Plans Within Plans

[Razielle Alastor]

The immense double doors to the Queen Mother's Special Salon (http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Queen_Mother's_Special_Salon) were opened by the staff stationed there. A parade was shown in. Accompanied by an escort of exotically beautiful Chume'doro, and at least one of the Chume'nor, the Queen Regent of Hapes was ushered along as though a Jedi assassin might be concealed in one of the hanging baskets overflowing with sweet scented Hapan blooms. More to the point, they considered her guest with much the same suspicious regard..

The Chume'doro split into two groups. One moved about the salon, a last check of all security points. The other stayed by Chume'la Razielle's side in a protective wall. They might have seen Lord Adair in the Queen Regent's company before, but he was a foreigner. A member of the coalition between Hapes and Onderon, and a favorite of the regent at court for her own reasons. She deigned to allow him in the presence of the Chume on several occasions, for purposes of tutoring her on a variety of non-Hapan subjects, under strict guard of course. That did not mean they trusted him.

Satisfied that no assassins were dangling from the Kamarian crystal chandelier suspended above, and that Lord Adair was not about to murder her with the holochess board set atop the table, Razielle was free to enter the salon. She approached the set table and her guest there.

"Lord Adair.."

[Lucianus Adair]

He was standing at the table. It was commonplace, old manner, to be standing when one of higher rank entered the room, but in some cases, it was to be that your head never rose above that of a monarch. He once had a mild stripe of amusement at that matter, when the young Chume was barely higher than his knee, and had mentioned the concept to her; she was a quick-witted girl, immediately suggesting that his head would not be above hers if she were upon his shoulders. Ereneda had never presumed to make him fold and contort to shorten himself below her own stature.

"Ereneda."

If he were at all of a mind to murder the Queen Regent, he would hardly need an instrument with which to perform the deed. There were no such intentions within him, as there was no use in her end but chaos, which was not his trade; further on, her daughter had grown on him.

"It is good to have the pleasure of your company, once again."

[Razielle Alastor]

Waving off the circling Chume'doro Razielle allowed one to remain to pull out the chair designated for her use at the table's head. Immediately following this action, she too was bidden to distance herself from the table. Relative privacy was no privacy at all, but it was a small matter. Time and necessity had bestown on Razielle the ability to adapt the flow of idle conversation to disguise more pressing issues.

"Yes, my days have been quite trying since The Incident." There was no need to elaborate on what incident that could be.

Jeweled finger gestured to the chair to her immediate left, and the holo-game board between them. "Be seated. Divert my mind through this game of strategy."

[Lucianus Adair]

No need to speak of it, indeed. Though he had not been directly present for said... 'incident', he was no less aware of the details, whether through telling, gleaning, or through tendrils of the Force itself. So few knew the truth of what had occurred. It was going to stay that way. It needed to stay that way. He was no less interested in keeping the truth of his being concealed than any of the rest of those in the inner circle. It could be said that he had quite the vested interest in maintaining his secrets, moreso than some. It could be said, if they knew at all. Before him was one that might know better than the rest.

"As you wish." He rounded the corner of the table once the directive had been given to sit, and did as such, pulling out the chair to her immediate left, and lowering his backside into it; pulling the chair forward, he tucked himself into the table before the curve of his rear touched the seat. Fingers laced together on the tabletop, "yet," and then, pale, iced blues settled on her regal face, "the first move is yours."

Unless, of course, she insisted otherwise as he knew her to do, from time to time.

[Razielle Alastor]

This game board had been set to play in the Hapan style, which was to say, by Courtier based rules. Of course being Divoran made, and therefore Hapan as well, the objective piece was a Chume rather than a King. Her side of the board was programmed with a fanciful set of blue and gilt themed warships of the Hapan Royal Navy. Lord Adair would be playing the corresponding red pieces, stylized to resemble pirate vessels of the Lorelli Reach.

After appearing to consider her strategy for a moment, the Regent directed her first piece, a Nova-class battlecruiser, away from the outer orbit along the ray. It was an aggressive first move. Indicative of her need to attack something, or someone. She was well aware.

"Have you been to the city since then?" Her voice was low, but not suspiciously so. The city, Ta'a Chume'Dan, situated below the Fountain Palace had taken the brunt of the damage from the recent violence, several pieces of wreckage having crashed down below - and a body if they were in luck. That was the question she most wanted answered..