Private You Know the Kuati Name

[Yuria Braay]

Kuat Orbital Array

A Courageous-class Star Destroyer silently passed over the Kuat Orbital Array. The hulking vessel was still unpainted, freshly assembled on one of many spacedocks it was now enroute to the Alliance's capital of Fondor. The array was a flurry of activity, from tugs pulling along half-completed starship hulks to construction walkers hauling turbolaser batteries to be fitted onto cruisers. All of this could be seen from the conference room on the Array, a spectacle meant to impress potential clients and inspire confidents in employees. But for Yuria, it was a sight that bored her. The ever so plain grey of Kuati ships against the black void of space was cold and unsettling.

She sighed before turning back to the room's table and shifted the positioning of the bottle of Chandrilan raava as well as three glasses. It didn't matter what she thought of the sights, to any other Kuati it was the culmination of all their planet's work and another tool to demonstrate their industrial might. More importantly it was her hope that at least her guests would be impressed, for her own personal schemes hinged on the upcoming meeting's success.

She wandered over to the door and keyed a button, the voice of a Kuati Administrator filled the room.

"Ms. Braay, how can I help you on this fine day."

Yuria rolled her eyes at the platitudes. "Just tell me where they are."

"The representatives from the United Trade Authority and N&Z Umbrella Corporation are being escorted by SD09 and the honour guards right now. They'll be at the conference room shortly. Need anyt-"

She cut him off after she got the information she wanted, wandering back over to the round conference table and leaning on one of its chairs before looking down at here datapad. It contained a briefing on some key talking points of the meeting and after skimming past the more tedious details she stopped to eye the blueprints of an ancient Kuati ship, something that appeared to be of particular interest to the Governor-elect of Dantooine. Before she could read any further the buzzer on the door rang.

Yuria closed her eyes and composed herself before turning around and speaking. "Enter."

IG-09 walked in first and he extended his arm out towards Yuria. Turning to the guests who he had led to the conference room he spoke, his tone as dull as ever. "Presenting Representative Yuria of Kuat Drive Yards. Please enter."

"Glad we could meet again. Welcome to the Kuat Orbital Arrays, can I offer you a drink?" she said. Yuria's eyes met her guests with a sharp gaze, one that seemed to betray the sincerity of her greeting.

Ova Ziss The Lord of Hunger​

 

[Ova Ziss]

Objective: Backroom Politics
Location: Kuat Drive Shipyards, Kuat
Tags: Yuria Braay | Tertius C. Nargath

Ova entered the room. Ova's personal transport ship, an unassuming ST-70 gunship, arrived in a fairly unspectacular way.

What shocked and delighted Ova was the Array, the large ring around the planet of Kuat where they constructed their latest shipwright projects for all to see. The production lines continued on and on, seemingly forever. The shipbuilding planet was famous around the galaxy for a reason. Ova's company only produced one ship, and to see such an operation inspired the man.

As he walked into the meeting room, Ova couldn't stop staring - rather obsessively, too - at the Array through the glass. He was an industrialist, and Ova couldn't dream in a million years of having so many assets in one place. The Array assembled ships, walkers, droids, and even weapons as they passed by, with nary a minute before it moved to the next station of its trip. It was impressive. Ova thought back to the factory-efficient and sterile planet of Jaemus which he had recently visited, reasoning that even the autocratic industrial work-prison known as Jaemus couldn't reach the efficiency of Kuat Drive Yards. It was astounding to see the efficiency in person, and it would have only been possible on a factory planet.

"I'll take it from here, chief." Ova said politely to the SD09 droid. He went straight for Yuria and tried to shake her hand. The interruption of the droid wasn't stated rudely - it was just an attempt to disrupt the droid's regular protocol drive, which would likely absolutely insist on introducing him. 'Them protocol droids, he called them. They drove Ova insane with annoyance. "Ova Ziss, Governor of Dantooine. We met on Bastion." Yuria looked like she could use a stiff drink, perhaps even stiffer than Ova.

"Gin and gin, if you please", Ova said politely when offered a drink. The cocktail that Ova asked for was a combination of ginger ale and gin, which was known to be dry and citrus-like. Ova took the bottle of Chandrilan Raava and turned it over in his hands, running his well-manicured fingertips along the label as he waited for his drink. "Ah, good vintage. Very good. I can hardly wait for our mutual friend so that we can crack it open."

He put the bottle down, crossing his legs. Ova sipped on his gin-and-gin as soon as he received it. It calmed the nerves. This would be some high-stakes talky-talky in about a minute.

"So...you know why I'm here: the Arquitens. And while I'm here alone with you, Miss Braay, I'll tell you bluntly that I want it more than he does." Ova smiled politely. "I'll tell you also, I came as quickly as I got your holo-message. I was hoping you'd have a change of heart between Bastion and here. I remember what you said about safety in the Outer Rim. I promise you, we can keep the Braxant Run safe. I know how."

​

 

[Tertius C. Nargath]

Location: Kuat, Driveyards - Orbital Arrays
Objective: Corporate shenanigans

The NZV Julian, a Szayel-Class Assault Cruiser adorned with both the company emblem of the N&Z Umbrella Corporation and the subsequent insignia of the House of Nargath was slowly approaching the Planetary system of Kuat, gliding through space with an elegance only a Szayel class could purport to have and to display. Terrifying and beautiful at the same time, these cruisers were considered the favored mode of transport for the Marquis of Valkan and Chairman of the N&Z Umbrella Corporation: Tertius C. Nargath, allowing for safe travels in relative comfort and with enough staff, personel and guards on board of the cruiser to effectively operate as a mobile headquarters for the massive, galactic conglomeration.

