Secrets, Lies and Suicides | Lowe & Fortan

[Natasi Fortan]

It had been one of the most curious exchanged Natasi had ever seen in all her years of government.

She couldn't stop replaying it in her mind, seeing the way that [member="The Major"] came out swinging at [member="Madelyn Lowe"] for the apparent sin of proposing a perfectly reasonable use for the space the First Order was in the process of securing. No matter what angle she looked at it, Natasi could not find a suitably reasonable explanation for it with the facts she had at her disposal. Naturally, this led her to conclude that there were relevant facts outside of her possession.

This did not sit well with the Grand Moff. Not well at all.

She would get to the bottom of it, and if there were problems -- well. Natasi considered herself nothing if not a problem solver.

There had been too many shenanigans running amok in her government for the last several months. The Cabinet had become a starship crash pushing a mag-trainwreck into a crowded speeder airway playing host to a three-ring circus. In other words, a nightmare. Even though Lowe and Shepard were both sub-cabinet, she couldn't see anything good coming from the tension existent between the two. This would be doubly true if she elected to elevate Governor Lowe to the cabinet -- a notion she hadn't entirely ruled out.

The semi-annual Governor's Association meeting was a perfect opportunity. It was being hosted on Dosuun, as per the usual. It was helpful, Natasi felt, to give the regional and provincial governments a taste of the cosmopolitan luxury of the capital. The more connected they felt to the home territories -- and the closer they thought they were to getting a promotion that would give them better access to them -- the less likely they were to indulge in aggressive ambition. So Natasi had dispatched a summons, in the form of an invitation for a personal meeting, to Governor Lowe in the days leading up to the association meeting. She was expecting the Governor any moment in her office in the upper floors of the Imperial Palace in Avalonia.

Natasi set her pen down and closed the folder on the document she had been writing, then went to the door to her outer office and pulled it open. "Mr. Glass," she said, holding the folder out to him. To one of her personal assistants, Natasi said: "Coffee, please, and a biscuit if you can find any. Please send in Governor Lowe when she arrives. Thank you." She returned to her office and pulled her jacket on before stepping out onto the wide balcony overlooking the city. For the moment, the weather was pleasant, but she could see a rainstorm approaching from the south.

It was going to be an unusual day.

 

[Madelyn Lowe]

The Governor sighed with relief as she leaned against the bathroom sink as the subdermal injector delivered its scheduled dose of stimulants. A potent cocktail designed to keep her awake, alert, and refreshed. Even if she'd only slept 3 hours in the last 48. And the only price she had to pay was a slight, unconscious tremble of her hands. Madelyn emerged from the bathroom, and returned to the plush, comfortable chair in the lobby. Slight fingers tapped her legs, drumming a rhythm that was seemingly ingrained into her soul, her being. The woman rubbed her temples and tried to no avail to shrug the tension out of her shoulders. Her tongue passed over cracked lips, her eyes flickering with unmistakable apprehension as they flicked momentarily to the door to the Grand Moff's office.

Her last meeting with the Moff kept replaying in her mind, words echoing back and forth, lingering like a bad taste in her mouth. The sheer nerve of Shephard, to openly insult her, to debase her in front of the Grand Moff. Out of sheer pettiness. Madelyn knew full well that the Director cared little about what would happen to that sliver of space.

The anger simmered in her gut. A few months ago, she'd already be plotting her revenge, coldly concocting ways to subjugate the tiresome Director, so that she'd never be bothered again. But, she felt no urge to seek retribution, no burning desire to tear the woman apart. The insatiable hunger in her belly had lessened. In many ways, she was thankful. The raw ambition, though useful in the beginning, was proving more trouble than it was worth time and again. It would be wiser just to settle into her role and work diligently. No plots, no conspiracies, nothing but her own work. That was what she would do.

Her reverie was broken as an assistant entered the room, startling her, making her jump as if she'd brushed a live wire.

"My apologies for startling you, Madam Director. The Grand Moff is ready for you."

Madelyn nodded and murmured her thanks, before striding into the room, where the Grand Moff was waiting inside.

"Good afternoon Your Excellency. To what do I owe the pleasure of this meeting?"

She tried her best to keep her voice neutral, but couldn't keep the slight waver off the end of the final syllable. Hopefully the woman would not notice.

