Chance Summonings

[Telis Taharin-Zambrano]

Nathema had never been one of the worlds Telis— or, rather, Darth Aagenti —had thought to ever travel to. In truth, it had been a world that largely escaped Aagenti’s notice and care, despite its complex and mostly shrouded history. Beyond reach of his previous ambitions, Aagenti had thought that such a world didn’t belong in his thoughts. He had to admit, though, it was a pretty world.

The sylvan planet still showed signs of its scarring, as his ship, Breakpoint Evolution, dropped out of hyperspace above orbit, but when its previous tyrant’s curse had been lifted, the secret Force-dead planet had been returned to life, and it had been translated into a largely garden world, as far as records went for what Aagenti could find. Certainly there were things that deserved to still remain dead in the planet, such as the horrible Voreclaws that call the world home, but Aagenti appreciated a garden world when he saw one.

Aagenti’s call to arrival on the planet had not been simply for the pretty sylvan landscape that the world consisted of, but rather something far more akin to his caliber and nature. Sometimes circumstance has a way of just lining up, and opportunities are made present alongside the receiving of a letter from a person who, by all accounts, really doesn’t exist: Onrai . It wasn’t exactly a letter of utmost intrigue - an invitation of sorts, with specifics that largely escaped his busy mind in that moment, but the mystery of the sender drew Aagenti in, perhaps giving him a new opportunity in the form of a powerful partner: a planetary ruler.

Taking control of his trusty ship, Aagenti pushed the ship down into a shallow dive around the planet, heading for the coordinates that had been outlined for him so graciously by the letter of his soon-to-be host. Far from wearing his finest, Aagenti looked far from drab, but his gold-threaded black tunic and tight silken pants were of a more simple garment than the normal flourish one might see Aagenti in - clothing for work and not for play, evidently. Of course, Aagenti once more utilized the implants within his skin and eyes, employing a verdant green shade within his irises that danced the line between haunting and enchanting, and his skin was occasionally marked with a new tattoo, simple and geometric linework that intermixed with more naturally flowing designs, heralding back to his connection with the Force. Darth Aagenti never allowed himself to be forgettable if he could help it, and as he breached the atmosphere of the planet, he hoped he could make quite the impression for the better with this mysterious figure.

Moving at incredibly fast speeds, Aagenti began to see the space station of Vanessa Vantai above the planet, a citadel of a construct, armed to the teeth for invaders that would likely never come. Staring at the armaments and warships with little interest, Darth Aagenti made a sharp spin to move towards the sides of the station, buying him a little bit of time as he flagged the operators of the gunnery of his approach, passing through whatever shields the station had prepared without too much problem, before eventually making his way towards the landing bay where dozens of other ships sat in maintenance. It was a bustling hive of activity and Aagenti’s skin crawled at the idea of how many lowly soldiers had parked where he once did, but with a flick of a few switches, Aagenti rose from his seat, taking the Lightstaff that hung on the wall and throwing it over his back, ensuring that his Twin Dancers were at his belt, and that his alchemized claws were as shiny as they could be.

The back of his ship opened up, and Darth Aagenti stepped out of his craft, the ship closing at once as he left, locked up tightly and secured so that nobody could hope to steal the crimson-latticed craft. Standing amidst the bustle of the hangar, Aagenti held his head high, clearing his throat and projecting his voice over the workers of the hangar. ”Now, then, where can I reach Vanessa Vantai’s chambers?” There was no malice in his voice, and it was quite pleasant to the ears, though there was a regality and a commanding to it that made it hard to deny, and one engineer tentatively pointed out the way for the Coruscanti to go, earning him a gracious smile from the Sith Knight.

Without delay, Aagenti made his way from the hangar and through the corridors of Vanessa’s citadel, his boots clicking against the metal floor as he moved swiftly and with a hard-to-miss sashay, his dark auburn hair slightly messily framing his olive face. He walked with purpose and Cayde, hoping to come across his host somewhere within the complex station. He had a good feeling about the meeting ahead, and despite the military presence all around him, he felt almost completely at ease.

