Star Wars Roleplay: Chaos

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A Walk Along the Beaches

Hira Mitsae

Ain't No Rest For The Wicked
[member="Gerion Ardik"] | [member="Marek Starchaser"]

The Galaxy was full of shipyards these days, each and every day there were suddenly new ones popping up across the ‘verse with new companies deciding to throw in their lot and try to make the new best thing. Most of them failed to accomplish anything of note and disappeared quickly into obscurity, much the same could be told of the Mon Calamari Shipyards, which was a surprising notion.

Years ago it had been a proud member of the Silk Holdings Family, its orbital shipyards spanning the planet of Dac and construction designs of utmost ingenuity and obvious expertise. Some even said that the circular shipyards of Dac rivaled those of Kuat and Fondor themselves, nobody bothered to actually do any measurements, but the tone was set.

At any rate, since the departure of the Mon Cal Shipyards from the Silk Holdings family and its existence as an independent organization… nothing had really happened. The company had been forced to downsize itself, not being able to make proficient use of the orbital shipyards that had been used underneath the banner of Silk and the company was clearly struggling.

Even the baffling split of the Military branch from the Civilian branch hadn’t done much to stifle the decay and might actually have been the core cause of the decline.

But today there might just be change on the horizon in the form of three opportunity-seeking investors. Irani had seen potential in the Mon Cal Shipyards, most of which were now exclusively used by the government.

And so he had called upon his business associates and friends, Ardik and Starchaser, to profit of this matter.

[member="Tesh Aquer"]
 

Corey's OOC

And where were the spiders
Mon Cal. Marek had always wanted to make moves to aquatic locations. And with the galactic table of power always shifting, why not make a move to work towards a shipyard? Sure, he wasn’t an engineer, but he could hire a lot of them. And let them build ships. That was the first thought that Marek had when he received his message from business bro [member="Darell Irani"]. That and that maybe he should go get himself wet.

How long had it been since he had a vacation? A long weekend on Mon Cal might do well. They could take over a company in the morning, celebrate over drinks that evening, wake up late the next morning and go tour the city and water ways. Simple, right? Well, nothing ever was. But still, the trip might be smart. He had moved Haor Chall safely into Santhe, that would keep those bugs happy.

And setting up an office overlooking an aquatic world? Hell, he could double that up and make a resort right next to the manufacturing headquarters. That was the thing with Marek, a lot of ideas, and making sure he stayed well versed. The trick of it was, how would this bother Tion, yet another shipbuilder up near Santhe, Incom and Silk?
 
[member="Darell Irani"] | [member="Marek Starchaser"]

If there was ever a most vocal opponent of Ovrani's ridiculous tendency to take more than what was necessary, it was Gerion Ardik. Many would wonder why, then, Gerion was enabling Ovrani's apparently insatiable appetite by assisting him in this latest idiotic escapade. It was only now beginning to dawn on Gerion that Ovrani could not be stopped. Not by applying logic or reasoning, at any rate. Perhaps Ovrani would change his tune if Cavill broke into Ovrani's home and shattered every bone in his body. But Gerion wasn't that type of person. Instead, the Umbaran would merely apply the age old maxim- "if you can't beat them, join them." Although in this case it was "if you can't stop Ovmar from adding another million credit enterprise to his already tiresome collection, you might as well get a quarter of the shares for yourself."

Hence Gerion's presence.

The Umbaran made his appearance promptly, dressed sharply and with a suitably ornate cane in hand. Truly it was a symbol of his stature that he carried a cane despite not needing one. No wonder so many women "dug his vibe" so to speak.
 

Hira Mitsae

Ain't No Rest For The Wicked
[member="Gerion Ardik"] | [member="Marek Starchaser"]

Ovrani was blissfully unaware of Ardik’s mental struggle to accept the situation at face-value. In truth he had never really understood the limited ways his friend adhered to, some ways it might have made a little sense of course. Not to put too much attention and focus on their personas, as Sith Lords one should have a little bit in the ways of subtlety, he supposed.

But then there were the thoughts of the Sith Lords of old, Plagueis who had been a corporate mastermind in the form of Hugo Damask. The InterGalactic Banking Clan under his thumb and the Techno Union at his beckoning, the Muun had controlled a vast plethora of businesses and corporations, a network that Ty’rel didn’t even come close to.

And never would.

Irani wasn’t completely detached from his sanity, he simply was an ambitious person who would grab opportunities when he saw them coming. Perhaps greed was not always good, but when there were millions to be earned?

