Shadost: The Ambassador's Bad Idea!

Blaxdon was still thinking about Ziranova and the others. "But..." His voice trailed off as he sank into the co-pilots chair and looked out the window. "It was my home, our home me and Joovy. OH my god he's dead, this whole thing is my fault I never should have left home never, I should be dead too, its not right, I failed my people, Im a coward and now Zira, she's..." He didnt want to believe any of it. His heart wouldnt let any of it be true. Shaking his head and fighting off the anger and fear of the truth he held onto the hope. The hope that just maybe he could still make things right. Looking up at her his eyes filled with a defiant stare.

"No! We cant just sit here, we have to go back, you have to take me too her!" Blaxdon was hit a sudden need to find Zira. "I want to know more about my home, this cant be it, its a lie, you'll see, now lets see how to get this thing going." Blaxdon got sat up and looked over the controls. The looked back at the woman. "Well? Come on"
 
The growling, furious form of Tharn burst into the hangar deck, the Skarrathos Stormtrooper, though wounded, tensed his body and saluted
"Corporal Vlaadek, you have served well, fall out and tend to your wounds, oh, and you may mark yourself with another Valour marking" Tharn growled, his eyes almost lighting up as they came to regard the ambassador, which considering he still wore his half mask, looked rather disturbing and absurd at the same time.

Tharn removed the bronze grotesque and smiled at the Ambassador
"Lady Ambassador, it improves my morale to see you yet live, although these filthy shifter savages have eluded my grasp with their scramblers and cowards tactics" Tharn said bowing his head slightly, a motioning hand sending two formally uniformed troopers to move forwards with a medical kit and a fresh set of clothes, the Overlord slammed his foot against the decking and the honor guard did an abrupt about face, Tharn doing the same, so that the two female orderlies

"I understand your resistence to medical treatment, but these two are the finest physicians in aboard the Herald of Vengeace, and we can talk as they work to tend to your wound" he added, still facing outwards.
 
Coming out of Hyperdrive used to be akin to smashing into a brick wall in a breadbox car at fifty miles an hour...painful. Nowadays, ship builders had made the re-entry almost an art...as though competing for who can maintain the illusion of hyperspeed the longest after disengaging from the velocity. Adrian's ship, however, was probably one of the top contenders. If it wasn't for the little green message flashing that the stealth ship had arrived at its destination, Adrian might have not noticed at all.

While waiting for the Sweet lady to sashay her ever changing tail to his location, the politician would continue spinning his webs as he had always done...regrettably writing off the relocation of Ziranova...and perparing for a possible collaboration to the stories of the gun toting barbarians he was trying to frame.

It was time to dilute and redirect the message.

For that he would need an expert...an assassin...and it just so happened he had one on call.

Inputting a simple command for contact, Adrian called up a viewscreen to an otherwise dark room...but he knew she was there...where else did she have to go? After all...she was not two rooms away from him...in the custom meditation chamber he installed on a whim at the behest of some guru from Nygon.

"Kurai, darling...be a dear and report to the console room if you would?"

Sitting back in his chair, Adrian sampled a few more morsels of various chocolate clusters and smiled at the rich taste melting in his mouth...the investment in that chocolate factory was worth every penny and more...

Turning his gaze toward the doors he awaited the arrival of the only other person aboard his ship...and perhaps the most dangerous creature he knew.

Beautifully dangerous.
 
Celix

Celix was standing by the door, only slightly paying attention to the exchange between the Princess and the other guests. He didn't care about them either way. They were a pain in the ass and whatever the Sweet Lady planned to do with them ... that wasn't his business.

Celix's ears twitched. That wasn't completely true. Apparently he'd cared enough when she'd planned to drag the Princess away. But that was different, damnit! (This was his story and he was going to stick with it.) He blinked when the Princess went swaying past him and into the hall.

The pirate lying on the floor at his feet groaned and sat up. Celix swiftly turned around, grabbed a chair and slammed it over the pirate's head. CRASH! The chair splintered into several smaller pieces and the pirate hit the floor again.

"You killed him!" one of the women shrieked.

"You're not that lucky," Celix muttered, turning and then bounding out of the suite, like a cat, back in a position that would make any human groan. He caught up with the Princess and had to take her arm to stop her. There were footsteps and voices so he quickly pulled her into the first door they came to. The space was small and filled with cleaning tools.

"You're going to get us killed if you just parade around like this."


***
Sweet Lady

Sweet Lady dusted her hands off. After a long and hard battle, she was the victor and the Brigadier ... He would probably wish he was dead after she was through with him. He'd been so kind as to give her a worthwhile fight. She thought it only fitting she reward him somehow and keep around for a bit longer. She smirked down at his unconscious form at her feet, tapping her chin with one fingertip in thought. When was the last time she'd taken a lover ...


