Dealing in Absolutes

[Quenn Yeartel]

Prologue


"Master - I have news! Master, wait!!!"

She was now running trying to catch the unmistakable figure of her noble master in the moving crowd, shouting over the heads of everyone to make herself heard. He stopped, and with him the four guard droids on duty; the crowd milled around him, instinctively moving around the small quintet. She saw him look back, then saw his face take on a distinctively displeased frown.

Silently, she chided herself for yelling in such a loutish way, and fell into a slower gait. It would not do to keep on running - he had stopped now.

When she caught up with him the frown had not lost any of its displeasure.

"You are telbun. Did they not teach you better?"

Her upper lip trembled at the implied threat behind his words; she had been taught better, and could not bear to think of shunning. No telbun in modern history had ever got themselves shunned; the last one to face such shaming had been over three centuries in the past, and not even his name had been recorded. She dropped her gaze to the floor for a second, then flung her entire body on the ground in front of the guards.

The crowd, following age-old traditions, saw a crimson-robed telbun in the ultimate gesture of subjugation and performed their part well: they continued on their path, not dodging the figure lying on the ground, stepping onto her if necessary, past her if not.

Quenn Yeartel gritted her teeth, made herself feel the pain in her back as what seemed like hundreds walked over her, onto her. This was punishment well deserved. But no sound came from her lips: she had been taught well.

Finally she heard the noble master's voice. "Rise, telbun, and report."

Stoically she rose, still gritting her teeth but now ignoring the pain as well as she could, not betraying any sign of it. Punishment was done. It was past. Now life continued.

The frown on her master's face had given way to a thin-lipped smirk. He approved of her actions then. Her heart skipped a beat in relief. and pained satisfaction of having done well.

"Snorn Kar-meh says it is completed. The ship is ready for inspection - we may leave when it pleases you."

The thin-lipped smirk changed into a broad grin of pleasure. "Excellent. Hurry back, telbun - prepare for our departure to Coruscant! I will visit the Yards now, and we shall leave upon my return."

He rubbed his hands in glee, then turned from her and hurried off into the opposite direction, without another glance at her.

She hobbled back to the plush apartment he owned, still gritting her teeth, and it wasn't until she was inside that she let the tears flow freely down her cheeks. Once safely past the doors and alone, she crumpled down onto the floor, her legs and spine afire with pain.

But even through the tears and agony, she stuck to her duty: using her arms, she dragged her hurting body across the floor to the small pallet at the foot of his bed, and found her grandmother's pillbox, the only memento she had been allowed to keep. Swallowing a handful of painkillers, she lay back, fighting the very human instinct to seek rest when injured.

She was telbun. There was no place for weakness.

[Elani Sanjee]

"Mistress, they are on the move!"

Elani glanced over her shoulder back at the man who had rushed into the room, and stopped doing up the zipper at the back of her robe. Instead, she grabbed the side of the paravent she was standing behind, as if she needed its support. This was good news, at last. But what else?

"What happened?" she asked him in a voice soft and at the same time, laced with anxiety. She beckoned him to come to her, and he obeyed, instinctively casting a look behind as he closed the door. His feet tread silently on the carpeted floor as he crossed the room to stand before her, and there he stood and looked at her, taking in her still form with eyes full of hungry love.

For a second her heart burned inside her chest, and she had to will herself not to lean forward and kiss those velveteen lips of his. But she touched his arm, and saw in his eyes the same spark of love as she knew her own held, and that would need to suffice for now.

"I followed his ... telbun," he continued in a breathless voice, and there was a little pause in there before he mentioned the word that had to remind him of what he was supposed to be, and in that pause she felt another pang in her heart, "... I stood outside his chamber until she came out, and hurried after her. She went straight after him. She... told him the ship was completed. He said they would leave for Coruscant immediately."

This was more than hope - this was it! The moment she had been preparing for - the moment she had both dreaded and waited for, it had finally come. She would have to be courageous and do what must be done - MUST be done if anything could still be saved. It was a daunting, a dangerous task - but she would not be alone at least: the council had allowed her to chose one to accompany her, and who better than him who was already at her side?

But something was wrong: there was a wretchedness in his eyes now, and a fierceness that spoke of something other than love.

"What is it?" She knew him well. Something must have happened to the girl. The girl who was a telbun - like him; just so very differently. They shared a common past; maybe it was not for her to know, after all.

But he told her what had happened. And afterwards, when they held each other and shared tears about this poor creature whose fate could have been just like his yet was not out of a cruel twist, she felt renewed in her hope that maybe, one day, this barbarian custom, too, would come to an end because of what they would set out to achieve this day.

It made it so much more poignant.

[Yeart Quenn]

Kuat Drive Yards

As the shuttle was closing in on the massive structure still secured to the main yard, Moff Quenn took a moment to look at his creation. Yes, truly it was his, even if it had been conceived with a much narrower perspective in mind: his own. That this magnificent creation should be handed as a mere trifle of a gift, a morsel amongst many others, would have been inconceivable 14 months ago, but now - he had begun to accept this part of the plan, finally. It was his own plan, after all, and quite clever. Very clever, really.

The Moff was an audacious man; a self-centered megalomaniac to the core, extremely vain, and possessed of a cruel streak that was rumoured to have put him into his leadership position, the male head honcho in the center of a matriarchal government. His cleverness was born out of the desperate need to see himself come up top, but he was sufficiently blind to his own faults to interpret this as true genius. If it had not been for the shuttle's staff watching, he would have pompously patted his own shoulder in admiration of this oh so brilliant plan of his. As such, he merely did it in his imagination, and the thin-lipped grin turned into an amused chuckle at his own presumed oddity.

He was here. Now they could be on their way. His title of Moff had also secured him the leadership of the Kuat Drive Yards (and an extremely profitable second income accepting the bribes of the various engineers as well as customers in their bid to get what they wanted while he looked the other way) and that took care of the red tape otherwise needed to bypass the regulations involved with releasing a new ship to its new owner.

For all purposes, the new owner was he himself now. He would have it gifted to her in time. Until then, it was up to him to put her through her paces.