[member="Natasi Fortan"]​

 

[Natasi Fortan]

Natasi turned as [member="Madelyn Lowe"] entered, followed swiftly by the assistant with a coffee service. Natasi waved the aid away and beckoned for the Governor to join her on the balcony. "Governor Lowe," said Natasi, cocking her head towards the balcony for one last appreciative look over the cityscape before she turned and approached the doorway. "I hope it's a pleasure. Take a seat, Governor Lowe." Natasi gestured to the comfortable guest chairs in front of her desk, then rounded the desk and sat in her own chair, engaging the privacy locks.

Fortan looked at Lowe for a moment, then sighed apologetically. "I'm sorry, that was blunter than I meant it to be. Please, make yourself comfortable."

She paused and steepled her fingers in front of her, inhaling and exhaling slowly. Finally, she began again: "We are going to have a conversation, and I hope will cooperate, but before we begin -- you should be aware that this room is swept three times a day for bugs. We are quite safe from being overheard by anyone -- be they Alliance, Coalition... or Security Bureau." Her dark eyes fixed on the Governor meaningfully for a moment, then she stood and rounded the desk again, standing at the cart to pour herself a cup of coffee. "Now, please don't make me drag this out of you -- I left my best thumbscrews at home."

Natasi stirred some sugar and milk into her coffee, then perched herself on the edge of the desk facing the Governor. "What in the hell was all that hostility about, with Director Shepard?"

 

[Madelyn Lowe]

A slight intake a breath, the barest flaring of the nostrils, widening of her eyes. Then her features settled. Her face placid, she considered the question. This was the meeting she'd dreaded, if she wasn't careful here everything she'd work to build would unravel, would be for naught. Her heart hammered in her chest, she could feel the hot blush on her cheeks. She felt so powerless against the will of this woman. This symbol of confidence, authority, control. Of the Order itself.

"I, uh..." It was hard to get the words out. She was being cornered. The Director continued to force her into bad situations even when she wasn't present.

"It's a complicated situation."

How much should she say? How much should she say? It was obvious that spilling the whole sordid affair to the Grand Moff was unwise, but a part of her, a significant part of her, grew tired of the smoke and mirrors. Of the web of lies.

"My... Rise to Governor, was not everything it seemed from the outside. Since before I took the position my cabinet has been a mess of successively ambitious and in some cases illegal plots. This is not something I am proud of, who would be? But, I have committed myself to change. To bettering myself for the Order."

"As for Director Shephard, she is an... Equally ambitious woman. Frequently we have tried manipulate each other, trying to gain some political influence, or further a cause. But, at the moment I am obligated to do as she says. Suffice to say we do not have a good relationship."

She hadn't meant to, but the last words came out low, and bitter.

[member="Natasi Fortan"]​

 

[Natasi Fortan]

Natasi frowned gravely as she listened to the story, her eyes boring into the woman in the seat before her. When she had said her peace, Natasi turned and rounded the desk, returning to her own seat. She set her coffee cup down and looked through the billowing steam at [member="Madelyn Lowe"]. For several long moments, she was silent, and she examined the surface of her desk as she considered the way forward. "I cannot overstate my disappointment in the hearing of this, Governor Lowe," she said finally, lifting her eyes to the blonde across the desk. "I expect that all members of the Supreme Leader's government will be eager to perform and climb the ranks, but this ambition should always -- always -- be secondary to integrity and honor. The Supreme Leader needs to know that he can count on all of us to make decisions to the benefit of him, his Empire, and the people we've all sworn to protect and defend."

Her eyes softened marginally. "Your honesty -- however late-coming it may be, and for whatever motivation -- does you some credit," she said after a brief pause. "But the point stands that I will not tolerate factionalism in my government. I'll be speaking to the Director as well -- you can be assured of my confidence, and I won't mention that we discussed it. In fact, according to official records you were never here. Obviously, I can't control either of you like a marionette -- more's the pity -- but before you decide what course of action you will take, I'll just remind you that Petyr Calinda and Clémence Wallace have been with the First Order from the beginning. You can ask them how their attempts to gain leverage went."

She paused, a smirk of equal parts mirth and sadness turning the edges of her lips up. "If you can find them." The two Ministers -- traitorous to Natasi if not the First Order -- had been sacked from the cabinet and arrested. Natasi wasn't sure where they were, but their sentences had included hard labor, so it was anyone's guess.

"Governor Lowe," Natasi said again, returning her attention to the woman in front of her. "The Director's criticism of you seemed incredibly personal. To the extent that I wonder if there is an element to this story that I'm missing. If she discovered any ... malfeasance on your part, but didn't report it, that suggests she was seeking leverage over you. But to what end?"