Today is Yesterday's Tomorrow

[Boethiah]

A starship traveled through hyperspace en route to Lianna. Carrying the Host Lord, this vessel is tasked with journeying Anja Aj'Rou to a personal meeting to discuss the defense of her worlds.

​

Soundless void; ​

​

I welcome thee.

"We've landed, Your Worship."

"I'll be escorting you to the location."

Anja stepped off of the starship's landing ramp and began her journey to the building's entrance. A small entourage of guards lead by her security officer was all that stood between her and the busy day-to-day life of businessmen, faceless denizens, and the elite who rule it. Since coming across such worlds as Bastion and Dubrilion, Anja had become used to such worlds but Lianna was arguably more urban; reminding her of her time on Coruscant after being introduced to her Sith allies.

What information she had been given of this world was limited to one fact: It was not ruled by any major power. Despite this the planet was tucked gently between the growing forces of her enemies. With caution; her security detail was suspicious of a potential trap and took the utmost lengths of protecting her route. Comforted by the majority human population, they walked through the upper roads that were not inflicted with criminal activity.


"This is the entrance." Her security officer turned to step aside. From within they'd leave her per her own wishes and instead lurk nearby.

Acknowledging him with a simple nod, the witch entered the towering office where she was then escorted presumably to a meeting room.

[member="Darell Irani"]

 

[Hira Mitsae]

[member="Anja Aj'Rou"]

Miss. Aj’Rou would enter a spacious atrium and be hit with the distinct sound of… business. It was impossible to describe any other way, one could almost feel the money being exchanged, the business being made and the general capitalistic ideas being hailed as their own monetary Gods of glory.

There was peace in the atrium, a few guards here and there stationed, but nothing as ludicrous as some came to expect from the more mediocre corporations of the galaxy. In the mind of Ty’rel Holdings one’s security did not need to be all that obvious or present to be effective in the long-haul, but such things weren’t as important for this meeting.

She’d be led into the room and an assistant would finally step up to greet her.

‘Hello.’ she responded politely, but not overly so. ‘How can I help you, miss…?’

Ty’rel Holdings was a huge, sprawling corporation with many subsidiaries. This was made apparent by the less… personalized and at hands approach, which would change with an appointment, of course.

The assistant patiently waited for Anja’s response, her pose was strangely solid and silent, almost eerily so.

 

[Boethiah]

It felt out-of-place for this zealot to be in the presence of what would be considered the day-to-day living of the galaxy at large.

Anja's great Marches as they were called had resulted in the death of billions at least. These purges were devastating to the wild worlds that hid amongst the vast treasures of the eastern fringes. A change of scenery was beyond her norm but the woman's curiosity had gotten the better of her. So it was decided she alone would meet with the corporation that might provide her with what she desires.

Looking to the assistant, Anja's pale eyes greeted her eerie ones. "I am here to see someone named Darell Irani." She responded to the question.

Formalities had overcame her with an awkward sensation.

It felt unnatural to be referred to as miss. It was the same feeling a child got when feeling love for the first time; that inability to recognize it in the face of others. She could--ironically enough--be referred to as being like a child in this case. There was so much bewilderment. Business wasn't beyond her comprehension. When she met with Titan Industries, however, it was on soil she ruled but here she did not rule and stood out like a fish on a dry land.

This was the soil of shrewd business and socialites. Not exactly the kind of world for the Host Lord to set foot on.

[member="Darell Irani"]

 

[Hira Mitsae]

[member="Anja Aj'Rou"]

Irani hadn’t enacted the systematic slaughter of billions, not because of any moral concerns of course. He simply hadn’t found a way to make it profitable yet, at least not profitable enough to counteract the major headaches that came with it. The amounts of paperwork would be staggering, probably.

In general his way was the way of war profiteering through subtle channels, supporting causes that weren’t exactly kosher while somehow avoiding the general stigma that came from doing just that. Perhaps it was his larger than life-figure, perhaps Ty’rel’s PR firm was simply that good.