The ERiaduan Noble had a distinct soft spot for Kuat, not because of how big it was or how powerful it was, because by now...it was neither. Sure, it was still a large driving porce behind the Galactic Alliances industrial force, but over the years it had been run by several folks, each with a different agenda and different strategies, some more successful than others and with the lack of a cohesive strategy beyond the confines of the galactic alliance, Kuat Driveyards was hampered in key positions where it should and would have flourished under better management and with better connections. It was because of this notion, this thought, that the Chairman of the N&Z found himself en route towards the place, keen to meet those who now ran one of the most well-known and illustrious shipbuilders from the olden ages.

When in close proximity of the place of the meeting, the Marquis took a shuttle alongside a small detachment of his Valkan Guards towards the actual meeting place. Upon arrival, the shuttle would open its bay and two rows of six Valkan Guards would flank the Marquis as he descended the ramp. Surprised to see he wasn't the first to arrive, as someone else was already being greeted by an SD09 droid. It turned out this particular person happened to be Ova Ziss , some political hotshot within the Ciarchy and the Governor of Dantooine. While he wasn't at all too familiar with the man, at least he had the access to the Diarchy's files in regards to what the man had accomplished so far, most of those achievements painting the picture of an ambitious person who had a knack for turning backwater places and low-end products into a proper and solid representation of quality and strength. However, this Ova Ziss also posed a problem...a corporate problem when it came to the opportunities for the N&Z within the Diarchy's territory.

Upon reaching the surface of the platform, the Marquis motioned his guards to remain in place, when the SD09 greeted him as well, bringing both gentlemen towards the location of the meeting, for now he only granted the Governor of Dantooine a simple, curteous nod as a greeting before following the SD09 as well.

Somewhat surprised, the Marquis had to take the backseat for the introduction of the Dantooinian governor, but sure enough, he'd just slip in quietly, not needing any sort of introduction. If people did not know who they had in the room with them, it was their loss...not that his appearance made anyone mistake him for anything besides a powerful member of society anyway, especially as he wore yet another new overcoat, this time one which emphasized a lighter, more elegant colourpalet over the usual dark purple and blue tones he utilised.

Allowing his Dantooinian confrater to first have his say, the Eriaduan noble simply tilted his head a bit as he listened to the conversation between Yuria Braay and the Governor, all the while observing the woman more closely, trying to gauge her abilities as a negotiator and conversator in meetings like this. When hearing how heavy handed Ova Ziss was trying to put himself front and center in these discussions, the Marquis had to chuckle ever so slightly. It wasn't that the Governor wanted this... Arquitense more than Tertius, because Tertius simply didn't have any reason to go for just a single design. No... what He and the N&Z were aiming for here, was a much bigger deal, a much grander plan...one which at some point may also involve the Governor of Dantooine...considering the aim of the N&Z to make an offer on the Jaemus shipyards.

"Please, do disregard my presence in this conversation," The Marquis smiled and nodded calmly towards Lady Braay. "But in regards to the last thing the Governor said... might I mention that the N&Z has both the manpower and the connections to make sure any dealings with the outer rims can be maintained in an orderly fashion."

 

[Yuria Braay]

Kuat Orbital Array

Yuria watched as SD09 was pushed aside and a flash of amusement passed over her eyes. She then turned back to Mr. Ziss who seemed insistent on shaking Yuria's hand yet again. As before she eyed the hand momentarily but this time she shook it with more deliberation and far less caution.

"Yes Mr. Ziss I do recall the meeting." she said plainly before waving her hand to IG-09 who opened a nearby drinks cabinet and walked towards the table with a bottle of gin and a small metalic can of ginger ale. Quietly the droid poured the drink before serving it to the governor-elect.

Yuria proceeded to wander back over to the other side of the table as Ova Ziss spoke before taking a seat with her back towards the viewport. She clasped her hands together before speaking.

"Kuat Drive Yards is glad that you have such an interest in one of our ships, even one of such an... ancient design." she said pausing only momentarily to find the right words. He then began to speak about the Braxant Run and safety in the Outer Rim.

Tertius was the next to enter, Yuria noted how quietly he managed to slip in. IG-09 made a sorry attempt to introduce Yuria yet again but was quickly cut off as the conversation carried on. The droid simply resigned to an idle state, watching the proceedings with it's viewing receptors.

"Marquis Nargath, I'm glad you could also join us." her tone remained cold and calculating. She listened as the Eriaduan spoke and after a brief moment of silence contemplating his and Ova Ziss' words she spoke.

"I appreciate the concern but let us not kid ourselves, the Outer Rim will never be as safe as the core." she said dismissively, her words filled with the core centric viewpoint of many Kuati. "But it's not its safety that concerns me, pirates and warlords are trivial matters to Kuat. It's the ambition of the men borne from those worlds that is my concern." her eyes turned to both of them and an air of suspicion arose from her words.

"I will not lie, Kuat has been in a rut as of late, other corporations have moved in on territory once ours and our very name has lost the weight it once held. Do you know why that is?" she asked. Yuria appeared to already know the answer, instead seeming to probe at the minds of her two guests here today.

Ova Ziss Tertius C. Nargath ​

 

[Ova Ziss]

Objective: Backroom Politics
Location: Yuat Drive Shipyards
Tags: Yuria Braay | Tertius C. Nargath

"Ancient designs are what I love most, Miss Braay", Ova said with a smile. "Why recently, we found that old Mandalorian Legacy Starship, the Mark 97, and we turned it into a fine mass-produced vessel with our friends in Jaemus. I--"

But Ova was interrupted by the other man's voice. Good grief, how did he get here so quickly?!

