A Tangled Web

[Geneviève Lasedri]

There was an unpleasant atmosphere about the Senate offices, and Gen was entirely uncomfortable with it, considering the message that had been relayed to her from the Intelligence Minister's office. And that was why she brought along a pair of Senatorial Guards just to walk a hundred meters down the hall from her office to her most-trusted associate's office. Whatever was going on with the Senator from Commenor felt like it had a much deeper impact than just an out-of-line politician. There was the potential for a complete government investigation if worse came to worst.

"Minister Organa," Geneviève called as her white-enshrouded figure swiftly passed through the doorway. Her sullen brown eyes darted from each occupant to the next, attempting to surmise what exactly had transpired by their demeanors. Her guards positioned themselves at the door and moved no further.

Well, she was here. "Senator Kay." Who the fellow was, she was not sure. But something about the way he carried himself indicated that she need not ask. He was to enforce the Republic's side, and that was what mattered.

[member="Lady Kay"], [member="Faith Balor-Organa"], [member="Fixx Kearney"], [member="Mantic Dorn"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay held her breath and let it out slowly as [member="Geneviève Lasedri"] walked in. She bowed her head, but kept her eyes lowered. "Prime Minister..." She went to grasp the strap of her satchel that usually hung over her shoulder, but it wasn't there. She had given it to the guards as soon as she had walked into the building. So instead Kay then folded her hands onto her lap in a bid to try to keep herself from fidgeting.

Now it was time, so she started her story off slowly. "Please keep in mind that I never meant for anyone to get hurt or into any kind of trouble. I....I knowingly broke one of the laws regarding the Senate. I...I hid my Force Sensitivity to everyone. But I never used my abilities to influence anyone or try to force them into siding with me. There are a few bills and laws that I voted against, but they went through anyways. I have never tried to gain any higher position. I gave up a COO job that paid a very high salary. If I was so ill minded to seek such power like others have, then I wouldn't of given up that job."

She shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "A while ago, before I really knew much about the war between the Republic and the One Sith, [member="Darth Ferus"] came to me and taught me how to shrink my Force Signature down so that only the strongest could find it. He taught me of a way in which I wouldn't be using the Darkside, for I am not a bad person and I don't want to be. Then many months later I was on Atrisia with [member="Mantic Dorn"]. We were trying to persuade the government there to stay neutral or become friendly with the Republic. But as we were there, the Sith had arrived too and in great numbers. Disguised as a bounty hunter, Darth Ferus safely got the two of us off of Atrisia. I owed him for that..."

Kay let in another deep breath and let it out slowly. "A few days ago, Darth Ferus came to me. He said that the Republic held Sith prisoners and to stop the Sith from attacking us again to free their people, he had an idea which was for him to go to the Senate, pretend to hold some of them hostage and win the prisoners' release. I didn't like that idea and told him as much. I requested a week's time to try to come up with another alternative, which he granted me." Now she chewed on the inside of her cheek as she relived the day's events. "..Agent [member="Fixx Kearney"] was assigned to keep an eye on me by Minister Organa...So I thought that I could use his advice as well as Mantic's. But when Mantic discovered that I was Force Sensitive, instead of trying to help me with Darth Ferus, he chose to take me into custody instead. He was....mad at me for hiding...I agreed to go but while we were on our way, we discovered that we were on the wrong transport. Darth Ferus was on board and he too was mad at me. Due to the Black Flag order, Mantic attacked him...I tried to stop them, but it was Agent Kearny's quick actions that saved our lives. The Sith and his droid escaped and I understand that they are being searched for as we speak."

She sighed and looked up a little, but still did not meet the Prime Minister's eyes. "I try not to involve others in my problems for the very reason that they could get hurt or killed.....I'm sorry that Mantic did....If you'd like, I could resign and save both the Republic and the Senate from a scandal...."

But she didn't really want to lose her seat. And she didn't like the idea of being sent to the Jedi Temple to be poked and prodded and lectured either. Kay of course left out everything about her missions against the Hutt Cartel, some of it on purpose and some of it was because it wasn't all that important at the moment.

[member="Faith Balor-Organa"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

Fixx stayed behind the politics, both literally and metaphorically. He wasn’t getting involved in the powers that be in the Republic. Minister [member="Faith Balor-Organa"] was tolerable enough because she was his boss, effectively, and knew how to handle his way of thinking.

When the alluring [member="Geneviève Lasedri"] graced them with her presence, Fixx offered a small half-smile as he stood back letting them take control of the situation with [member="Lady Kay"].

He was here for one reason – to make sure the Senator arrived and left safely, and to serve the request of the Republic, which he had done to no end. As the conversation started, he watched and listened, always ready now to act in case someone – or something – returned to try and shake up the party.

[member="Mantic Dorn"] | [member="Darth Ferus"]

 

[Faith Organa]

Faith listened to [member="Lady Kay"] all she could think at the moment was the road to hell was paved with good intentions. The facts were that Kay hid her force abilities, took training from a Sith to hide her force presence the more she talked the deeper the hole was getting that would soon swallow her up.

