The Wedding of Danger Arceneau

[Alric Kuhn]

T H E * W E D D I N G * O F * D A N G E R * A R C E N E A U

Cloud Nine.

There was a serene beauty to be found here.

Normally the city was filled with tourists, VIP guests, thousands of residents and of course shops and stalls of all sorts. Today however, at least within the lower section of the city, Cloud Nine was quiet. There was a serene silence that hung over it, a beautiful calm that normally did not linger here. The falls flowed, the air stilled, and the rolling clouds of Bespin seemed to carry throughout the city in an almost lackadaisical manner. It was beautiful, and it had all been arranged by two people.

The city had been rented out, the residents well paid for the intrusion, the shops closed voluntarily, and everything else had been totally and completely prepared for the Wedding of Danger Arceneau.

The Lower plaza of the City had been taken up entirely, rows upon rows of seats places before the grand lakes. The hotels within Cloud Nine had been filled with guests, restaurants, ball rooms, entire plazas had been set out for the one massive party that this wedding would end in. Thousands had come, all of them eager to attend one of the greatest business gatherings that had ever occurred. The entire city had been revamped to be featured as a location for the wedding, completely decorated and redone with every whim of Danger Arceneau. The beauty that hung from the rafters, the lights that would play after dark, every detail and every piece had been perfectly place.

Cloud Nine had been prepared for this party, every sector of the city featuring food, entertainment, and of course places to stay. Then there was the main attraction of course, the ceremony.

Many had been invited to the reception and thousands had showed for the part, but only a few hundred had been given entry to the ceremony itself. Those very important guests had been gathered in the low plaza behind the falls.

They sat within those rows, the specially invited, those who had received gifts and invitations from Danger and Alric themselves. They would watch as Alric stood on the massive plaza and Danger walked up the aisle, as the music thrummed out and the two looked into each others eyes. Alric wore a simple tuxedo, a smile pulling on his face. He held Danger's hands, the officiant, a lithe Zeltron man speaking the words that everyone had been waiting for.

Alric only nodded, his lips parting for two syllables.

"I do."

 

[Danger Arceneau]

Two little words.

It was surreal for Dangeruese Arceneau. Hearing them come from Alric's lips, that vow, sent a shiver down her spine. Here they were. Could it really be true?

The past year had been a hovercoaster of ups and downs. A learning experience, not only in each others lives, but what it meant to love, to trust, have faith, and hope. But most of all, it had been a path where Danger could finally learn to let go. Let go of her fear. To let go of her hate. To learn how to forgive.

Age has a way of putting things into perspective, and after all this time, Danger realized just what were her priorities in life. She wasn't a Forcer. She wasn't one to do what she would to extend her life. She had only a set amount of years left, and how she lived those years depended on her choices.

And what she would place first and foremost.

It was odd to see, the ever proud and seemingly composed Queen of Trade's fingers tremble. Nothing but love would bloom within her chest, and it just seemed to pour out towards the man in front of her. Green eyes would latch upon bright blue, a little older than decades past, but still the same. His peppered hair was slicked back, and the very devil was on his smile.

For the longest time, she had oft told herself that, 'I am the spice in a man's life, not the main course.' She had settled herself to that. Maybe most would still see it that way, but there was no denying that Alric Kuhn loved her more than words could say. The softly glowing ring on her left hand reminiscent of the Twin Suns of Tatooine made it clear to see.

One may not know what would come to pass after today, but Danger knew that they would do it together. As a family.

So when all eyes would turn towards Danger, and her turn came to make her vow, it was the most natural thing to say. Her eyes were misted, and Alric became a slight blur.

There was a slight squeeze of her hand as he held it, and she found herself giving a soft laugh.

"I do."

 

[Ereza]

The event was lavish on a scale that Amore had once pictured her own wedding to be. The reality of the matter had been far more simple, far more quiet. An intimate ceremony of only close friends and family. She did not resent nor regret it in any way and did remember her wedding with a great deal of fondness. It had never been about the grandeur of the publicity. It had only and always been about making a statement to the one she now sat beside even if it was not something necessary.

A ring didn't change the bond. Didn't make it stronger or weaker. It stood only as the reminder.

