry. He died for people that didn't know his name and didn't care. If he had lived, would I have defected to the First Order?"

Natasi sighed, gripped by a sudden melancholy, and braced herself on the railing. "I would like to think so, but... perhaps life would have been so different. You'll forgive an old woman's senile rambling, I hope," Natasi said, trying for an air of levity. "I forget sometimes that all this happened when you were barely a child. Perhaps I shouldn't let it bother me."

The Supreme Leader turned, leaning against the railing now. It was good, sturdy metal, so she had little worry about it giving way under her and having to fall to her death. She thought Ariel would easily dispatch her with a hard shove, but Natasi thought it rather unlikely. "I can't believe you've got so many statues. By the Balance, Ariel, there is such a thing as modesty. People will think I put you up to it." She shook her head and smirked at her cousin. "But it does seem a shame to waste all that good marble. Perhaps send one to the capital of each world as they join the..." She almost said empire. "...family. Everyone should have the opportunity, I suppose."

Ariel Yvarro

 

[Ariel Yvarro]

"That's what gets me though," referred Ariel to the remark by Natasi regarding the Sith. "The Sith seem to throw as many bodies as they can at the problem without thinking of the cost, the consequences." She shook her head and sighed, "every conflict, every war - they do not bat an eyelash at the number of lives they ruin. I believe that is what sets us apart, Imperials that is." At least it played a part in Ariel's overall belief system. Ariel also did not want to entertain any other alternate path for had Natasi's brother lived - the question simply hung in the air. "It is a thought, isn't it? Where would we be?"​

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She also added casually, "there wasn't much of a family for there to be dynamics for."​

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"Well, at least until I was more or less dropped on your doorstep." It was only then that Ariel had any semblance as to a normal life. Even if normal meant a boarding school but even then she wasn't so crossed by it. Her sisters were enrolled just as well so she still had them in school, Ryssa seemed better off for the education. Lucy was able to be Lucy for a brief moment in time before once more helping Fiolette. Ariel was a child during a lot of the events that occurred in their lives. "I was a child, a rather bossy child during the time. I still remember you trying to convince me that a brush wasn't going to hurt me."​

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Ariel had inherited the rather lush Fortan mane and refused to do anything about it as a wee six-year-old. ​

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The younger of the two couldn't help but laugh wildly with the talk of the statues. "Wha-? I, listen, at the time I was really - really upset okay? So, I figured that if I had the statues it would be like you were with me..." Her voice trailed off and she turned to give her cousin that wide, ear-to-ear smile. That was accompanied by a shrug, "and yeah, yeah..." She nodded in agreement about the marble. "Excellent idea, yes, every member world of this family should know who the Mother of the Nation is, after all."​

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Natasi Fortan ​

 

[Natasi Fortan]

Ariel waxed reminiscent about her time with Natasi. "You still are bossy," Natasi said with a chuckle. "Although you are no longer a child. I must say you were much easier to control when you believed I had Father Life Day's comlink frequency in my speed-dial. Oh, that's another thing to keep in your kit for when yours is old enough to answer back. Thank goodness it still works on George and Reima, although the former is starting to ask questions like how does Father Life Day get to all the children's houses across the galaxy? and how does he know if we're home at Herevan or Foxfield or Dosuun?" She sighed and shook her head.

"Somehow 'magic' isn't a satisfactory answer to him, more's the pity. But I suppose when it comes to that I'll let you know what works."

Natasi looked over at her cousin fondly, amused and touched in equal measures. "My darling," she began. "The next time you're feeling lonely, don't commission hundreds of statues of -- well, I was going to say 'me' but, really, anyone. Get a dog. Take up knitting." Natasi sobered and hooked her arm through Ariel's, turning towards the door. "Or have a war. If you're like me, nothing will fill your days like a war will."

She paused at the entrance to the sitting room. "Do you know, I think I may wait to sign those orders regarding succession," Natasi said. "It's an awful lot of pressure to put on someone. Perhaps he won't want the job. Perhaps the First Order won't want him." She chewed the inside of her cheek. An inherited monarchy did seem rather contra to the First Order's meritocratic tendencies. "I suppose it is something I shall want to take government advice on before making a decision." She looked towards the window, a faraway look in her dark eyes.

