A Different Sort of Negotiations

[Verz Horak]

His nose was shattered shattered seconds after he broke the Echani's. He was about to collapse, but he forced himself to stay standing and take as deep a breath as he could. It hurt, but he was going to stand strong. He had several broken bones, a small skull fracture, and a damaged windpipe. What a story this would be. He mustered all of his strength into one last punch, swinging hard and fast to the center of her ribcage. His body screamed at him to stop and rest. He was tired and battered. But he would stand tall.

 

[Janira Fenni]

Fortunately she'd kept one hand there to defend herself from further damage to her chest. She couldn't afford that sort of damage. So she caught his fist with her hand, stopping from doing overly much damage. It still staggered her and she nearly fell, wincing as she was forced to put weight on her bad foot. One more try, though. She had to make one more try. She would go until she couldn't move. Really she wanted him to concede so he didn't wind up dead thanks to the crushed windpipe. He wasn't going to have long. With a last bit of stamina, she threw herself at him, aiming to knock him down to the ground. She might not be huge, but his body was weakened. She was certain she could take him down.

 

[Verz Horak]

He fell to the ground, and as he did, grabbed the arm that blocked his fist. As he fell, he pulled the Echani with him. He slammed into the ground, and struggled to stay conscious. He tried to stand, but only managed to get to a knee. He tried again, but the strain, combined with his extensive injuries, led to him falling down again, fluttering in and out of consciousness. The last thing he saw was an Echani medic kneeling over him.

 

[Janira Fenni]

She fell atop him, landing with a thud and a small cry of pain. Everything hurt. Everything. He tried to climb up, but faltered and fell and she watched as he fell unconscious, at which point she rolled onto her back and stared upwards. The medic went to her first since she was the council member who was injured, but Janira waved the man towards the Mandalorian. Her wounds were not life threatening, and judging from what she'd seen, his were. Have to keep him alive or we'll incur the wrath of the Mandalore. We aren't ready for that kind of battle. The medic went to work and she lay there, looking over at the guards nearby. She tilted her head and one came over to help her up.

"I want him in a bacta tank as soon as he's ready for it. Keep him alive. I need to go in myself."

The medic nodded and Janira and her guard left for the medical facilities. There, she stripped down into appropriate attire and allowed the attendants to help her into the tank. She would be in there for several days, same as the Mandalorian would, but it would get them back into fighting shape, and then they would talk about the terms of what the Mandalorian had come to them for. She would think nothing about it until she was out of the tank. For now, she needed her rest.

 

[Verz Horak]

For several days, Verz swam in and out of consciousness, everything aching. When he finally awoke fully, he saw himself in the tank of bacta, and his instincts kicked in. He thrashed around, agitating the solution he floated in, threatening to tear the oxygen tube, and nearly harming himself. He tried climbing out of the bacta tank's top, pressing against the cover. At that moment, a medical technician walked in and saw him struggling. He hit the glass hard enough it almost cracked.

 

[Janira Fenni]

The tech ran over and inserted a needle into a tube. The tube ran into the tank and injected the serum into the Mandalorian. It was a calming serum, meant to calm him down before he destroyed the bacta tank. Those things weren't cheap and they didn't particularly want to lose one just because the Mando was a bit claustrophobic. "Relax," the tech said as he started the extraction process. If the Mando was ready to come out, then let him come out. The tech assisted as best he could, and the Man's armor waited nearby.

Meanwhile, in another chamber, Janira floated, staring straight ahead. She had awoken hours before, but the techs were busy, so she waited. When they came in, she followed them with her eyes, watching them with an intensity that actually gave them pause when they noticed. One of the techs checked the system over and then started the extraction process for her. When she was out, she stood on her own two feet and took a few deep breaths of fresh oxygen before she stripped off the tank clothes and pulled on a fresh set of her own clothes that had been brought for her. When she was fully situated, she looked at the two techs, both women and then nodded her head to the other room.

"Is he out?"

"He's coming out now."

"Send him to the council chamber when he's done."

She turned without a word and left, heading for the place she'd told them to send the Mando. Now that the fighting was over, and the both of them were alive, they could actually discuss why the Mando was here. She'd beaten him, but it wasn't as definitive as she'd have liked. That being the case, he would get a bit of what he'd come for, at least. She walked in and walked up to sit in her seat. The others looked at her, but she just cracked her neck to the side and waited for him to come.

 

[Verz Horak]

At first Verz was in a frenzy in the tank. When the techs gave him the serum, it felt like he was going to pass out. So they sedated him. His mind slowed as the techs drained the bacta tank. They woke him again when the tank was halfway empty. When he got out, he accepted the towel the male technician handed him and dried off. He then took off the white garment they had put him in for the tank. He was no stranger to a bacta tank, but being knocked out and waking up in one in an unfamiliar place had gotten his battle instincts in gear. He slipped on the bodysuit and then carefully checked his armor, looking for any damage, then strapped it back on, piece by piece. He felt much better after returning to the heavy embrace of his armor. He held his helmet under his arm, feeling at the jagged edge of his ear, and looking in a mirror for new scars. Just one.

When he was done, the Echani guardsmen escorted him to the Council chambers. His boots made an echoing clunk with every step, his eyes looking everywhere, then on the Counsellor he had fought. She looked refreshed. Well, a tank-nap wil do that for anyone. he mused. Approaching the Council, he bowed.