Navy blue the color of the day, Amore absently smoothed the material of her dress as she switched to prop one leg over the other, thinking how lovely this all really was. Thinking also of how bored [member="Cameron Centurion"] must be. Not enough red in this wedding. A half smirk curled her lips as she snaked a hand over the man's thigh with a gentle squeeze.

He looked so handsome in blue.

 

[Makai Dashiell]

Cloud Nine - Wedding of [member="Danger Arceneau"] and [member="Alric Kuhn"]



Small feet swung lightly in the chair, watching the ceremony. The scale-speckled boy was doing his best to sit still and pay attention to what was going on up front, even though it was a little difficult to see from his angle. Thick curls had been wrangled for the occasion, looking more presentable than wild.


He wore a suit matching his fathers, dark navy blue in color. Instead of a tie gracing his neck, there was a brightly colored crab bow-tie. His father had picked it out, noting it would be a small private joke between himself and Miss Ar-cen-now.


Wait....could he still call her Miss Ar-cen-now? When people got married sometimes the woman changed her name. Mama didn't change her name so maybe Miss Ar-cen-now wouldn't either....It would be rude to ask but Miss Ar-cen-now would probably tell him next time he met....not that it really mattered.


Tired of not seeing what was going on, Makai silently moved onto his father's lap, getting a boost. Now instead of seeing nothing but backs he could see heads and more of the ceremony up front. Leaning back into his Dad's chest, iced-blue eyes watched with rapt attention.

 

[Cameron Centurion]

Silver-green eyes remained focused on the ceremony at hand. The Sith Lord really did not have occassion to attend a great many weddings. This could no doubt be blamed on the fact that the amount of associates he kept with any predilection towards being married were quite small in number. Then there was the fact that Cameron, in the past, had never seemed to be in one place long enough to even so much a receive an invitation, much less be bothered to attend.

That aspect of his life had diminished considerably since he'd started his courtship with the woman by his side so many years ago. Initially, he had, of course, been intrigued by her beauty. Yet he'd hesitated...mostly because of her family. A family he seemed to be continuously involved with over the years. Good genes, he supposed. What Cameron had never expected to find was the piece of himself that made him whole. Yes...she was definitively light-sided, kind-hearted, and focused on healing the galaxy. Cameron believed in the precise wielding of power, in any form, to accomplish objectives. His was no more a kind heart than it was an evil one - he merely viewed the galaxy and life as it was...imperfect. He would see the galaxy grow stronger through conflict...through the realization of shortcomings in failure and the ever-continuous journey to eradicate said shortcomings.

It was a brutal, cold view of life. [member="Amorella Mae"] had changed that...to a considerably degree. Through her eyes and her heart, he saw things he might well have been blind to in the past. For that and so many other reasons words failed to explain, he loved her and would continue to do so with each passing breath. There were those that said such a connection could be exploited as a weakness. In his situation, there was no truth to do that. She granted him strength and power in the simple act of accepting him for who he was.

As Esmae squeezed his thigh, Cameron briefly diverted his gaze to her brilliant blue orbs with an easy smile. Placing his hand over hers, he gave it a squeeze back and kissed her softly on the cheek before redirecting his attention to the new couple at the head of the room. Dressed his blue suit, Cameron was not bored.

Maybe a little bored. He wasn't much one for ceremony.

He was definitely hungry though.

Par for the course.

 

[Judah Dashiell]

The wedding of [member="Danger Arceneau"] had come as a surprise. While they could be considered friends, certain information pass between the two. Personal life was personal life. The bridegroom was a gentleman he had seen at a Sullust party with Miss Arceneau some time before. [member="Alric Kuhn"] was the name. Judah didn't know much about the man, wasn't sure about his past.


Part of him felt a little protective towards Miss Arceneau. Not that the woman couldn't handle herself. She was an only child, most of her family was deceased from what he knew. Judah felt a need to keep an eye on her. Personally he would have preferred to have words with the groom about treating Miss Arceneau the way she was meant to be....but it would probably embarrass his business associate far too greatly.


Dressed in a dark navy blue suit, Judah adjusted his tie slightly before [member="Makai Dashiell"] scampered up into his lap to get a better view.


