Cleaning the slate

[Miss Blonde]

Location: Antecedent Presidential office
Time: 1400

Patricia sighed softly to herself and began to rub at her arm, things were never supposed to come to this. What was she doing? She was an officer of the law once, she had spent the majority of her adult life fighting criminals like Cryax and the ravens, the black suns and other various criminal organizations. Now she was one of them, she had thrown down with them. And the strange part was that she enjoyed this much more than her last job, she was paid pennies compared to it and now that Romeo was dead this was the best way to support her kids and new family. She was engaged to Jarven now and she was getting married to a criminal, an honorable criminal but still a criminal.

But Cryax was her friend now, and it was time to tell him the truth. Taking a deep breath she walked into the office of President Bane and could see him behind his desk probably at work programming a stupid app or something. She flashed him a small sad smile and her body language was tense and nervous. Closing the door behind her she walked forward and spoke.

"Cryax listen this is going to be hard to say, but if I'm going to continue doing my job here I need to talk to you and get a few things off my chest." Patricia said in a very serious voice.

It was time to come clean to the man about everything, maybe not about her being indirectly responsible for Lysle's death but all in good time.

[member="Cryax Bane"]

 

[Cryax Bane]

Cryax was just getting to the good parts of the Darth Vornskr/Darth Isolda fanfiction that he had stolen from the Sith lord's personal cloud network, when his door opened with a hiss. Flicking off the Holotext, the Chiss whipped his head around to see who was disturbing him while he was trying to read the purple-prosed smut that was penned by Vornskr himself. Btuzahi hah, didn't anyone ever make appointments anymore?

As his executive assistant stepped forward, Cryax could see it in her face. A hangdog look that said that she was going to tell him something that he wasn't going to like. With an embarrassed clearing of his throat, he straightened out the office supplies on his desk, then gestured his hand towards a chair so that she could sit opposite him.

"Please, Patricia, have a seat," he said, leaning back in his seat with an expression of benevolent compassion on his face that most likely wouldn't last through the conversation.

"You can tell me anything. You know that."

[member="Patricia Susan Garter"]

 

[Miss Blonde]

[member="Cryax Bane"]

Patricia sighed and was trying her best to express herself, she never really was good with that. Her youth was all booze, sex, and violence so needless to say social skills weren't on the top of her résumé. But she decided that if she was going to continue working here it was best to buck up with it.

"Cryax, I'm not who you think I am. I'm not Patricia the mercenary who signed up for a job. I'm Patricia the Republic field agent." She took a deep breath then let out a breath of air.

"At least I was. These past eight years I've been working for you guys I've found myself coming to terms that this is the best way to support my children. I'm twenty nine for celestial's sakes and I can't live that life style any more." Patricia ran a hand through her blonde hair looked a bit nervous.

"My job was when you were going through your rock star lifestyle phase was to keep you in power and Logan out so that the One Sith wouldn't gain control. The only information I've ever given was planet names and general dossiers of you and other members. It wasn't my job to provide information. You must realize that I was only doing a job, but this is my life now and I love you like a brother Cryax and I'd give my life for you. That's why I can't lie to you anymore, so I'm sorry." She said apologizing to him for her past.

"I just want things to keep going as they were." She said softly hoping the man wouldn't flip out and do something drastic.

 

[Cryax Bane]

Patricia's revelation did not come as a complete surprise. The paranoid Chiss had been bracing himself for a back-stabbing from the moment Lysle Rigger had handed him the reins of the organization. If his Executive Assistant had come to him a year ago with the confession, Bane would have erupted like a volcano, slamming his hand down on the desk and ordering his droids to open fire. He had heard the whispering. Patricia had been spotted in Republic space with Republic folk. He simply never had enough evidence to do anything about it. The woman was an expert at covering her tracks. It was one of the reasons she'd been hired to work for the Red Ravens in the first place.

Another reason for his nonchalance: Lately, the Chiss was numb. His lover had packed up his things and left, his sister and brother had disappeared, and he could count his real friends on one hand. Sure, Patricia was one of those friends, and now he was finding out that some of their kinship was founded on lies, but impossibly, Cryax couldn't bring himself to care. Betrayal was just part of the criminal game.

"Thank you for coming clean," he said, his glowing red eyes devoid of emotion. "You might think me insane for not being angry at you, but frankly you're the closest thing I've got to family right now, and I can't afford to lose any more family right now. You don't have to say anymore about it. Just consider yourself forgiven."

When she opened her mouth to speak, Bane held up a blue-skinned hand. "Patricia, I'm leaving Antecedent and the rest of the Outer Rim planets to you and Chiasa to run. All of this," He swept his hand to the side, meaning the Dragon Palace Casino. "Is yours and Chiasa's. I'm moving to Nar Shaddaa, and I would like to focus on operating out of the Smuggler's Moon."

[member="Patricia Susan Garter"]

 

[Miss Blonde]

[member="Cryax Bane"]

Patricia frowned at Cryax and felt very bad for the man, his family was missing and Jalek had left him. And here she was getting married, having kids and living a good life. Maybe Cryax wanted that kind of life, kids and a nice house to raise them in. She had to comfort the man and while she respected his choice to move to Nar'Shadda he was still going to be the president, he was still the boss. Patricia stood from her seat and decided it was best that she get them both a drink. Moving over to the bar she grabbed two glasses and a little container of whiskey.

"Cryax..." She said drawing out his name a bit.

She walked over to him pouring them both a stiff drink once she made it to the desk. Placing the glass in front of him she meandered over behind him, holding her glass in hand. She took a very long draw draining it completely before bending over to put her face besides his and her breasts on the back of his neck and shoulders.

"You are still the president, no matter what. Listen I know things are tough right now sahib, but we just got to push through it." Reaching her hands out one on each on his shoulders she poured herself another drink then downed it again.

"You know I care about you and if you need this break then that's okay. We'll run things until you are ready, and even if you aren't we will still consult you. Okay?" She smiled and put her glass down to rub his shoulders and give him a kiss on the cheek to comfort the man in his time of need.

 

[Cryax Bane]

Bane's fingers curled around the glass she put in front of him, and he gratefully took a long sip. His glowing red eyes watched her move behind him with her drink, and as she rested her soft body against his neck, he let his shoulders relax with a long sigh. She was right, things had been tough, but he was never one to sit around and feel sorry for himself. Even after Teth and Darth Vornskr, he had never wallowed in self-pity, and the rare times when he did, it was usually only around...

Self-pity, self-aggrandizing, narcissism. All of these traits were probably reasons enough for the man to leave him. Not to mention the time that he had tried to strangle the other slicer in their own bed. Hanging his head, Cryax quickly downed his drink and reached for the bottle at the same time as Patricia. He chuckled and let her pour first, then replenished his own drink.

"I trust you and Chiasa will make the right decisions for the Red Ravens," he said, savoring the liquor's rich flavor. "You don't have to consult me. Just make me proud. Whatever you and she dream up for the organization I will back financially, and I will still oversee the slicers."

"A little to the left." he added, smiling up at her. As the short blonde began to knead her fingers into his shoulders, Cryax growled with pleasure just like at the party the other night. He was never one to turn down a good backrub.

[member="Patricia Susan Garter"]