The a Sith comes to her with saying he wants to kidnap Senators and she decides to take a week to think on it. If Faith could have stuffed something into Kay's mouth she would have instead now since [member="Geneviève Lasedri"] was here she too had to step back and let this play out. She moved over to stand next to her agent [member="Fixx Kearney"] . He had done his job he was good at it she would not take that away from him.

She tried to get an update on [member="Mantic Dorn"] and from her teams scouring looking for [member="Darth Ferus"] so far nothing on either situation.

Faith wanted a drink and today tea would not cut it.

She waited though, her boss the Prime Minister would decide now what to do.

feth.

 

[Mantic Dorn]

Floating in a bactatank in the medicasl centre Mantic Dorn was starting to recover.

There were feelings crossing his path. Feelings of concern, regret and possibly friendship.
While the bacta did its job in mending his broken body those feelings were doing just as a good job with his mental recovery.

This whole episode had been stresful. As a jedi Mantic usually kept his emotions in check. It had helped him during countless of battles versus the dark side. But on this day, when he was suposed to be the shield for others he had failed. Fear had struck him as he had faced [member="Darth Ferus"] and for that he had failed. Through it he had allowed all the others to be exposed to grave danger. It was something that was hard to forgive, yet he knew that they all still lived. He would take this time to use their warmth to build up a wall against such emotional storms in the future. He would not falter like that one more time...

The medical droid had declared him stable and those wondering would learn so pretty soon.
Mantic would be on his legs in a few days but he would live.

 

[Geneviève Lasedri]

If the air had been foreboding before, Geneviève now realized it had not been ominous enough. As the confession was released, the Prime Minister's eyes shifted from a surprised stare to a raised eyebrow--and then to a frustrated glare. She had certainly expected bad news in regards to the Senator of Commenor, but this was far beyond what she had imagined from the woman known commonly as [member="Lady Kay"]. There was one thing that was certain, however: her Senate had indeed been compromised. What part of 'Darth' do you not understand? Lasedri wanted to shout. But she kept silent for a few moments, both out of shock and contempt.

After several moment, the Republic's leader finally responded, expression returned to a more composed, though sullen grimace. "This... has to go to trial." That much was obvious, of course. Gen took a long breath, maintaining a sense of tense calm. No matter how one looked at this situation, Senator Kay had killed her career and possibly sealed her physical death. "I'm afraid that at this moment--and given the information you have provided to us--you have very much crossed the lines of treason." While there was no law explicitly against Force-sensitive persons serving in political office, the fact that the senator had formed a relationship with a well-known Sith Lord and even sought to bargain with him on multiple instances would doom her for sure.

Did she understand the gravity of her decisions? Geneviève wiped her hands down her face, then motioned for her guards to enter the room. "You realize that, according to the Defense of Freedom Act, your guilt could warrant your execution?" She had better pray the trials were favorable to all doubt, because the grave had already been all but dug.

[member="Fixx Kearney"], [member="Faith Balor-Organa"], [member="Mantic Dorn"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay nodded as she figured she would have to go to trial. She had a lawyer already on hand. Hopefully he was a good one.

But she looked up at [member="Geneviève Lasedri"] at the mention of treason. And when the guards stepped in and execution was put on the table, her jaw dropped and a cold chill ran up her spine. "I am not your enemy..." Her mind raced. For a brief moment she felt safer in Hutt Cartel Space, even with the bounties on her head. If the Republic killed her, would the Cartel bring them the reward? Or would they all just celebrate?

Trying to run away right now would only make them want to kill her more and she was vastly outnumbered at this moment to even make an attempt possible. She had no idea things were this dire until now. She had no expectation that the Republic would turn on her like this.

"...I am not a traitor either. Yes I might need a bit of supervision for my sometimes wreckless choices, but what I have done is no different than what an agent or spy working for the Republic would do. It's just that my actions weren't sanctioned or known by you. Minister Organa put me under supervision and instead of going behind the agent Kearney's back, I sought his advice."

She glanced over to [member="Faith Balor-Organa"] and then to [member="Fixx Kearney"] . The agent told her to not trust anyone. He was right. She could only trust herself and shouldn't of asked anyone for help. [member="Mantic Dorn"] was the one that wanted her in custody, though she couldn't find it in herself to hate him for it or blame him either.

Kay looked up to the Prime Minister once again. "I wish that you would not focus on turning against me and instead focus on the opportunity that I am giving you to gain a bit if an upper hand in this war. You have a chance to capture a valuable target within the One Sith. I don't want him to come to the Senate or to put any of their lives in danger. It is far too risky and I can't trust him. But you can trap him, hold him hostage."

She sighed. This was all just some bad dream. Here she had freed thousands of slaves, built up the economy for Commenor, had touted how good the Republic was for the Galaxy. And now they were considering killing her with a law that she believed that she had voted against.