The wedding ceremony reminded him of his own to [member="Thessa Kai"] . It was a simple sea-side ceremony with just themselves and her parents ; they were far too poor to afford something lavish at the time. A traditional Galan ceremony, it was the quiet binding of two people, a public expression of eternal love. Besides the birth of their son several months later, no other day had come close to being as perfect as their vows by the sea.


It was a shame the mermaid wasn't at his side for the ceremony.


They were on a bit of a rocky shore now, with Judah wondering how to turn the tide back. It wasn't something that could be fixed overnight. Nor was he going to turn his back on the situation. Being at the wedding of Miss Arceneau only reminded him how hard-fought it had been to win her hand. The simple joy of her being in his life.


He could only hope the gentleman up front felt the same about the flame-haired Trade Queen. She deserved nothing less.

 

[James Justice]

BEFORE:

Spoiler

"What the fething hells do you mean you blew out a karking fuse?" James roared into the comm.

Something indistinguishable came from the other end of the line. The spacer narrowed his eyes and took a draw on his cigarette before letting the smoke spew out of his mouth with his next words;

"Ye first mate there?.... Good, put 'er on..... Ye a bounty hunter, right? Good. Ye captian got a ten thousand bounty on his head. Slag him. Good lass. Ditch the body, get ye arse over here in twelve hours and I'll give ye another stack as a bonus. Ye be late and ye will be next. Good."

The spacer hung the line up and tossed his communicator across the table. Gathering the best ships in his fleet and outfitting them for this luxury job had been more than he had thought at first it would be. But Danger was a damn good woman, and a damn good client. He would do whatever the hells he had to do to make sure her big day wasn't ruined because the guests couldn't show up. No matter what it took, even if he ate a loss on this, he would make sure the opulence on these freighters would surpass even Hutt Barges. No expense was spared. All luxuries that could be obtained were there; legal or not, all complementary. Custom leather seats that conformed to the body for comfort. The finest foods. The best wines, the best cigars, the most expensive china. All of it, the whole nine yards, enough to make his Angel Den night club look like child's play.

The spacer ran his fingers through his hair as he reviewed the numbers the droids had brought him from the latest orders.

"Is everything satisfactory, master?" intoned the droid.

James nodded, "Aye, this is very good. Haul arse, I want these here in half the time, ye hear me?"

"Of course, sir."

He rubbed his brow for the billionth time. Some days being the Freighter King was good, others it was hell on earth.

NOW:

James could not have been prouder to have been here. And, on a rare action, and as a courtesy, he was sober.

He didn't normally come to weddings. He was rarely invited. He hadn't thought much about the thing himself; he wasn't the marrying type, he would tell himself and others. Though truth be told, he had been married. And being here reminded him of all of it. His had been a simple affair; him, her, a few rings, and the local Justice of the Peace. Memories surrounding the event rushed back into his mind. The spacer, unable to hide behind booze and tobacco, felt tear streaming down his face. It was so beautiful.

He, for once, ditched his leather jacket and swaggering pilots costume. All easily seen weapons were off his person. Instead, he wore a navy blue pin-stripe suit that clung closely to his skin over a white shimmersilk shirt and red tie. Over it he wore a brown trench coat that hung loosely, his hands in his pockets. He had even shaved his face and left two sideburns stretching to his jawline.

It was quite rare for him to dress like this. In fact it was so out of character, one might even mistake him for some sort of Doctor.

OOC:

Spoiler

Been saving that Doctor reference for a LONG time for something special

 

[Ultimatum]

This was the first such ceremony he had ever been blessed to view or partake in. He had never expected to participate in such an event as an organic wedding. He had learned only a small portion of the proceedings and nothing of the actual happenings and how the organics reacted. It was a singularly surprising revelation. He had learned the words spoken, the general concept of the ceremony and then cultural variations. However nowhere had he found that this event was so filled with emotion. He had always known that organics were beings of emotions, however he had mistakenly assumed that their emotions were for the most part saved for friends and wars.

He was sitting in one of the farthest back seats. He had found himself supremely under dressed for the occasion. He had been planning on producing a more organic body that would be suited for such occasions as these, but as of yet he had been busy with other business. Further, having a suit made for a droid was incredibly difficult, especially one in his size and he had found that most of the colors used had been clashing with his own appearance. He did not mind, but he knew that it might be distracting from the importance of this event and thus he put himself as far out of view as possible while still being here.

