Flightful Fancies

[Marcus Tritum]

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TION TRADE NEXUS​

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The newsroom bustle slowed as the holocam operator gave the countdown. Three, two, one...

"Welcome to another taungsday night on Flightful Fancies. I'm your host, Sam Kato."

A Shaliz'na with a delightfully large set of wings smiled disarmingly into the holocam. The high cheekbones, envy green eyes, and clean shaven jawline had been the bane of many a fluttering heart. The unmistakeable immaculateness of his suit marked it as a bespoke Chase Luxury.

"A big thank you to our sponsors," an ad came on screen, displaying lavish beaches and sunlit tropic waters with couples frolicking out of an expensive looking hotel. "Vacation next with Novaplex!"

"We have best selling author Mara Merrill with us tonight, whose newest book - Soulless: View Through A T-visor - has just topped Galactic City's best seller's list. This right on the heels of her previous work They Call Us Traitor, which Echani Editorial called a 'delectable dissection of mandalorianism.'"

The chyron below read "Merrill Mauls Mandalorians."

"Hello, Mara, how are you?"

Another million dollar smile from the bird with the word.

[member="Mara D'lessio Merrill"]

 

[Darth Empyrean]

Somewhere, far far away...

The Slave lays sprawled on a couch, watching the holovideo before him. The words gratuitous, the energy uncanny; its subtle drawing nature forcing him to drop a single of his Greedo's onto his lap, a faint cheesy dust leaving its mark on his otherwise spotless pants. He hesitated for a moment his breath still as the lights and movements drew him in...

"... I need to get on the news.", he said quietly to himself.

 

[Mara D'Lessio Merrill]

[member="Kato"]

Wishing I'd declined, she almost said. Written communication was one thing, and she'd spent her fair share of time talking over ship comms or in person. The Tionese holocams were something else entirely. As connected as the Nexus was, billions could be watching her now. She let out a slow breath as subtly as she could and put on a smile. The material really was that important, after all, and once she got her momentum she could do decently well. This could wind up a triumph.

"A little warm under these lights, Sam. I could never do what you do. Thanks for having me."

She'd gone for a blue sheath that brought out the subtle pink of her half-Zeltron skin. So did the blue gem pendant around her neck. Tion being near old Mando territory, and the Trade Nexus being the galaxy's busiest deep-space market, she'd brought her lightfoil in her purse. Her shoes were shiny but practical, just in case.

 

[Marcus Tritum]

All too easy.

Cameras mainly fixed on her, they didn't quite catch the tiny wink the Shaliz'Na tossed her way, but they caught all of that blinding smile.

And her a part-blush too. My oh my.

"Our pleasure. Thanks for joining! And may I say, you look ravishing this evening. Now," he leaned forward, on the edge of his seat, wings curling up tight behind him.

"We've all heard about your exploits, most of us have probably traveled on the Mara Corridor too, but what we don't know is the mind of the woman behind it all. Can you give us a glimpse of what made you want to start writing these books?"

A sour encounter with Mandalorians?

A spurned lover in the Mando'ade... or... Oh Bright Stars, maybe it's worse. Gleeful thoughts.

[member="Mara"] Merrill

 

[Mara D'Lessio Merrill]

[member="Kato"]

"I, ah...well, it's pretty grim. I put most of it in my books, but there's always details I left out. Even at my angriest, I was always just out to wake people up, not make them sick." Her eyes tightened. She did her level best to move back to a more positive frame of mind. Sam Kato's demeanor helped.

"I saw things I shouldn't talk about, let's put it that way. I got angry and I started writing, and writing helped me understand why I was angry and what I could do about it. So I just kept writing."

 

[Marcus Tritum]

Kato nodded sympathetically.

"Thank you for that insight, Mara."

Clearly, the subject made her very uncomfortable. Topic change.

"You talk in your book about the Mandalorian's after life, a sort of communal consciousness which many scholars have described as not unlike several Force traditions. You also mention how the Mandalorians tend to assimilate people and give them a new identity, 'radicalization' you called it. Which all sounds an awful lot like several cults we've seen popping up over the years. Would you say the Mandalorians are a cult?"

[member="Mara D'Lessio Merrill"]

 

[Mara D'Lessio Merrill]

[member="Kato"]

"In some ways, sure." Words seemed to flow better when she could engage with substantive questions. "The way I understand it, being a cult's a whole other thing from what I wrote about the Manda. Being a cult means three things. First off, you need a leader with charisma who doesn't answer to anyone or anything. Sounds like a Mandalore to me. Second thing is that a cult twists your arm. When it needs to persuade you, inside or outside the cult, it uses coercion. I don't think you'd find many people who don't know how Mandos coerce aruetiise - non-Mandos. Coercion inside the Mandos isn't about violence so much at it's about shame, about being a 'true Mandalorian' or a soulless dar'manda. Third thing is that a cult exploits its members. Mandalorian culture literally turns its kids into cannon fodder for its leaders' glory. Everything they do is for the group, the extended family - even dying."

 

[Marcus Tritum]

"And there you have it," Sam turned and smiled into the cams, "as well spoken as she is written. Is there anything the woman with the hyper lane to her name cannot do?"

The chiyron below read: Mando'ade A Cult??

Without pausing for anyone to answer the rhetorical question, Kato rolled on ahead. "We're going to open the lines now to callers..."

Kato smiled and read the script. "Our first caller is Ba'ohb. How are you doing today Ba'ohb?"

"Just fine, thank ya' kindly. Wanted to say that I Mandos killed my brothers and I'm glad someone like Ms. Merrill is speakin' up about them warmongers. About time someone started takin' 'em down a peg."

[member="Mara D'Lessio Merrill"] | [member="The Slave"] | [member="Zaz Tal'Verda"]