A Common Placement

[Kay-Larr]

Kay sat in her office inside of the Senate Hall on Commenor. A few datapads lit up her desk, while files lay strewn across it, some with round tea stains where she had rested her tea cup on them on previous days. So much paperwork, so much to do. And with one of her assistants recovering from being infected with the black substance of the Contingency, Kay had picked up the slack, much to the dismay of the doctors on hand that checked up on her weekly. During those visits she could tell that they wanted to scold her for taking on too much during her pregancy, but what else was she to do? Her influence was reaching further out across the Galaxy, with interested worlds a quick negotiation away from flying her banner. She couldn't at least have some hand in the process. Kay didn't want to appear as just some figurehead. She was more than that.

But the doctors were right of course. Being halfway through her pregnancy, the time to cut back on stress was now. [member="Veiere Arenais"] had proven to her that he was well suited to take charge and be the King for Commenor and the CSA as a whole, despite his overall reluctance for the job. Being married to her thrust him partly away from the path of the Jedi that called to him, and put him on the troublesome road of politics. And soon a new path would lay out under their feet; that of parenthood. No matter how much they could try to prepare for it, it would never be enough.

Until the time came for her to step away to her private estate, she had plenty of work to do. And one of them was finding another assistant. Kay sent out word through private channels amongst others in the Senate Hall for people for her to interview for the job. Being a neutral government made it easier for plenty of different types to apply, which made it also hard to choose the right person for the job.

Politics can be an evil game sometimes, and it wasn't something to be taken lightly either. Whomever she chose, they would have to be able to play it well.

Kay sipped her tea, cupping her mug in both of her hands while she stared at nothing in particular, lost in her thoughts. Hopefully potential applicants won't feel too intimidated by the job that they would shy away from it and go elsewhere. But in this day and age, it was entirely possible that they would.

[member="The Slave"]

 

[Darth Empyrean]

The Slave twiddled the necklace that jostled around his neck. It was a rare specimen, one he created with his own hands; but one that kept everything that he was, everything he was going to be under wraps. He used it once during his procession over The Dominion, and only took it off when they were smoldering deep beneath the rubble of Sereno; a fond and careless memory he kept close to his heart.

Though now wasn’t the time for toppling governments, no. What he did before was for fun, and while this time may have just the slight amount of vested interest in entertainment; it mostly had to do with getting ahead in the galaxy. In that, there was one in particular way he could do so, by joining up with one of the various neutral factions that surrounded the galaxy.

Today, he was doing just that. With a suit carefully fitted to accent his features, an alchemic mask to alter his facial features just enough, and his necklace to make him appear as neutral and powerless as he could; there was no mistake he would make it into the situation perfectly. A faint smile ripped his lips apart as he made eye contact with the secretary at the desk;

Opulent emerald eyes fell on the small woman behind the counter before he spoke, words dripped with vicious amounts of molten silver-

“Excuse me, Miss, but I’m here for the job application. Is Lady Kay available?”, he inquired pleasantly.

The girl behind the desk stuttered for a second before checking the schedule and forewarning the matriarch of her soon to be applicants arrival.

---

The Slave knocked on the door a few times before slowly opening the door, letting his words offer a quick preamble to his soon to be entrance;

“Hello, Lady Kay? I’m here for the job interview.”, he said fully bringing himself to bear before her. The last feature to tie it all together was that immaculate smile, one that offered the world in a few glistening teeth. Although the necklace was now hidden under his shirt, the alabaster stranger would still appear leagues above what a standard applicant may appear as.

“I hope you don’t mind, I dressed for the occasion.”


[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

The word of an applicant arriving caused Kay to stray out of her thoughts. She sipped her tea before setting it down. Before she could even get to her feet, the knocks on the door interrupted the silence in the room. "Come in, please..."