"But I gather there are more important considerations at this time," she said. "Relations with our neighbors. Expanding the commonwealth. So forth."

Ariel Yvarro

 

[Ariel Yvarro]

A sigh escaped Ariel's lips, "I remember when Ryssa ruined Father Life Day for me. I was twelve, and it was just before winter break, we were on the way back to the house in the carriage. Ryssa was nineteen and bitter for it, it was just the three of us." She shook her head still somewhat miffed about it all those years later. "But, yes I will definitely keep that in mind for the day Ivy begins to talk back." For the moment Ivalyn only gurgled, babbles were starting to become more common for the babe. ​

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"Please do, I should probably write all this down somewhere." She continued, as Natasi went on. The two walked arm in arm together and Natasi in a rather sobering tone informed Ariel to perhaps not order so many statues. "Well yes, and generally I do like to think I have rather healthy hobbies, however; I shall certainly take it to note to perhaps not order as many statues of my cousin." Good thing Natasi had no idea about all the other monuments that had been in the works. Ariel dusted those as soon as she could once properly in charge of the Home Office. "War? Bah. I'd rather just knock it right out of someone. Nothing like a good set of blasters and one or two fisticuffs match to put one out of grief, for a moment or three."​

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It was at the entrance to the sitting room that Natais paused and spoke once more on succession. "Alright," acknowledged Ariel, "certainly something to think on, and... if I might?" Ariel quietly cleared her throat, "just something from me to you, a bit of unsolicited advice?" She looked away to gather herself and then returned her attention to Natasi. "Let George and Reima make their own decisions about where they want to go and who they want to be. I saw how the pressure of such weighed on Lucy when mum insisted that she be part of the navy in some form or another."​

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"But yes, when the time comes to appoint a new Supreme Leader it will be something to consider, after all. Should George or Reima for that matter decide on this path then they should earn just as much as either of us have." Once more alluding to the nepotism or even the stench of it that seemed to lurk around their current setup. Ariel noted the faraway look in her cousins' eyes and then responded as the mention of expanding the commonwealth was made. "Ah yes, expanding the commonwealth," there was a smirk in her voice and one painted on her face just the same. Ariel took in a deep breath and exhaled, "there are quite a many systems that we look to reclaim as our nation continues to grow."​

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Natasi Fortan ​

 

[Natasi Fortan]

Natasi offered her cousin a tight smile. "That's your mother all over, isn't it? Expectations for thee and not for me," she said kindly. The philosophies of Fiolette and Frejrik weren't opposites so much as two sides of the same coin. The former shrugged expectations like water from a duck's back. The only thing more important than her whims were her hatreds. The former had embraced the burden of duty and all the sacrifice that came along with it. Perhaps it had been easier for her father; his burdens were heavy because they were made from gold. Fiolette had been a daughter of a patriarchal dynasty, like Natasi, and Natasi too had bucked her parents' expectations, although not quite in the same scandalous way that her aunt had.

The Supreme Leader didn't know if she would ever trust Fiolette the way she now trusted Ariel, but she felt she had begun to understand her. A life of limitations wasn't easy for someone with a strong force of personality. Fiolette and Natasi had both been treated like chattel by a family that bore no malice but which was operating under the crushing weight of expectations. Fiolette's response had been ruinous, whereas Natasi had taken a slower path, working within the system to achieve what she would otherwise have been denied. Had those avenues not been open to her -- had Natasi been ordered to marry an odious cousin for the sake of keeping the estate in the family -- would her fate have been the same as Fiolette? If Natasi pushed Ariel too far -- if she couldn't draw the right balance between expectation and freedom and balance the coin on its end -- would Ariel go that way, too?

Or George? Or Reima?

These were the questions that swirled in Natasi Fortan's mind whenever she found herself lost in her cousin's beautiful gaze.

She smiled apologetically. "There must be something in the tea," she said with a chuckle. "You've caught me on rather a philosophical day. Now, do tell me about your expansion plans and then I must fly. But when I return perhaps we can have dinner together, just the two of us. Nothing fancy, for once. An Atrisian takeaway, maybe. If you're not too busy, of course."

