Dominion Too Greedy, Too Deep | DE Dominion of Shu-Torun

[Antipater]

"I thought the atmosphere would have fried your circuits."

Antipater's head slowly rotated to face Ren. He stared silently at the Prophet for a long, uncomfortable moment. What inscrutable assessments took place within that maze of steel and circuitry encased by his cranial unit were better left undescribed. But at their conclusion, the droid flatly said: "Hm. A joke. How amusing."

Many droids had the necessary software to experience amusement, but it was doubtful Antipater was one of them. The droid-moff followed after Ren at his own clipped, mechanical pace.

"They are weary of your religion," Antipater rather helpfully, if unenthusiastically, informed the Master of Ren, "The Ruling Council would like me to advise you to either downplay or refrain from mentioning it."

In other words, they had sent him to observe these proceedings. Whether he would become damage control or a scapegoat remained to be seen. They reached the space before the throne where an elder human woman sat. Antipater was nonplussed by the unsettled air that descended on the room. It was eventually broken by a stoic retainer. A herald, perhaps.

"Your Majesty, may I present Master Detritus Ren and Moff Antipater of Jaemus, the Imperial emissaries."

It was customary to bow. Antipater affected a small one, inclining only his head and shoulders. The queen watched them with a stony expression, but her displeasure was still quite evident. She made a small gesture - one to signal for them to start their little sales pitch.

Detritus Ren​

 

[Detritus Ren]

Location: Shu-Torun, Royal Palace
With: Antipater


Detritus had hoped that the droid Warlord would appreciate some sense of humor. The only response reciprocated was the droid trying to process his words, before the cold and cruel tone reflected the joking nature to be simply as such. The Master of Ren had chuckled, for even he cannot understand why a droid would wish to serve the Empire? Not much thought was ever placed on these matters. What did matter was to convince the nobility to side with the Empire and provide the necessary materials the Empire so desperately needed.

The two would approach towards the great hall, the throne room right in front of them. They heard music, laughter, drinks being poured and consumed. The droid looked to the mysterious Master of Ren making a comment in regards to the unholy practices of the Ren. “Do not worry, metal man. I will keep the sermons and prayers to a minimum. There is a time and a place for my preaching, this however is not one of them.” Detritus was inclined to agree with Antipater. While he couldn’t hope to trust the machine, the logical thinking brought about from the droid brains had brought up valid points. The last thing he needed was to antagonize the royal family.

They entered inside and were greeted by the sight of the party before them. A clear path through the elegant floor showed the way to the old Queen. The two walked side to side, hardly missing a step as if both stood and human were in perfect synchronicity. The Queen looked up, her eyes seemed almost dead, bitter but the Master of Ren simply thought it was the result of power and old age.

The two would stand in front of the Queen, an announcement was made while Detritus gave a respectful bow. The old woman continued to remain silent, while her eyes had narrowed upon the two of them. She seemed to be mistrustful.

“May I present her majesty Queen Tepala Trois head of the ore families and ruler of Shu-Torun.”

Detritus would gaze into the bitter eyes of the Queen, though he was careful not to have his gaze linger too long. He couldn’t sense anything strange from the woman, all the while many eyes seemed to watch them both with suspicion.

“Greetings your majesty. We’ve come out of good faith in hopes of a partnership between your world, and all the Empire has to offer.” Detritus would open up the negotiations with a simple, yet respectful greeting.

Meanwhile, above them hidden eyes watched them. A man who was carefully assembling a blaster rifle, high above from the royal gathering. A hateful gaze narrowed on that of the Queen, unknown to either imperial ambassador that the situation would increasingly become more complicated.

 

[Antipater]

The Prophet did not bow. Antipater did not like that. Unfortunately, he was about to like what transpired next even less.

Queen Tepala opened her mouth to deliver what Antipater suspected would be a scathing opening remark. She was interrupted by a high-powered disruptor bolt which shattered one of the ornate stained glass windows lining the hall and lanced her directly through the heart. Whatever prepared insult became a rattling gasp. She sagged in her throne and the crown toppled off her head.

Pandemonium erupted instantaneously. Courtiers and spectators screamed and yelled and trampled themselves leaving the room. A heavyset man in decorated armor who had been near the throne started bellowing orders to the other royal guardsmen. "Assassins! Assassins in the palace! Secure the crown-prince! Secure the throne room!"

A few royal guards returned fire through the broken window in what Antipater determined to be a rather perfunctory manner. Another few were wading through the crowd to carry out those orders. But more than a few remained at his side. Everyone seemed rather stoic for all this.

Amidst the chaos, the heavyset man - likely the captain of the royal guard - trundled forward and picked the queen's crown up off the ground. Oh. There it is. Some people just couldn't help themselves. This was a coup.