She stood and walked around her desk as [member="The Slave"] stepped in. He was formally dressed as one would expect, although Kay never made it a requirement. She preferred people to be comfortable. She didn't even require that people called her by any of her titles. Some might see that as a flaw, but it gained her plenty of respect as well. There was no reason for her to have to rule by fear.

As always amongst perfect strangers, she had her Force signature shrunken down to that of a small tree nut. It was one of the many secrets that she held and one of the most important. The man before her was just that, a perfect stranger. However his appearance seemed almost too perfect. He looked much like a personality on some holo-program that could sell you a womprat as a luxurious pet. Some people liked to make a good impression, so she told herself not to judge him so quickly. He was the first to apply, so that had to account for something.

Kay bowed her head with a small smile and gestured to one of the chairs. "I don't mind at all. Please have a seat. Would you care for some tea? Commenori brandy, Mister.....?" She let the last word hang in the air as he had yet to introduce himself.

 

[Darth Empyrean]

“Tea would be wonderful, please.”, he offered in return before speaking up once more, a bit more earnestly than before.

It was true The Slave was a bit overdressed for the occasion, but it just seemed to be who he was. Whether he was faking it or not, the man was elegant beyond measure; a hedonist as much as he was decadent. Even if it was a job interview with an altruistic queen, he couldn’t help himself but look a bit on the tasteful side.

Still, he neither understood that his actions unsettled her ever so slightly; likely a great measure of her natural instinct. Although his necklace perfectly shrouded him as a non sensitive force user, even the force could tell something was wrong with him; with only a scintilla of instinct passed to those around him. She just happened to be one of the few to read into her gut; it seemed.

“And I do apologize for not introducing myself, my name is Mas Antilles.”, ending it with the same smile he had before.

As she handed him his tea, he moved towards her guest with a curious gaze. One that wandered the room, not for its riches, but its selective design. With viridescent eyes pondering each quirk and nicknack it took him a few moments before bringing his gaze back to her, letting his words speak only as much as his humbled expression offered;

“You have a wonderful office…”

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Regardless of which drink [member="The Slave"] chose, she wasn't going to judge. But she was happy that he chose tea. Sapir tea was one of her favourites and although she had plenty of cups of it in the day, Kay was always glad to share. Tea gave her comfort, most especially when she was alone and had no one else to lean on. It was only fair to introduce that to others as well.

Kay prepared him his tea, crumpling the Sapir leaves into a cup and pouring the hot water into it. It'd be a few minutes before the leaves were dissolved into the liquid during the steeping process. She raised a brow as he spoke of his name, carefully bringing the tea over to him. "Antilles? That's a famous surname. Any relation to Wedge Antilles?" Plenty had heard of those tales in their history classes, and probably from various points of view, some showcasing the Rebel as a hero while others would view him as scum. Regardless, she hadn't heard the name in quite some time.

As his eyes wandered around her office, she walked over to her desk and picked up her own cup before settling herself down on one of the comfy chairs. "Thank you. It's styled slightly different than the one that I have in the Palace, but it's crafted very well. Commenor has some of the most creative architects in the Galaxy. But then again, I might just be biased."

She offered a small smile after having a sip of her tea. "So tell me, Mas, what are your qualifications and past experiences? Have you worked in other governments before?" Age was always a tough thing to guess amongst the different species. Yet age had little to do with experience as well. Everyone walked different paths in life, some with more activity than others.

 

[Darth Empyrean]

“No, no such relation unfortunately.”, he responded almost disappointedly.

In truth, The Slave only made up the name, come to find out by Cybele it was partially related to a very famous figure in Galactic history. Faintly disappointing, but linking the alias with something such as that only made the story seem more real. A special trait of his, as he’d begin to speak once more;

“But you aren’t the first to make the connection. I get asked that often.”, he chuckled slightly as he moved to sip on the tea. He was disappointed he chose it, not because of its lack of flavor or that he didn’t like tea; but more so the slight buzz he got in the back of his throat at the mention of alcohol. Faint, but enough to bother him.