Only fools would ignore it.

After an unremarkable and short trip they would find themselves stepping out of a nondescript transport that had brought them to Dac. An audience with the Monarch of the planet had been requested and, after some petitioning, granted to the three nobles of the Tion Cluster.

Sometimes it was good to have a noble title.

Shall we?’ the Duke of Chandaar asked of his associates.
 

Corey's OOC

And where were the spiders
Working for the Hegemony, or with the Hegemony, or as the Hegemony had its perks. For one, every other word out of your mouth was set up for you, a heil there, a Laws here, and a Ways over there. Simple. Plus there were the credits.

And if you were really lucky, your bro Orvani took you to some fun worlds. Marek really could use the vacation, because it wasn’t like his life was a permanent vacation, nope, not at all. Probably one reason why Marek wasn’t so Sithly as of late. He still would don the appearance of his Sith persona when the occasion called for it, but the hung over-ness and scent of strippers would give him away on the battlefield. So he stuck to the business world.

And unlike [member="Gerion Ardik"], he didn’t have the skill, swagger or handicap to need a cane. Nope, Marek did have a really nice cup, though, and it had diamonds in it. He might make one for the Umbaran, and maybe [member="Darell Irani"] so they could drink in style next time they were at Bright Star. But they were here on Dac to do a bit of helping. And Marek had his suit, but was missing his armor, in case it came to sabers and lightning, needed to protect his face.

“Lets.” He nodded, not quite sure where he was a noble of, but figuring Sasha probably knew.

She knew a lot.
 
[member="Darell Irani"] | [member="Marek Starchaser"]

The plan was apparently to petition the government for control of the shipyards. A wise move, seeing as the monarchy of fish people were in the best position to take the yards and distribute them as they saw fit. On the other side of the Outer Rim, the selectivists would be overjoyed with the government seizing the means of production. Then they would immediately go back to flinging dirt and walking on their knuckles when they learned the Mon Calamari government was a monarchy and had redistributed the means of production to capitalists who had bought themselves noble titles. Oh, what beauty and decadence the galaxy held for those with the mettle to go out and seize it.

In addition to Ovrani, Marek Starchaser was also to be assisting them. Starchaser was, in many ways, like Ovrani. The difference was that Starchaser's extravagance didn't translate over into three hundred subsidiaries that seldom saw any use. Any enterprise Starchaser got put behind saw use- and it didn't even need to mindlessly and pointlessly expand in every direction to do so. Ovrani stood to learn a thing or two from the man. Then again, perhaps Gerion shouldn't complain so much of Ovrani's endeavors. He was, after all, about to make a tidy little stream of revenue of of this. Even if they did need to lay off a few thousand Mon Calamari laborers to both compensate for [member="Tesh Aquer"]'s horrendous mismanagement and make room for the new droid workforce.

Gerion nodded to Marek in greeting before speaking to Darrell. "I shall follow your lead, your eminence."
 

Hira Mitsae

Ain't No Rest For The Wicked
[member="Gerion Ardik"] | [member="Marek Starchaser"]

If Ardik had a problem with people who had huge conglomerates which spanned Galaxies, it hadn’t been all that noticable when he was pressing himself to the side of the CEO and Queen of Kuat. But perhaps their dearest Gerion was more comparable to Starchaser and himself than he would ever like to admit, perhaps her beauty and general femaleness had made him lose all other qualms to logic and rationality.

Perhaps the Gender Ratio was more important to Baron Ardik than anything else.

But Darell Irani was no Gerion Ardik, and he didn’t begrudge his friend’s eccentricities, if he wished to be a hypocrite at the same time? All the more power to him.

Irani would continue to drive the force of capitalism.

Nodding to both of his associates he went through the nondescript door which led into a reasonably sized atrium, a waiting room for those waiting to be admitted to the throne room and the Monarch himself.

Reasonably-sized, because the Mon Calamari had always preferred economy and efficiency above trivial matters. One of the assistants looked up from her work and quickly jumped up to greet the three Tionese Noblemen.

Your… Nobleships.’ the Mon Cal seemed to be slightly confused on the proper titles of their guests, which was okay. The Tion Cluster wasn’t exactly around the block and its Nobles weren’t known to leave their own Cluster for a long time, some called it a snobbish attitude towards the rest of the Galaxy.

Who knew?

She bowed though, just the exact depth that would profess respect and just shallow enough to show that she wasn’t exactly impressed.

His Royal Highness is currently discussing matters, he will be done soon, I am sure you understand.'

