Private Rage Against the Dying of the Light

[Sycorax Laveaux]

​

Office of Senator Sycorax Laveaux
Planetary capital of Lamont, Dahrtag
The Core Worlds

Seated at her writing desk, Sycorax finished typing up a letter to the governor, then closed her computer. Today had been unusually quiet, which she hoped was a good omen. She had one final meeting scheduled before she left for the day, but it was a meeting of great importance. Perhaps the most important of her entire career.

Her office would be hosting a guest of honor: Aurelian Veruna, the future King of Naboo. She wasn't sure what sort of man Aurelian was or what to expect. Normally she hated not knowing what she was in for, but in this case she was desperate enough to cast out her line into uncharted territory. From where they stood now, things were only going to get worse. Something had to be done. She wouldn't wait until it was too late.

She got up and approached the table at the other end of the room, where a tray sat with a decanter and glasses waiting to be filled. While she was pouring herself a drink, her datapad chimed. It was time.

"Send him in."

Aurelian Veruna​

 

[Aurelian Veruna]

X | X​

Aurelian stepped through the door with the easy confidence. His guard lingered outside, dismissed with a flick of his hand, leaving him alone to face the woman whose letter had reached his ears quicker than he might have liked.

Word traveled faster than hyperlanes these days; Ukatis had proven that. Their King had accepted his proposal, but Aurelian's chief fascination was with the real ruler who keeps their puppet King in line. Had she spoken with others in the Alliance about their deal? Was that why he received a summons to meet in Lamont? He was curious how far the Alliance would continue to fall. But for now, another board, another player.

He gave a shallow bow to Senator Sycorax Laveaux, lips curved in the kind of smile that could pass for polite courtesy or a threat, depending on how one looked at it.

"Senator," he said smoothly, straightening and letting his gaze wander the room before settling on her. His eyes were sharp, bright with a predator's curiosity. He noted everything: the glass tray on the table, the faint lines of weariness at the corners of her mouth, the possible tension in her shoulders. He filed it all away.

"Your Necropolis is... fascinating. Do they still call it that?" His tone was almost mocking, but not unkind, like an amused prince turning a cruel word into a jest. "A planet of graves, yet still a place where the living struggle for relevance. I imagine it teaches perspective."

Sycorax Laveaux​

 

[Sycorax Laveaux]

Aurelian strode into the room like he owned the place. Tall, dark, and handsome, he was dressed in an ornate black outfit befitting of royalty, the style simultaneously flamboyant and austere in that way which was unique to Naboo. He signaled to his guards to remain outside with a wave of his hand and then gave his host a shallow bow, his smile not quite reaching his eyes.

Sycorax smiled back, though she didn't bow. It wasn't the custom here on her planet to lower oneself before another. Next to him she looked downright bizarre, with her eccentric beehive hairstyle, theatrical makeup, and designer dress. Like the corpse bride meeting with a storybook prince. But hey, the history books wouldn't mention what they were wearing... probably.

"Your Necropolis is... fascinating. Do they still call it that?" His tone was almost mocking, but not unkind, like an amused prince turning a cruel word into a jest. "A planet of graves, yet still a place where the living struggle for relevance. I imagine it teaches perspective."

She shrugged. "It taught me that life is short, so I better do what I can while I still can. And to answer your question, yes, although the name on all the official documents is still Dahrtag." She gestured to a couch. "Feel free to have a seat, Your Majesty. We have much to discuss. Would you care for a drink?"

Aurelian Veruna​

 

[Aurelian Veruna]

X | X​

Aurelian moved to the offered seat without hesitation, his long stride carrying him across the room with a kind of restrained grace. Crossing his legs, he looked entirely at ease, as if the senator's office were merely another salon on Naboo, and she another courtier to charm or disarm.

When she mentioned a drink, he gave a quiet laugh. "I'll have whatever you're having, Senator," he said, tilting his head slightly, a dangerous smile flickering across his lips. He wouldn't play to the risk of poison any more. He would see to it he had what she had and she drank first. His sharp gaze followed her as she poured, not unkind, like a man studying a painting he wasn't yet sure he liked.

"I must admit," he went on, his tone carrying a lilt of curiosity wrapped in velvet irony, "I am surprised to find myself summoned here. An Alliance world so far removed from the Mid Rim. I'd have thought your attentions would typically be consumed by Coreward affairs. Surely this isn't a social call." He leaned back, shoulders settling in with deliberate ease, his eyes fixed on her through the haze of her eccentric elegance. The Naboo prince could look languid, almost careless, but there was a sharpness in the way he spoke; each word chosen, weighted.

"Of course," he added, his voice softening into something that could almost be mistaken for charm, "it is a great honor to be in my presence. Or so I'm told." The smirk that followed gave the impression he was as amused at himself as he was at the line. "So tell me, Senator Laveaux, what is it you seek from this meeting? Is it word of Ukatis that brought you to my doorstep so quickly?" His dark eyes narrowed with interest, a flicker of mischief dancing there. "Or are you reaching for something altogether different?"