 

[Onrai]

Rare was it that Vanessa would send out invitations to Sith that she had not known in order to invite them to her domain. Traditionally she was more a reclusive sort, who occasionally garnered allies and worked on projects with other Sith. However, on this occasion she had requested that an intriguing Sith attempting to make a name for himself come to the far reaches of the Empire in order to adequately make a new ally. With treason afoot, as she knew from the heresy of Darth Voyance , Vanessa did have to be cautious - her manpower would not be used by traitors seeking to cause the fragmentation of the Empire earlier than it was supposed to occur.

The Darktroopers would lead Telis to the elevator, which would soon travel up to the meeting room where Vanessa had interacted with a large amount of the individuals within the Empire who has come to see her. She smiled politely before coming over to him. “You must be Telis. A pleasure to have you here - I’m Vanessa Vantai. I summoned you here so perhaps we could more effectively I felt forge a relationship and perhaps better benefit one another.”

Telis Taharin-Zambrano

 

[Telis Taharin-Zambrano]

As Darth Aagenti was led to Vanessa’s room, he took a few moments to simply remember the route he took, hopefully being able to use it to guide himself back out of the station when this impromptu meeting was all said and done. Eventually reaching the elevator, Aagenti distanced himself from the guards with a nod, stepping into the elevator and eventually making his way to the meeting room to meet with Onrai .

Upon reaching the meeting room with his host, Aagenti would take a moment to inspect the woman across from him at the table, his inquisitive eye scanning her over to get a read from her, an unamused expression across his face. However, his face slowly began to brighten into a smile, his arms outstretched as he was welcomed into the meeting room, a slither of shifting geometric design racing across his right hand. ”Ms. Vantai! It warms my heart to be invited so graciously into your home, though for ‘official reasons,’ I would request that you call me by my true name, Darth Aagenti. You know how it is, with all these rituals and ceremonies of the order.” Aagenti would chortle slightly at the mention of it, as if he had brought up traffic on the way rather than a cult rebranding.

”In these trying times, of course, good relationships mean everything, with this whole Zatitsisajak heresy. Quite troubling to be honest, I believe I once had an old business partner who is now among those barbaric apostates, but you seem like a woman of much better standing, reasoning, and pragmatism. I always enjoy the chance to make a new…” Darth Aagenti would pause for a moment, flicking his right hand around for a moment before finally landing on the right word. ”... ‘Acquaintance.’ However, I wish not to dwell on these gloomy matters - not when there’s more apparent business at hand.”

Stepping around the table, Darth Aagenti would offer his left hand to Vanessa, and the Sith Lady would be able to see now clearly that his hand was entirely metallic, a fine silvery metal embedded with a series of lights in a grid-like fashion. The cybernetic limb, however, moved as dexterously and responsively as a biological limb, and as Vanessa accepted the handshake, she would feel the strength of the man’s grip - not painful, but certainly a firm handshake that would impress the heads of many companies. Aagenti would then step away from her with the nod of his head, his hands clasping behind his back. ”Now then, I suppose I shall take a seat. Whenever you wish, Lady Vantai; I am your guest, after all.”

Darth Aagenti would sit down wherever Vanessa guided him to, sitting with good posture and listening attentively to whatever the Sith Lady had to say. He allowed himself to get comfortable, but he was never truly at ease, ready to spring in case this was indeed a trap that had been cleverly employed by Vanessa - he trusted it wasn’t a trap, but trust could only extend so far.