The shuttle docked with the newly completed ship, and only minutes later he was treading over the Irresistible's lush carpeted floor towards the bridge. It smelled.... extremely new, in that heady mix of hundreds of different parts all with their own smell of newness. It was so very exciting.

As he entered the bridge the crew was standing at attention in uniforms as crisply new as the rest of the ship. He nodded at them, knowing each of their names by heart as he had hand-picked them from a cadre of loyal men, and singled out the captain.

"Captain? Ready to receive your orders?"

[Kamvil Albrecht]

Kamvil Albrecht stood like a sentinel centered amidst the bridge, watching over all imposingly. His appearance unique in comparison to all others aboard the vessel for good reason: Captaining a ship of over sixty thousand men meant one had to stand out above the rest to command all their respect. He wore a personally stylized jet-black uniform, one not seen anywhere else in the Empire. The outfit followed the standard officer's uniform with the addition of a leather cap, and leather duster. Built into the duster were defensive materials that offered both protection and a rigidness, which aided Kamvil in his oppressive look. In addition to his effects he holstered a pistol at his waist and carried a sword that remained concealed beneath the duster's length.

Records of Albrecht's command history showed that he favored executing insubordinates with that sword rather than sending them to a court martial. Any and all of Kamvil Albrecht's actions were quick, decisive, and ruthless. Those qualities launched his career to the top within just a few years of graduating the Officer's Academy on Coruscant. His seemingly overnight success was a topic discussed in many rings of naval officers both above and below him. Not that talk of his career mattered to him now, it had just reached its pinnacle.

"Captain? Ready to receive your orders?"

This long awaited moment had finally come. Those words heard by the young Kamvil Albrecht were as refreshing as pure spring water to the thirstiest laborer on the most arid of worlds. Having idled for months in the docks, learning all there was to know about every inch of this most beautiful creation, the Captain of the grand cruiser Irresistible was eager to receive his orders.

"Most ready, Moff."

[Yeart Quenn]

He scrutinized the man once again. Albrecht had that typical Imperial ramrod-stiff posture, combined with that very rare mannerism that spoke of utter proficiency and confidence in himself which went beyond the ordinary soldier. Quenn spent a moment wondering if the young officer had ever guessed at his involvement with his fast success, and basked in the glory of his own insightfulness. He could have picked no better protegé.

"Your orders, then. Consult your datapad."

He pointed at Albrecht's datapad. It wasn't that he didn't trust the entire crew with it - he simply needed to make this more personal between himself and the captain.

[Kamvil Albrecht]

The datapad and its receiver node cropped out from the large pocket on Albrecht's duster, it chirped just as the Moff ended his sentence. Kamvil then slid it out from its holder and viewed the display. The familiar flashing icon in the top left corner of the display indicated new information had been received and downloaded.

Holding the datapad in his left hand Albrecht reached under his duster with his right and pulled out a code cylinder. He then inserted the cylinder into the datapad, disengaging its security lockout and safeguards. Kamvil had the datapad set to wipe itself out if ever it were tampered with.

After a few strokes on the touch screen Albrecht brought up the new file as well as the Moff's specific decoding key, he then applied the key to the file. In a matter of seconds the file rewrote itself displaying clearly the orders that Moff Quenn had written up.

They read: Proceed under my command to Imperial Center. Upon entering orbit around the planet the Irresistible will be ordered on stand by until further notice. Ready the ship and crew for inspection by my future wife. She may believe she has command over you - but remember your loyalty is with me and you will look to me for confirmation.

Albrecht read and understood. He closed the file and returned the pad and code cylinder to their proper places. His eyes turned back to his superior. "We will be ready for depature within the next two hours, Moff. Yard personnel are detaching moorings and disconnecting dock system feeds as we speak."

[Yeart Quenn]

The Moff nodded, to himself more than to his captain. He was satisfied that the man he had chosen for this job was doing just as he had hoped - he was certainly proving his worth. For a moment he felt a primitive urge to slap Albrecht's shoulder in appreciation, then caught himself; that sort of behavior would not do.

As they said, you can put the Moff into the Imperial and expect greatness, but you can't put the Imperial into the Moff and still expect the same. One of his shortcomings, indeed.

"Good, good," he said instead, and nodded again - this time for the captain's benefit.

"I will be in my quarters. Notify me when we enter orbit."

Then, he crossed his hands behind his back in a posture he had once observed Grand-Moff Tarkin assuming, he strode off, hoping to look as imposing and Imperial as that great man had.

[Sanjee Elanitel]

Construction Sidearm, KDY

The comm crackled faintly with the static of a million and more lightyears between them, and he really wished he could be there with her instead of so far away. She needed someone to look after her; she needed him with her. But she had asked him to do this, and so he had, knowing that it needed to be done.

And he was telbun - he would always do as he was told.

"His shuttle docked with a ship here. Newly completed, it seems. Called the Irresistible, and nothing I've ever seen built before. I'm transfering you an image of it now, " he reassumed his report, and punched a button on his pad that sent the image via holonet relay to her position on Imperial Center. "Wait a moment!"

Out of the corner of his eye he registered movement outside, and turning back to the viewscreen he saw the unusual ship separate itself from the construction slip, and slowly pushing itself away from the docking area.

"The ship's off! And he's still on it!" he yelled in excitement. "What now?"

"Settle, my love. We know where he is going, remember? He already told us what his destination would be - and I'm right here waiting for him."

Her words truly had a soothing influence on him. Immediately, he felt calmer, relaxed - and refocused.

"I'll await you here."

"Yes, my lady. But please -" he dared speak up, knowing that this was how she wished him to act, even if it was difficult for him to allow such emotion to coat his words "- please don't act without me there to ... assist you. Please?"

He meant "protect", but knew she did not want to see him like that.

"Yes, my love."

He could hear the warmth of her smile through those words, and smiled himself. And then the connection was ended by her, and he was left to his own devices again, and the worry about her was gnawing his insides apart.

But he was telbun. Raised not to show emotion. Sometimes it was better to fall back into the familiar routines.

He shouldered his backpack and trod all the way back to the starfighter he had come in, and soon was on his way to join his beloved... mistress.