This was actually a fairly common practice amongst the Monarchs of the Galaxy, they had lost most of their relevance with the rise of galactic-spanning nations, Republics and other more democratic-elected civilizations. So they busied themselves with postering to show that they did matter, at least on their own world.

Which was also fine, Irani had all the patience in the world.

Of course, we can wait.’
 

Corey's OOC

And where were the spiders
Sure, it was a huge conglomerate, Marek couldn’t argue that. It was one galaxy, kid, don’t get cocky. And it didn’t even have a media sub-subsidiary. It really should work on that. Controlling the news and majority of entertainment in the galaxy was a concept that would help them win a lot of favor and, most importantly, credits. As for the esteemed Gerion being of the same stock as himself and Darell? Marek could see it, after a few bottles of drink. Maybe.
Not to say Ardik didn’t have his ducks in a row. He did.

All of them.

When they were greeted as nobles in the atrium, Marek blinked. What was his fething title? Baron of the Booze? King of the Cruise Liners? He would take Emperor of Tion, if it was given, but it was probably more ‘Royal Plaything of Santhe’. Lets be honest, here. Would that get him a cape? And a crown? He bowed in return to the greeting, before looking around.

“They do have a nice set up here. Could use some music and catering.” Marek ran a hand over his chin. Receiving guests without a bar nearby? Amateurs.

[member="Darell Irani"]
[member="Gerion Ardik"]
 
[member="Darell Irani"] | [member="Marek Starchaser"]

The trio entered an atrium, where they were greeted by an attendant. No explanations were necessary; they probably had an appointment. But in the typical style of self-important monarchs of places no one actually liked to visit, the Mon Calamari's ruler was busy discussing "other matters." They would need to be delayed for a few minutes. Gerion hardly acknowledged the assistant beyond listening fleetingly to what she had to say. He just glanced at his chronometer instead. It was more a force of habit by this point. He had nowhere pressing to be or even something he would rather be doing. This was what amounted to a fun extracurricular in his book. His sad, sad book.

"Mon Calamari do have a penchant for inspiring architecture." Gerion commented, agreeing with Marek's assessment of the atrium. "But their music and food are nothing to get excited over. Too much kelp involved in both. Entirely displeasing to the senses."

Oh, was that assistant still standing there? At least now she was dimly aware that her people's culture had terrible food and music. She probably should have been expecting this from Tionese "nobles."
 

Hira Mitsae

Ain't No Rest For The Wicked
[member="Gerion Ardik"] | [member="Marek Starchaser"]

Irani didn’t verbally agree or disagree with the matter, besides the clear and audible bemused snort that managed to escape him at the display of apathy. Instead of busying himself with trying to disconcern the exact logic behind the Calamari architecture or debate the merits versus the cons of their kelpy cuisine, he stepped a few paces back and started working on his datapad.

Number crunching, mostly. Figure out exactly what the profit margins could be, how much money they would have to spend on restoring the shipyards that had fallen in disuse because of incompetent leadership and management. His eyes went over all the records and numbers that would have been public record, and they also went over the records and numbers that weren’t supposed to be public.

A Sith Lord has his ways.

ALl in all it would be a costly investment, but in the Galaxy there weren’t that many shipyards that could come close to Dac. Kuat, Fondor, Corellia before Cater did his thing, maybe Rendili and Sluis Van.

Sluis Van was under Iron Crown Enterprise control, Kuat was Kuat, Fondor was currently operating as the Protectorate’s to-go-to shipyards. That left Dac as the only major shipyards that could produce true quality and size at a relatively cheap price, besides… those designs.

Eventually though, the Monarch probably grew tired of his stalling tactics and the assistant guided them into the Throne Room and what a throne room it was. Deep in the room there was a single big throne that held an equally big Mon Calamari being, and when Irani said big he meant big.

The fish would be akin to a blowfish in defense-mode, it seemed that King Loo-Chorzo the Insatiable had really let himself go. Teary black beads stared out into the throne room and took in the three newcomers and a distinct sound permeated through the room, it seemed… the King had farted. Then he leaned in and whispered something into the ear of his Royal Voice, the man who would speak for the King- because apparently the King didn’t want to soil his voice for those he considered beneath him.

The little Voice Fish gulped and then said with a meek smile that professed he didn’t find this situation amusing whatsoever.

His Royal Highness asks why you brought a woman with you, Duke of Chandaar.’ his eyes were distinctly looking at Gerion Ardik. ‘Or did fashion change in the Galaxy and is long, silky platina hair the new style there?