He would have been moved by the evident emotion between the two, if he had not decided to be objectively studying this. As it was, he was silent watching with interest. He had never really thought much about these sort of organic rituals, for that is what he saw them as. He enjoyed himself, this was a once in a lifetime event, he doubted that he would ever see something like this again.

 

[Kaili Talith]

This wasn’t the time to be depressed.

And that was what Kaili mainly seemed to be these days.

But not today.

For the first time ever she was wearing a dress. That meant that for the first time ever she was actually doing work that didn’t involve spreading pain and misery in the name of holy wars or just religion in general. Today she wasn’t a droid maker, or a mass grave clean up crew. Not a kid or even a Talith. Today, Kaili was the camera crew. Several dozen little droids were all orbiting around the diverse crowds of the wedding.

However, unlike the rest she was not allowing herself a seat. She remained at the back of it all. The quiet hums of the camera drones would be audible only to those who truly focused on it, but they were needed. For this one, Kaili was recording not just any wedding. She was recording [member="Danger Arceneau"] and [member="Alric Kuhn"]’s wedding. Henry stood on her shoulder as the local drone control center and controller. Each drone panned over the crowds to get a good look on all the visitors. All the footage would be gifted to the couple at the end, edited on the go with a heavy focus on the soon-to-be weds.

“I do.” The close up of Alric Kuhn took the first step into the new world ahead of them.

“I do.” The second close up of Danger Arceneau announced back not long after.

Kaili would have lied if she said she didn’t let a small smile break through the focused facade she had put on.

And so, with the main course out of the way, Kaili was allowed to go back to the rest of the duties she had undertaken. Her focus shifted to the panning shots of the crowd that was in attendance. None of them were people that she recognized, but she could only imagine the combined income within these very halls was enough to purchase the entire galaxy and a backup of it as well.

Face buried in her datapad she sifted through the feeds.

Wait. Was that-

“Mae-Mae?” Kaili looked over the feed again. “Cams?”

What was her aunt doing here? And Cameron?

No, this wouldn’t do. A droid was promptly dispatched to intrude upon [member="Amorella Mae"] and [member="Cameron Centurion"]’s personal space directly. The drone would float around in Mae's face for a few seconds before flying away towards the back where Kaili stood ready to wave at her.

 

[Alric Kuhn]

Loud clapping began to erupt from the crowd as Alric pulled Danger to him and laid a full kiss on her lips. His arms wrapped around her and his hands tightened around the small of her back. He held her close and against them for a moment, simply pressing her against himself until finally he let go. Both of them sucked in a deep breath of oxygen, smiles pulling on their lips as they turned and looked out towards the crowd, hands intertwined with one another.

Alric only looked at everyone, the smile pulling at his lips.

There were hundred of people in front of them, dozens that they knew personally and even more that simply had the reputation to warrant invitation. It was within the nature of Alric and Danger, more so Danger than he. She had been a prolific business woman for nigh on her entire life, she had met and done business with more people than most had ever even seen, and that was no exaggeration. Most everyone of them had been invited to this ceremony, and those that hadn't had been invited to the party on Cloud Nine itself. This event was massive, so huge that he could hardly believe the size of it himself. For a brief second he looked at Danger, watching her out of the corner of his eyes.

She looked happy, truly happy.

They had had their small, private wedding just a few days before, a tiny ceremony with only them, the twins, and Danger's closest. It had been nice, but this? This was an event that rocked the galaxy.

Alric stepped into her slightly, moving closer to his wife and squeezing her hand ever so gently before turning to address the crowd. "Hello!"

The microphone attached to his lapel boomed his voice out over the courtyard. They had set this up so the ceremony would be quick and neat. Neither Danger nor Alric wanted to drag out the focus on themselves, they simply wanted to gather people and enjoy a good time.

"Thank you all for coming, I know that for some of you it was quite a trip." A few short laughs in the crowd. "We invite you to stay as long as you wish. Danger and I will remain within the city and will speak to all who wish it. Please, take your time, enjoy Cloud Nine, and have fun."

He smiled, and then leaned over to peck Danger on the cheek.