 

[Onrai]

Telis Taharin-Zambrano

"Very well, Darth Aagenti. That said, my men are used to more informality." She replied. "I haven't used my old Sith name in decades, not even with Kaine - I mean, not even with the Emperor himself." The slip of the tongue perhaps indicated to Telis that the woman's relationship with many of the older Sith in the Empire was a good bit deeper than she had initially believed it to be. With regards to the heresy, as he had mentioned and as Darth Carnifex and herself had talked about, Vanessa was frustrated. Her attempt to build good relations with certain individuals in the Sith was supposed to be based around the disappearance, resignation, or death of Kaine, in order to maintain the integrity of the Empire in the face of inevitable internal discord. That Darth Voyance had chosen such an unnecessarily heretical path made little sense to her, given now was one of the worst times to start such a rebellion.

Vanessa's grasp in response to the cybernetic handshake of Telis was equally firm, surprisingly so for what appeared in all intents and purposes to be an ordinary human or near-human woman. She would sit down across from him at the meeting table as the customary arrival of appetizers and drink came to the table.

"From my understanding, you're the sort of individual looking for more allies within the Sith. I have the resources to help make you a strong military leader who can effectively campaign against the Silver Jedi, the remnant of the Mandalorians, or whoever it is that you chose to pursue as an enemy. Even you yourself can be provided with more effective tools in order to skillfully slay the Empire's enemies." She said. "Is this something you'd be interested in?"

 

[Telis Taharin-Zambrano]

Darth Aagenti would chuckle lightly at the mention of being turned into a warlord with funding from the woman across from him now, and while his respect for her was cemented with the firmness of her handshake and her interest in making him stronger, he couldn’t help but let the chuckle run its course, which is a thing that the man in the black shawl would’ve never done at other business meetings. He was truly flattered by the offered Onrai proposed, but it was too much of an offer in his eyes, which he had learned long ago could be just as bad as too little of an offer.

”Lady Vantai I am absolutely honored by your offer, but… well, I am not much of the warring type.” To cement his point, Aagenti raised his cybernetic claw of a hand, slowly revolving his wrist before letting his hands settle once more on his lap. To be leading armies was an idea that startled Aagenti, and it would be bad overall for every type of business that the Sith dove into, from investment to hosting domain to even engineering, to assert himself with another’s forces beyond the ones he’d soon be granted by the Dark Council alongside is ascendancy would draw too much unwanted attention.

”I do strongly believe in the idea of strong allies, but if you were to lend your full armies to me, it would seem suspicious and perhaps put a target on both of our backs. I may be a warrior and a capable one at that, but I cannot devote myself full-time to employing strategy and organizing men. It could also threaten what generals we currently have in the Sith Empire, and we do not want more men following suit after those that have already betrayed us and committed themselves to this heresy. I have ways of making allies and I have the tools I need to fight, but to become a warmonger is… well, bad for business, and tarnishes my domain.” Aagenti left out some of the more possibly uncomfortable side-business on the matter, such as the fact that should the Empire fall (which it won’t, but contingencies are important) he didn’t wish to be pinned by the collapse and treated as a leader. He could outplay any new government that arises if he remains as a slaughterer, but a general is far more constricting.

With a nod of his head, Darth Aagenti rested back, brewing over thoughts in his mind. ”Of course, I don’t want to seem ungrateful… I think it would be best if you kept your men under your own service, should you find that this stronghold gets attacked by a significant enemy force. In turn, if you wish to help build me up and in turn build yourself up, there’s two things that I would greatly benefit from an increase of: money, and public opinion.” Aagenit had many ways of generating his own revenue, but if he could find a patron to invest in his success and, like Kascalion, speak well of him amongst the more powerful Sith in the Empire, he could find his status raised to higher levels and the legion he’ll soon be provided with armed with better weaponry. Plus, more money meant many things, including new ambitious undertakings.

”But… perhaps I shouldn’t be so hasty or greedy. It’s obvious you wish to become my patron… but I want to know who you are as a person, Lady Vantai. I’ve learned long ago never to make an ally without getting to truly know them first.” Aagenti would lowly chortle as he cross his thighs one over the other, allowing for perhaps a bit of a more seductive smile to come onto his features - now predatory, but still present.