The tone was set.
 

Corey's OOC

And where were the spiders
So, if the group of Marek Starchaser, [member="Gerion Ardik"] and [member="Darell Irani"] were the Three Musketeers of Capitalism, did that make Marek the pretty one? After all, Gerion was probably the smart one, and Irani… well he was the heavy hitter because he just purchased everything. Damage levels through capitalism were probably the highest with Ty’rel Holdings, if you catch the drift. One day it would probably be Ty’rel running planets rather than the Techno Union.

Force help us all.

And since when did Gerion wear a timepiece? That was beyond Marek, he figured Ardik would have something gold, on a chain, in his pocket. Next to his copy of a written on and slandered Little Black Book of Selectivism, to take to coffee shops to prove that capitalism was the best, and maybe recruit people to the Commerce Guild’s cause, and how they were the ones that were going to change the galaxy. Apparently, Marek didn’t like to wait for people to see them. Three nobles should supersede whatever meeting King Fish was in.

“They can hire out for food. Bright Star caters, and mix that with the handcrafted ships…” And you could have some really nice liners. Marek did have a handful of Ackbar-class cruisers in his service already, and Niathal-class shuttles were running as scouts and anti-pirate craft.

When they were finally given access to the Throne Room, Marek looked around once more. Fish people. Smart, what they could really use for the non-gilled species was an implant to allow for sustained time under water. Self-contained breathing apparatus were nice, but clunky. But clunky didn’t always mean bad. Not like King Fish, who was… well, chunky. Yeah, if they took over the shipyard, he’d put someone else in charge of the world. Tion (heil), could manage that, right? Especially being rude, even if very comical, to a business partner.
 
[member="Darell Irani"] | [member="Marek Starchaser"]

There are no known words strong enough in the Galactic Basic language to describe the full depth of Gerion's grimace. Though this was not the deepest it would go. There was a grimace locked away inside of Gerion so powerful that it would sunder planets, detonate stars, and cause creatures on the other side of the galaxy to spontaneously combust. Probably, anyway. Right now Gerion's expression was rather dark, but that was to be expected when he had just been callously insulted.

Gerion glared at the Monarch and folded his hands behind his back, saying nothing. He didn't want to jeopardize Irani's chances at getting this deal by running his mouth. Gerion had a thirty-percent stake in this. Or was it twenty-five? It was a reasonably sized stake, so the specifics hardly mattered.
 

Hira Mitsae

Ain't No Rest For The Wicked
[member="Gerion Ardik"] | [member="Marek Starchaser"]

A long silence reigned in which the Monarch properly believed that he had gained the higher ground in the conversation by insulting the theoretically weakest link of the chain. But then it was time to attack the strongest link- perhaps it was something about pride, or overconfidence. In the end it mattered not, because those black, soulless eyes evilly stared at Irani and then started whispering into the ear of his Voice.

The Voice was having some difficulty with accepting what he was going to have to say, but in the end he relented. Because he wished to have his head exactly where it currently was and not in some kind of gift basket, that would have been quite unpleasant.

And they say that we are evil, the Republic should declare war on this clown.

His Royal Highness also wonders just when was the last time you had a woman, Duke of Chandaar?’ nervousness crept into the majesty of the speaker. ‘Those biceps suggest you are more familiar with eh…’ nervous laughter, as he mimicked the gesture of a man doing his business. ‘than with a real woman.’

Then utter silence.
 

Corey's OOC

And where were the spiders
The Monarch gained the high ground. Right. Did he not know who he was dealing with? Sure, maybe Marek, who was by and large the least successful Force user of the trio, and the only one who used his public persona to link to the face with which he used the Force (mutant registration say what?) wasn’t that great at the whole business deal thing. Not for competing, but for selling? He could sell cruise ships and resort locations. Really, before he decided to use Lightning on people, he’d let [member="Darell Irani"] work his oral magic on the overweight King Fish.

And maybe just see what other tactics [member="Gerion Ardik"] was going to offer.

Covering his mouth to stifle a laugh, Marek just shook his head. And they were going to liberate Mon Cal Shipyards from this guy? Hell, they should be begging to be released. He was reaching out with the Force to the King to see what was going to make him tick. Using a bit of feelings off of the man, Marek could direct any kind of discussion in the direction he needed. Was it cheating? Not so much. Just like going from apes to humans using tools, Force sensitives were just a step above in the evolutionary ladder.
 
