If You Want Something Done...(Domino)

[Salem Norongachi]

Carnovia, a world that must have been holding its breath. It sat directly between the CIS and the Black Sun Syndicate, the thin like that kept their borders apart. It wasn't hard to imagine this world becoming a battleground should hostilities renew between the two governments, its people constantly carrying that thought in the back of their mind while going about their day to day business.

Norongachi wore full armour on this visit, it was, after all, not very wise to announce his presence outwith Confederacy space after Druckenwell. The visor of his helm took in the street before him, which by Galactic standards was little more than a hamlet. The sun had set an hour before, he'd watched the last dregs of its light dwindle and die as he landed the small unmarked transport that had brought him from the neighboring CIS world of Nar Kaaga.

This had all begun with something as simple as reviewing the past, working out just where Isley Verd had gone wrong, which mistakes he had made to bring down the wroth of the Galaxy upon them. It was during this fact finding mission that Norongachi found records, battle reports and mission debriefs that told of the attacks upon and the surrounding of, the Black Sun Syndicate.

Why? Had been his first question, why go after such a small organization? What threat did they pose? Why stretch the military lines so thin that it had taken Norongachi and the new interim government a frantic week to draw sufficient forces back before Druckenwell?

So many questions, one simple answer: Isley Verd.

This realization and the on going change in the CIS as a whole prompted him to send feelers out, then he'd spoken to a man who wished to remain nameless. His request had been made; He wished to meet with the leader of the Black Suns, to discuss a mutually beneficial proposal.

Weeks would pass before the Lord Commander heard anything back and what response did come, was simply a planet, a location for the meet and a time. Fortunately Norongachi had been known to simply leave the CIS and attend to his own affairs so getting to Carnovia wasn't much of a worry for him. So here he was, walking through the wide open doors of a nightclub dubbed "The Flower Child". It was only when he was inside and standing by the bar, a throng of three deep bodies pressing and vying for the attention of the bar staff that he removed his helm and set it down beside his elbow.

Green eyes scanned the crowd, looking for a hint of recognition from either his contact or anyone who might wish to see his head on a pike. He turned back to the bar to find a bedraggled Rodian asking for his order.

"Corellian Whiskey, neat." He responded and then ran a gauntleted hand through his raven hair, sweeping stray strands back from his face.

[member="Domino"]

 

[Domino]

It wasn't unexpected, this invitation, or rather the request for an invitation. It was no secret that the Suns were preparing to launch an invasion, new ships, new weapons, increased recruitment, reserves being called up, it'd take a blind fool not to notice and nobody managed to make their way into power while being either. Or if they did they didn't stay there long in Domino's estimation. Staying in power was one of the reasons a reply took so long, careful planning was required down to the last detail to ensure the safety of this meet until at last the Vigo was satisfied that even if the planet was ash by the end of the day that she'd walk away from the meeting.


When the Rodian returned with the whiskey [member="Salem Norongachi"] ordered he waved away any payment, saying instead, "She's waiting for you upstairs." As he waved towards a flight of steps leading to a room lined with one-way glass overlooking the club. On the far side of the darkened room Domino waited in white, ramrod straight and legs crossed at the knee square in the center of a chaise lounge brought in for the occasion. When her opposing number in the Confederacy entered he'd be greeted, offered his own seat along with some refreshment, and then they could get down to business. Domino always tried to be a gracious host after all.

 

[Salem Norongachi]

Norongachi didn't even bother acknowledging the Rodian after he'd received his drink and a look over his shoulder and up showed the room the sentient had indicated. He carefully waded through the crowd toward the stairs, gliding past sentients with a practiced ease so as to not spill a drop from the glass, he reached the bottom of the stairwell and fully expected to see some very large, and very menacing, guards. All that he found was, well, an empty stairwell with little signs that at the top the most powerful woman in the Black Sun's awaited him.

He took the stairs at a casual pace, his armoured boots ringing louder and louder the further away he got from the noise of the club below until he stood outside the room, a door awaiting him. He drained his glass and set it aside on a small self that jutted out from the wall facing the entrance and then took the handle in his hand, a twist and a gentle push let it swing open upon its hinges.

The setting was...ostentatious to say the least, the woman before him was every bit as finely dressed as a head of state should be and as he took his seat and waved away another offer of a drink he took her in. The woman Isley Verd had scorned.

"I appreciate you accepting this meeting, Vigo @Domino." His armour creaked as he reclined back in his seat. "I'm Salem Norongachi, representing the interests of the Confederacy." Which was a lie, he had no interest in the mewing body that barely held itself together back on Bothawui. A string of poor decisions had lead them to the very brink, all Norongachi wanted were the tools to take what was left and mold it into something stronger.

