They Shoot, We Skor

[Loske Treicolt]

[SIZE=11pt]“Yes, that’s it!” Loske snapped her fingers at the Database Enclave fill in the blank. What had been a light, rosy-cheeked blush turned deeper when [member="Magdalena Lethe"] finished her sentence and informed her of the lofty position she held within G.U.I.D.E. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=11pt]“[/SIZE][SIZE=11pt]Oh my[/SIZE][SIZE=11pt],” she peeped, “I’m so…” wanting to disclaimer how embarrassed she was, but something of a politician’s tongue snuck into her mouth and replaced Loske’s would-be-words with something a little more finessed that Kiskla would have conceived “..happy to meet you in person!” That [/SIZE][SIZE=11pt]happy[/SIZE][SIZE=11pt] would have maybe been [/SIZE][SIZE=11pt]honoured, [/SIZE][SIZE=11pt]but there was only so much a semi-conscious could improve on. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=11pt]The regular scheduled program restarted, and the girl shifted her weight on her feet which was almost as awkward as the hidden side glance her conversation partner had shared. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=11pt]“I guess all that paperwork doesn’t really ladder up, eh? Are you still operating?” [/SIZE]

 

[Magdalena Lethe]

If anyone could recognize the diplomatic wrangling of emotional turmoil, it was Magdalena Lethe. She'd built the foundation of her career with GUIDE on that one skill alone and she'd be a bantha's brother if she thought she had any serious grasp of it. It made her smile secretly to herself as the other young woman found her dissertative way.

Magda's smile broadened at the enthusiasm. She used to have zeal like that, what happened to it?

"Well, it's less a ladder and more a moving target. I didn't spend my days at a desk, I was working in the field alongside the Pathfinders or out fishing for Sponsorships. I'm sure the people I paid to run files might recognize the name. Difficult to say, we had well over 800 employees at our peak..."

"As for operating..." the woman lightly folded her arms, looking askance for a moment to untangle her thoughts from her emotions regarding the subject. Magda gently cleared her throat, "we're on the verge of bankruptcy. Lost a lot of big sponsors from various wars and changes of ownership. The horizon's looking pretty bleak."

[member="Loske Matson"]

 

[Loske Treicolt]

Loske nodded knowingly at [member="Magdalena Lethe"]'s explanation of her business. It made sense, that the person in charge didn't know everybody but her focus was instead keeping the operations afloat. Funding, conversations, smooth tongues and fancy dinners...that would have to be sterile...she kinda got the gist.

"What? Really?!" Loske was...obviously very ignorant to the nuances of running an enterprise. "Anything I can do to help? I guess it's largely finance related..."

She may know some people. Some royal people.

 

[Kinsey Starchaser]

She came for the meat.

Purrgil meat.

It's not like she'd exactly go hunting the whales herself. She'd gotten word what had happened. Looked like the Coalition survived stopping the First Order where the Alliamce had failed. Kinsey didn't really care about the superpowers of the 'verse. And she didn't do war. Well. Planned atleast.

Unplanned moments sometimes lead a person smack-dab in the middle of things.

And so, the explorer found herself juggling an overflowing plate of charred meat and a full mug of tea, jostling between the celebrators of elbows, ship grease, and alcoholic-laced belches.

 

[Magdalena Lethe]

[member="Loske Matson"]

It wasn't often that Magda shrugged. Shrugging was immature and, frankly, rude, but at this point it was all she had to offer in response.

Magda shrugged. And cringed.

"Unless we can manage to find a lot of high-credit sponsors fast, GUIDE will go under in a few months. There aren't a lot of people in this galaxy that will invest a large amount on good faith alone ... and I feel we've already tapped out most of those sources on our first sponsorship campaign"

 

[Loske Treicolt]

Loske closed her eyes. Maybe she shouldn't have asked. She didn't have pockets deep enough to help fund; but maybe she could offer a personal vessel in lieu of using some of G.U.I.D.E's fleet.

Good faith was indeed a difficult thing to purchase. People wanted things they could see, and even better, things they could feel. The type of tangibilities [member="Magdalena Lethe"] offered were for scholars.

"I'm really sorry to hear that. Those are probably difficult words for you to say. I may know of some pockets - maybe not ultra-millions deep. I'll see if there's stuff I can move around. I like the G.U.I.D.E vision. Something's gotta give there." She shifted from foot to foot.

"Is there a Hail Mary option?"

 

[Magdalena Lethe]

It was difficult to say but Magda didn't feel the need to admit it aloud. Some things should just be taken for what they were.

"I do not intend to sell-out, if that's what you're referring to," she replied, an mild edge of offense to her voice. Wouldn't be the first time someone had suggested it and she was sure it wouldn't be the last. No, if they were to close down it would be with dignity and pride in what they had achieved.

"But ...I would be grateful for any recommendations for Sponsors, if you know someone. My team isn't quite ready to throw in the towel."

[member="Loske Matson"]

 

[Loske Treicolt]

"I...wasn't referring to anything. Didn't know there was one thing over the other to refer to.." Loske admitted, lost in the world of business chat. "That's good to hear -- there's a House on Naboo, Veruna, that seems to never really run out of funds." The paused, considering her father's reaction to this. Oh well, it never hurt just to have a chat, and he was probably used to her trying to reign him into strange things now and then. Especially when it had come to The Alliance, [member="Marcello Matteo"] was someone that could be counted on.

I could intro you!"

[member="Magdalena Lethe"]

 

[Magdalena Lethe]

"Naboo?" that was a familiar name - almost too familiar. Magda's stomach fluttered at the idea of returning and she had to keep her mind from racing through memories. The GUIDE Founder gently cleared her throat, "We reached out to contacts on Naboo years back ... didn't pan out well, but I think there was a lot going on then." It also hadn't been with a House Veruna, which meant this was an untapped potential resource for them.

"Can't hurt to try, right? I would be happy to be introduced. When do you think...?"

Time was, in this particular case, very much of the essence. Every day they didn't pull in new sponsors was a day they bled what little funds remained. Magda hated to hurry people, but they were bordering on emergency status at this point.

[member="Loske Matson"]