"So, was the fight to your standards, Counselor?"

 

[Janira Fenni]

She watched him enter. He seemed almost as if he didn't completely care what she thought about the fight. At the same time, she felt certain that the man was sincere in his reason for being there. That being the case, she decided that she would hear him out. At the very least, the rivals could make a pact not to destroy one another. If there was a need to stoke the flames of rivalry, they could issue a challenge and fight it out, but destroying each others worlds was dangerous, especially for the Mandalorians who already had the Sith Empire pushing on one of their borders. Clearly the reason for his presence here was to ensure that they only had to fight on one front and not two, which made sense to her.

"It was a good fight."

Leaving it at that, she motioned her hand towards him, beckoning for him to speak his piece. Now that the council had seen him fight, and she had deemed his reasons as the truth, they would hear what he had to say.

 

[Verz Horak]

Seeing the gesture to begin speaking, Verz did just that. He made a bow of reapect first, then spoke the message he had been sent to bring.

"I have come before you, Council of Eshan, to propose an alliance, or at the very least, a non aggression pact, between the Echani Compact and Mandalore. You have seen first hand how we Mando'ade fight. We have been rivals in the past, but that is exactly that. The past. We must look to the present, and the future. For our people are very alike. Fighting is a way of life. It is part of who we are. So why bear hostilities toward each other? For our fighting spirits would be best aimed at a true foe, such as the cowardly Sith, the foolish Imperial Remnant, or the foreign Yuuzan Vong. For they have no honor. Only weakness and evil. We, the Mando'ade, see an opportunity to have our cultural brethren ally with us, and fight to defend each other. Rather than fight each other, we fight for each other.So, is this acceptable to you, Counsel of Eshan?"

 

[Janira Fenni]

She sat and she listened to what the man had to say. He wasn't wrong in what he said and she knew that. Still, they couldn't just ally themselves with the Mandalorians. Not right off the bat. She was too smart to just go and do that. Why? Because they were situated directly between two large governments, and the future might have those two governments at war. If she allied with the both of them, they would have to choose who to help, or be stuck in the middle of a giant war, which would surely just do them harm. She'd already sent one of their own to speak with the Republic, so that meant there was only one way to go with this. She glanced at the other council members, reading them, and then turned back to the Mando.

"Rivalry does not make us enemies. The past does not make us friends. Your intentions here are noble, and you fought well. We agree that these dangers you've proposed are dangers to us as well, but we are not yet in a position to move against them. For the moment we will accept the terms of a non-aggression pact. We will do no harm to you if you do no harm to us. In the future, should the opportunity or need arise, an alliance is not out of the question. For now, this is the best we can do."

 

[Verz Horak]

Verz listened intently, nodding. He noted the compliment of him fighting well. And what she was saying made sense. If the Sith Empire officially declared war on the Republic, who were the Mandalorians' quasi-ally, the Echani would be caught in the middle. He then spoke once more.

"You are correct as well. A non aggression pact is welcome, but I must tell you that we are, for now, technically, we are allies to the Republic, though we are not obligated by treaty.They assisted us in the Second Battle of Junction. A battle in which I fought. If you ally with the Republic, then you will be our ally as well, but the Republic might not always be with us. If they attack us, then you risk violating two treaties. But, of you still wish for non aggression pact only, I will accept your decision."

 

[Janira Fenni]

"We'll cross that bridge when the time comes. You have our answer for now. I trust you will give the information to your Mandalore."

She understood, of course. Convoluted though it was, she was smart enough to know that if they allied with the Republic, and the Republic went to war with the Mandalorians, they would be the first to be attacked, not the Republic. That being the case, she would have to tell Ambassador Vondiranach to do whatever possible to keep war from breaking out between the Mando's and Republic. This was part of the politics of the galaxy, she knew, and it was only likely to become even more prevalent in her everyday life as the Compact grew to include other worlds, which she was sure that it would do. She wasn't that happy about it, but that was life. At least the Mando had been willing to fight. That's why she sent a half-Echani to the Republic. He could, she hoped, deal with the lack of civilized combat amongst them.

 

[Verz Horak]

"We shall, if we ever come to that bridge.
Verz bowed. At least they had one less faction that could try to attack them. Another secure border. The Mandalore would be pleased with that. He spoke up one laat time..
If I may, I wish to know your name, Counselor. I feel it is not right for us to not know the other's name. Especially in a diplomatic situation. I am Verz of Clan Horak. Pleased to make your acquaintance."

 

[Janira Fenni]

Her name. He wanted her name. Either it would make her a future mark, likely, or it was an honor thing. She didn't know, and she honestly didn't really care. Let them come for her. She would fight them, if they thought they could take her on. She didn't care. If the Mandalorians ever turned on them she would personally slaughter hundreds of them.

"Janira Fenni."

 

[Verz Horak]

"I shall take my leave now, Janira Fenni."

Escorted by the guards, Verz arrived at his ship, a Firespray 31. He prepared his ship, then lifted into the atmosphere, then into the vacuum of space. The planet of Eshan fell behind as he accelerated, and disappeared as he broke the lightspeed barrier and jumped into hyperspace.