***
Kurai

The doors opened, letting the woman in. Kurai looked nothing like an assasin or a ninja at first glance. Her eyes were dark red, her long hair was pink, and she wore a long black gown and heels over her lithe body. The gown was long with slits on either side, either to show off her long legs or enable her to kick, run, and do a series of other things without hindrance. The top was low-cut to show off the top of her breasts without them spilling out and she wore a black choker given to her by Adrian.

The hours spent in meditation had been just what she needed, to clear her mind and focus her energy. She was better able to serve the man whom she owed so much to, in whatever capacity he wanted. She smiled, blushing.

"How may I be of service, my most gracious lord?" she asked, giving him a deep bow of respect.
 
"Are you kidding me? What kind of ship do you think this is!" Kendra had trailed the guy to her cockpit only to stare at him in disbelief. Yeah, she got the grief, dead friends and family and all that. But all that crap on the news signals about the whole hostage thing sounded like a huge problem - something this guy looked like he didn't need.

Snorting she moved to the captain's chair and dropped down in to a seat. Kendra prepared to leave the missing planet's orbit. "Okay, crazy. This isn't some fighter ship - I carry around cargo. Why don't we just find some space cops and tell them about this whole dead planet thing and get you to like, a hospital or something. My med lab isn't top notch and you look banged up like crazy."

"Besides," she continued, setting coordinates and getting them on their way. "I hear that nonsense is going to end up starting a war. You don't want to be in the middle of that." She hoped he didn't. Nice guys with hero complexes usually ended up dead!



Suddenly crammed in to a small cleaning locker with Celix, Princess Hanatia took complete advantage of the close quarters to throw her arms around him for a hug!

"We have to escape fast don't we?" Hanatia blinked and hushed herself when those voices drew close enough to their hideout for her to hear. For a brief moment the looked scared, but she was clinging to her new pet so it was easier to bolster herself up!

"Should we tackle them and steal their clothes?" she whispered. How else were they going to sneak around! She figured it was only a matter of time before that scary pirate woman realized some of her hostages were missing. And those cowards back there might even tattle on them trying to spare themselves!



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Ziranova Sachavik

Ziranova acquiesced to the medical attention, though wary and nervous about it. She didn't want to make a big scene to embarrass Overlord Tharn in front of his men. The Skarrathos nurses were surprisingly gentle as they urged her to sit, drawing a small appreciative smile from her. Getting rid of those clothes and getting cleaned, even just a little bit was a vast improvement.

"I have never been more happy or relieved to see anyone than when your men showed up. There were several moments I thought-" there was a soft uurrnph of pain from her as her wound was cleaned and bandaged up, "thought I would not make it. There are others till on board, however. And a Shifter that risked himself to help me. We really must do everything we can to get them off that ship. That woman was... merciless." What was done to herself was nothing compared to what the pirate shifter ordered for some of the other hostages. People she apparently had no intentions of letting go. She feared they wouldn't be brought back alive if it took too long to find them!

Zira took a deep breath before the temptation to cry gave in. It was important to remain calm and level headed until everyone was safe. She was momentarily distracted as the pair of nurses tried to help her dress in fresh clothes. Skarrathos clothing was a bit different from the simple dresses she usually preferred!

"I need to speak to the Galactic Council as soon as possible. And... um... I do have a small personal request. I would very much like bath, if it's permissible...?"
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Blaxdon looked at her as tried to seem hopeful. As she went on about the possible outcomes he let out a laugh. "Sorry I get carried away I guess. Hey whats that?" Rubbing his neck and head he felt a rush of pain but tried to ignore it as he looked out the window staring at something. Gasping from what he saw he stood up and hit is head on the over head of the cockpit. Falling back into his chair he groaned and pointed out into the mass of drifting rocks.

"Damn-it! They were here all along.. Damn-it! How could I have forgotten and shit Jovvy is dead too, damn, damn, damn. Ah my head." he held his skull and blinked trying to keep him tone level.

"How could I have been so stupid, the planet is cloaked. Perhaps to well, we must be at war. Its the only time they do that, oh my god and now Jovvy is dead. Argh.." Blaxdon hit the control panel with his fist and the lights flickered. "Sorry, shit Im sorry". A half second later they were hailed and he looked up and already knew who it was.

"Its them, my ship must have set off the beacon. They already know were here, might as well go home and see what they are going to do to me. I guess you can make your delievery after all. God I feel so stupid, Im sorry.. They'll guide you in and plot it out, just dont go off by more then a degree or two and we'll end up like Jovvy."

Lowering his eyes to her he got up and left the cockpit. The voice on the other end asked for confrimation of pilot name and ship information, along with the passenger count. Blaxdon knew he would have to say something before the transmission ended. Turning back just enough to be heard his voice was calm but firm.

"Blaxdon Glyson the 225th, Skoonek Royal, flight code AR14-995-01, permisson to land override." Rubbing his eye he walked out and went down the hall to sick bay. Taking a look around he felt sick that his foolish actions cost so many lives. He had to face his parents and the council. His fate was in their hands, as his thoughts returned to Ziranova. Was she even alive?
 