Or maybe most if not all of those transactions weren’t exactly done in ways that were easily traceable. No, Darell prided himself in general availability to hear any and all offers.

But they wouldn’t be approved just like that, at least not publicly so. Anja would be led into the office of Irani and there she would meet the man himself, huge, intimidating, smoking a cigar and a glass with scotch already half-emptied.

It wasn’t even noon yet.

Blue iridescent eyes briefly looked up, before returning to the screen. But his attention was with them, of course.

‘Thank you, Edna.’ with that the PA left the office, leaving Anja alone with Darell.

Still working at the screen, Irani mumbled something before getting to the point. He wasn’t much for small talk at the best of days.

‘You had a proposal for me, Host Lord?’

 

[Boethiah]

Straight to business, Anja respected that.

Where as some people cared more about personal attention the Host Lord was less concerned with self pride. She too was interested in getting the deal done rather than having a meaningless conversation. Taking three small steps forward, she stood a little closer and allowed her eyes to wander the room before they found their way back to the man.

"I need defense satellites." She answered his question. As far as discussing proposals went she only discussed what she was after, not what she was willing to give. From an outsiders perspective it looked like she was seeing whether or not he actually had what she wanted before discussing what she would have to give in return. In actuality, however, this was merely her personality. Small talk was not her forte but at the same time her talk was indeed... Small; few words.

In comparison she was somewhat shorter than expected. Not small by any means but because she's as fr as xenocidal conquerors go she doesn't necessarily fit the image of one. But did that mean she couldn't be intimidating, too? Besides being an empty-eyed Umbaran, her reputation was little more than just a rumor. People began to feel the weight--the consequences--of The Primeval's actions in the eastern fringes and whilst that may not exactly mean much for those who spend their time in the core or on hidden worlds, piracy had been eradicated from most of the Chiloon Rift for the first time. Bastion was occupied, Korriban was being rebuilt, there were so many coming changes that even The Republic is begging to wonder when these zealots will smash through the gates.

War is inevitable. And that is evident by the fact she came here to acquire satellites.

[member="Darell Irani"]

 

[Hira Mitsae]

[member="Anja Aj'Rou"]

‘Is that so.’ the businessman simply mused, while keeping his eyes on the monitor and doing some more calculations in his head. In truth he really didn’t mind dealing with dictators, barbarians and genocide-inclined… women, that wasn’t the problem in this case, the real problem was how it would look to the general public. Even more important was how they would use the satellites and how that would look to the general public.

The Ocelot wasn’t a publicly known creation, of course. It was being kept between lock and key, only produced to fit the quota and only produced to those who were worthy of actually having one.

It meant being intelligent, smart, reasonable in how to use a certain resource without being wasteful.

Finally then their eyes met, and in those eyes Anja would find no man who was intimidated or scared of her reputation. Ancient old eyes who had seen more than she had executed herself.

‘Why?’

Not why did she want them, that was obvious. Those satellites only had a few possible functionalities and Irani knew about the Mandalorian threat to their worlds. No, why would he sell them to them.

It was a simple question.

 

[Boethiah]

She may have not been an entrepreneur nor did she hold any industries to her name but that did not mean she couldn't understand business. As far as she was concerned it was all connected anyway. It's all an exchange. One person wants something and what they want requires something of equal value in return. True generosity is a fantasy, a ruse to disguise feeble attempts to fill the void of pain with a false sense of compassion towards the "greater good."

"I'm sure credits come plenty to one such as yourself. I don't offer credits. I'll offer you the same thing that I did with Titan Industries: Autonomy. You will be granted land on our worlds, allowed to experiment to all your hearts content with grandiose plans and have no interference from us. In fact..." She paused for a moment and moved to the right before turning back as she paced.

"Depending on the project we may even support it. No taxes to pay, all we ask is that you aid us in our efforts. We aren't staying here forever so when the time comes that we do leave... Well, I suppose you understand what's left behind is ripe for the taking." She finished her little proposal.