Sycorax Laveaux​

 

[Sycorax Laveaux]

She poured a second glass and handed it to him, taking a seat across from his couch. While he droned on about what a surprise her request for a meeting had been, she retrieved her datapad and pulled up her notes for this meeting. What she had in mind wasn't complicated, but she still wanted to make sure she covered all her bases.

"Of course, it is a great honor to be in my presence. Or so I'm told."

She looked up at him over her drink and datapad, her expression quizzical. Was he fishing for compliments? If so, she didn't humor him. He might think her joyless, but the situation she was in, as he would soon find out, was rather too dire for jokes or idle charm.

"So tell me, Senator Laveaux, what is it you seek from this meeting? Is it word of Ukatis that brought you to my doorstep so quickly? Or are you reaching for something altogether different?"

"I was there when they joined the Republic," she said with a nod. "That affair was well done on the part of you and Ukatians. It was a quiet, amicable separation with no loose ends or strings attached. I wish I had thought of it."

Which brought her to the subject of today's meeting. "The Alliance is dying, as I'm sure you're aware. Except it is not the slow, sickly death of an aging empire. No, the GA is being devoured from within by members of its own state whose sole concern is saving their own skins. There is already talk in the Senate of abandoning member worlds to conquest by foreign invaders. I fought the idea as soon as it was introduced, but those pushing for it are gaining followers, not losing them." Moreover, her dissent had painted a target on her back. She was used to being a target, but there was a vast difference between the crime lords of her homeworld wanting her dead, and the leaders of planets with more power and influence than she could dream of desiring her demise.

As she spoke about her fellow Senators, her gaze seemed to grow distant, her eyes narrowing contemptuously. Far from being indifferent, their actions infuriated her, partly because she felt powerless to stop them. She refused to stand by and let them make her world into yet another plaything for them to use and discard. "I see no point in Dahrtag continuing to be part of the Alliance if they will not provide the protection and security which was promised. But we cannot survive as an independent world, either. So..." She met Aurelian's eyes. "We must follow Ukatis' example and join another friendly faction. Provided the price the High Republic demands is not too great a cost to pay."

Aurelian Veruna​

 

[Aurelian Veruna]

X | X​

Aurelian listened without interruption, letting the Senator unspool her frustrations and bitterness at colleagues already carving up the Alliance's carcass. His eyes lingered on her, dark and gleaming, with a gaze that made it difficult to tell if he was amused or deadly serious. A faint, deliberate smile returned.

"You are right about the Alliance," he said at last, his voice even, almost conversational. "They've become a weak shell of what they once claimed to be. Still strutting like rulers of the galaxy while their foundation crumbles. I've seen carrion birds fight over fresher corpses than what the they have become."

He leaned back again, a shift that only emphasized his composure and ownership of the space. "And you are right again: the Empire is closing in. Faster than most want to admit. A planet like yours couldn't resist them alone, nor should it. The Republic… Naboo… would happily provide the security and stability your people deserve." He let the words roll slowly, each one polished and tempting, yet edged with calculation.

Then his tone sharpened, curiosity glittering like a blade unsheathed. "But tell me, Senator, what does Necropolis offer in return? Ukatis, ah, Ukatis was simple. Bountiful fields and fertile land, with room for refugees to settle. A clear foundation for growth within the Republic."

He tilted his head, studying her like a puzzle. His smile deepened, but his eyes remained hard. "And what of Dahrtag? A planet of graves. A world of whispers and shadows. Security is never without cost, Senator. What do your tombs hide that makes them worth defending?"

Sycorax Laveaux​

 

[Sycorax Laveaux]

Aurelian agreed with her assessment of the Alliance's current state. He seemed open to the transfer, provided Dahrtag had something to offer. Sycorax nodded, glancing at her notes. Here came the hard part: selling a tombworld infested with vampires as something worth saving. Because it's my home, damn it. But Aurelian wasn't her. They needed something else besides personal attachment to entice the King of Naboo.

"Dahrtag contains many resources yet unexploited. Metals and natural gases can be found underground, and lumber is plentiful above it."

Historically Dahrtag had barred entry to refugees. Many were quick to condemn her as a xenophobe, unaware that Dahrtag's bloodthirsty criminal organizations would have exploited them. They were perfect prey, displaced and ignorant of the dangers. No one would notice if they disappeared. While not completely eradicated, crime on Dahrtag had since improved. The crime lords who survived the purge had cooperated with the authorities in exchange for lighter sentences, and the most powerful of them all was effectively a friend of Sycorax's, loath as she was to admit it.

"Though our borders have been closed in the past, we are better prepared now to accept the displaced," she continued, permitting herself a small smirk as she added, "Unlike Ukatis, we are a bastion of democracy. For that reason alone, I think most refugees would rather be relocated to Dahrtag."