[Kamvil Albrecht]

Albrecht watched the last of the moorings fall away from the Irresistible as he gazed out the view port. Kamvil walked up to the helm and navigational pit ahead of him. The crewmen at the stations monitored their consoles, ready for their flight plan to be given to them. The lieutenant at helm control pushed the ship's engines to full sublight, and within a few minutes the cruiser was beyond the Kuat Drive Yards' busy orbital complexes.

"Navigation, plot a jump for the Coruscant system. We are to head directly to Imperial Centre. Once beyond this planet's gravity well execute the jump order." Kamvil said clasping his hands together at the small of his back.

"Aye, Captain. Course set. One minute, twenty seconds before we exit the gravity well." Replied the navigator.

Ten seconds prior to the jump Albrecht opened a ship wide line. "All hands, this is Captain Albrecht. Prepare for jump to lightspeed in three, two, one, mark."

The Irresistible charged forward at an ever-increasing speed until it became a blur entering hyperspace. Albrecht, familiar with the trip and knowing it would be a while before the ship arrived at its destination over the world of Coruscant, took his leave from the bridge and went to his ready room. There he set to work preparing orders for department heads to ready staffs for inspection by someone important.

[Elani Sanjee]

Imperial Center, Monument Plaza


She had arrived on Imperial Center only an hour ago, but the hour already felt like it was one too many. The hustle and bustle, the noise, the throngs of people that milled around her - it was too much to take in at once. It was surpassing her worst imaginations of the capital.

She had always thought of herself as sophisticated and worldly, and it wasn't the first time she had left her home planet far behind. Holonews and everything else should have more than prepped her for what was to welcome her here on Imperial center, but this?!? It was the first time she'd ever set foot on another planet and instantly wished she could snatch back her foot and retrace her steps all the way back to the inside of the shuttle that had brought her, and make it take off again. Something about this planet and its fetid stench that seemed to rise from deep inside the bowels that made her insides crawl with revulsion.

It had been an hour and she was still standing on Monument Plaza, her feet firmly rooted to a spot right next to one of the statues while she was taking her time looking around. The statue was of some oddly squat looking human male in full Imperial regalia with a face set in a rather repulsive expression of glee. His dead, gray marble eyes stared down at her as if this inanimate lifeless thing knew the outcome of her mission already. It gave her cold shivers down her spine. But the statue was as good as any, and her meeting point with Sanjee once he got here.

As she waited, she went through the options again for what had to be the millionth time; the Council had decided that Quenn was going for a female, and that it had to be someone high up, but the anti-female days of the Imperial command structure had died along with Palpatine, and there were quite more than a handful of possibles. She could try to second-guess his tastes, but other than his giant ego there wasn't much that was known of Yeart Quenn, current Moff of Kuat. The man had been imposed on them from above, after someone high up in Imperial hierarchy decided that the void left by Kuat of Kuat's death needed to be filled by someone more loyal to them. And although he was a Kuati like the rest of the Council, his sudden appearance and position had caused a rapid change to come over the hitherto pro-Imperial Council members; a change that had ultimately brought her here, now.

Privately she wondered if he was going to go for Esalis - the cold-blooded head of Intel seemed a perfect match for him. And she was really hoping it wouldn't be, because she had no idea how to approach that woman.

The hours passed. The statue grinned. And the city of the Imperials was devouring her alive.

[Kamvil Albrecht]

The blur of hyperspace resolved into individual points of starlight as the Irresistible reverted to real-space above the Coruscant. It was a wonderous view from the bridge, but the one Kamvil had in his mind was of the individuals getting their first look at the Grand Cruiser. Jaws had to be dropping at the sight of such a ship as the Irresistible.

"Helm, bring us into orbit and hold station. Communications, inform Moff Quenn that we have arrived at Imperial Centre."

[Quenn Yeartel]

The Empress Suite, on board the Grand Cruiser Irresistible


"Yes Moff!"

Quenn was standing in front of her Master, Quenn. For the last ten standard minutes she had been receiving her updated instructions for the trip, and not a twitch on her beautiful face betrayed the first tendrils of worry and confusion she was beginning to feel at his words.

She was to stay behind ...? was to remain on board this dreadful ship and command in his absence...?

True, it was en extremely important task and she was certainly proud that he thought her capable of it, but... surely she, as telbun and his aide, and protector of his life by word of the contract between their families, should be at his side? His safety was her job above all else, and should anything happen to him and she not there...?

Was this some taunt? A deliberate action designed to show her that the contract was meaningless to him? Imperial Center was a huge place and full of dangers - anything might befall him, and she knew him well enough by now to have realised that he was going to try and play games with those high up. But those who had risen high, could also fall high. She could not let that happen.

If any harm were to come to him, it would be on her head. She'd have to do the honorable thing. But she felt too young to die.

No - there had to be some way to guard his life, even if it meant in secret. Maybe that was what he intended her to do? Maybe these orders were just... words, to be re-interpreted in more creative ways.

"Yes, Master!" she repeated again, noting the satisfaction written on his face. He seemed to have forgotten her earlier misconduct, his displeasure turned into arrogant pride.

"You'll do well, telbun." He patted her cheek in a not unkindly gesture. "Mind the ship for me, and when I return some of my glory I will bestow on you." But his almost friendly smile turned into a lewd grimace as his tongue darted over his lips and his hand roamed down over her chest, cupped one breast in his hand and then pinched it, hard.

Quenn stifled a yelp of pain as she felt the tender skin underneath her clothing break under this cruel treatment, and her face paled. But she remained standing, stiffly and unerringly, pressing out a soft "Yes, Master!" despite the pain.

To her great relief, the Moff received the summons to the bridge and his cruel fingers left her bruised body to reach for the commlink.

"Remember what I said, now, and don't you dare disappoint me, cireatch*!"

The leering grin turned into a nasty smirk before he turned and strode out of the room - but not before shoving her backwards onto the bed, where she collapsed into a miserable heap of fear and loathing and pain once she heard the gate slide shut behind his footsteps.

Then, finally, knowing that she would not be observed, she let herself go and cried bitter tears. Yet, underneath it all, she still felt determined to find a way off-ship and to safeguard his protection from a close distance.