To his great shock and surprise, Tertius C. Nargath followed right on the heels of Ova Ziss's ship, quite literally in this case. The Marquis arrived in his evening best, with a squadron of royal troops too! Truly, the wealth of the Nargaths knew no bounds. While Ova had been turning over the champagne and appreciating its excellence, Nargath had walked in like he owned the place and spoiled his time alone with Yuria. Ship-blocked again, Ova thought with a chuckle.

Oh yes, Ova Ziss knew Tertius well. He looked just like the Marquis of the House of Nargath, a man that Ova competed with in numerous systems. Ova competed with Credius Nargath, just as President Raiyan Ziss Senior (Ova's father) had before him. But they were another frienemy in Ova's eyes, much like the Dashiells and their enterprise meant to the UTA. The competition was fierce along the Braxant Run because of its inter-connectedness to the Mid-Rim, Core, and just about everywhere else. It was impossible not to bump into any competition.

"Glad that you could join us, Chairman", Ova said to the man politely. "We were just discussing our business in the Outer Rim...and the Arquitens."

[...]

"A rut, you say?! B-but your production--" Ova trailed off. He gestured at the incredible machinery around him, the Array, and he felt saddened that Yuria did not see the same efficiency and productivity that Ova did. At that moment, the mineral baron couldn't imagine growing up on a factory world. Surely, Yuria didn't see what he saw because of her upbringing. If Yuria had grown up on Dantooine under the New Imperial Order, where they had struggled as scavengers and miners and mineral farmers and a lower-class of galactics, they would see this productivity very differently.

Ova thought over Yuria's question carefully. He didn't want to mis-speak, because Chairman Nargath would jump all over his mistakes.

"Piracy is just the tip of the iceberg, as I've learned personally on Dantooine. I believe it's the wars that are causing the most trouble for you - is that right?" Ova asked her. Ova turned to Credius. "I'm sure they're a problem for you too, Chairman?"

"That is certainly the problem we're having. The Dark Empire is relentlessly bombing our allies' assets in just about every system. They have... very dark ambitions." Ova thought of his encounter with the droid known as Antipater. "They are causing a proper mess. It might explain why your production is up, but income is down." Ova thought of his own operation on Dantooine. The humble United Trade Authority was a handful of factories on less than five planets, and at the moment, Ova felt smaller than an ant. N&Z Corporation spanned across the entire galaxy, and they had a tendency to absorb any corporation that might...underperform. Ship blocking indeed.

Ova swirled the gin absent-mindedly, and then sipped it. He thinks, I should've pushed Admiral Sularen down those stairs.

 

[Tertius C. Nargath]

Location: Kuat, Driveyards - Orbital Arrays
Objective: Corporate shenanigans

Calmly nodding towards Yuria Braay when she finally acknowledged the Marquis' presence in the room, something which was a bit hard when Ova Ziss was such a whirlwind of activity and someone who had a large personality...something the Marquis of Valkan certainly didn't dislike, considering it made the man a bit easier to understand and thus easier to anticipate their moves on a corporate scale. In the meantime, the Eriaduan noble listened calmly to the cyborg woman's retort to his mention of having the personel and means to protect the assets in the outer rim. Her words weren't wrong, her statements resting on clear evidence through the annuls of the past and the reality of the present. However, what it didn't account for was exactly how vast the N&Z had become, bouncing back from near collapse and having nearly tripled in its exports, production capacity and importance on the galactic scale...and in a way, this also made it the example many of the old companies strove for.

When it was mentioned how Kuat Driveyards had gotten into a rut, a question as to why and how such a thing happened was posed, with the governor of Dantooine showing surprise, and giving quite a few possible answers, yet... it was clear to Tertius that none of those answers were the core to the problem Kuat faced.

"Piracy will always be a problem, but it doesn't explain the 'rut, Lady Braay mentioned, my dear Governor," Tertius tilted his head a bit, nodding towards the Governor of Dantooine in order to show his respect to the man's attempt at explaining the rut, with a whole heap of valid answers IF Kuat had been a smaller, less prevalent company in the past. "The Dark Empire would have been a valid answer if it weren't for the fact that they too have relied on Kuat ships in the past. While understandable to look at those answers, one must understand the reality which Kuat faced throughout the past centuries. Where it had been innovative at some point, it began to rely heavily on a single customer, repeating a lot of designs straight into obsoletion and rather than reinventing themselves, trying the unbeaten path...they stuck to their guns until the end."

Reaching for his vest, the Marquis pulled out his datapad, tapping on the device's screen before revealing the market share Kuat Driveyards had for actually building their own ships as opposed to being a sub contractor. "The reliance on old designs has turned against Kuat, and while they still have a healthy role as a subcontractor...once again they are stuck with a single customer, the Galactic Alliance in this case, with a heavy number of competitors in the very field in which Kuat Driveyards used to dominate. The lack of effective leadership, the refusal to restructure and to spin off divisions that haven't been profitable have kept Kuat Driveyard's costs high and net profits low. Do tell me, Lady Braay...how close am I?"

 

[Yuria Braay]

Kuat Orbital Array

Yuria laughed at Ova Ziss' concern over Kuat, whether genuine or not the sadness in his voice amused the Kuati. "Fret not Mr. Ziss, Kuat is far from any danger of shutting down. The three front war the Alliance has found itself in is very profitable."

She then turned to Marquis Nargath, such a scathing report while in the heart of Kuat but her expression did not turn sour, her eyes simply remained locked on the Chariman. After a moment she spoke. "Well, for nobility you certainly are the revolutionary type. I see why you have risen to where you are. But yes, the Drive Yards has definitely been in a flux over the past hundred years, half a dozen directors in the last thirty five years alone speaks volume." Yuria seemed to take no issue with the criticism, it seemed there was much she agreed with.