Unlike the corrupt democracy of The Republic and personal interests of the many other factions, the one thing The Primeval offered to business was completely unadulterated operations. No intervention, no equilibriums or regulations. it was all quite the forbidden fruit.

[member="Darell Irani"]

 

[Hira Mitsae]

[member="Anja Aj'Rou"]

Credits would have left a trail, one to be followed by all the inherent curious and investigative people of this galaxy, no if this business transaction would have been executed credits wouldn’t have been part of the deal. Irani would have been disappointed if it had been offered, but it seemed that besides being capable of ordering the slaughter of billions of sentients, Anja was also a remarkably- or at least relatively so- intelligent human being.

There were so few of those strutting around the Galaxy that Darell almost gave her those orbital defense platforms just like that, simply to support the intelligent people of this universe.

They needed to stick together, no?

But Irani hadn’t come this far by simple charity and the waving around of money with no investments gained, no this proposal sounded interesting. Intriguing even.

Years ago it would have been an offer to leap at, so few governments and cluster-spanning nations truly respected the nature of progress. But times have changed, have they not?

The One Sith, the Primeval, the Fringe, the Abrion Corporate Alliance. Four nations that clearly respected the need of companies to expand in certain directions of research, as long as they paid their dues of course. Not even to speak of the countless of neutral worlds these days…

While no longer unique, it was a worthwhile proposition nevertheless.

He tilted his head slightly, his eyes still studying hers. ‘You have my attention, Host Lord Aj’Rou.’ Darell calmly stated.

Not his interest though, he would need just a little bit more for that.

 

[Boethiah]

Negotiations over a single weapon. Albeit a rather powerful one...

She knew very well that at this point the bargaining wasn't really going to wander like that. Was it trust he needed? Stability? Or maybe he was just making sure The Primeval weren't going to turn it back around on him. Whatever cautions he had about jumping into a business deal; she aimed to break them. Of course he has to look out or his own interests but at what point will people realize that their interests are one and the same?

"I assume you have what I want, otherwise I have been provided false information... Not that it would of course have anything to do with you." She began to analyze the situation as much as she could.

People like the man in front of her tended to rely on wisdom and from time-to-time perhaps old fashioned ideals that have gone out of style. She wasn't some hip, young go-getter that the galaxy seemed to enjoy so much and in that sense she wasn't about to bring anything brand new to the table.

"Titan Industries so far is the only company that has been able to profit off of the wealth of our conquests. They're renovating Telos Station, making it sustainable again. Out here is untapped wealth... While the core worlds are squandered the eastern fringes are left forgotten, an opportunity. I will offer you permanent residence out here..." She changed the tone from analysis to marketing.

"We can make many deals for many things and you can achieve whatever it is you desire. I don't even need to know what it is to offer that and I'm sure you know that very well. And I'm not to ask for complete loyalty. Just as we might deal with others, so shall you. I understand with all the wars that can be a rare thing these days.. Being told not to deal with ones enemies." Right here.... This is the most the woman has ever spoken to someone in her entire time as Host Lord of The Primeval. Little would the man know that privilege, one could just write it off as her being a talkative individual.

Why did she speak that much? Opportunity.

[member="Darell Irani"]

 

[Hira Mitsae]

[member="Anja Aj'Rou"]​

Exclusivity would have been a grand thing to negotiate, turning the entire territory into a cash spring for Ty’rel Holdings. But from the get-go it was understood that such a thing would not be feasible, not because Ty’rel did not have what it takes to make one such as Anja interested- both of them knew that she wouldn’t be here if he did not have exactly what she wanted. No, the problem was that such an exclusivity would have to work from two ways, it would have meant a dedication to the Primeval collection.

And Irani liked his individuality very much.

‘I see.’ Darell would finally state, nodding briefly more to himself than to the woman in front of him, before tapping a button on his display. In response a blue light was cast from the ceiling and the middle of his table which all came together in one holographic representation.