“My qualifications?”, he hesitated, setting the tea down before pulling out of his coat a small datapad and offering it to her.

On its screen was a resume with almost exclusively secretarial, political campaign, and accounting experience. It seemed he was well refined for such a position, with even a long list of references to contact from Lorrd to Coruscant. If nothing else, he came prepared; with perfectly copied legal seals on every page required. In truth, it was all a sham, but a very well regarded one established by the endlessly complex cybernetic god known as Cybele; with her uncanny ability to create a new and developed identity for The Slave in the matter of weeks.

“I’ve had some experience; though most often with smaller or local governments around the galaxy. I suppose this is my first high profile application…”, he said with a somewhat nervous laugh. A hand moved a small portion of his silver hair from his face before leaning back in his seat.

Giving her a moment to read it over, he’d eventually speak up;

“What’d you think?”

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay nodded a little. It was a far cry for [member="The Slave"] to be related to Wedge anyways, given the many centuries that had passed. But it gave them a little something to break the ice with. She sipped her tea while he chuckled, fully believing that she wasn't the first to ask. Mas didn't appear to be an intimidating figure, so it was safe to assume that others weren't afraid to ask.

She took the datapad that was offered and began going through it. Of course she didn't read over it with a fine toothed comb, but she did more than just skim over it. There were certain words and phrases that she was looking out for. Not in a red flag sort of way, but she wanted to be sure that his skills were diverse.

And it appeared that they were.

"I think that it looks very good. I had my start in small governments too, then the biggest of them all before a series of events led me to here. But that's a long story for some other day if we are bored on a long journey." Kay handed him the datapad and then sipped her tea as she leaned back in her chair. "We are a neutral government and try to keep it that way. We don't jump into conflicts as a whole and that has kept us safe. There are people from all walks of life that share our space. Some are Force users of all types and some are not." Her eyes studied him then as she asked her next question. "What's your take on the Galaxy's state of affairs? Are you keen on any side in particular? Or is there a side that you dislike?" The many wars and conflicts in the Galaxy couldn't be explained in black and white terms. But she wanted to know which side of the spectrum he fell on. Afterall, someone that was too biased wouldn't work out in this position very well.

 

[Darth Empyrean]

“Well…”, he began with a slight diversion of his eyes towards the ground.

The Slave already knew he didn’t care about the galaxy at a whole; and altering that thought would be too difficult to act out. Contradicting your real thoughts with your lies only makes them less genuine, a method actor like he was already knew this to be true. Instead, he would let himself believe his lie; altering its edges only slightly to better match the situation.

“I suppose I don’t have much of an opinion. I mean, it's a given I don’t appreciate the more extreme viewpoints of the galaxy; such as The Silver Jedi or Sith Empire, but even then I don’t believe them to be evil. Only contradictory to each other.”, he finished with a shrug.

“In truth, I don’t think ill of any major players within the galaxy; only that there were less conflict across the board.”

It was a standard answer, but one he believed in. He didn’t care for the wars the galaxy had, not in a professional manner at least. His money was made from pleasure, not pain, and anything related to war just wasn’t something he cared for. Open Conflict was for mandalorians, not The Slave.

He shrugged slightly before sipping his tea once more;

“What about yourself?”

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay continued to study [member="The Slave"] while he spoke. The way that he crafted his ansser didn't appear to be so much that she could suspect him of lying, but moreso in the way that he appeared to be trying to touch on some of what he had thought that she'd of wanted to hear. Being in politics, she was used to that.

But that didn't make his answer wrong in any way. She agreed with some of what he had said and it was a fair point of view, one that she could work with. So that was a good thing.

Kay blinked as he had turned her question around onto her. Not many had asked her that as of late. People just tended to assume what her position on the current state of affairs may be. "I believe that extremism on either side is bad. I've seen good guys do bad things and bad guys do good things. So the line between good and evil isn't so easily defined. I'd love to see less conflict and if people chose to work together more with others, just as my government does, then all the better. Violence should be a last resort, not the first. People shouldn't have to die for stupid reasons." Nor stupid causes. The Crusades was one, the Silver Jedi's war with Darksiders was another.