 

[Domino]

He came to a diplomatic meeting in armor, fair enough she guessed. They were both on a wartime footing and she did have a slight reputation for getting upset at these things, however unjustly earned. Would also be a good move strategically to remove the head of an enemy before you attacked them, leave them directionless, let the infighting for the top spot do your work for you. One of the reasons she had been so careful setting up on her end, because the opposite was also true.

"Mr Norongachi, you know who I am." He hadn't bothered with the trappings of titles, neither would she, for one it'd be rude and ostentatious. Two, she just hated going on about them, they'd be there for a quarter hour before anything of import happened. After that, she just sat back and waited, she didn't need anything from this meeting and until he put something on the table she wouldn't give him anything. Not a nice way to play, but she was about to launch an invasion and kill a whole lot of people. Some of whom he knew, maybe even liked. She didn't have to play nice, in fact playing nice would be dishonest if anything at this stage.

[member="Salem Norongachi"]

 

[Salem Norongachi]

"In a round about way." He commented. He knew her through the words of intelligence reports, cut and dry information that did little to elude to the personality of the person. What he saw gave him infinitely more information, a woman who knew what she wanted and how to get it. A look as hard and as unbreakable as beskar, it was little wonder Isley Verd had wanted her and her ilk out of the picture.

"I suppose we can both assume we know enough about each others vital statistics and move on?" He wasn't one for mincing his words, or playing that delicate melody that diplomats are often compelled to play. He was here for a reason, one that could eternally benefit them both. "I get the impression that this meeting isn't something you or anyone back home thought they'd ever see. I have conflicting reports here, on the one hand Verd made it his personal mission to crush you. On the other we have reports of CIS ships being raided after we sent you humanitarian aid. Quite frankly? I don't care. The Galaxy is changing and the CIS are changing along with it. Verd is gone, whatever legacy he left behind is my mess to deal with. So shall we cut to the chase here or would you like to do a little back in forth, some tongue-in-cheek threats? Veiled or not so veiled?" It was up to [member="Domino"] , he was her guest after all.

 

[Domino]

"If I was going to threaten you it'd be to tell you that I have a sonic gun that will crush your rib cage and pulp your lungs along the seams of your mandalorian designed armor. Unless you can dodge sound. That or I could state the obvious 'vital statistics', your fleet is in disarray and unable to replace losses with any great speed, the Suns are more powerful than ever, and our allies are all but begging us to invade." Her smile was as cold as the Ilum nights she had once enjoyed so much. "Frankly I only agreed to meet as a courtesy, get on with it and I may only take Bothawui to consider our debt repaid."

Gamorr actually, attacking a fortress world wasn't something Domino was interested in. Taking and holding the capital of the Confederacy would be a horrible nightmare logistically unless they had a decisive navel victory shattering the CIS fleet. Even then there'd be remnants, and pickets on extended patrol, and sector fleets, and anything that had been stationed in that damned arm that had been choking the Sun's expansion. She'd much rather cut the supply line to that arm and then pick off the stranded CIS forces as they tried to make their way home. [member="Salem Norongachi"] was right, Isely's legacy was his to deal with.

 

[Salem Norongachi]

And so the decision was made; Not so veiled was the method she had chosen. The bluster didn't bother him, no, that was to be expected. Men and women in positions of authority liked to show they had teeth capable of ripping their enemies throats out. What he didn't appreciate was her assumption that he'd come to this meeting unprepared, yes a sonic weapon might hurt but from the very moment he'd clapped eyes on the Black Sun leader a reaper of telekinetic energy had loomed behind her. A thought and he'd pop her head like a cork, a twitch and he'd rip her rib cage out of her chest, and if he sneezed? It was probably best not to think about what might happen if he sneezed. He was willing to wager the speed of a thought over that of her finger.

Then there was the matter of the fleet and his armies, that really stung. That he was so incompetent a military leader and administrator that he'd allow things to be as she described? No some home truths were in order. "Do you know how many ships we lost at Druckenwell? Its a staggering statistic: Zero. Do you know how many ships we've lost since? Zero. Now lets examine our territories for a moment, [member="Domino"] . Ours is over twice your size, which means more raw resources, more income, more men. Let me be very clear, just so you understand the very depths of which crossing me is a terrible idea, I'll put a gun in every mans hand who is capable and send them at my enemies. Then their wives over their broken and mangled corpses, then their children. I am not Isley Verd, I care little for his strange and twisted moral code. I have a government to run and if worlds have to burn for me to do that..." He didn't smile, the temperature that radiated from him was more than capable of sending the entire planet into cryo-sleep.