"But while you adequately point out our role as a subcontractor profit margins remain within acceptable parameters, we still service all Navy ships fighting on the Hydian Front."

She then signalled over IG-09 who took the bottle of Chandrilan Raava and poured it into the three glasses, leaving it at the centre of the table for anyone to grab. Yuria took one of the glasses and gently swirled it in her hand. "You see when you've been in the business as long as Kuat has success transcends quarterly financial reports and stock market value. Success and I mean true success is that when a person looks up into the sky and sees a starship they think Kuat Drive Yards. Earning that limelight is what kept this business going for the past few thousand years."

She pushed herself backwards and stood up from her seat before walking over to look out the viewport with drink in hand. "Even after the Sith desecrated the Array and the Confederacy tried to occupy our world Kuat was still known for the best ships in the core. The 'plucky' Kuati spirit resisted the foreign invaders at every turn. But..." The grip on her glass tightened and her voice begun to turn sour.

"Mr. Ziss, I have read before you are familiar with the New Imperial Order and Chairman Nargath, your family is old and I'm sure has had dealings with them. Well so has Kuat. Professionally I have nothing against Imperials, it's an efficient system that produces results. But when they tried to take Kuat for themselves two decades ago? That I cannot forgive."

With her back turned to the two guests and her face out of sight she lifted the glass to the gaping maw that was her face. In a flash the glass of Raava was empty, how she had drank it? Only god knew.

"Whether they had tricked our Lord Regent or he approached them of his own volition it matters little to me. Men of the Outer Rim started a Civil War on my planet. Unlike foreign powers of the past the Imperials used Kuat blood to fight their war and when we turned on customers who had been loyal to us for so long? The profit losses were regrettable yes but our true loss was the damage to our reputation."

Yuria proceeded to point at the Courageous-class Star Destroyer that had left the orbital array and was now approaching the edge of the system. "Ships like that, designed by Kuati hands and drawn from contracts the Kuati negotiated, ripped from us because the Alliance could no longer count on our loyalty. That star destroyer is bound for shipyards in Fondor where it will be completed by Fondorian shipwrights."

A thought to mention how Kuat's Queen wasn't even Kuati passed through her mind but she supressed it quickly, there were some people in the galaxy that were not to be trifled with. She turned back to he two at the conference table and gently placed her glass on the table.

"If there is one thing you have hit the nail on the head of Mr. Nargath is that we use to dominate the field of starships and while our nationalization by the Queen and her initiatives have helped us back on our feet simply existing is not enough for Kuat." The passion in her voice was clear and the anger in her eyes spoke of a turbulent history with Kuat's civil war. But her tone soon changed as she dealt the first card in her scheme.

"It is my honest belief that to enter a new period of domination all traces of our Civil War must be dealt with first. It is why I have contacted the two of you, you both seem to hold some manner of influence in the Diarchy. In return for a discounted license to manufacture, modify and distribute the Arquitens I would require a favour regarding a certain runaway subsidiary of ours operating on a planet in Diarchy space."

She raised her hand to SD09 who walked to the door of the room and keyed the controls. The viewport became tinted and everything seemed to dim. They were now safe from prying eyes and ears. Then at the centre of the table the holoprojector unit came to life and displayed a hologram of the planet Entralla. Alongside of it and emboldened the unmistakable sigil of Kuat Drive Yards. But this symbol was not like those painted on the hulls of the array or on Yuria's coat, this version had been bastardized with the iron sun of the Empire, below the hologram the words read:

KUAT-ENTRALLA ENGINEERING

Ova Ziss Tertius C. Nargath
(Sorry I yap forever in this post)​

 

[Ova Ziss]

Objective: Backroom Politics
Location: Yuat Drive Shipyards
Tags: Yuria Braay | Tertius C. Nargath

"A war on three fronts indeed, just like the Diarchy." Ova nodded, showing his agreement. He counted out Dantooine's enemies on his fingers. "The Dark Empire, the Sith-Spawn, and now the Lost."

"The New Imperial Order, they've bombarded Dantooine to bits, too. The Enclave has been in ruins for generations now, and I still remember taking cover with my father inside of the United Industrial bunkers when the N.I.O came to attack the Mandalorians."

"I may sell consumer goods to the Imperials, Lady Braay, but I don't serve the Imperials." His expression was as serious as hers. "The Diarchs and Jedi, We've got more in common than you think. We'd love to take a stand against---uh, mind if I smoke in here?" He inquired suddenly, producing a deathstick and laserlighter, and then waved a hand, finishing his gin. "--never mind. - We'd love to take a more principled stand against the Sith."

"Have either of you read this Trigonus Report?" He chuckled. "Those Lost folks have gone utterly mad, even for Sith. They're accusing us down in the Tingel Arm of some sort of conspiracy against the Empire or something. I wonder if they've ever been to the Tingel Arm."

But, the woman wasn't speaking of piracy, or even wars. Her and Tertius agreed: what was important was Kuat Drive Yards' reputation and ubiquitous nature across the galaxy. So, that's what it came down to, Ova thought somewhat bitterly, as the woman got into the real crux of what the Kuati were concerned about. Reputation, reputation, it was always about reputation for these aristocrats. Yuria was right, Kuat's shipmaking operation had existed for thousands of years. Ova couldn't believe that the wars were increasing, and not decreasing, their income.

That wasn't exactly Ova's idea of a rut...but, perhaps the rut was ideological?

Then, Yuria mentioned a run-away break-off subsidiary who had recently went rogue.

Ova knew immediately who to suspect.