The Ocelot.http://starwarsrp.net/topic/53025-the-ocelot/​

It was a solid state hologram which meant that it could be interacted with, and what an interaction it was. Irani did not talk, instead he simply gestured with his hands and information spread out of the manifestation.

A Hellbore can be noted as the equivalent of thirty capital batteries, hundred and twenty capital guns. The Ocelot has eight of them which comes together to a rough equivalent of nine-hundred and sixty capital guns coming blazing out of the satellite.

Advanced targeting systems, sensor arrays and advanced shield generators made sure that it stayed protected above all.

Light Energy Torpedo Projector was the basic concept of the orbital defense platform, which meant that it should be only used as a sniper. Hit the target immediately as it went out of hyperspace and keep pounding it, while it was trying to get into range.

Effective range? 3,597,504 kilometers.

.

.

.

How’s that for some assets?

Irani’s blues looked up from the orbital defense platform to the Host Lord.

‘Satisifed?’

 

[Boethiah]

The woman's eyes followed the intricate shapes that formed from the holographic projector.

Satisfied?

Anja tilted her neck slightly before bringing it back to place. "It is quite impressive, I must admit. Yet..." She paused; clasping her hands together she leaned forward slightly as she moved, straightening herself as she walked forward and stopped. Lowering her hands, she allowed one to fall silently onto the table.

Her mouth opened slightly, she exhaled through her nose and closed her eyes. Opening them, "I can't help but believe you're looking for something more. Giving me a taste of what I want before I can have it." The Host Lord spoke her mind quite freely on the matter. It wasn't that she didn't trust him or felt that he should just give into her offer but she did feel at odds with his vagueness. What was he getting at? What did he desire that he couldn't simply ask for it. Or maybe this is just a man who enjoys playing games with those he meets; testing their limits.

Without further question she awaited his response.

[member="Darell Irani"]

 

[Hira Mitsae]

It was all a test, a way to stretch her patience beyond belief and witness to see if she would crumble, fold or hit critical mass. You never knew with people until you had pushed them past their boundaries and that was the entire thing with Darell Irani. He didn’t mind selling his wares to genocidal maniacs and the unholy despots of this galaxy, but they had to have some kind of sense in proportion, a patience that few people possessed these days.

Otherwise things would get messy quickly and Irani only liked messy in one particular situation, taking a wide look at Anja though… he doubted she would be very much into that kind of messy. Instead Darell simply nodded, an affirmation of his extended desires? Or maybe it was a nod to something that had popped up in his own thoughts.

You never really knew with Irani.

‘Dromund Kaas is a wasteland of ice and snow.’ the businessman finally stated, rather randomly and without seemingly a connection to what she had said before. ‘Have your people ever considered to bring it back into its former glory?’

Terraforming, the art of restoring or destroying.

And there was his interest.

 

[Boethiah]

Restoration. Now that's a fine word and one that fit well as far as zealots went... It had a ring to it that sounded like it came straight out of a propaganda statement. Of course Anja never fancied herself a manipulator... No she mostly believed in what she spearheaded but of course she had her own interpretations of what it all meant.

"Interesting you say that... I have always wondered myself what it would be like to bring back -- no even repurpose an entire world. Shaping it in ones image, of course I suppose there must be limits." She began to ponder aloud on the subject and grew ever more curious as to why that became the subject of discussion. Was this whole invitation to Tyrell a disguised invitation into The Primeval? A way to get at what he wanted that they had in exchange for something he knew she wanted... A silly thought, she doubted the concept of him potentially being a bit wiser than he let on. Not that she ignored the slyness in the way he spoke.

"I have not personally considered it, but I am considering." Her eyes wandered their way around him, as if she was trying to stare through his flesh and into the soul.

[member="Darell Irani"]

 

[Hira Mitsae]

[member="Anja Aj'Rou"]

You will never know, those old eyes said as she tried to pierce him with her gaze and would find a resolve that had been tempered by the memories of ancients and mystics. But it was only a fleeting moment, a micro-second of a graze that disappeared before she would even know it, had she caught? Did she realize yet what she was truly dealing with here? Did it really matter in the grand scheme of things?