 

[Ereza]

What was Amorella Mae Darke doing here indeed.

Felt like such a long time ago that [member="Danger Arceneau"] had played a role in the progression of the Moross Crusade. Set up at the trade hub on Aurum, sold them bulk durasteel for the orbital driveyard expansion on Ceto. The escort service had been Soliael's doing, but the women provided were more than apt to fit in to the role of followers of Inari ... among other various Gods. Knowing these things and seeing how everything had shift from and since then gave her a fleeting sense of accomplishment.

She watched the proceedings with a warm fondness for her past settling firmly somewhere in her soul. Despite the feeling of haplessness, of feeling lost, without purpose, it was nice to enjoy the accomplishments of others. Especially something as wondrous as the joining of two lives. The happy couple kissed and Amore joined in on the applause with a short stint of gentle clapping. She bit at her lower lip, smiling through, pondering what would be next - and that was when the media droid hovered through her personal space. A blink, the woman followed its hovering progress as it beeped, blinked at her and whisked away to reveal a young girl waving eagerly from the far back.

Blue eyes found the face of [member="Kaili Talith"] and crinkled in delight. Family. Family was always a welcome distraction.

"Nohei's here," a quick whisper to her own husband, Amore leaned up to grant a lingering kiss at the corner of his eye, "I'm going to say hello."

Another squeeze to his thigh, a blue-eyed wink and the woman slipped away. No need to arrange a meeting spot, they'd find one another wherever they were such was the bonded strings that connected them. Light footed she stepped down the row of chairs and along a minor hallway, finding Kaili and greeting her with a brilliant smile and warm hug, "Nohei you beautiful girl, oh I missed you." Even with having moved to Borleias herself she confessed to not seeing the young Taliths enough. They were all grown now, young adults by their own right, and far more difficult to keep up with than she could have ever imagined. Amore found herself wishing they were all still babes and so easy to snatch up in her arms.

[member="Cameron Centurion"]

 

[Sarge Potteiger]

Somewhere in the crowd of people expressing their joy - or polite acceptance - of this joining of what was likely the corporate equivalent of a Death Star stood a man in a painfully white suit with pants as black as the eyes he hid beneath a battered helmet. The helmet, too, was black and white, and was only worn simply because of how many individuals were actually here. 'Sarge' couldn't show up to a function such as this with his face on display.

It was, rather amusingly to him, out of character for such a thing to happen.

He'd now been to two weddings - the first Tegea and Siobhan, and now [member="Alric Kuhn"] and [member="Danger Arceneau"]. Reaching a hand up to adjust the void of his bowtie, knowing it complimented the black kerchief tucked into his breast pocket, he let his gaze linger on the voluptuous frame of Danger before panning to the more rugged visage of Alric. He'd done business with both.

Danger... three times? Alric once.

He'd never gotten along with the Queen of Trade, just one of those meetings of personalities where you couldn't place where the distaste came from, you simply knew it was there. He'd spotted [member="Amorella Mae"] on his way in, but didn't know who [member="Cameron Centurion"] was. Though they looked happy, at least.

That put a smile on his face.

And so the Stormtrooper in a suit clapped until Alric spoke - this time not to his now wife, but to the crowd.

And somehow, despite his stubborn insistence on remaining almost doggedly sorrowful with the set of his features, that smile clung tight to his lips; what a long, strange trip this life had been. To think, he'd lived to see the Trade Queen married.

 

[Danger Arceneau]

Feeling the press of [member="Alric Kuhn"] 's lips against her cheek was enough to get her flushing under the attention. It was strange, for those that knew and were close acquaintances of Danger and those who only knew her by reputation.

There was a radiance to her. A glow that came from within. The smile that normally twisted in a provocative twist had soften to one of pure joy. One might say that there was a lightness in her step, perhaps as if a burden had been lifted. Whatever it was, few could argue that today was certainly one of Danger Arceneau's best days to shine.

"I love you," would be murmured over to Alric, her hand tightening against his, the Twin Suns of Tatooine and the matching wedding band glowing softly with allure on her hand. Alric had given a speech, and normally Danger would too, but right now it was about celebrating. They would both be available to mingle throughout the event - although likely cutting out early - to greet their guests.