"My ships, ALL of them, down to the very last star fighter are ready and prepared for war. If you had struck pre-Druckenwell, we might be having a very different conversation on that front, but alas the Protectorate made attacking us a very costly endeavor. You could win, you could lose." He shrugged. "Either way, there will be blood in the streets on both sides." He'd said his peace on the matter of military confrontation and took a moment to gather his thoughts for what was to come next.

"Barab I," Norongachi began. "And all the worlds beyond on that very long arm that has you choked. We'd like to give you them back in exchange for an Alliance. Laughable, I know, given whats happened between our peoples and how the conversation seems to be turning toward the bloody but the truth. We don't expect you to fight our wars for us. However, Verd's legacy is my mess to deal with and this is one that is a little too close to home for my liking. I'd rather not fight a war on two fronts or have to split my attention between the Protectorate and yourselves, should you ever get the notion in your head that attacking is the best course of action. All posturing aside, that's why I'm here."

 

[Domino]

Salem's little 'prepared for war' speech actually got a genuine smile out of Domino, really, she almost even chuckled, but that would have been rude. Twice the size meant twice the area to defend, on a three-front war. Armies were meaningless when your enemy cared less for your planets than you did, Domino had already plasma bombed one population center housing an army that had offended her. As for income, the CIS held the very end of three trade routs and some of the poorest planets on the outer rim while she sat on the richest planets in 'Hutt Space' and had alternative sources of revenue that other nations typically didn't exploit. Personally she would have ranked the Suns second only to the Republic in wealth, greed had its plus sides after all. As for the rest... they had all they needed.

What [member="Salem Norongachi"] said next did get a single bark of humorless laughter out of her. "Ha! You must be desperate, or deaf. We're allied with, or on extremely good terms with, your enemies. And you want us to turn our backs on them and flip over to your side?" Domino could feel his telekinetic reaper writhing and coiling behind her neck and was unconcerned. The shotgun was taped to the back of her lounge and was just there in case Sal was one of the masters that preferred physical violence. And if he wanted to intimidate her through the force, she had another answer for that when it was needed.

"All you're offering me is another war but against people I actually like and that stood by me when the CIS itself invaded, and for something I'll get with a little patience and a war with you. I'd suggest rethinking your offer because I'm not going to help you fight people the Suns are actually on good terms with."

 

[Salem Norongachi]

[member="Domino"] and Norongachi must have been thinking along the same lines in that moment, he recalled Nedjiv, he recalled Korriban, he recalled Druckenwell. Entire worlds put to the torch because it had to be done, so many years after the former two he couldn't quite recall why they had to burn. Maybe he'd visit Nedjiv in the future and see how the scars had healed. Suffice it to say, if Salem took the CIS to war against the Black Suns it would not be for territorial gain, and the first world to feel the kiss of a turbolaser would be Nal Hutta itself.

"While I appreciate your sense of loyalty, anyone who fails so very miserably in stopping Isley Verd molesting their territory isn't one I'd need at my side when the bombs start falling. No, its simple. You don't shoot us, we don't shoot you. Trade once again flows between our territories, everybody wins. You get the worlds, as stated from Barab I to the end of our territory encircling you. So really you have a choice: Something for nothing and an iron clad agreement that we won't suddenly blast a hole through your planets or war in which case, all bets are off. And before you start thinking 'but you'll be fighting a war on two fronts, that ups my odds of winning', I'll forget the Protectorate even exist, I will make it the very last act of the CIS to drag the Blacksun and everything it holds into hell with it. When we're dead, when I'm dead, all you'll have left are the clothes on your back and glassed worlds." He brushed off a piece of fluff from the armour plating on his thigh. "Play the game, you wouldn't be where you are right now if you didn't have to make deals with the devil. Whats one more added to the list?"

 

[Domino]

This [member="Salem Norongachi"] character wasn't half-bad, or at least he could talk a good game. He might even be just what the CIS needed to stop being such twatle-waffles. Even if he had missed a pretty big hint she'd dropped for him. Ah well, time would tell. She could deal with him in the meantime. "Alright, I get it. You've proved yourself to have balls despite being a new leader, even if you were a bit grandiose about it. Though I suggest you tone it down in the future, you don't want people thinking you're a wild dog needing put down before you drag them down as well. Now, since I hate negotiating with a Damocles behind me..." One hand flicked out and her fingers snapped signaling the people listening in. In seconds three armored bio-cages were pressed up to the floor from below, the yaslarmri's fields (previously separated) combined and magnified to fill the room and block both Salem and Domino off from the force. That Domino hadn't got up or moved after the fact except to refold her hands in her lap should help ease his thinking about this being the prelude to an attack. It wasn't; unless he made it into one. "there, now we can talk without all the threats while knowing our negotiations are secure." Aside from the recordings from the cameras, but if he hadn't picked up on that then he didn't deserve to know.