Their eyes met and held, as both wills struggled, each one patiently waiting until the other would give in and take the first punch at the subject in hand. But in the end it was Irani who relented, not because it wasn’t his desire, but simply… because she was a guest in his realm and it would have been rude to presume too much on her patience. Which probably had been on trial for the entirety of this conversation already.

Finally then he came to the point, the entire point of what he wanted from them.

‘Ty’rel has recently acquired assets.’ and what assets could that be? Well, our dearest gentleman had been quite the busybody. Its holdings had created a shipyard that theoretically could manufacture into the very late future, with the help of a little Rakatan ingenuity, of course. And now they were attempting something else that would be just as extraordinary. ‘We believe...’ which should be translated in ‘I believe.’

‘...that it is entirely within our grasp to restore.’ almost as if he had read her mind on that particular subject. ‘Dromund Kaas into a state of our choosing.’

Darell leaned back and simply waited.

Our choosing.

 

[Boethiah]

She couldn't lie on the matter.. It was a fact that the ability to do something of such a grandiose scale had its perks. It was the curiosity of it all that truly brought her into the discussion. What possibilities are there? What doors might open themselves not only to her but The Primeval? Questions for another day but questions nonetheless. More importantly it was why he was so keen. There are plenty worlds worth terraforming and many that were easier to grasp. Even though he might make a deal with her it couldn't be said that there was any guarantee that she'd keep her word or wouldn't try to control things.

That was the price of being a zealot. People tended to write them off as ignorant, backwards, and otherwise backstabbing maniacs. Surely they did kill a lot and in some manner of the word they weren't exactly liberals either. That didn't mean they hadn't their own understandings nor would they make exceptions. And exceptions she was willing to make for him...

"I cannot say I'm not deeply interested but I do wonder why Kaas specifically. Only the Sith seem to have any interest in the world for its supposed history." She mentioned on the subject, her eyes walked away from his so to speak.

[member="Darell Irani"]

 

[Hira Mitsae]

[member="Anja Aj'Rou"]

Some say that businessmen are more akin to Sith Lords than any other individuals in the world. But she wasn’t ready for that kind of truth yet, perhaps never would be ready either. There were only a few if any people who knew that in reality Darell Irani, the respected CEO of multi-trillion corporation, was actually not entirely what he seemed to be. No, that was a truth that would have to be reserved for another day on another moment. Which was not to say that she deserved a little inch of the truth, a taster of the real thing, perhaps.

‘A multitude of reasons.’ Irani began, voice softly humming, deep oratory functions. ‘For one, I am an admirer of history, any history.’ partially the truth. ‘Furthermore, a project of this magnitude hinges in a lot of decent factors, most of which tie directly back into the amount of bureaucracy hoops one has to jump through.’

A frank look was exchanged.

‘The Primeval believes in the kind of freedom that this kind of project would need to succeed.’

In other words, safety regulations et cetera would be costly to say the least in any democratic equation, such as the Republic or a less democratic equation, such as the Protectorate.

Irani wasn’t entirely too concerned with her and her nation keeping the bargains they made with the corporate entity, known as Ty’rel Holdings. Because in the end there was a reason the entire council of the InterGalactic Banking Clan had been found dead.

Their reach was infinite.

 

[Boethiah]

He knew his words, she could give him that.

There was no reason to trust him entirely and likely as such there was no reason for him to trust her entirely either. But such an agreement would never have been made unless they both sized each other up and felt comfortable with who they saw. For her it was a man who had much to say but little desire to, and that was fine. It suited her more actually because she didn't have to bother with the unnecessary details of a "business deal." Instead she could focus on what she enjoyed and that--to be precise--was the success of her people.

So allowing him virtually uninterrupted control over a project that would normally require oversight by a government entity was a small price to pay in her mind. Besides, it wasn't as if she was losing anything. What else was the world worth if not a chance at something great?

"We think alike."

[member="Darell Irani"]