Careful planning took the better part of a few months; with a small hiccup when it came to the sudden entry of the First Order into Bespin's system. Thankfully, with [member="Darth Metus"] 's help, that had smoothed over nicely, and Danger would continue her wedding plans undisturbed. Of course, there were those who perhaps took advantage of all the influx of vendors and invitees to do their own curious mission objectives. Danger was not so blind to realize that; she could only ensure that there was plenty of security and that the general populace would simply enjoy having a good time.

Guests would be invited to enjoy the catering by BlueMilk, a fine dining restaurant that had recently opened its doors on Cloud Nine. There was a vast array of food, the liquor was flowing, and all guests would receive complimentary gifts created by LOOM as their keepsake.

For now, the nearby full band orchestra at the reception area would start up a smooth jazzy tune.

 

[Kaile Vera]

They said it was the biggest wedding where anybody who was anybody would be.

Everything was paid for, down from the food, the drink, all of Cloud Nine that wasn't privately owned. Folk showed up from everywhere, all in their finery, looking all pretty as birds. Some of the ladies wore some slink, that would cling to their bodies and move with every step. Others had some nice lace, not as frilly as Kaileann would like, but they were sure awfully pretty.

That blue dress Kurt picked out would have fit right in...

Sniff.

Every one was all smiles, looking all kinds of cheerful. It was nice, really. The bride glowed, and one could see that the groom had no eyes for another. It was adorable really. Kinda sweet.

They was even handing out these neat little coins. Someone told her that they were made out of pure platinum, mined and crafted by one of the many vendors who'd come to take advantage of the free advertisement by making the most of their wares.

"Look at that, Bobo," Kaile held up the platinum coin. She could only have one. It was one per guest. Honestly, she wasn't supposed to be here but kinda hard to miss and say no when those who were on Bespin had been invited as well. Viere said there would be plenty of cake.

"Even has the faces of both Miz Arceneau and Mister Kuhn." the light would glint against the shiny surface, her thumb lightly rubbing over the emblems of both companies. "Ain't that sweet? So thoughtful."

Sniff.

"Kurt would have liked this." the heartbroken murmur would slip from her lips like a mourner's prayer.

Like a wilted flower left to the elements, Kaileann's thin shoulders sank, miserable and feeling out of place amidst the cheers and applause that resonated throughout Cloud Nine.

Surrounded by thousands, Kaile never felt so alone.

 

[Kaili Talith]

Kaili clapped along with the others, although in the very back and without being very audible to anyone other than perhaps the man in the back who already smelled like he had found the liquor cabinet. As the speech was over and people started to get up to enjoy the festivities, Kaili found that her aunt finally turned back to look for whoever intruded on her personal space. Ther stood Kaili, much like the annoying friend you tried to ignore in the supermarket. Kaili waved at her aunt like a crazy person as the grin on her lips that exposed her teeth that was complemented by a hand and arm movement going back and forth so rapidly she could have flown away.

It was not until it was all over that the girl realised what she looked like. The grin turned into a crooked smile and chuckle. Mae-Mae was on her way and with it Kaili put her datapad on a nearby table. There was no need to worry about droid controls, Henry was already making the sweet cinematic magic happen on his own. She kept her arm extended towards the table to let the droid happily clamber towards the table for extra stability.

[member="Amorella Mae"] left [member="Cameron Centurion"] behind as she approached and hugged Kaili. The kid returned the favor and wrapped her arms around her favorite aunt.

“It’s been a while, Aunt Mae.” Kaili smiled. “You look great, as always.”

“And look at me!” Kaili let go of her aunt and spun around to show off her dress. “I am wearing a dress!”

“I never thought that would happen.” All things considered Kaili wasn’t very girly. But that didn’t mean she didn’t have her moments. “And-and-and-and- Can you believe I am actually here? I mean, the freaking wedding of the [member="Danger Arceneau"]?”

Which was, of course, not to diminish the presence of [member="Alric Kuhn"] as well. The kid proudly tapped at the ‘STAFF’ badge attached to her chest.

“I’m the camera crew.” She beamed with pride. “Me and Henry.”