The captain pointed a fat finger at the two emissaries. "And you... Stay right there..."

Antipater silently obliged, folding his hands in front of him. One of the benefits of being an administrative droid was that there was no expectation for him to do anything in these unfortunate circumstances. The room was quickly emptying out.

Detritus Ren​

 

[Detritus Ren]

Location: Shu-Torun, Royal Palace
Objective: 1
Tags: Antipater


Detritus would stand there with the droid, he suspected that negotiations would be short, if not fruitful but was unaware of the eyes already watching them. The two stood silent after being introduced to the old woman before them. Then it all began, just as the Queen finished speaking would she meet an unlikely fate. Her body had collapsed from the throne upon meeting a high powered disruptor bolt. Detritus stood back, almost shocked for he couldn’t sense it until the moment it had happened.

Immediately did the room burst out into chaos, many of the patrons and guests of the festivities, quickly tried to rush out of the room. Detritus looked all around him, while the calculating droid next to him remained a calm as ever. How could the droid simply be so calm, while for the dark side priest he felt every fiber burn with awareness, the parasites attached to his skin gnawed at him while he looked around frantically. Armed men started to pour out, while Detritus tried to focus on the attacker.

“He is still here.” He would say in a chilling whisper. His fingers quickly made their way to his lightsaber wrapping around the hilt. He was ready to meet any danger facing towards either of them. The room continued to empty out, while armed men would continue to fill in. Both of them were staring down the looks of an a high ranking man, a captain that simply instructed for the both of them to remain there.

Detritus tried to move, but found himself looking up towards the balconies, his force senses would reach out and try to locate the attacker, he couldn’t place his finger behind it. Was it a coup? An assassination? Could they simply be trying to frame the Imperial delegation? So many questions had flooded his mind. Part of him wanted to know the meaning of this, but knew that with the ore dukes nothing seemed that simple.

Both of them stood there, Ren’s fingers were itchy around the hilt of his saber. His yellowed eyes stared the Captain down, while he looked to the droid next to him. “I take it you might have some idea what’s happening here?” He guessed as he glanced towards Antipater and then looked to the Captain, his fingers slowly moving away from his saber the tensions still high.

 

[Antipater]

“I have not the slightest idea what is presently transpiring,” Antipater told Detritus, although he said it with such lifeless indifference that it became difficult to gauge his sincerity.

The captain came up to them in either case, spinning the crown lazily around on one finger. “Oh, I’ve never even seen that droid of yours before, Master Ren.” It sounded like a rather perfunctory lie - he smiled faintly when he said it.

They might have played at aristocracy here on Shu-Torun, but in their hearts they were still only a collection of ore miners. They had all the subtlety of the machinery they used to scour their planet.

“Maximilien Rubix, captain of the royal guard,” he said, by way of introduction. “I shall be frank with you both. Our Queen would have been a disloyal subject to your Emperor. Trois knew there was no point in military resistance, but she intended to undercut you from within. She wanted to gamble. Covert support to the Alliance, the Jedi…”

He trailed off for a moment, brow furrowed. “She liked her odds. I didn’t.”

“How very wise of you. Would you like to be king?”

“No,” Rubix scoffed, somewhat disarmed by Antipater’s bluntness. “I am a mere viscount. A distant relation. They would never accept it. Make me the Imperial governor, however, and I can keep this place in line. I wouldn't need their support.”

“A fascinating proposition. What would your crown-prince - your new king - think of that?”

“He perished in the attack.”

“You dispatched guards to secure him, did you not?”

The assassin was not imperceptible to the Master of Ren, but he was moving at a purposeful stride through the rest of the palace complex now. Straight to the quarters of the crown-prince and his immediate family. They could be sensed as individuals amidst the miasma of fear, confusion, and hatred.

In the next few moments, those presences would be rather abruptly snuffed. One at a time. Quickly. Methodically. A professional was at work or soon would be.

“Oh. Yes. I did say that, didn’t I?” Rubix smiled faintly again, “In front of everyone.”

Detritus Ren​

 

[Detritus Ren]

Location: Shu-Torun, Royal Palace
Objective: 1
Tags: Antipater

Detritus stood there confused, his gaze shifted back and forth between the droid warlord, and what looked to be Captain of the Royal Guard. His fingers were still itching for his lightsaber the rage slowly boiling from within, but the religious zealot knew better than to unleash his anger as part of an imperial delegation. He first suspected the droid and his immaculate programming was at work, but listening closer to the man who introduced himself as ‘Rubix’ it appeared that Ren was wrong in his assumptions.

His stance shifted, one that looked geared for the offensive turned into neutrality. His fingers inched away from the weathered hilt and focused to his sides. The Captain kindly explained how the monarchy would have been opposed to a partnership with the Empire. Detritus would calm himself, his senses still on high alert but the zealot seemed more inclined to listen to what the Captain had to say. “Good to know our time hasn’t been wasted.”