It was probably the damn android.

"A runaway subsidiary, you say? It's funny you should mention that. I had a very unusual meeting with a Braxant Run buyer" Ova smirked, taking his last sip of gin. His eyes looked over the liquid in the wine glasses with longing. "Tell me, is this subsidiary on a planet called Jaemus?"

 

[Tertius C. Nargath]

Location: Kuat, Driveyards - Orbital Arrays
Objective: Corporate shenanigans

It was rather interesting to hear Yuria Braay 's explanation from her own point of view, or perhaps more precisely that of the Kuati. It seemed that this one at the very least had the guts to confront the very flaws within her own company's trackrecord. Well, it wasn't exactly her company and moreso part of the Kuati heritage, something the Marquis of Valkan found fascinating: state companies. Over the years he has managed to dismantle several of those, uncouple the corporate part from the political governments that had a stake in them, his forebearers within the N&Z were perhaps even better, as at least one of them had effectively taken over an entire faction with the company and turned it into a militaristic corporatocracy.

He understood the frustration of Kuat to be forced into a subservient role towards Fondor, which had once been one of their great rivals, a rather sad remembrance of Kuat's great days. Yet, even so...Tertius knew about the issues Kuat was facing, and was quite certain he could provide the company with a new lifeline as it were if only they were keen on their resurgence.

As soon as the cyborg mentioned the existence of a rogue corporation which as a former division had spun off from the parent company and had effectively been building itself up while retaining the Kuati name, the Marquis listened to what the Governor of Dantooine had to say, reaching for the glass of Raava he had been presented with. Tilting his head a bit when Ova Ziss mentioned Jaemus rather than Entralla as was listed in the name. Still, considering the coincidential comparisons and the similarities it might all be something to lead back to the Dark Empire.

"The New Imperial order or later on just the Empire was... not exactly on good terms with the N&Z," The marquis calmly took a sip from his wine, nodding towards the Governor of Dantooine. "Before the second great hyperspace war had even started, the NIO's rapid expansion had been partially halted near the Chiss territories, where Credius Nargath had founded the Zweihander Union. Even today, one of the successor states of the New Imperial Order in the form of the Dark Empire is still considered a hostile force towards the N&Z, we however are a large supplier to the Empire of the Lost."

Knowing this information might shock the Governor of Dantooine a bit, tertius hoped as a fellow businessman, Ova would at the very least understand that with the N&Z's size and scale, it was impossible for them not to have multiple large factions as their clients. Still, with some interest in the displayed rogue element, Tertius turned towards Yuria with a sly smile on his face.

"Perhaps after all this time, it is time for Kuat to lose its corporate independence fully...only to regain their autonomy with the backing of something bigger," The Marquis calmly raised his glass towards Yuria and hoped she'd understand what he was hinting at. After all, he had uncoupled companies from governments before, doing it again with Kuat wouldn't be too much of an issue and through the N&Z with a large degree of autonomy, the Kuati driveyards could enter a new golden age. With his eyes slightly turning towards Ova Ziss, tertius reminded himself that the UTA was another potential candidate for his grip on galactic corporate power, to face off with the Trade Federation on an equal playing field, but with more inclusive tactics that attracted talent rather than nepotism. "Entralla is soon to fall to Diarchy influence, same as Jaemus... what I could propose is to have the shipyards be handed over into N&Z hands as part of our integration policy within the Diarchy... We could have a delegation of our top members negotiate the uncoupling of Kuat Driveyards from the very government of Kuat itself and guarantee it a semi-autonomous status within the greater N&Z Umbrella corporation...it is all just a proposal that could see everything come together again into a place where talent and ambition are encouraged rather than snuffed out by politics and ideologic dogma."

 

[Yuria Braay]

Kuat Orbital Array

Yuria tapped the table as she listened to Ova speak, her eyes were drawn to the death stick like a Kath hound at a barbeque.

"Of course you are more than welcome to have a smoke but... it would be rude not to offer a lady a smoke as well..." she said slyly as the Governor-elect complained about the Lost. More rump states and remnants Yuria thought.

Then at the mention of the droid Antipater Yuria snickered. "They say he's a droid who wears clothes, isn't that wonderful?" she said with glee, of course oblivious to the fact it could be argued she was a droid who wore clothes.

"But no it was as the Chairmen said, Entralla is my focus. Although many of the Droid Moff's contemporaries in the Dark Empire desire the planet to." she said to Ziss.

Then the Chairman spoke furher, his words as ever laced with ambition. Yuria eyed the man curiously and after a brief pause she spoke. "You know I find it fascinating the way you pair every sentence with a business proposal. I didn't notice it before during our brief conversation on Bastion but I realise that even then you were the same."

Her head lazily turned to Ova Ziss. "If you prize the independence of your corporation Mr. Ziss I would be wary of men like the Chairman." her words were blunt but perhaps contained a small token of respect.

"It's people like him who tend to want to swallow the Galaxy whole."

She paused before speaking again. "Kuat is not for sale Chariman." her words were firm.

"We flirted with corporatocracy and it led us on a downward spiral. We work to serve the people of Kuat, people who guide our hands and lay down principles to work by, ensuring we don't morph into a monster like the Federation." she said, her words tinged with distaste. Her intent was clear though as was as set out by the Queen of Kuat, their purpose was to enrich the planet not the corporation. She did not raise her glass in return to Tertius.

"But yes Entralla." She said bringing her topic back to the forefront of the conversation.