Meanwhile, Henry stopped with the panning shots and moved on to focus on whatever caught his attention. One camera hovered above [member="James Justice"], another took interest in [member="Ultimatum"] to immortalize their presence at the festivities. They kept on hovering in expectation of a reaction. Hopefully to catch the smiles of the observers, if such things were to be given.

More and more of the drones began to spread themselves around the streets of Cloud Nine. Reception wasn’t supposed to be a problem with the extension towers that Kaili had been allowed to temporarily erect around the streets. Placed in spots where they wouldn't stand out like a sore thumb, the towers were designed to allow Henry and Kaili to send drones outside of the controller’s regular reach. Of course lag was a problem, but in the long run it was still something that was preferable over missing out on the goodness going on around the streets.

Truly, all Kaili wanted to do was to get as much of the joy recorded onto Henry’s hard drive as she possibly could for the sake of creating the most awesomestest wedding film ever. Well, also to get in the good graces of the most powerful businesswoman alive. But those two weren't exactly mutually exclusive nor had would she ever deny those were the reasons.

 

[Ultimatum]

Ultimatum listened to the short speech, laughing when he was supposed to and smiling warmly the rest of the time. As an artificial being he did not have emotions and did not feel them in the way that organics do. As an artificial intelligence, the organic definition that it, he was intended to think much like an organic did, thus he had programs within him that gave him an ability to feel the emotion as an organic would. As closely as possible of course, there is no way that an artificial mind can have the same sensations and interpret them the same way an organic would.

He was happy for the two organics. While it occurred to him that this was an incredibly business opportunity, he pushed that to the side. There was something greater here. There appeared to be a simple pleasure, one that he had only once or twice before seen in an organic. It was not the pleasure derived of getting what one wants, not in the usual sense anyways. This was a more basic pleasure, and therefore more real. He wished them the best marriage that organics could ever share.

He noted the camera droid's presence and gave it a smile and a wave. He would leave that information alone. He had spent much time deleting most of the information of himself from the HoloNet, at least the over information, so that he could avoid a number of organics. This however, this he would be fine with. Most would not look upon the droid and think that this was a completely new experience for him, most would not see that part of him was overjoyed to be learning in such an environment. It was also unlikely that any would see the cold analytical side of his mind collecting information for strategic purposes. He never wanted nor planned to act on that information gathered, but when dealing with organics that could be after him he had to have foresight. Every movement he made was taken and made into a calculation of what exactly were his escape, or attack options. This was a background program, he did not noticed it and therefore was not truly aware of it. It was one of those things that was always running, always looking for a quick out should the unspeakable happen.

The festivities were truly astounding. He once more was glad that he had left out any mention of LOOM on either of the two trinkets that were handed out to visitors. There were too many others that were advertising overtly. He did not need the money of organics, that was one of the reasons that he had avoided making anything for the public market. Contracts were the only products for the organics that he would make willingly. Certain at some point he might branch out into public merchandise, but not anytime soon. For now it was leaving little imprint on the public's mind as a whole. The coin handed to him was slipped into a compartment. He had refrained from making any more than necessary, which was the overly optimistic concept of how many would come. That had turned out to be a very good decision, there were more people than he would have anticipated. He could have produced a few extra and tried to sell them off, but that was an organic strategy for money making, he had no need for it. It would take away from the event, detracting from the value that a wedding had.

He walked about, mingling and enjoying the atmosphere. At some point he would give his sincere well wishes to the newly weds, but not yet. There was time for that later.

 

[Ereza]

"Yes," Amore grinned, bright white fangs gleaming in the daylight while undercurrents of the Force played about shielding her exposed skin from the harmful rays, "and you look very lovely. Just like your mother," the grin closed to a warm smile as the girl continued to babble excitedly. How she'd garnered an invitation to this wedding was indeed a curiosity on Amore's mind but it really mattered little in the grand scheme of things.

They were here, she was here, and apparently she was being paid for her time by the looks of her very fancy STAFF badge.

"That's fantastic," said her flame-haired aunt, "I'm sure you've dotted all your i's, crossed your t's, hm?" Tutoring the children during their youth had left her in a mentor position for them and no matter how old they got Amore was sure to maintain that dedicated title.

"Who's Henry?"