She was telbun. His survival came first.



*vile Kuati slang term for a woman, indicating complete possession of said female

[Kamvil Albrecht]

Kamvil sat in his ready room reviewing new tactics to be used when the Irresistible was to be put into combat service. The manual was a tome's worth of information and diagrams compiled onto a single datapad with a holoprojector. A three dimensional scenario played out in the dark lit room when the buzzing of Kamvil's comlink disturbed him.

He picked the device up with a gloved hand and answered, "Albrecht. Go ahead."

"S-sir. The shuttle bay reports an intruder. Security has detained the individual and she claims to be a member of Moff Quenn's party. She's demanding to be released and given passage to the surface. Her clearance codes deny her access to the bay and no travel papers have been submitted." The voice on the other end cracked. Not due to any communication interference just the speaker was only a young man, and nervous. He'd apparently drawn the short straw.

"Escort her to my office. Thank you for bringing this to my attention and inform your supervisor to submit your assignment papers to my office terminal. Albrecht, out."

Whoever the supervisor was had a world of hurt coming to them. Passing off this matter to a junior officer was an obvious act of cowardice and incompetence. Two things Kamvil had no tolerance for aboard his ship.

He shutdown the datapad and holoprojector leaving for his office three decks down. As he stepped out on the bridge the Commander snapped off a salute. Kamvil returned it. "Commander, maintain your post. Contact my office comm if needed."

"Aye, Captain."

[Sanjee Elanitel]

Crossing the big plaza was a challenge in itself. He had never seen this many people, and he had to keep reminding himself not to stop and stare at yet another life-form he had never seen before.

His education hadn't been thorough enough, it appeared. The species he couldn't name far outweighed those he could. It was exhilarating! So much to see! So much to learn!

But he needed to get to the appointed place - he couldn't leave her by herself without any support for so long. His fear for her safety had grown with every hour in space, and was reaching its zenith now that he almost stood before her. She wasn't equipped to handle crowds like this, and if anyone were to attack her... for whatever reason imaginable...?

His heart raced, and he broke into a sprint, dashing through the crowds, keeping an eye out just in case she had left the meeting point and decided to move towards him.

But she hadn't, and he found her minutes later at the appointed statue. Her smile was infectuous, and wiped all his worries from his mind.

He took her in his arms and kissed her, and her lips tasted of sweet nectar. Nothing else existed beyond them. For a moment.

He broke the kiss, remembering his duty. Onto his face crept some of the gravity that their mission dictated. "He went straight to the Imperial Palace. I managed to plant the tracking powder on him - we'll be able to see where he goes."

She smiled enigmatically at him. "Great, my love, " she said, and for a moment he wondered whether she had really taken in his words. Sometimes the fervor of her love for him seemed to drown out all else.

Sometimes this worried him.

But she'd heard him. "Let's go find a place to settle down and look at the data, shall we?" she asked, and took his hand.

[Yeart Quenn]

On the way down to the planet he sent a series of messages out.

One to the captain of the royal guards, who was himself a Kuati. The man would make the necessary arrangements. Fortunately for him the guards held only a shadow of their former power, so reminding this loyal son of Kuat of his duty foremost to his own house would get the results he needed. If not... there were baser things than the man's loyalty he could appeal to.

Another message went out to the chancellor's office. He would have important matters to talk about with Anar, once he had secured his position.

And the last message went to the very lucky woman who was going to make him Emperor by agreeing to marry him.

This done, he sat back, took a sip of pre-celebratory champagne and smiled self-satisfiedly.

[Quenn Yeartel]

She didn't say one word more to the quad of troopers "escorting" her to the captain's office. They were brainless fools, who had unfortunately for her stumbled across her just as she had been tinkering with the shuttle bay's security system.

She'd been that close. Yiatchis! It really got her angry.

To think that she could already have been on her way down to the planet, following in the master's footsteps, instead of being led like a nerf to the slaughter.

This captain had better accept her superiority, else there was going to be trouble...

[Miranda Tarkin]

Moff Tarkin's Personal Office - Imperial Center

"... And Chancellor Anar will be present as well. Oh!" Amanda Sinclair, Moff Tarkin's personal aide continued to tap at the datapad with a stencil. She was sitting on the edge of Miranda's desk in a Felucian suit that was hand woven from the large silk worms that infested the planet's forest. The Moff had bought it for her as a thank you gift. Amanda was one of the few people she could trust implicitly on her staff. That and it did show off her legs very nicely ...

Amanda unfolded her legs to cross them once more and continued, "Seems that Inquisitor Valten sends good remarks on Sorsha."

Her blue eyes brightened as she looked at Miranda, "Mentions she'll make a fine Hand."

Miranda leaned back and laced her fingers together in an approving smirk. "Good. How goes preparations with Imptel?"

"A bit lagging, but Moff Tearaden is certain that we'll learn which of the Grand Admirals will stand by your side by the end of the ... Waitaparsec..." Amanda scrolled down the datapad and scrunched up her thin lips into a pout of confusion. "Seems we have an incoming communication from Moff Yeart Quenn of Kuat. I'll spare you the suck up details..."

Miranda chuckled. Quenn was an interesting sort and one she couldn't quite peg. She felt that he wasn't too happy about her promotion given his reputation with his Telbun, but he always made things proper between them in the very few correspondences they've had at the Imperial Assembly Hall.

"He says he wants to speak to you personally and," she clucked her tongue and sighed, "at an undisclosed location. Awaiting response."

Tongue in cheek, Tarkin wondered if her plans had reached Quenn's ears. She had purposefully left him out of the loop due to his mixed reaction towards her promotion. He was hard to read ...

"Any idea why?" she asked.

"No," Amanda said, shaking her head. "Short and to the point. The only other information I have is that he did try to contact your office on Doldur first. So he has been tracking you down."

"I see. So there is some urgency to this request, but it is for personal gain or not?" Miranda sat up and tugged at her uniform jacket. "Find a time when I'm free. He has to work around my schedule since he is playing some game."

Amanda grinned and slid off her boss' desk with a sly grin. "As you wish Madame Governor."