"Before we get ahead of ourselves I would love to explain my predicament. Kuat-Entralla Engineering was originally set up as a joint venture between the Empire and Kuat, it's purpose? Efficiency. The Empire was one of our largest clients and setting up shipyards within their territory was a natural evolution in our relationship. It was staffed with Kuati's who sympathised with the Imperial cause and after the Civil War its ranks swelled further with defeated secessionists. As we returned to the Alliance they chartered their own path." she said tapping the holoprojecter and it highlighted various shipyards dotted around the planets orbit.

"With our expertise and our infrastructure they have gone on to serve many Imperials in the galaxy." she tapped the holoprojector again this time the unmistakable shape of an Imperial III-class Star Destroyer. It wasn't exactly a good look.

She leaned back into her chair and away from her holoprojector.

"Official company policy is to reunite with Kuat-Entralla, to forgive and forget so we can put Kuat's Civil War firmly behind us and with the Diarchy takeover that possibility is emerging." she clasped her hands together and behind her eyes it seemed as if a fire was lit.

"But I want to burn them at the stake."

She waved her hand over to IG-09 who came over and poured another glass of Raava into her cup.

"You both have connections in the Diarchy and if rumours are true you even have the ears of the Diarchs themselves. Help me start a little fire in exchange for Kuati ships. As for the shipyards on Entralla, that we would need to discuss further. " She left the topic of the ownership of the Entrallan shipyards intentionally vague, the Arquitens would remain as the sole item on her initial offer. She knew her request was nothing trivial and they would likely come up again as they negotiated a deal.

Ova Ziss Tertius C. Nargath ​

 

[Ova Ziss]

Objective: Backroom Politics
Location: Yuat Drive Shipyards
Tags: Yuria Braay | Tertius C. Nargath | Ova Ziss

Ova would indeed be shocked that N&Z Corp sold their products to the Empire of the Lost – but, these days, so did everybody. Ova didn't know much about the Empire of the Lost at all, other than that they had badly spoiled a recent party on Bastion. (Ova didn't like to talk about it). The only thing that Ova knew for certain about the Lost is that companies couldn't touch the Parlemian Trade Route without running into them.

Ova scowled when he heard that the Dark Empire was yet another iteration of the obviously failed Imperial Empire.

"Anyone who is a friend of Marlon Sularen isn't a friend of mine", Ova said simply. "I'll say outright that he's a terrible man, and a Warlord. The Dark Empire quite enjoys stealing from our crafts."

Talking on the separate topic of the Lost, Ova said simply, "It's your business, Tertius. I'm sure you have your reasons for selling to the Lost. I don't know them. They don't buy from us. They don't sell from us. ...Cute Empress, though..."

Ova didn't say anything else. Ova glanced at Yuria and knew that he'd have to keep his big-fat-mouth shut if he wanted the Arquitens design.

And then, Ova heard the name. He beamed as he looked to the sky, as if trying to remember the man in spirit. "Ah, the Zweihander Union. You're speaking of my grandfather's days. My grandfather was Ottoman Ziss. - He was in an ordinances company", Ova added, as if nobody would've heard of him. "You know, Tertius, you and I have had our…very fervent disagreements in the past, but this one area that I'd agree on. The Zweihander Union was a golden standard for the galaxy. I'd feel proud indeed, to come from a tradition like that."

[...]

Ova stopped before he lit his deathstick.

He smiled at Yulia. It wasn't a sly smile, but a genuine one.

When Yulia reminded Ova about his manners, he reached into the pack and offered her a deathstick smoothly "Care for a light?" If she said yes, he would light her deathstick for her, too. He wasn't sure if Tertius smoked, so Ova kind of half-heartedly offered him a deathstick, in a way that looked kind of like Ova asking Tertius, "You don't really want any of these, do you?"

Ova had manners, they were just hidden underneath two dreadful back-to-back divorces.

"I was less concerned about the droid's clothes, and a bit more concerned about his genocidal intentions. The droid's personality matrix...it's seriously unstable. Don't ask." Ova puffed on his deathstick, filling the room with a long pause. He let the smoke blow through his nose like a great krayt dragon. "Frankly, I had no legal reason to deny the droid his kyber crystals. He paid fair and square, and he isn't wanted in Diarchy Space." Ova tapped the deathstick against an ashtray that IG-09 produced for the two of them. Ova nodded his head and muttered a thank-you to the droid. "The Diarchy knows about the Jaemus droid, and they've got eyes on him - that's all we can do."

[...]

"Entralla? We do business there. The military works with United Industrial out on Dantooine. I can't speak for them, but I am aware of a Rebel force, the Lilaste Order. They make frequent orders from us, and they aren't Imperials. Perhaps I could make an introduction for you?"

"Hah! Miss Braay, if I had a credit for every enemy that I'd love to burn at the stake, I'd be richer than even the Nargath Family's coffers!" He chuckles jovially, offering Yuria a clink of his glass, and then Tertius. He felt he was getting along with the Superintendent much better than he had expected. Ova could even say that he was enjoying himself.

"If you want to burn the Entralla Imperials, throw your support behind the Lilaste Order. Burn them with your money."

[...]

Now was time to ask about the Arquitens, and Ova thought that he could get the design for both of them. The sleek, powerful ship was one thing that Ova prized about Kuati Drive, among many other things. The Arquitens would be a good start. This was where the "friends" part of the Frienemy equation came in: Ova and Tertius could both walk away with the design, and then get some business leads on top of that, if they could just tread carefully.

But, just as Ova was about to get onto the Arquitens topic, Tertius brought up an "offer" (if you could call it that?) of a full-on corporate takeover. Ova cringed. This was not the first company that Tertius tried to "shark" up outright. In fact, Tertius had made previous requests to buy the United Trade Authority (Ova's company) outright. Including during their very first meeting. Ova probably would've done the same thing, if he had the credits.