Ariel Yvarro

 

[Ariel Yvarro]

Ariel only lofted her brow once at the mention of her mother. "She was the taskmaster when she got to it certainly, fairly certain we were chastised for anything and everything that might bring dishonor our family name." Something about avoiding their mother's own mistakes in life. Casually, Ariel shrugged and allowed an easy sigh to escape her lips. When Natasi hadn't said anything right away the younger cousin leaned forward to catch the faraway gaze the older held in her eyes.​

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She let the silence fall between them and when Natasi did speak, she returned, "before I do get to those plans."​

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"Just, one more thing before you take off for wherever it is you're going," Ariel patted herself down and withdrew a small coin made of beskar. On it was the sigil of the Kurze Clan. "If, if you're in trouble and whatever help you're about to hire isn't adequate enough. Please use this." She opened her cousin's hand and placed the coin in the palm of it. "This is made not only of pure beskar but will send out a signal to the nearest Kurze-friendly clan."​

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"I will explain that to you, the Kurze-thing, when you get back," remarked Ariel as she then closed her cousin's palm. "Now, about those expansion plans..."​

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She quietly unhooked her arm from her cousins and walked back to the holoprojector. "Majel activate full holographic projection."​

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"Right away, Ariel." Obliged Majel the Artificial Intelligence that had a portable program within the holoprojector. The holographic map grew in size and encompassed most of the table.​

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"Majel highlight, First Imperial Reclamation Campaign Cresh-Delta-Forty-Nine."​

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"Acknowledged."​

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Ariel began to manipulate the map with her hands, "so this is only one of my many plans, but this is where we are now, and where we're expecting to be within the next few months."​

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"And with Shepard back as Director of Intelligence, I will expect to have information regarding sections Indigo, Juniper, and Lima, which are here, here, and here. These two will bring us up against the Eternal Empire, this one is further south but continues our expansion within the Outer Rim. My goal is to have the Judges of the Outer Rim help us police these systems, they won't work for us and I don't expect them to, but I know this is their backyard and I want to get as much help as possible."​

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"Now presuming the deals with both the New Imperial Order and the Confederacy go off without a hitch, we can continue on expansion path Delta-Four-Seven, which moves us here and here, see sections, Romeo and Sierra."​

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"Majel display alternative expansion plan Cresh-Delta-Fifty-Two."​

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"Acknowledged."​

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The display rotated and moved, then once more Ariel manipulated, "now this expansion path assumes the worst when we expand north, and again for that - we would want to make sure all of the moving parts of our nation are on the same page."​

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Ariel would go on to explain several different expansion plans and various outcomes as she had been able to calculate and predict based on the known information regarding the behaviors from the various groups in the area and how they were expected or predicted rather react. Then again, the simulations could lie completely and none of it would happen as planned. Still, Ariel wanted to be sure they could respond no matter what happened and that is what she wanted to ensure. "I know, I know, it's a lot but I assure you that no matter how we proceed. We will reclaim our territory."​

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Natasi Fortan ​

 

[Natasi Fortan]

Natasi had to admire Ariel's enthusiasm and determination. Even after half a decade dead, Natasi still felt a little war-weary. Much had been gained during those times, the thrills of victory after victory, the rise of heroes and legends, the confidence of a nation that had been told by the galaxy it was fit for nothing but villainy. But it had come at a cost, too. Lives and treasure, not least of which, but for Natasi a kind of guilt. People had signed up and fought and died because she had asked them to do so. There were widows and widowers, orphans and mothers whose lives had holes in them because of Natasi Fortan -- and Sieger Ren, and Jaius Sovv, and the Outer Rim Coalition, but of course, Natasi wasn't responsible for them.

"That's all very impressive," Natasi said, waving a finger vaguely at the machines that Ariel was manipulating so deftly. "Where did you get it? It doesn't look like anything I've heard about in our development reports." She moved closer, examining the devices that Ariel was using to display her plans for galactic conquest writ large. She had to indulge the smile tugging at her lips, and when she spoke her tone was jovial and not a little proud.

"For all your disgust for Sieger Ren, he would be terribly proud of your ambitions. He saw the galaxy as his. His to command, his to control, his to exploit." She frowned gravely, her fingers knitting together anxiously. "I suppose now that I'm the Supreme Leader it's mine." She raised an eyebrow at her cousin, then smiled tightly. "Yours, too. And of course he could never be as proud of you as I am. This is solid and thoughtful. Really well done."