[Yeart Quenn]

The quarters assigned to Imperial Moffs during their stay on Imperial Center were spacious, and extravagantly furnished. Dark and heavy furniture contrasted with bright tapestries of imperial emblems. The walls underneath these were crimson, of course.

The color was starting to annoy him.

Moff Quenn was sitting in what had generously been dubbed a "lounge" by the bureaucratic bootlicker who had shown him to this suite. It was a different suite everytime he came to the Core - apparently for security reasons. This one had either been hastily prepared after the departure of another Moff, or the service staff was unreliable: the bar was utterly devoid of alcohol.

It hadn't made his mood any better.

His future wife was making him wait. A trait that he was going to take pains to punish her for, once she was his to command over.

Feeling very belligerent, and not finding any outlet other than the annoyingly crimson-colored recliner to kick, he pushed his comm alive and raised the nearest service point. He was going to teach them to steal his alcohol!!!

[Kamvil Albrecht]

Kamvil slammed his fist down hard onto the desk with enough force to make everything atop it jump. Fury and anger shown on his face and his words were coated with venom.

"I'll be damned if I'm letting some concubine compromise security aboard my ship! Before you even voice the idea that you can object my authority get this through your skull - You are not in any position to countermand it."

He rose from his seat and grabbed the telbun by the throat and lifted her off the ground.

"If you tamper with anything on this ship again I will have you executed on grounds of treason against the Empire. Since your Master isn't here to get in the way of that I can and will do it."

He tossed her back to the stormtroopers.

"You are to remain locked under guard in your quarters until the Moff returns. Get comfortable and maybe I'll spare telling him of this incident. I'd hate to see such a pretty face like yours bruised beyond recog-"

The office comm line activated. It was the Commander on the other end, his voice urgent. "Sir, Communications has detected a spy ware program in the computer system. It's been monitoring activity on Moff Queen-ahem-Quenn. We caught it transmitting a signal off the ship just after his shuttle departed. They've cracked it and the coding is of Kuati design."

In one swift motion Kamvil had his hand tight around the grip of his sword.

"This is your doing?"

[Quenn Yeartel]

She was actually shaking with rage. No one - absolutely no one - had any right to treat her like a glorified whore!

The moment she'd entered the captain's office he'd been at her, demanding at first to know who she was, and then jumping to the usual conclusions. This was really getting stale. But she'd not been given the chance to put a word in since, nevermind reach into her pocket where she'd hidden her code cylinder.

But after getting half throttled to death and then tossed onto a pair of boys in white plastic, she really was about to let loose on him - just as soon as she'd get her breath back.

So it was that she was leaning forward, hands on her thighs, gulping for air, her ears ringing from the lack of oxygen rather than his continuing prattling, when she overheard his conversation with some lackey of his, talking of a hacking attempt on the system. Adrenaline shot to her head as she realised what this meant, and she surged upright, her shortness of air miraculously passed.

This was exactly the sort of thing she'd feared! The master was in danger!

She surged forward, and her two guards did their best to grab her by the arms and keep her from flying at the captain. So she simply pulled them along, and succeeded at least a little bit in it: she got as far as three feet from the captain.

Furious, she yelled: "Let me go, you pompous idiot! If you had any brain in that puffed-up head of yours you'd know this had nothing to do with me!"

She struggled to pull her arms free but the two soldiers were hanging on with all might. Gritting her teeth, she pressed a plea out to them: "Let go of me, fracking fools!" This had no effect on them, so she sighed. "Then one of you... please.... put your hand in the side pocket of my pants and take out the code cylinders in there! Please!!?!"

[Elani Sanjee]

There wasn't any need to "find a place" as such: their hideaway was already provided, booked in advance by another council member. Finding its location was the true problem. After some searching through her datapad's navi-system, they figured out that the best way to get to CoCo Town was to take a cab. Finding one didn't prove to be a problem; there were plenty waiting for a customer on the south end of Monument Plaza.

The cab ride was another excitement: the fast journey through Imperial Center's crowded spacelanes to their destination in the CoCo District was an adventure in itself, the driver - who didn't seem to consist of anything other than three heads and an uncountable number of legs and arms - having to swerve and juke the musky-smelling airspeeder around in order to avoid other vehicles. One time something had fallen past them from up high, too fast really to make out what it was but Elani was almost sure it had been a falling body, a long dark cloak flapping after it in the fall. She'd tried to move closer to the side screen to find out if she could see anything else of it, but just at that moment the driver made the cab shoot sideways and she found herself flung towards the screen, her cheek smacking against it and staying flattened there for a moment until the driver adjusted the angle and the cab had righted itself. She'd given up any attempts to move to the screen after that, and taken refuge in Sanjee's arms, who tried to impress on the driver again that there was no need to go this fast.

When they finally crawled out of the cab in front of the Bushford Hotel, in a place called Pom Plaza in CoCo Town, Elani was close to vowing not to take another cab ride on this planet, even if it was a matter of life or death. Unfortunately, however, she knew how impractical such a vow would be, and left it with a sigh.

Sanjee, next to her, still had to utter a word of discomfort. His dark eyes were taking in the sights around him - the wide plaza, the bright neon lights advertising so many things and places they'd never heard of, the bustle of the beings milling around them, that she, too, stopped for a second, and looked on in delight - on his face full of child-like rapture.

Minutes passed before she became aware of the fact that they were an obstacle in the busy street. Heaving yet another sigh, she grabbed her bag and gave Sanjee's arm a gentle tug. "We have to go in, love," she murmured at him.

At once he was by her side, his hand already on the handle of her bag before he remembered that she'd told him not to, and pulled it back as if having touched fire. He looked at her almost apologetically, but said nothing. She tried to put it out of her mind for now; and they entered the lobby together.

***

Once they were shown to their room, and had it to themselves, Sanjee opened his suitcase and took out the portable scanning device out of it. A quick check, and the room was declared free of listening or other sensor devices. Then he pulled one of the ugly, green cushions off the equally ugly and green recliner, plopped it onto the floor next to the comm station they'd asked their room to be equipped with, sat down on it and plugged his datapad into the port.