Ova began floundering to explain Tertius's larger-than-life offer.

"Don't mind Tertius. He'd buy The Force, if it was up for sale." Ova shakes his head at Tertius while smiling. "And before you ask, Tertius: no, the United Trade Authority isn't for sale either. I'd have to be sick and dying to sell the UTA." He chuckled, feeling - no, knowing - that it would be next to impossible for anyone to make him step down.

"What I want to know, Miss Braay, is this: what do you intend to do with the Arquitens? Where do you want to see it in action? Entralla? Because - we can mass produce it." He nodded at Tertius. Frienemies. "If we all work together."

Ova's face changes when Tertius announces that Jaemus will soon fall under the Diarchy's influence. He shakes his head, and takes in more smoke.

"So then the droid is going to be our problem soon, Tertius?" Ova adjusts his body to face Tertius, turning slightly away from Yuria as he does so." Spill the champagne. It seems you know more than either of us about this Entrallen encursion. - And who is this droid, for that matter?"

 

[Tertius C. Nargath]

TAG: Yuria Braay | Ova Ziss

Tertius sighed when he could hear the Kuat overseer's remarks on him, showing they had not properly looked into the differences between how the Trade Federation and the N&Z operated. Perhaps he had been wrong, perhaps Kuat had sunken to the point of no return at long last. If both Ova Ziss and Yuria Braay had actually made some proper preperations for this meeting, they would have known that there was something peculiar about Tertius' modus operandi and that of the N&Z as a whole, for rather than gunning for a thousand companies like the Trade Federation, poisoned by nepotism and authoritarianism, the Marquis was keen on gathering talented people and people with ambitions, with ideas and the will to see their ideas come to fruition. He had poached the leading ship and weapon's designer from the Empire of the Lost's military and offered him a deal in which his children would be receiving his pay in perpetuity.

On the other hand, he had managed to uncouple the NCBC from the New Cov government, allowing Lady Liin Terallo to decide on her own future, to run not just her own company within the N&Z, but a whole division that she could use to strengthen her ideas and fund her own products. The N&Z of today was not the N&Z of the old days. Even if Tertius was to be called a shark, only the narrowminded fools within the corporate world would relegate his actions to greed rather than a healthy mix between greed and integrity.

Tilting his head a bit and humming calmly, the Marquis put away his datapad and put down the glass of wine, not having drunk from it and clearly not planning to do so either. Hearing this talk about this Kuat offshoot was... in a way hardly worth his time, certainly if it would've been much more profitable and less time consuming to just eradicate the rogue element and incorporate the assets it was composed of into the N&Z... it would most likely be better for the people under the yoke of that rogue subsidiary anyway and since the Marquis was quite certain of the superior quality of his own company's designs, he did doubt he needed any old designs to be made by his company.

"I must decline, Governor...the Arquitens request is yours and yours alone," It was becoming quite clear that the Eriaduan noble was not at all in any mood to remain here. Kuat was only interesting as a part of the N&Z, not as yet another subcontractor. That would have been an insult to both Kuat and the N&Z itself. "As for the Entralla Shipyards...I believe you'll have to come to me if you wish to discuss those things next, since I will most likely be the one assessing their use and viability as part of the Diarchy's High Council."

Tilting his head in a nod, the Eriaduan turned around and reached inside his pocket with his hand, tapping unto the datapad to allow for its beacon to activate. This was a measure to ensure that if anything happened to him, they'd know the exact location where it would happen and as such his Valkan guards could surely root out those who were the cause of it, if need be.

"In all honesty, I would've prefered some Corellian Brandy or some Nabooan Berry wine if I had to travel all the way from Eriadu just to hear people venting their complaints on something that does not concern nor affect me ," Standing still at the doors though, the Marquis let out a somewhat dry and sour-sounding chuckle. "Next time you wish to disrespect not only myself, but the people that I respect as part of the N&Z and the valuable work they do... you will not be so fortunate as to have my goodwill in your favor."

With those words...and the veiled threat towards their disrespect, the Marquis moved out of the room and towards his guards and the subsequent ship...

[exit]

 

[Yuria Braay]

Kuat Orbital Array

Yuria watched as Ova pulled out the death sticks and upon asking if she cared for a light she give a curt nod. After passing the death stick Yuria let out a small hum of delight as she briefly inspected it, watching as the tip smouldered away. Satisfied, she then proceeded to take the stick and place it up inside the Maw of her face until her whole hand seemed to have been enveloped. At the sound of a click the death steck was nestled securely somewhere on the roof of the maw aperture she removed her hand leaving the death stick out of sight in the Maw. She took a long drag of the death stick and as she exhaled smoke flowed out of her Maw.

"Mr. Ziss my war on Entralla is not an ideological one, hell if Imperials offered to burn it down I would gladly pay them for it. This is about proving to the Alliance that all vestiges of that war are dead, that Kuat has moved on from it's past." Her words were pragmatic and focused solely on the solution to her problem.

"My primary concern is your Diarchy. I doubt I can start mounting heads on spikes when those heads belong to newly incorporated Diarchy citizens. That and my differences with Kuati policy I would like to keep this on the down low."

"That being said if you have information or better yet a solution for my predicament..." she said before taking another drag of the death stick. Her office had already drafted up a few plans, industrial accidents, targeted assassinations, it all was quite exciting but still risky without help from the Diarchy.

The conversation steered back towards the Arquitens and her eyes widened ever so slightly. "Kuat will be glad to see the Arquitens operating in any capacity, to have our ships back in the Outer Rim and under a friendly banner will be enough. Who the United Trade Authority chooses to sell the ship to and what it chooses to do with it I will leave to your discretion. However..." she paused before rocking her head side to side ever so slightly

"Kuat Drive Yards is firmly entrenched within the Alliance. I simply ask that you avoid using the ships we license to you against said Alliance. I will find out if you do and you wouldn't want to make a lady upset would you?"