Aurelian Veruna​

 

[Aurelian Veruna]

X | X​

Aurelian let her words linger in the air, sipping slowly from his glass before setting it aside. He leaned back deeper into the couch, fingers loosely steepled, and allowed the silence to stretch. His expression remained unreadable, a blend of amusement and calculation, as though he weighed the Senator's pitch against some internal measure only he knew.

Finally, he chuckled, a low, sound with just enough edge to hint at mockery. "I don't know if I quite agree, Senator. Refugees flocking to a planet whose very nickname is Necropolis? You may find that optimism doesn't travel as easily as desperation."

His eyes glinted as he leaned forward, elbows on his knees, a dangerous smile curving his lips. "Still, you're right about one thing. Giving them the choice: Ukatis with its open fields, or Dahrtag with its… democracy. That has a certain appeal. Choice itself is a powerful lure."

He tapped a finger once against his knee, thoughtful. "Metals, gas, lumber, all useful. But common enough. The Republic isn't starved for such things." He tilted his head, studying her in the room's glow, his expression sharpening like a predator closing in. "No, if Dahrtag is to prove its worth, it must offer something more. Something… singular."

He leaned in, lowering his voice as though confiding a secret. "I have a proposal. It's out of the ordinary, but I think it's fitting for a world like yours." He paused deliberately. "Prisons, Senator. I want to build them here, at key locations across your planet. These wouldn't be ordinary cells, but fortresses designed to hold the Republic's most vile and ghastly criminals. Places where their shadows can be buried as deeply as the bones beneath your soil."

His gaze sharpened further, dark eyes catching the faintest gleam of satisfaction. "The Republic would, of course, provide the funds to build them. All we would ask is that Dahrtag provide the personnel to build, staff, and maintain them. Your world is already accustomed to graves and secrets. Let it be the Republic's warden and its sanctuary."

He sat back again, his smile widening, almost playful now. "In addition to the refugee arrangement, of course. Refuge and punishment, both offered by Necropolis. It seems… poetic, doesn't it?"

Sycorax Laveaux​

 

[Sycorax Laveaux]

Sycorax was getting the impression that, if the circumstances of the High Republic were different, then the conversation would've stopped after Aurelian dismissed their resources as unneeded. But the Republic was young and hungry, eager to gain new territory. Still, he needed to justify bringing the "planet full of graves" as he called it, into the fold.

She was also beginning to suspect he didn't realize that Dahrtag had living people on it, too. Or perhaps he just didn't care. His suggestion that they build their prisons on Dahrtag fell into such a mentality. Sycorax studied him. Was he baiting her to see how much he could get away with?

"Do you care where in the system we build these prisons?" she asked. "We have moons that are unpopulated." Most factions would create a space station or other spaceborne vessel to contain their criminals, to minimize the risk to civilians if there was a prison break. But that would be prohibitively expensive, even with financial aid from Naboo. Better to build it on a moon, that at least was doable.

Aurelian Veruna​

 

[Aurelian Veruna]

X | X​

He let a beat of silence pass, then shrugged lightly, shoulders rolling in a gesture that looked casual but carried the weight of indifference. "I don't care where you put them, Senator. Moon, surface, or even deep underground, it makes no difference to me. So long as the Republic's need is met."

His eyes glinted, interest sparking behind them. "What matters is that they are here, in this system, on the fringe of Republic space where enemies push and shadows grow bold. That is what makes them valuable."

Aurelian leaned forward again, his tone softening, though an edge remained. "Staff them, build them, and they'll serve more than the Republic's cause. They'll give your people jobs, build infrastructure, and provide purpose. And when the galaxy looks at Necropolis, they won't see only tombs anymore. Instead, they'll see a world trusted with holding back its worst nightmares."

His smile widened into something almost boyish, though his eyes betrayed the razor behind it. "So, Senator Laveaux… tell me. Are you prepared to make your world more than a graveyard? Or do you prefer the company of bones?"

Sycorax Laveaux​

 

[Sycorax Laveaux]

"You are correct," Sycorax said, then smirked. This was starting to seem almost too easy. Then again, it wasn't as if there was all that much to work out. For all its problems, Dahrtag was less problematic than most other systems.

"So, Senator Laveaux… tell me. Are you prepared to make your world more than a graveyard? Or do you prefer the company of bones?"

Sycorax gave him a tired, bored look, the expression of someone who had heard all the same jokes about her homeworld many times before. "I prefer a living republic to a dead one, Your Majesty. If that is all, then Dahrtag finds the terms agreeable."

Aurelian Veruna​

 

[Aurelian Veruna]

Aurelian rose from his seat, each movement precise and intentional. His smile lingered like the aftertaste of a fine wine. "Very well then," he said, his voice firm with finality. "You petition your Alliance, Senator, and I will petition the Republic. Let's see if the living can truly make something of your Necropolis."

He offered a shallow bow, more a performative flourish than an act of courtesy, then turned on his heel. Without another word, he strode for the door, eager to leave this tomb-world behind before its shadows could cling to him.

Sycorax Laveaux​