Elani started unpacking. It didn't take long; they hadn't brought much.

Their room wasn't anything special. The hotel wasn't upper-class - not even middle-class, for that matter. Its furnishings were cheap and few: a double bed with one pillow and a rough and thin blanket on it, a bedside table with a reading light and an intercom device, a door leading into an equally spartan refresher and closet, a table, two rickety chairs and the green recliner; and everything smelled of staleness and old age. She wondered how the council member who had booked it had know of this place, or why he had picked it.

It hadn't done so when they arrived, but now rain was spattering against their windows. The gentle pitter-patter sound of it drew her attention off the room's shabbiness. Outside the sun had gone down; night was settling on their temporary home and the street lights outside were throwing reflections of the tiny beads and rivulets of water on her windows onto the walls in the room. Brighter lights in different colors flashed by, bathing parts of the walls in their garish color for seconds before disappearing into the shadows that they couldn't reach. There was no sound but the patter of the rain, and the clicking of the keys Sanjee's fingers hit.

It was an odd atmosphere.

She found herself drifting over to his side of the room, and pulled up a chair next to his cushion. He seemed so dedicated to his work that a deep furrow of concentration was parting his forehead in halves. She noticed how his lips were slightly parted, his tongue moving slightly up and down his left upper lip as he worked. It brought a smile to her own lips.

Finally he looked up, not surprised to see her at his side. A frown lay on his face, and when he spoke she could hear dismay in his voice: "They found my program - can't rely on it anymore! I've been busy erasing all the tracks that could lead them back to us."

Her eyes grew large with alarm. "Have we been found out?"

He responded directly to her emotions, answering her with a grin: "No - and they didn't find it before it found what we needed."

Her heart skipped a beat, yet not from alarm but delight. She stared at him, her eyes bright with excitement, and, realising that his mischievous grin meant that he wasn't going to volunteer the info, asked: "Who?"

He waited a long - too long - time before replying. The grin he gave her spoke tales of the confidence and satisfaction he seemed to feel at his discovery, and it wasn't until she tilted her head, raised her eyebrows and gave him an impatient look that she finally got her answer.

"Miranda Tarkin."

The delight went out of her like the air out of a balloon, and she stared at him in horror.

"No!"

But it made sense; there was no denying it.

"How am I to get access to her?!? She's a Moff - surely she's not going to listen to me if I just walk into her office!"

But it appeared Sanjee had already thought of it. He grinned at her smugly, raised himself up a bit and kissed her hand that rested on the back of the chair that she'd sat backwards. "Then you'll just have to put on your official voice and call her to make an appointment. She mightn't refuse a member of the Kuati Council of Elders, especially if she's a woman like her."

At that, Elani's mood brightened. Maybe. Just maybe that might work.

She leaned forward and let him pull her off the chair and onto the floor next to him. And let him kiss her worries away for now.

[Miranda Tarkin]

Amanda restlessly tapped against the view screen while her transmission was waiting to be picked up at the other end. A despondent sigh between her lips blew her unkempt hair away from her face - she had only four hours sleep, three pots of stim caf, and was working on her 20th hour. Trying to fit in Moff Quenn into Tarkin's schedule was almost next to impossible. With all the secrecy, it wasn't as if she could just move around the countless Inquisitor, COMPNOR, or numerous diplomatic meetings crammed into her one week stay on Coruscant. This was when Miranda was her most busiest because she wasn't in the Core that often!

"Pompous arrogant prick," she whispered and to amuse herself, spun around in her chair after dialing Moff Tarkin again.

On her second rotation, she noticed an incoming call. "Of for the love of ..."

She stopped her silliness, pulled the chair towards the desk and scrunched tired eyes as she read the message.

To the Honorable Moff Tarkin,

I apologize for sending this message at such a late hour and for not contacting you directly, but I fear that this message could be traced. Considering the nature of this message, I felt it prudent to initiate contact discretely. I, Sanjee Elanitel, speak on the behalf of my Mistress Elani Sanjee, the honourable councilwoman of Kuat. My Ladyship brings enlightening news about Moff Quenn's motives for meeting with you. She wishes to speak with you in person as soon as possible.

Contact information may be found at the end of this message. Please consider my words carefully, Madame Govenor.

Sincerely,

Sanjee Elanitel
Telbun of House Sanjee

She couldn't hide her surprise. Things just became exceedingly more interesting with the Kuati government.

What IS it Amanda? You have any idea what time it is? I was just about to fall asleep...

The blonde winched and her attention quickly focused upon her boss, Miranda Tarkin - who looked thoroughly displeased with hair still dripping wet from a shower. "I'm sorry, but I needed help abating Moff Quenn and he's being more insistent on a concrete time to meet. However, some interesting news has surfaced regarding him as well."

Really? She dabbed at her hair with a white, towel looking mildly involved in the conversation.

"Yes. A Councilwoman's Telbun contacted me on behalf of a Lady Elani Sanjee. He says his Mistress has information regarding the nature of Moff Quenn's meeting. I think Kuati politics are spilling into your lap, Miranda."

Tarkin snorted, It certainly seems that way.

She inhaled deeply after quickly coming to a decision. Find a way to squeeze her in tomorrow. Let the Moff stew until I get to the bottom of this.

"Of course. I'll contact her as soon as I can figure out when and where to meet."

Good. I'll see you tomorrow. And please, for the sake of your own sanity, get some sleep when this is done! You've already prepared my workload for tomorrow, and my first meeting isn't until 0900. Sleep in. That's an order.

Tired eyes found a small sparkle of thanks. "I look that bad, huh?"

Yes. You do. Miranda's grin grew wider before the viewscreen blinked off.

Opening up a new search, Amanda scrolled through the Moff's organizer for tomorrow to find some way to make this meeting happen ...

[Kamvil Albrecht]

Kamvil released his grip on the sword, stepped forward, and plucked the code cylinder from the telbun's pocket. He let his anger drain away and composed himself before he spoke.

"I figured the Moff had given you one of these. Obviously not with access to the hangar bay, which I'm afraid still warrants you as a security risk. However, that said I believe you when you say that this bug in our comm systems isn't your doing. You care to much for that bastard to let him alone and face a danger, even now that one has come to light."