Her attention turned back to Tertius who stood up from the table. If Yuria could guess that was one potential business partner lost. His words about the shipyards cast a shadow of doubt over Yuria.

"Officially Kuat still sees those shipyards as our property. In order to avoid the nastiness of the seizure of corporate assets I would offer to lease them at a heavy discount to the Diarchy or any representative company." Of course Kuat had no basis to make that claim on, they didn't even have any staff in control of the shipyards, just the runaway subsidiary.

But it was too late, Tertius seemed to have his mind made up. "If you wanted to be complimented and praised like some pet then you should've gone to the Senate, fanciful wordplay and platitudes are their speciality. So far your company has only offered to buy KDY, remove the Kuati people's control over its most valued asset and hand it to your megacorporation. If that is the desire of the people you respect then I care little about them." Her words were now filled with venom.

"Kuat Drive Yards will always put Kuat first."

After Tertius walked out she took a deep drag of the death stick and sighed. "Did you know Mr. Ziss that is the second man to try and incorporate the Drive Yards into their companies this month? It's getting tiring." she complained before turning her head to Ova Ziss. Of course the Trade Federation's threats were far less thinly veiled.

"I'm glad you are such a gentleman." She said before clasping her hands together.

"It seems, the Arquitens deal is firmly within your reach. So what say you? A discounted license to produce the ship in exchange for my little favour." Of course Yuria's favour was no small thing but she was willing to make concessions, information or contacts to further help her would be of great importance.

Ova Ziss Tertius C. Nargath ​

 

[Ova Ziss]

Objective: Backroom Politics
Location: Yuat Drive Shipyards
Tags: Yuria Braay | Tertius C. Nargath | Ova Ziss

"That being said if you have information or better yet a solution for my predicament..."

"I could offer one up, if you can stomach it... I'll take your proposal to the High Council and, if the Diarchs approve, we'll take the entire military down there. We could scare those Imperial dogs right out of your shipyards."

"If that was the favor, consider it done."

Ova ashes his deathstick. He's smoked all of it.

"You have nothing to fear, Yuria. I am going to keep this between us. Believe me when I say, the Diarchs - and indeed, the entire High Council of the Diarchy - are going to hear about what an embarrassment Entralla's treasonous administration is towards Kuat Shipyards. We are fighting wars on multiple fronts against multiple incarnations of the Sith at the moment. The last thing we need is an enemy within."

[...]

"Yes. We've got a deal. I'll lease out the Arquitens ship design, but the intellectual rights still belong to Kuati Drive."

Ova got up and began gathering his things shortly after Tertius's outburst.

"Thank you for the ship designs. This is a good move, I assure you of that. Your ship will see use all over the Braxant Run - except against the Jedi, as you've stipulated."

Ova hung around in the lounge for a few moments more. He seemed to be dragging his feet, musing whether he should ask something, but he finally decides to spill the beans to Yuria.

"Oh, and one thing... I couldn't possibly leave without asking for a favor for the Diarchs themselves. They are a bit occupied at the moment." Ova paused and smiled. "It really is a small favor, for someone of your reputation."

"You see, the Diarchs love Kuat's Praetor-class Battlecruiser. They've been looking to commission one for months now. If I promised you that we would field it against the Entrallen Imperialists...would you make our army a custom piece? You'd really be sticking it to Tertius, because the purchase will come out of the Nargath coffers" Ova grins slyly.

Whether Yuria accepted or declined, Ova had far outstayed his welcome at the Array. He bid farewell to Yuria, forwarding his contact details to her. He then quietly departed from the planet, making a mental note to visit Yuria soon after they had liberated Entralla.

## Exit thread, pending any last-minute RP ##​

 

[Yuria Braay]

Kuat Orbital Array

The Kuati listened as Ova spoke and at the mention of keeping the deal secret she butted in.

"Discretion, discretion, discretion." she repeated, trying to hammer her point yet further.

As Ova Ziss took the deal Yuria glanced at her droid IG-09 who as if on queue walked to a data terminal and interfaced to it with his scomp link. In an instant the necessary preparations were underway for the plans to be released alongside all the necessary documentation.

Her attention then turned back to Ova Ziss and his, 'special request'. The details of the Praetor soon flashed on her datapad as IG-09 rerouted one of his subroutines to assisst her. Yuria scowled as she took a moment to think on it and after several seconds she finally spoke.

"A single Battlecruiser is no issue for Kuat, we could have such a vessel ready very soon. But..." she paused looking for the right words. "I remember the words of your Diarchs, fighting words. While we have a common enemy in the Dark Empire now what comes after is what concerns me. Kuat has no desire to have its loyalty to the Alliance questioned yet again."

Yuria stood up and paced around the conference table, her biomechanical brain whirred as she continued to ponder the request. "Perhaps instead of the Diarchy the United Trade Authority bought the ship from Kuat and from there..." she turned back to Ova Ziss, a flash of diablery passed over her eyes.

"I cannot give you an answer just yet Mr. Ziss but I will have my office draft some solutions." she said restraining herself.

"But in the meantime I am glad we could find such a satisfactory and perhaps profitable end to these negotiations. The plans of the Arquitens are yours." she said bowing her head.

"Once again, we thank you for choosing Kuat Drive Yards." her voice shifting and sounding eerily similar to a KDY holonet advertisements.

"For here on Kuat, we are driven to excel."

Ova Ziss​