Faction The Shadow Looms

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori frowned. Although she was glad to be able to go to members of the Imperial bloc herself, she certainly wasn't going to do so right at this second. Not while her friends were in danger. "You don't understand me, Rex. I am siding with my friends because I know that they haven't been in contact and don't know where Arken is. Your only justification for these warrants are because of their familial relation and the fact that they are in positions of power that I gave them. They want nothing to do with their father and I am telling you yet AGAIN that these warrants are unneccessary! So leave them alone!"

She couldn't help but feel her temper rise while trying to get her point across. It was frustrating to not be heard. Interrogations were never a joyous experience. Lori had gone through some herself and she did not want her friends to go through the same.

And then there was Var-Sulis . He was wanted for execution for hanging around her. Caedyn Arenais gave her an option; offering a place of sanctuary. It was something to look into, an avenue of escape should her friends need it. They'd be safe in Mnemosyne. Lori and Caedyn would make sure of it.

But she didn't want to appear to accept his offer in front of Rex. That seemed a little too risky. She just didn't know what to say at the moment. It was unusual for Lori to be rendered speechless, but her mind was too busy in different directions. Was Rex the only one going after her friends? Or did he bring others on board?...

"Did you come here alone, Rex? Or are you merely a distraction?"

 

[Viken Dobson]

Viken cringed as Daro Roz’yrn wrapped an arm around him. People didn't touch him. That was more or less a rule. Dorthea Dobson understood that. The only one in their family that didn't was "Doofy" Dobson , but then again that man didn't do anything that he was supposed to.

As soon as Var-Sulis got Daro to stop singing, Viken quickly removed himself from under his arm. The topic switched from space shanties to Heath Valhoun . "He's not on this station. That's for sure. My guess is somewhere on Spindle IV." Someone had to know, and there should be some files there. Hidden or not, the medical records should be active, even if they were under an alias or heavily encrypted. They'd need to find a hacker.

 

[Caedyn Arenais]

"Did you come here alone, Rex? Or are you merely a distraction?".

Space Stations were always rife with activity, but as his Sister spoke, Caedyn's attention ran afar to the surrounding sector of their station district seeking out the ebb and flow of the Force for any telling signs of imminent conflict. He did not appear to be able to detect anything overtly obvious as far as violence was concerned, yet that didn't mean that there wasn't a fight to come.

"Remember, this Station is a neutral zone and any confrontation not approved of by the Stations Office of Security will fall back upon you as the official political leader in charge of any persons accompanying you, or following your orders" Caedyn reminded Rex Valhoun ; "Furthermore, this will force my hand and as a Je'daii, I will be obligated to detain you until the appropriate security personnel arrive on scene" Caedyn's placed his hands in front of his lap, the right hand having been holding his Lightsaber discretely behind him, was now in plain sight for Loreena Arenais-Valhoun 's Husband to see.

"I strongly advise calling off any teams you might have brought here with you. I'm saying this now to you as a neutral party in this discussion, but that will change if there's any sign of offending against the Stations Authorities and laws put in place" Caedyn repeated, ensuring the message was heard loud and clear by the other man in the room.

"I do not want things to go this way though, Rex. Please assure us that there's no threat to be had here".

 

[Rex Valhoun]

"As I said, I will call off this operation, but not the warrants. I can't call off the warrants unless the senate approves or else they'll want me dead. They're very volatile in the senate, surely you know that. They see greatness in this ever growing Empire and they all have ideas of how to continue that growth.

By removing the warrants I'm leaving a threat open to The Imperium, as well as showing weakness not just to The Imperial minority but also the Refugee bloc, which has its' own issues with The Dobson family. All I need is for your friends to turn themselves in, but they won't do that....and yes, you gave them their positions, so don't tell me about how you have no power in The Imperium.

That's all there is to say. Goodbye."

He gave one last glance at Lori, and then a quick nod to Caedyn despite the anger within him. Sure, Caedyn was being respectful, but it was very difficult to be corrected by someone he had never met, in his own nation, and not get angry. Very difficult. He imagined Martin would remind him to control his pride. Martin would be proud. But the stupid old man left when he was needed the most...​

 

[Viken Dobson]

((Double oops!))

 

[Viken Dobson]

((Oops!))

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori glanced over to Caedyn Arenais as he spoke, defending everyone at the station. He was indeed neutral in all of this, which is what made his visit here all the more perfect. The added fact that he was her twin brother was also a bonus to the situation. The two were a great team, even if their ideals differed slightly. But that tended to be how it was with siblings.

She turned her attention to Rex Valhoun as he spoke, clenching her jaw as he spouted out wrongful statement after wrongful statement. The man was blind. All that he saw was his need for vengeance against a family name. Anyone that carried it was considered a threat, which was clearly not the case! Yet he wouldn't listen to her! He wouldn't believe her!

Both Dorthea Dobson and Viken Dobson 's positions that she gave them had nothing to do with the Imperium, but with her own company! They didn't require any senate approvals or anything. The government had nothing to do with her private affairs in space that didn't belong to them. Sure they held a portion of the station, but it was only a business venture, not a political one.