He waved the guards off.

"I can't let you go unpunished for compromising security on my ship, so I am placing you under a security detail with a few special ops people whom will take you to the Moff. Since this cylinder makes you his problem in all other areas of concern you should be brought to him. This move will be under the radar so as to avoid any further traces. I suggest you move quickly to avert any crisis which would hurt you or the Moff and I'll see what I can do in tracking down our comms infiltration."

Kamvil reached into his duster and pulled out a modified comlink. He tossed it along with the code cylinder to Quenn.

"This is a secure line between you and I. No trace, no intercept, or relay. When I find something you will be the first to know. If you perciece a threat do not hesitate - call for backup."

[Quenn Yeartel]

His sudden switch from venom-spitting high-and-mighty master of all to wannabe fellow conspirator threw her a bit out of balance. So she simply just shook off the two guards - who let go of her just as well as they had held on to her before - and flexed her shoulders for a moment, as if that movement alone could rid her of the sensation of their grubby hands on her.

"Thank you," she murmured at them, remembering the tenets of her earliest training. It always paid off to be polite. She merely nodded a thanks at the captain, however. The soldiers simply did as told - and Albrecht being the one telling them.

"Where's he?" she asked him, not acknowledging whether she'd taken heed of his words. There was not going to be any call for backup. She'd never needed any.

[Kamvil Albrecht]

"Track down his shuttle or something. Now get out of my sight before I change my mind and remove your head from your body. Two security breaches and no one to dismember is really starting to get to me."

[Sanjee Elanitel]

"She wants to meet you this afternoon, mistress!"

The word was out before he could force it back. Sometimes it just wouldn't stay down - how could it? - and it pained him to see the anguish on her face everytime it happened. As always, he couldn't help but steal a glance at her quickly, wincing internally about his stupidity - but this time he found to his relief that she hadn't noticed the slip of tongue.

She was actually smiling at him, a wide, happy smile that the sparkle in her eyes mirrored. "Wonderful, love, when and where?"

Relief danced in his soul. "At five, in her office."

She was positively sparkling with joy over the news. He hadn't seen her like this for a while now, not even in their most private moments. It was intoxicating. Suddenly he found himself echoing her grin, but forced himself to stay on topic. "Shall we go over the appeal again, one last time?"

But to his surprise she beckoned to him with her index finger - beckoned him to come to her, as she lay stretched out on the made-up bed, her grin changing into something else that invoked a sudden heat in his groin and a fluttering sensation inside his stomach. "I've got a better idea, my love," she said with a purr in her voice that he'd never heard before.

Weak-kneed, he went to her.

[Elani Sanjee]

Restless worrying had dominated the last few hours, even if Sanjee hadn't noticed any of it. It was a nervous, uncertain Elani who stood in Moff Tarkin's outer office five minutes to five o'clock. The uncertainty came from her sudden doubts about this whole matter - what if the true Miranda Tarkin was like Moff Quenn instead of the soft-spoken, warm-hearted public person she appeared? What if she'd take the council's interference as an act of treason against the Empire?

Now that she'd arrived to do what she'd agreed to do, she suddenly wasn't sure whether this was truly the right thing to do.

The secretary whose name was Amanda - according to a small golden namecard on her blouse - seemed to notice her nervosity and smiled at her. "The Moff will see you shortly. Are you sure you don't want to take a seat, Lady Sanjee?"

Elani gave a polite shake of the head - she didn't think she'd be able to sit still for more than a second right now. It seemed better to remain standing and walking around occasionally to let go of at least some of the tension.

She couldn't make up her mind if it was a good or a bad sign that the secretary knew to address her with "Lady" instead of the common "Miss". No one outside of Kuat knew who was of royal blood or not.

The Kuati noblewoman frowned, and hoped this meeting would soon be over - in whichever way.

[Miranda Tarkin]

Amanda noticed the blue light blinking at her console. It was the go ahead signal that Moff Tarkin was ready for her appointments.

The secretary used both hands to push out her chair and stand. "Lady Sanjee?"

She motioned to the double durasteel doors with a pleasant smile and hand. "This way."

The doors slid open to a finely polished black reflective floor and an immaculately kept office. Everything was pristine and sterile, mainly because this was Tarkin's temporary office used only for business when she was planetside.

Miranda sat behind her desk, meticulously working on notes for the meeting three hours from now until Amanda cut through the silence.

"Madame Governor?"

The Moffs eyes rose from her datapad mid-tap and acknowledge the women standing before her desk with an unreadable expression. Sanjee could not gauge what Miranda thought of her as eyes met.

"May I present to you Lady Elani Sanjee of Kuat." Amanda turned to their guest and presented Miranda. "Moff Miranda Tarkin of Doldur, Ma'am."

"Thank you Amanda," Miranda replied after a heartbeat and pushed aside her datapad. Leaning back in the tall backed chair, she laced her fingers together in continued silent appraisal of the Kuati woman. "Leave us."

Amanda nodded respectfully and gave the native Kuati a rueful look before leaving. Once the doors slid close with a small click, Miranda's eyebrows rose in humor or annoyance, it was hard to gauge.

"You expressed much urgency in your message, so pleasantries aside, what do you want Lady Sanjee."

[Elani Sanjee]

This was an awkward moment. Under the cool gaze of the woman behind the desk, Elani suddenly had the sensation of feeling overwhelmingly unsure of herself, even more so than she had when still standing outside. She was aware of even the smallest sign of it, down to the trickle of the tiny beads of cold perspiration running down her spine.

For a moment she felt unable to say anything, unable to recall the reason she'd come, even. But as the moment dragged on, and all turned still, she realised she was even holding her breath in fear, and forced herself to release it. And with it, went some of her nervosity.

Yet, when she finally spoke, her words came out in an undignified rush, too hasty and too much that of a Kuat noble: "You haven't seen him yet, have you? You must not - must not see the Moff, he means to use you to get enough power to usurp the Emperor's throne, and he will not stop until he's got it! Nothing stops him - not even his own family, they're all dead thanks to him, and..."