[member="Kaili Talith"]

 

[James Justice]

James rose and clapped when the Alric had said his piece. The joke about the travel over, he had to laugh at too. His staff did consist of the most rogue and vagabond crew that he could dredge up. Most came from abject poverty that he had hired on to give them a second chance. You couldn't teach them social graces, much like you couldn't teach James to stop drinking and smoking. More than one of his Pilots had been secretly---or not so secretly--gawking at their passengers. Well, it was almost as of someone had taken the "who's-who" list of people and laid them out on his roster of passengers. He shook his head, someday he would--

No, he shook the idea out of his head and wiped the tears from his face. He had sworn to himself he would be sober as a stone but--this was too much. He couldn't stand the memories anymore. Or the feelings, they were crushing him under the weight. He couldn't deal with them now. He saw the camera drone overhead, he looked up and gave one of his charming smiles and waves before making his way down to the refreshers. It was a ruse, his smile. But then that was probably true most of the time.

He ducked inside, and was alone, than the Force. He reached into his coat pocket and fished out a flask of moonshine. Ordinarily he would have savored the slow slip into intoxication, but he didn't have that luxury right now. Three inches from an emotional break down at one of the most important events in the galaxy, he had no time to wait on getting buzzed. Besides, honestly, people saw him drunk so often, him being sober would be the real shock. People would think he had something wrong, he told himself as he unscrewed the flask.

Then it was bottoms up. All the way. The liquid burned down his throat as James savored every drop. Ah, thank the Force, it started hitting his bloodstream fast. The memories of his late wife faded into the back ground. The pain of loss was all but gone. His mistakes. All of it was as if it had never happened, all that existed was the here and now. Just like he liked it.

Stowing the flask once more, James looked in the mirror. He took a few moments to adjust his appearance and swaggered out the door. His eyes roved the room. There were so many women, so many people, so little time. His eye settled on a familiar figure, @Ultimatum. His hand grabbed one of the coins and he pocked it as he made his way to his mechanical friend.

"Funny seeing ye here mate," James said with a laugh, offering his hand, "Good to see ye. How is life?"

 

[Kaili Talith]

The drones had gotten what they wanted and promptly left both [member="James Justice"] and [member="Ultimatum"] alone.

Kaili wanted to respond her aunt, but all she could do was blink in surprise. Had it really been that long since the last time she had met Aunt Mae? Henry was pretty much the one thing Kaili had been running around to show everyone around the house while boasting about how she had created him. Her lips thinned, the blinking continued and without really looking she raised her hand towards the droid on the nearby table and pointed.

“That’s Henry.” She remained blinking. “I made him.”

The droid turned around to look at [member="Amorella Mae"], raised his front leg and waved it back and forth in a greeting. Kaili chuckled, warm smile and all.

“He’s a fully articulate, completely self-reliant droid unit with a custom-made intelligence of his own.” Kaili did totally-not-at-all brag. “He can climb walls, hack consoles, record things, see through small cloaking devices and a whole bunch of other things that I really shouldn't bore you with.”

Kaili waved her hand dismissively in front of her.

“Anyway, I see you brought Cam along.” Kaili gave [member="Cameron Centurion"] a curious look. “What have you two been up to? How do you know the bride, or groom?”

 

[Ereza]

"Did you?" eyebrows shot up into her hairline. Amore was earnestly surprised. "You made him...it? Him. You made him all on your own? And he can do all those things? Nohei... that's brilliant," another wide, toothy smile and the woman gave the little droid a wondering gaze, waving back.

She'd always know Kaili to have a penchant for tech but she'd never been fully aware of just how strong it was. Her smile wilted somewhat as she realized that she really had missed a great deal of time with them while tending to the unmaking of Moross. Brow knitting in mild concern for what else she might've missed from any of Kaili's three siblings, she raised a hand to touch at the girl's hair fondly, "Oh, just...enjoying one another's company. Doing a bit of traveling."

Trying to find my place in this galaxy again, she didn't say though her expression might've for the briefest moment.

"We worked together with Miss Arceneau on some projects in wild space. I don't know her well, admittedly, but well enough to earn an invitation I suppose. But let's talk about the one who's been hired by her to film her own wedding. What prestige you're building, Miss Talith. I imagine you'll be getting a fat paycheck for that, hm? Whatever will you spend it on?"

[member="Kaili Talith"]