She took another sip of her tea as she pondered for a moment or two. "Are there any questions that you have for me? Any types of people that make you uncomfortable? I wouldn't want to put you into a situation that doesn't sit well for you. For example, one of my Ministers doesn't like to travel. It makes him nervous to fly from world to world. So I try to keep him as close to home as possible."

 

[Darth Empyrean]

“Not especially, no I suppose not.” he said with a smile.

She spoke elegantly, giving The Slave a good idea as to why she was a Queen in these lands. From the proper posture she held, to the more minute way she carried every movement she offered; a faint hold on her cup, the second nature smile she offers after she speaks her mind. Everything she did was years of establishing an image, to herself and others; and it worked.

The Slave enjoyed watching her where she felt comfortable. It wasn’t often people were able to be so relaxed around him, considering his habitual murders and rampant destruction. Still, while somewhere deep in his heart there was his constant churning malignancy, today it would lay dormant as he set himself in a relatively unlikely position.

“So long as you need me, I’m willing and open to do anything.”

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay blinked a little in surprise that [member="The Slave"] didn't have any questions. Normally people had them. They'd range from 'How much do I get paid? What are the benefits?' to 'What sort of freedoms do I get to how I perform my tasks'. Everyone had a different way of doing things. And given that she hired people of all sorts, no matter what side of the Force they served or whether they had those abilities at all. She was a fan of the underdog and had been one herself a few times in her life. Underdogs tended to be the best people to work with. Their loyalty and determination was paramount to none.

She sipped her tea, almost finding it amusing that he was watching her as much as she was watching him. It gave her a bit of an insight. His resume was extensive and that led her to be aware that he knew how to play this game very well. Kay just wasn't sure of how well he could be trusted yet. That'll come in time.

His next response answered one of the questions that she was going to ask without even needing to do so. Some use these kinds of jobs as a stepping stone for a better career. It made her curious as to what his overall career goal was. That was another thing that she'd learn in time.

"Well as you can imagine, there'll be plenty of paperwork and arranging of schedules. I'm usually required for one meeting or another at any given moment. Gradually though, those will have to be delegated to my Ministers with only the vital meetings left for me. Basically you'll be helping me to keep my stress levels down." In a few months or so, she should be giving birth. High stress was not a good thing for either of them. And if Mas proved himself, he could very well end up running some of the meetings in her stead. But she didn't want to think that far ahead. One day at a time...

 

[Darth Empyrean]

He offered a pleasantly understanding smile;

“I think that’s perfect.”

The Slave was delighted they were getting somewhere with the position, especially one so ‘influential’ in potential. Sipping on his tea, he glanced back towards her with the same verediscient eyes he had prior;

“Is the application pool tough so far?”, he asked inquisitively.


[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay gave [member="The Slave"] a small smile as so far, he hadn't shied away from the job at all. Paperwork, schedules, all of that wasn't everyone's forte. Usually it'd be okay to start, but then would become too overwhelming to the point that a bunch of them had quit. It was one of the only positions in her staff that seemed to have a quick turnaround.

She sipped her tea while she mulled over which answer to give Mas for his question. Kay figured going for the truth was best. She was always a bad liar anyways. "Actually it's rather slow. The trouble lies in keeping people in the job. There are many that aspire to bigger and better things, and who am I to stop them? It's a lot of work, boring at times, I'm sure, so that doesn't help. Plus..." She gave him an amused smile. "I can be quite stubborn at times." Just as people tended to not listen to her, she also didn't always listen to them. She was a bit naive at times, but always hoped for the best in others. If she treated them well, more often than not, they treated her the same way.

"How soon would you be able to start?"