[member="Darell Irani"] | [member="Marek Starchaser"]

Gerion could only fathom what ridiculous secretions had clogged up this repugnant amphibian's gills that caused him to lash out against the Tionese envoys in such a way. Ridiculing Ovrani was only worthwhile comedic relief when he did it. Anyone else were simply too amateurish. They didn't understand or loathe Ovrani's gluttony and lechery like Gerion did. The Umbaran looked about as overjoyed with the insult attached to Darell as he did when the monarch had insulted him. This was really just a waste of time.

Through grit teeth, Gerion muttered something to Darell- low enough that only the two Tionese businessmen next to him would hear. "Are you going to deal with this, or do we have to wait until he gets to Marek as well?" They were here to seize assets, not partake in the Mon Cala Roast of the Tion Hegemony. Gerion wanted shares in a corporation- not new holes in his ego.
 

Hira Mitsae

Ain't No Rest For The Wicked
[member="Gerion Ardik"] | [member="Marek Starchaser"]

Hands crossed behind his back Irani seemed entirely at peace and unconcerned at the insults thrown at his persona, for one? That insult sucked really hard, besides it wasn’t as if Darell really cared what other people thought about his biceps, it was a thing that was between him, his expensive mirror and any gal he managed to seduce.

Not everyone can be as grand and sublime as your Grace.’ Irani replied smoothly and with a neutral expression plastered to his face, to his Highness it would have seemed as if the businessman was simply restating facts of knowledge. Things that everyone knew, his Nobleness was all known, no? But Ardik and Starchaser would hear the distinct italicized undertones that spoke of a less graceful subjective meaning.

You are right, of course.’ the Monarch replied with a big nod, that only underlined the under chins which were wagging almost as hard as a certain redhead assets… but enough about that.

It seemed that the Monarch was satisfied with his little attempts to show his superiority and was ready for business. So he indicated towards his Voice to talk yet again, who nodded fervently and took out his datapad reading it to himself, before settling down on the Tionese Nobles again.

You had a petition concerning the company Mon Calamari Shipyards and said shipyards, you may know make your case.’

And so Irani started speaking.
 

Corey's OOC

And where were the spiders
[member="Gerion Ardik"]
[member="Darell Irani"]

Marek wasn't going to step in. Someone had to come out smelling right here, and it clearly wasn't the King Squid. Looking to his brother of business and platinum locks, Marek was ready to step in if he was needed. But Irani was doing his thing, spinning his oral magic on the Mon Cal. Someone needed to lead this company from the awkward control here.

Maybe that was them?

He'd let Irani take the stage.
 

Hira Mitsae

Ain't No Rest For The Wicked
[member="Gerion Ardik"] | [member="Marek Starchaser"]
----
It was a long conversation in the grand scheme of things, even though the Monarch had seemed like an idiot and mostly spoiled Nobility brat, there was keen intellect to be detected within those black, peering eyes. Most of which was centered around his own profit in the venture, and perhaps just a little bit of the public relationship-question which would arise from such a take over.

A sensitive matter.

The first thing which had to be conceded was that the new company, which would need to receive a new name, needed to employ Mon Calamari and other relevant alien species into its holdings. They wouldn’t be able to simply exchange all sentient workmanship with synthetic droid forces (regardless of how much Irani and Ardik would have loved that), no they would have to make a compromise here.

Most of which boiled down towards a distinct quota which would need to be regulated in private, the R&D would obviously always be handled by the competent engineers of the original Mon Calamari Shipyards, those that had been fired or otherwise indisposed after the takeover by the Admiralty. Yes, they were still around and the only reason of their ‘disappearance’ was the fact that for some strange reason the old owners had decided to cut into the operations.

Boggling decision, were those Admirals even mentally sane?

Most manual labor would be handled by the droids supplied by the Hegemonic Automaton, whilst a specific quota would be filled with organics of the various Mon Calamari colonies and capital. All in an attempt to keep with the more prolific working ethic of the company and avoiding a backlash of the public opinion.

Furthermore it was important that the company would be headed by people who knew what they were actually doing, which meant that whilst in private they would own the company and would be the steering hand of it, in public the day to day business would be settled by boardroom and corporate appointees who had an intimate knowledge of how the Mon Calamari did their business.

In the end they had a few more heated debates, before both of the parties were satisfied with the end result, the Tionese party slightly more satisfied than the Mon Calamari Monarch, but c’est la vie.

Irani and entourage walked out of the throne room again, while the Monarch gave the orders for the formal take-over of the various shipyards. Before the day was out pure and utter beautiful capitalism would once again reign on Dac & Friends.
 

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