 

[Salem Norongachi]

"I meet force with force, Domino," He began and then felt the cold blanket of nothingness drape over him. If she thought that would inhibit him, she was sorely mistaken. He was a solider, a master of unarmed combat as much as he was the Force. He'd spent years over coming that one fundamental weakness of the Force user, he was limited in his senses but nothing more. He let the wild dog comment slide, perhaps he was. They had said it before, before the Twi'lek before him had ever drawn breath or her parents and grand parents had drawn breath. He was the mad Prex, the killer of worlds, the Dark Lord. He was whatever the situation required of him. "Ah the Lizards, old friends...." How he hated them.

"I've laid out my terms now it falls to you."


[member="Domino"]

 

[Domino]

One tip of Domino's lekku twitched, a casual shrug for a Twi'lek for those that knew the language. "Mostly acceptable, I have allies though and a reputation of not betraying them. If I were to side with you then I would have to stipulate that you not ever require me to act against them. Of course this means that the Suns would then not side with them against the CIS, but I'm sure you can understand all this." She may not have known about his intensive training just in case he was cut off from the force and how good he was at hand to hand, but she didn't care either. In the end any comparisons would just be a measuring contest between them and, despite starting out with the cruelest handicap in the universe, Salem would probably loose. At least if he really thought Domino had any intention of going one on one with him. "If that's alright with you then please remind me of the rest of your deal." Terms sounded so much like surrender language.

[member="Salem Norongachi"]

 

[Salem Norongachi]

"Coincidentally, I'm not in the habit of betrayal myself. As to the specifics of my...offer..." It was a more a polite word than [member="Domino"] had used, one that wasn't as inflammatory. Was it an attempt to get a rise from him? To bring the conversation back to old wounds and declarations of death and dismemberment? Or was it purely the act of a leader maintaining face? Things to consider but instead, he stuck to the script.

"Barab I, all worlds that we hold beyond it. They would make the transition to Black Sun control. Trade would open between us, the particulars of that trade, we can let the bean counters worry about. We would maintain an alliance, but as I said previously, no side is under an obligation to aid the other in any defensive or offensive acts. Thats it, no more and no less."

 

[Domino]

When it was all laid out like that it was a very tempting offer. No obvious downsides except maybe giving her political friends in other nations quite the 'wat' moment. Not that the Protectorate were receiving aid from the Suns anyways, not beyond what trickled into Drunkenwell, and the Fringe wasn't fighting the CIS. So far the Suns had played their neutrality rather well. She nodded. "Deal then." Standing, she twirled a finger in a 'gather up' sign for the camera, signalling that her people were to start packing up. "I'll send you a copy of our agreement and await more formal dialog." Outside the room, something caught her eye in the club below causing her to stare for a moment. "We should also probably have a small gathering of our respective nations when we announce this, something to build interrelations"
[member="Salem Norongachi"]

 

[Salem Norongachi]

Job done and no one had lost an eye. Salem Norongachi had received +1 diplomacy points. Where it went from here would be up to those more versed in these matters. Nameless administrators who would crawl over the deal with a fine toothed comb for inconsistencies, loopholes or 'get out of alliance free cards'.

"Wouldn't hurt." He commented, standing as she did. "I'll have my guys talk to yours when I'm back on Bothawui. I'm sure that between them they can arrange something fitting and entirely boring that I'll need to suffer through."

[member="Domino"]

 

[Domino]

"We'll have to get a band." She agreed. State functions were extremely rare in the Suns for a reason. They were boring, stuffy, and made most of those involved look like pretentious jerks or full of themselves. And it wasn't like the Suns had been around long enough to start collecting political events or speech days, Domino wasn't the sort to create something just for the sake of having a special day.

Turning, Domino left the room without another word, not bothering to retrieve the non-existent gun from behind the chaise. Never go with the ordinary. She thought on her way out to her ship, scritching Myunnah behind her ears as they went. The rest of the security would be dismantled over the next few days or left in place should the site need to be used again. Needless to say, her bureaucrats and lawyers would be going over everything with a fine-toothed comb as well, both looking for advantages and ways to close the same to the CIS. Nothing against them, it was just standard procedure to know how the other side might try to screw you.

[member="Salem Norongachi"]