She broke off, feeling utterly foolish, and wished Sanjee would be here to support her.

[Miranda Tarkin]

Miranda's eyes widened in confusion and hands raised upon their place against her desk, pushing lightly against the air as if to stop a stampeding horse.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa my Lady..." she gently said, but there was a hint of irritation in her voice. Whether it was due to Sanjee's lack of composure or the accusation she brought with her, it was hard to say. But it was certainly ironic that someone wanted to use her to get to the throne when the throne had already been secured for her.

"Slow down and start from the beginning." She was curious as to this new development but Sanjee needed to calm down and explain things in detail. "There are many Moffs that I speak with on a daily basis either in person or in communication. However, I have a sinking suspicion that this is dealing with Moff Quenn? He was being rather ... mysterious about meeting me."

[Elani Sanjee]

Moff Tarkin was all she had hoped for, really. In the moments since her outburst, Elani had found her composure as she looked how the woman had taken her onslaught of words, and with nothing more but a gesture and a few words spoken calmly had remained so fully in control over this situation. In some ways it felt like with that one gesture alone, the Moff had shifted calmness over onto her guest, for Elani felt it wash over her like a cool summer rain, bringing clarity of mind and purpose.

Visibly, she pulled herself together, straightened up, then began anew, in a voice that had nothing of its previous nervosity: "I beg you pardon, your Highness," - since the Moff was addressing her as my lady, she couldn't possibly just call her the same in return - "I have travelled far in order to gain this audience with you, and I feared I had come too late. Forgive my hasty speech - for a moment, I forgot myself."

She didn't quite bow her head, as a servant back on Kuat might have done after such an apology, but the humilty she felt was apparent enough. Yet she looked up and into the other woman's eyes, intending to show the sincerity behind her next statement.

"The Ruling Council of the planet of Kuat misguidedly elected the engineer Yeart Quenn to lead them - he had the support of the Emperor, however, and we had no other choices but to accept him. Yet since his election many facts have come to light about his past - but the council no longer has any direct influence over the government of Kuat. We have had our hands tied by the effects of our own decisions.

Yet we have sworn ourselves to do what we can in order to keep the harm this man can do down to an acceptable level. We are aware that we have no right to move against a member of the Empire, and we don't wish to do this - we are all loyal to the Empire! But if the danger this man poses does not contain itself to Kuat alone but goes far beyond that - then it is our duty to act."

Of course she was hoping the Moff in front of her would not take this as an affront to the might of the Empire she was serving. There were plenty of them that would - she was hoping Miranda Tarkin was different, however little she really knew the woman.

"There have been developments recently, which led the council to fear Quenn was planning to expand his influence past the duties that have been laid upon his shoulders as head of KDY and Kuat, and even as sector Moff. We saw need to find out more about his plans, and it has been my task to investigate his activities. So when I correlated all the data and came to a conclusion - backed up by his most recent actions - the council decided to send me here to Imperial center and try to deflect the Moff's plans."

She pulled out the datapad that she'd been allowed to carry by the guards - the datapad prepared by Sanjee - and put it on the desk in front of her.

"He means to make a grab for the Emperor's throne. He plans to ask for your hand in marriage, impressing you with a new kind of ship he had built or even giving it to you, and doing everything in order to entice you to combine your two sectors. Oh, I have no doubt he will be as charming and ingratiating as he can, and he has the support of one or two other Moffs in order to put pressure on you, but there is no doubt he simply means to use you to get at the throne and then discard you. And - do not doubt that - he would, for his past has shown that he would stop at nothing to get at what he wants; we can prove he murdered his entire family."

She pushed the datapad over at Miranda. It was all on there.

[Miranda Tarkin]

Miranda stole a glance down at the datapad with a humorous lift of her eyebrow. "I see," was all she said as one finger pressed against the display and slid the datapad back to the Lady Sanjee.

Clearing her throat, Miranda's face fell back neutral with hands clasped before her desk. "I will admit I'm not that surprised at his audacity. Thinking I could be bought by material objects that are wrapped up in a pretty bow with endearing words, regardless of how powerful that gift may be, does not work on me. It never has."

Puckering her lips, a hand slipped away so a finger could scold the absent Moff. "He is foolish and old fashioned like many of the men I've come across in my time, thinking they could simply marry me and have the respect that my name offers instead of earning it."

She smiled warmly, "No ... trust me my Lady, you have nothing to fear about my acceptance of any offer for marriage, let alone his."

Perhaps Lady Sanjee felt somewhat foolish after that passionate explanation that Moff Tarkin readily agreed with discounting Moff Quenn's proposal. Perhaps if the Kuati Noble could be allowed the knowledge that Miranda Tarkin, herself, had secured the throne by military and political backing already, she would have saved herself a lengthy space flight.

"Now with that said, are the Kauti Ruling Council going to press formal charges against the Moff because of the murders? The Empire would not look down upon such a trial, as long as you are true with your words. That you can prove he did commit those crimes before a court."

[Elani Sanjee]

With a sad and bitter smile, she cast her eyes down as well as her hands. The datapad lay untouched on the desk before her.

"Ah but that is what we do not dare. It is of no importance that we have proof, even undeniable proof. The moment we allow such things to come into the open, the moment we try to accuse him publicly and put him on trial - that is the moment he will do everything in his power to make sure there is nothing left of the proof. He has gone to extraordinary lengths to hide some of his mis-deeds - and that was during such a time when he had no power other than that of his family and circle of influence. Now, however...."

The Kuati broke off, not wishing to continue to speak of such things. No - she had her mission, and the Lady Tarkin had been warned; it was done. She could go home now, and report the success of it; perhaps it had been futile in itself, since this Imperial woman seemed well capable of seeing through a man like Yeart Quenn - but who knew...

Elani bowed her head before the other woman.

"No, your Highness - we cannot do anything, and have no wish to press charges, neither on Kuat nor through official, Imperial, channels. We simply gathered it to convince the woman Moff Quenn would chose of the danger he poses. I am glad you are the kind of woman you profess to be. I only hope his lack of success will not be taken out on those he rules over, for they, I fear, would not survive it."