Natasi clasped her hands behind her back, slowly walking with Ariel towards the elevator. "I'd like to be of use when I return to the capital," she said softly. "I don't know how that could be, but -- if there is something. Recruitment drives, fundraising, whatever you need." She framed Ariel in her warm amber gaze and took a breath then stepped into the now-open elevator, moving over to make space for her cousin. "Obviously I'll continue working with Westaway on the refugee problem. How's that all going, anyway? I haven't heard anything from Westaway in weeks." She canted her head, considering. "Is she -- do you know her well?"

Ariel Yvarro

 

[Ariel Yvarro]

"Ryssa," Ariel answered plainly. "Would you believe that she thinks that I'm incapable of doing anything, and so has such developed technology specifically for me." The younger cousin couldn't have imagined what had at that moment been in the elder's mind. The guilt, the drive, the war, and the old regime how it all used to be. Ariel only saw what she saw in those days and it shaped her views to that very day. Ariel would quietly pack the technology away back to where it had all been stored.​

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Natasi's tone and words were what caught Ariel's attention next. "I suppose ambition is what he and I have in common." Ambition was a fine trait and it definitely ran through the bloodlines within the Fortan family. Once more pride, and once more the thought of having gained this moment through merit pushed through Ariel's mind. She walked with Natasi of course as they headed toward the elevator, Natasi spoke of wanting to be of use and Ariel bobbed her head along, acknowledging it all in silence.​

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"Renata's good people or she was to me - dedicated and committed," said Ariel of Renata, "but."​

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Ariel's lips thinned, "she knows how to wield information, so take that as you will dear cousin."​

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"As for when you return."​

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"I can certainly think of a few engagements that could be helpful to boost recruitment." ​

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Natasi Fortan ​

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[Natasi Fortan]

Natasi considered her cousin's answer carefully. "Actually," she said after a moment. "I would have absolutely no difficulty believing it."

On paper, Ryssa should have been Natasi's favorite. When they were girls, Ryssa had had an affinity for office supplies -- a lot like Natasi herself -- and she had the added benefit of not pawing through Natasi's closet and helping herself to whatever looked pretty like other cousins that Natasi would not mention. But Ryssa had made no secret of her disdain for her family, Natasi apparently included, and the Supreme Leader was not in the business of chasing the affections of her insolent relations.

"You mustn't take Ryssa to heart," Natasi said softly, squeezing Ariel's shoulder lightly. "Ryssa..." She lofted her brows and shook her head, mildly exasperated. "She's just Ryssa. But it was nice of her to provide this impressive technology. What a kind gesture." Especially for Ryssa, she added silently.

The turbolift opened, and Natasi simply nodded her thanks to Ariel for the information on former Moff Westaway. She didn't know what to think about the cryptic nature of the warning, so she said nothing, only tucking the information away in the back of her mind. When Ariel spoke about when Natasi returned, Natasi smiled and nodded. "Of course. Whatever I can do to help." She led the way towards the entrance, pausing to sign her bill at the desk and thank Mr. Bertram for his hospitality before proceeding out towards the door.

"I'd better be off," said Natasi, a note of sadness in her tone, as the small motorcade came to life outside the doors, ready to whisk her away. "Should I bring you anything from Herevan? The winter gourds will be in season, I think."

Ariel Yvarro

 

[Ariel Yvarro]

Ariel let out a sigh when Natasi mentioned that she had no problem believing that Ryssa would. "Yeah," an agreement from Ariel with regards to her older sister. Ryssa was indeed Ryssa, a woman who did her best to stay away from the family. "One day, I hope she comes around, she wasn't always like this, y'know?" The younger cousin looked over at her car and then patted herself down for her keys. Handbags on one arm, downtown looked as lively as ever as she got a glimpse.​

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"Outside of Sith Lords' heads on a pike?" She pursed her lips together.​

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She thought about what she wanted and then replied, "probably some tea from Mrs. Patmore's shop in Calavar."​

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"Yeah, I should probably go and do Grand Moff things, but when you get back - let's do what you suggested. I happen to know a great Atrisian place on Laurentia, but there's also a few blocks down, an amazing Sundiatan restaurant. Amazing stews." She fished out her keys and gave her cousin a warm, reassuring smile. "Enjoy your trip cousin, I'll see you when you get back."​

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Natasi Fortan ​

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