In moments everything continued to spiral. The Master of Ren shifted his focus on the fear, the hatred, the terror all feeding into a crescendo. It wasn’t before long until he walked closer to the source, one by one the royal family seemed to be snuffed out. Candles consumed by the darkness. The Master of Ren only reveled in this atrocity, for he sensed many fell to this conspiracy.

“You certainly have been a bold one… So what’s the endgame Rubix? By the shadow, what do you hope to achieve? I can feel it… The cries… The echo of the void…” Detritus said suddenly his tone turned cryptic. He reached out with his feelings towards the man, but felt burning ambition and hidden intentions. Through the busy work of this Captain, he could only hope along with his mechanical counterpart that a productive and fruitful relationship with the Empire could start now.

 

[Antipater]

Rubix looked a touch uncertain when the Master of Ren's words took an esoteric bend. He gave Antipater a nervous glance.

"Don't be alarmed," Antipater spoke without looking away from Rubix. "The Master of Ren is merely... Sensitive. To the death and treachery you have unleashed here. You may answer his question."

For his part, Rubix did not initially look any more or less alarmed. He cleared his throat. "Of course... I do this on behalf of my home world, you must understand. The Empire is to be the law of this land now. Whether or not they know it yet, my people need someone who will... Negotiate with the Empire - collaborate - rather than antagonize, as the departed Queen surely intended to do. They will thereby be far safer in the long run. Moreover, as I have long sympathized with Imperial ideology..."

Maximilien Rubix, Viscount and Commander of the Royal Guard, kept talking at some length. He seemed to relax. Like any proper aristocrat, he was much comforted by the sound of his own voice. His speech was pretty and well-reasoned, with all the expected ornamentation for one of his lineage.

But a master of the Force could sense more and would know better. There was a lust for power, prestige, and recognition at the heart of him.

Several generations of poor fortune had reduced the standing of the Rubix family greatly. Maximilien had clawed his way to his current position through sheer willpower and animal cunning. He had been a great warrior once before coming to rest on his laurels here. This post was as far as he could aspire, but his descendants would have been greatly promoted. There was little doubt his immediate offspring would have been awarded lands (and a proper place in the peerage with them) in commemoration for his faithful service.

But he did not want success for his sons. He wanted it for himself. Killing the Queen would get him that. What good was faithful service if it was to the losing side, anyway?

The Empire was the path forward for him. Gradually Rubix would trail off, anticipating some reply from Detritus.

Detritus Ren​

 

[Detritus Ren]

Location: Royal Palace, Shu-Torun
Tags: Antipater



Detritus seemed almost surprised by the man’s intentions, though what was not surprising was the man’s ambition. He would listen closely to the words Rubix said. He could still feel the death that had clung to the palace walls, his gaze remained on the royal guard Captain trying to probe him for any signs of deception, but sensed that what he said was of the utmost importance. Was this man so interested in gaining Imperial favor? It seemed there was nothing that this man wouldn’t do to achieve his own ends. Ren would still remain on his guard, glancing across the entirety of the room wondering if they would become targets next.

He looked over to the droid, wondering if he had any insights to what was taking place. The droid permitted the man to speak, making what Detritus thought was a joke towards the Ren, before Rubix would speak in earnest of the situation at hand. Detritus didn’t dare to make any sudden movements, but preferred to remain silent. Rubix clearly wanted power and control, who’s to say that the Empire would deny him for such daring moves made, especially against the royal family.

“I see! I must say the ambition is to be commended. You have gone out of your way to attract our attention, now you have it. The Empire is slowly rising over the most lawless systems, but Shu-Torun will prosper under the rule of the Empire. To have gone so far, surely that earns you a place within the imperial system. Perhaps we can make a deal more fruitful than that of the dearly departed Queen.” Detritus would say, for the superstitious and zealotry man was often cautious, skeptic about many things. From what Rubix had explained that he desired an edge over the others. Taking out the royal family was a clear sign that Rubix desired a new power to govern his planet.

With the vast metal and ore that Shu-Torun offered, the Empire saw to it to claim whatever they could get to further fuel the imperial war machine in the wars yet to come. Detritus would look back to his droid companion, then he looked back to Rubix, a slight smirk was apparent on the Ren as he seemed to be impressed with how far the man went.

“Then Rubix, if you so desire it the Empire will offer anything you require. In exchange for the complete support of Shu-Torun and acceptance into the ranks of the Empire. No doubt you know the ore is of great importance to us.” Detritus would say, hinting at what the Empire required, while dangling control of the system under Imperial rule to him. Surely he now thought a more prosperous outcome would come from all this.