War brought fear, and ruling with fear was what the Empire of old used to do. And what the Sith and Techno Union do.

"...I have three requests, if I may. The first being to speak to my lawyer, the second to have execution be taken off the table and the third to have Mantic visit me when he is well enough to do so. He deserves my apology."

 

[Faith Organa]

Faith had no thought of the Defense of Freedom Act, they had had no reason to, well. Faith looked down, then over to [member="Fixx Kearney"] . Faith was in no position to grant anything, "According to updates [member="Mantic Dorn"] is in a bacta tank." the other two things. Faith looked at [member="Geneviève Lasedri"] in her eyes the weight of the Republic Senate weighed on her.

She had seen in these last weeks. A thankless job, full of criticism and full of reward. Gen could keep it.

What to do?

*sigh*

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

There was something about [member="Lady Kay"] that made it more evident to Fixx that she was, certainly not yet anyway, trying to undermine the Republic. He’d been watching her body language, listening to the words she accentuated and how she presented herself to [member="Faith Balor-Organa"] and she was playing along very well.

It wasn’t his place to question the Minister or that of the Republic; he was just a trigger to be pulled. But it was clear there were more answers to be found rather than questions to be asked.

”I’d hate to see the Senator’s head on a plate for something she may not have done, Minister. There’s something more to all this.”

He finally spoke up from the rear of the room. He looked to [member="Geneviève Lasedri"], a wry smile forming.

”Prime Minister, if we have something the Sith want, evident from our trip here, let me shadow Kay. You never know, it may help draw out some of those behind this web of villainy.”

[member="Mantic Dorn"] | [member="Darth Ferus"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay looked to [member="Faith Balor-Organa"] as she mentioned the condition of [member="Mantic Dorn"] . She breathed a small sigh of relief that the medics were able to get to him on time.

But then [member="Fixx Kearney"] spoke and his words gave her some more hope to cling onto. He appeared to be somewhat on her side. Although she felt that some of what he had said wasn't true. So she spoke quietly. "I'm not that important to them. I can count the amount of Sith that I have encountered on one hand. I'm sure that most haven't even heard of me. They have no reason to...."

She lowered her head a little as she waited for [member="Geneviève Lasedri"] to decide on her fate.

 

[Geneviève Lasedri]

Despite all the nice sentiments and 'ends justify means' arguments, the fact was that this was a serious offenses and, by the word of Republic law, Lady Kay should be imprisoned--if not killed--for her behavior. Lasedri's office spoke for more than just a special title, it also indicated she was responsible for far more than one person might reasonably be expected to handle. Making choices was her job, and choices afforded to her were seldom pleasant when options diverged. Feelings and emotions should not influence these things. And yet, even the hardass Chandrilan could not avoid that touch of guilt. But she must proceed with executing the law. "I cannot allow this to simply be shrugged off. I'd prefer to believe you had every intention of preserving the Republic, but the means to these ends are still utterly questionable. In our current state, I am not willing to take any chances. No one should be." The PM's guards made their way to Senator Kay and gently applied binders to her hands and readied to escort her to Senate security's holding cells. Gen wished it did not have to be this way.

And perhaps it did not. The Republic's leader abruptly motioned for her guards to free her from her handcuffs. No, [member="Lady Kay"] would not be walking out of this building free. But there were alternative ways to handle the situation--and in much more prudent fashion. "Minister Organa..." she began, then turned towards the GRIM worker. "Agent." Whatever his name was could be left to himself. She would find out later, but not in the middle of this delicate situation. "I'd like you to arrange detainment for Senator Kay within GRIM. And keep this quiet."

Was she being soft now? Or opportunistic? Maybe 'soft' was not exactly powerless by definition. Had there been better, 'nicer' roads to take in the past? It mattered little now, however. She was making a choice that was potentially forgiving--though more strategic in conjunction. And that was likely what mattered above all in the big picture. Still, it was less straining on all of them this way. Not that Geneviève had ever been one to let others off so easy.

Approaching the arrested politician, she whispered into Kay's ear. "I own you now, Senator. I hope you care enough to prove your loyalty."

[member="Faith Balor-Organa"], [member="Lady Kay"], [member="Fixx Kearney"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay didn't move as the guards put the bindings on her. It just wasn't right. She wasn't asking for anything to be shrugged off. She knew that she had to face up to her reckless behaviour. No one had gotten hurt before, until [member="Mantic Dorn"] did.

But then the bindings were removed. Kay held her breath and looked to both [member="Faith Balor-Organa"] and [member="Fixx Kearney"] as she was to be under GRIM custody. Maybe things weren't as bad as she thought.

And then it happened. [member="Geneviève Lasedri"] whispered in her ear. She didn't quite know how to handle the words that were spoken. Kay had worked tirelessly at freeing slaves and now the Prime Minister was claiming that her life was no longer her own. She furrowed her brows as she averted her eyes to the floor. "I do care, and not just because my life hangs in the balance. Thank you for giving me the chance to prove it to you."

@Darth Ferus