 

[Darth Empyrean]

The Slave simply laughed at her overtly truthful response. Although he was putting on a show for the most part, there was still a faint joy that came from simply being in this woman’s presence. Perhaps it was her years of experience forming that iconic personality, or perhaps it was more rudimentary; and simply a result of The Slave having a thing for the lighter side of the karmic spectrum.

It didn’t matter now, and likely never would. He had a job to do; in more ways than one it would seem.

“I can start anytime you’d like. Today, even.”, he beamed.

In truth, he actually had nothing else planned. The sooner this was to become reality, the sooner he could begin inserting not only his agents, but The Collective’s as well. After All, this entire charade was far bigger than him in the end.


[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

[member="The Slave"] was a calm one and liked to laugh. That was good for peaceful times, but what about when it wasn't? Trouble seemed attracted to her like a magnet, no matter what the type. There were some she knew that could keep their humour even during tough times and she valued that. Time will tell whether or not Mas was the same.

Kay nodded her approval at the quick start time from him. Today was just as good a day to start than any. She got to her feet and headed over to her desk, setting her tea cup down first before walking around it and opening one of the drawers. She took out a folder with a few pieces of paper inside as well as a pen and brought them over to him. "Today it is then. I can give you a tour of the Senate Hall and then we'll head over to the Palace where I do a lot of my work. Here is a small contract. Given the nature of this job, we'll give it a trial run for 30 days. If all goes well, then we can extend it." The contract was basic, dealing with privacy laws, non-disclosure agreements, as well as a copy of the Charter. "Do you have a place to stay in Chasin City? If not I can have something arranged." Normally she'd have him reside in the Palace, but in a position with such high turnarounds, her security staff didn't feel as though that was a wise choice. And he still needed to be vetted.

 

[Darth Empyrean]

“I actually don’t, no.”, he said with a faint rub of the back of his head.

Not even by accident, the idea had entirely slipped his mind, and the unruly nature he had pushed forward past sensibilities and onto what he wanted to do; not what he needed to do. Cybele probably reminded him to get an apartment, but at the moment he couldn’t quite recall when that might have been. Didn’t matter, especially with Kay offering a place to be arranged.

“I’d appreciate that, actually yes.”, he offered with a kindred smile.

As the contract was given to him, he quickly skimmed it and signed his alternative identities life away for the next 30 days. It wasn’t anything he couldn’t handle, and even with the expected vetting process they weren’t likely to find issues with either his work ethic nor ‘history’. He’d spent many a long day working in far harder conditions, and knew Cybele had covered her binary bases in every aspect of who he was; he knew because she covered it all with him many times over.

“Shall we head out then?”, he said offering the paper and pen back to her.

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

"Fortunately we have offices here that also have suits inside them. There are some people that live to work, so it just makes it a little bit easier and more comfortable as well." Kay could clearly see that [member="The Slave"] hadn't really gone that far as to figure out a place to stay. Maybe he wasn't sure if he'd be hired. That was another good thing, for there's a lot to be said about people that make plenty of assumptions.

She took the contract and pen, holding them in hand as she started to the door. "Yes, let's." As Kay led him out of her office, she handed the file to the secretary there and then smiled as she escorted Mas out into the hall. "The architects here did a superb job. The building even held it's own during an attack." Whether or not he had heard about that event on the holo-news remained to be seen. But it was months ago. Not even a trace of the damage was evident, save for a plaque that held the names of those that had perished.

Kay took him to all the different sights that the Senate Hall had to offer; from the auditorium to the Council Chambers, the kitchens to the plethora of offices in the three towers. She pointed out all of the different forms of Commenori architecture, as well as the pieces of art brought in from the worlds under her care. It was clearly a building that she was quite proud of. .."I even had safety tunnels built down below, linking to shelters and the network of tunnels underneath the city. If war ever came to us here, we will find safety down below. 'Commenor survives'. That is our motto, and it always rings true."