Private May You Know Interesting Times

[Wagner Forgrave]

BYSS
Vitiion Corrend
​

The initial operation succeeded without a hitch. Obvious trouble makers were picked up in the middle of the night and depending on their status either neutralized or otherwise put up for interrogation procedures. They had perfected these missions on Kuat after the lessons on Humbarine. Now it was time to report to the new Senator of Byss and the head of the provisional government.

It would be odd to report to anyone other than the Lord Admiral, but she had been clear. For the time being he was at Senator Corrend's disposal and should pretend like any order from her carried the same weight as the voice of Humbarine.

To an extent anyway.

Captain Forgrave doubted he'd have to kill Arage if Vitiion ordered it. Perhaps he should clarify. At the very least it would amuse the Admiral. Her current involvement in Senatorial duties made her far more annoyed than she used to be. Something about that governmental body had a way of sapping all life from people. Wagner was happy he had the easy job with little in the way of politicking or diplomacy.

Rather, his diplomacy was the straightforward one, at the end of a gun barrel.

"Senator? Captain Forgrave here, can I enter?" He knocked at the doors of her office and waited for permission to enter. This ought to be interesting. He hadn't had a chance to meet the newly-minted Senator yet. Instead communications had gone directly between the Office of Humbarine-Kuat and the government of Byss. Top-secret channels and all that jazz. All he knew was that from one day to the next he was put on a shuttle and given new mission parameters.

Sometimes it be like that.

 

[Vitiion Corrend]

”Y-yes, enter,” she called back through the door. “But please do ignore the bantha in the room.”

When Captain Forgrave opened the door, it the metaphorical mammal became very clear. The Senatorial office of Byss had itself a brand new focal point: three strips of intricate ur-Kittât graffiti that ran down the triplet windows behind the grand desk.

Other than that, the room looked immaculate.

Vitiion was handing a bucket off to one of her aides before turning towards Wagner. “The Lord Admiral told me to expect you,” she continued. She walked around one side of the desk then extended a hand for a shake.

Wagner Forgrave

 

[Wagner Forgrave]

Vitiion Corrend

He paused in the middle of his stride as Wagner noticed the graffiti.

The last time he had been on Byss it had been under different circumstances. The imperialist forces were in full control back then. It was less of a mop-up exercise and more full bloody warfare on the streets. A mess. Luckily Humbarine had mostly been support back then. The Sun mercenaries had done the majority of the work.

Most likely why the Admiral hadn't pressed for any formal debt or anything. Just getting the cockroaches out had been enough.

"I see the vandals are busy." Dryly spoken as he finally finished the stride and paused in front of her. "I am glad. A pleasure, Senator Corrend. Captain Wagner Forgrave."

Inclining his head in a mild show of respect.

"Sadly my job does not extent to rounding up graffiti vandals, but if your cops need some intelligence, I can ask some of my boys to check around."

It was true that sometimes a sign like this could be the prequel towards escalation. But in Wagner's experience more often than not coming down hard on it only risked to radicalize the opposition. It was best to give them some outlets. Little things that didn't matter, but made them feel better about their general lack of power.

"At any rate, how are you settling in? Everything as expected?"

 

[Vitiion Corrend]

She waved her hand dismissively next. “I said ignore it,” she repeated, though her voice was slightly bemused rather than annoyed. Truth be told, she had already been briefed on what citadel police knew from eye witnesses as well as CCTV—that was, at least the how. The why was a little tricker to pin down. There were a few contending reasons, any of which Vitii did not have the time now to entertain any further than she already had.

”Well, it’s not a warlord’s canyon villa,” she then replied. There was one. She glanced over her shoulder at the graffiti. “Though some decor got left behind.” She looked back to Wagner with a small smile. “That’s a compliment, don’t worry. Tea?”

Wagner Forgrave

 

[Wagner Forgrave]

Vitiion Corrend

Wagner was doing his best to ignore it.

It was rather difficult.

The coloring, the intensity, if it wasn't a vandalizement of government property then the offender would be well on their way towards being a true artist. It had always surprised Wagner what people got up to with their free time. All the opportunity in the world to apply and truly make something of themselves.

Instead they did chit like this.

"Ma'am?" Surprised at the 'canyon villa' portion. Perhaps the Captain should have read the report on the Senator a little closer.

He had been busy with the planetary reports however. Knowing more about the Senator hadn't been a priority. "Oh..." Wagner blinked, surprised again, before finding himself nodding. "Sure, why not. Tea would be fine." He was on the job technically. But his men were arrayed throughout the building, so if someone managed to breach the compound and meet them here?

They'd have bigger problems.

While the Senator busied herself with the tea he stepped up towards the windows. Not looking at the graffiti and instead looking beyond it.

"I have never understood the desire to live on Byss, pardon me saying it, ma'am. Heavily fortified, practically impenetrable, but it always felt so isolated from the rest of the Galaxy."

 

[Vitiion Corrend]

She had drifted over to a beverage cart. Two fine china teacups, one after the other, gently dinged as Vitii turned them over right side up on their saucers. She laughed, but with the notes of sadness, as she took the top off of a tall canister and plucked two sachets from it, then dropped one into each cup. “The One Sith didn’t much care for wanderlust, Captain,” she explained. “They cut it out of us—sometimes literally, sometimes not, but with the same result either way.”

She went to pour. “Now, I suppose I’m used to it. If we can’t look out, it’ll be hard enough for a new occupier to look in. Especially if we shore up the walls.” She joined him near the window as she let the tea steep. “I don’t know how I’ll do on Coruscant.”

Wagner Forgrave

 

[Wagner Forgrave]

Vitiion Corrend

He accepted the tea from her and blew at it gently.

"Sounds karked up." Said matter-of-factly. "But I know a thing or two about being repressed. The Corpos owned Humbarine for many decades. My parents and their parents. We were little more than wage-slaves, until... well." A little smile there, because Corrend didn't have to be told. Arage had been the savior of their people as far as Wagner was concerned.

"I hope you have some success on Byss, Senator. Your people deserve to find liberation just as much as mine did."

But presumably in a different fashion.

Vitiion was no Arage. She didn't seem interested in setting up a dictatorship. The word had a bad meaning in most of the Galaxy, but for Wagner who had been raised under Corporate servitude while being named a democracy?

It didn't matter. What mattered was what the leaders did.

He finally took a sip from his tea once it was ready and his brows rose up. "Oh, this is good. If you ever retire from politics you could open up a tea house." The Captain was about to check her hip with his, before quickly catching himself mid-action. That was stupid. Just a few lightly exchanged words and some tea and Wagner had almost let himself relax.

Straightening himself out Wagner coughed lightly.

"How is the Senatorship going? Do you need anything from my men and me?"