Lori's brows furrowed with concern as Rex left them, not quite ready to breath a sigh of relief just yet. "That was close...But it's not over yet. I'd like to think that I knew what I had gotten myself into, but I don't anymore. Things are far more complicated than I ever expected them to be...." And she was worried as to what would happen next for her friends.

And for her.

 

[Caedyn Arenais]

Much to Caedyn's surprise and relief, Rex Valhoun said his piece and turned to leave them without any growing confrontation. Once the man had exited the room, Cae's shoulders physically relaxed as he let out a slow exhale, soon to turn to look to Loreena Arenais-Valhoun who expressed her dismay with the marriage she had, in her words, gotten herself into.

"In Rex's defence, leading an Empire is no small feat. The affairs of the state become complicated with pressures from senators and influential politicians. If he appears weak, he risks being outed for someone new and supposedly more capable," Caedyn replied, speaking from his own experiences with Mnemosyne's leadership and his time as a former high-profile member of the Order of the Silver Jedi. "For all we know, he might not even want to believe there's a cause behind what he's doing, but he can't allow others to see that lest his position come into question. It's not an easy place to be in, where even those you believed to be friends can turn away from you because of their own differing views with running a government".

Caedyn wasn't trying to justify Rex's actions but offered a different perspective. Loreena herself wasn't new to leadership positions. Of course, she was technically an Empress of the Elysium Empire well before he came into the situation. "I'm not vouching for him or anything, don't get me wrong" he elaborated some, ensuring there wasn't any misunderstanding between him and his Sister; "But proud men do make the worst of leaders I've found. I've been forced to let go of a lot of my pride at times to keep the peace. Politics is a damnable headache" he concluded with a faint chuckle under his breath.

They had avoided a potentially violent confrontation, and for that, Caedyn was relieved and thankful. He had met far less reasonable people in the past who wouldn't have battered an eyelash at the thought of killing everyone in the room. From first impressions, Rex hadn't fully embraced the Darkside of the Force, if he was influenced by it as his Sister suspected.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori listened to Caedyn Arenais as he spoke moreso about Rex Valhoun 's position than about the man himself. She nodded a little as everything he said had made sense. But that didn't mean that it made anything easier. "But who would even try to take his place? I don't think that anyone in the Senate is that ambitious. Only Var ever hinted at it, but I think that's more of an emotional response than a genuine one." Var-Sulis had mentioned leading Elysium before, but she didn't take that seriously. "They would probably have to kill him to remove him and then where does that leave me? Would I be targeted next?" Given that they had no heirs, not even close to having any, Lori was the next in line.

She let out a heavy sigh. "My friends have done nothing wrong. They know nothing. Letting them get interrogated wouldn't help, as they'd just be accused of hiding intel. Dorthea Dobson and Viken Dobson are both highly valuable in my company. I can't afford to lose them for any amount of time. I can't risk it. I'd rather get arrested myself." As much as she hated being in a cage, it was nothing new to her. Lori's rebelious streak had gotten her into trouble more than a few times.

"What would you do if you were me, Cae?" Lori knew that her pride and stubborness wasn't helping, but she couldn't let it go if it meant that her friends lose their freedom because of it.

 

[Caedyn Arenais]

"What would you do if you were me, Cae?"

"I would take your friends and get out" Caedyn replied simply.

Caedyn had lived and served in numerous sectors of the Galaxy, and even now he didn't consider himself beholden to one territory or political avenue. He was trained a Je'daii, and taken to the path of the Jedi Knight. Today his loyalties held no sway over whom he served or where he went in the Galaxy and that was just how he believed he needed to be in order to provide the 'greater good' in his line of work.

"There's always going to be someone else. Always a bigger fish, especially in politics" Caedyn reminded his Sister, looking back to Loreena Arenais-Valhoun ; "Though they may hide it out of fear of him for the time being. Moves will be being made, make no mistake. They may be snuffed out by Rex Valhoun or he may eventually be superseded by another...-Either way, I wouldn't put the lives of your friends on it. I'd have them pull back to a system where they can wait out the heat. Safety first...-With the power that he currently holds, I doubt there's anything that can be done right now to divert his attention elsewhere".

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

There was no hesitation in Caedyn Arenais ' answer. His reply to her question came straight away.

Lori nodded a little and listened to the rest of what he had to say. Given that her bother had more interaction with the Galaxy than she had, most especially when it came to the super powers that fought over control of it; Lori took her brother's words to heart.

Already she was forming her own plans. At the beginning of the week her focus was on herself and what she wanted in life, but now? Now that focus was reverted to protecting the lives and freedoms of her friends. She had to put her own concerns for herself behind her.

"This station is neutral. He has no authority here. It's in neutral space too, so he can't even try to claim authority that way. That gives them some protection at least. For the moment until I figure out what to do next." Lori shook her head a little in thought. "They say that power corrupts, and in this case I think it has. I don't think that anyone's been influencing him. I haven't seen anyone that could be a Sith lurking about. And you know how they are. They don't exactly hide who they are, so they'd be easy to spot. Rex used to be all about protecting lives and then he destroyed entire cities. I don't want to become like that. The Eternal Empire tried to brand me as a terrorist like that. I might...speak to Rex on my own and see if there is any common ground between us anymore. That'll help in whatever decision that I make."