Musical Score: The Beautiful People - Marilyn Manson

Tharn nodded, his back to the ambassador, a rather obvious display of trust, not to mention modesty, as for a warlike people such as the Skarrathos, to turn ones back on anyone other than a member of your race is to put your life in their hands, indeed, among the Skarrathos, to do so is often to invite assasination.


"I have an Auxillary stateroom, it features a commications platform and an ensuite with bathing facilities, consider it yours during your stay aboard the Herald" he said before gripping the collar like device around his neck
"Tharn to Conn, do we have a solution for where that enemy vessel is headed?" Tharn spoke, before tensing up and snarling unintelligbly.

obviously the conn had responded that they had not been able to distinguish between the false signals and the true one, and that therefore they could not persue the enemy.

at the Orderlies signal, too taps on the floor, Tharn turned, a wry smile creasing his face
"That tunic suits you Lady Ambassador" he said half in jest, before becoming serious once more
"The Medicaes will escort you to your stateroom if you wish to visit it, but i must return to the bridge, once again, its good to see you in safe hands" Tharn returned the bronze grotesque to his face, fastened it into place and then set off for the bridge.
 
Entire planet cloaked? She didn't think shit like that was even possible! Sounded to her like a hella bunch of bullshit, but when someone hailed her, it was true enough. More confusing, Skoonek Royal. Holy shit, the hell did she get herself in to.

Kendra wasn't so keen on following the orders. Her she had some royal, his dead pilot, a cloaked planet and a galaxy hell bent on war. Last thing she needed was to get accused of kidnapped or wrapped up in some crazy stuff when she had cargo to deliver.

Against her better judgment, Kendra followed the flight coordinates to land on the invisible planet.

"Holy christ. What the fuck is going on in this galaxy!"


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Ziranova Sachavik

Zira was sure Severdus Tharn was being polite in saying she looked nice, but she took the compliment and his hospitality with a gracious smile. Once the nurses led her to the stateroom and showed her how to use the facilities, she started with the most important task first.

Making use of the communications platform, she contact the Galactic Council right away. They held the most power and would be able to make sure the necessary actions were taken in retrieving the hostages and dispelling any false information.

"This is Ziranova Sachavik requesting audience with Emissary Gadushka."

On screen came up someone unexpected, Minister Parlow. Zira gave only a slight frown. Personally she would prefer to speak with Gadushka, he was someone she trusted, but there was little time to be picky.

Minister Parlow seemed just as surprised to see her face as well. "Ambassador! Are you all right? Terrible things are happening!"

"Yes. I am safe on board a Skarrathos Ship belonging to Severdus Tharn. I was able to escape thanks to a kind helper and Overlord Tharn's ingenuity, however, there are still many people trapped on board that pirate's ship. They call her Sweet Lady and I fear that many of them will not live through the process if something isn't done immediately. We are returning to the Commonwealth, so please gather together the members of the council so we can prepare for a rescue mission. A wide scale effort is going to be imperative to avoid a galactic disaster!"

"Of course, of course, Ambassador. I will alert everyone straight away. Parlow out." KSSSSSHHOOP. The connection was severed.

Ziranova heaved a sigh of relief. Soon they would return and they would be able to save the others. In the meantime, she wasted no more time in getting undressed and taking advantage of having a real bath. She so desperatly wanted to wash away everything that happened on the Sweet Lady's ship! Then she would speak to Tharn about continued efforts.
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Meanwhile at the headquarters for the Commonwealth...

Minister Parlow had cut off the communications with a deep scowl across his face. Those Skarrathos bastards managed to stage a rescue after all. Soon they would return and the Ambassador would return to her job and clear the name of that barbaric race of monsters. Not when when he was so close to being able to claim the Ambassador title for himself!

But he knew what to do. Let them return. The Minister had a perfect plan for the Ambassador and her twisted escorts.
 
Blaxond knew all to well the welcome he was about to recieve. It would be full of frill and overkill. A complete display of warm wishes and a devoted turn out of people that loved him. Deep inside he knew that most of them were only there under orders and the fact of the matter was that when he left, their love and loyalty to him fled as well.

As the ship moved in and around the field of rocks and debirs, Blaxdon was silent. Feeling he should say something he went back to the cockpit and tapped her on the shoulder. "Ah, when we land, um.."He was trying to find the right words but now was not a time to be diplomatic.

"Ah, just be natural okay, you've done nothing wrong. In fact I have to thank you for saving my life. The loss of my pilot was not on you, its on me. I have a lot to atone for and its just another reason I know what I'll face later with the council. So again once we land, you are free to do as you wish, I will have my hands tied with my duties and the coming interigation from the council. I can only hope that they will allow me information regarding the Pritates and Ziranova . Im sure by now they know about it and thats why the were cloak. When I was a child the Skarrathos attacked our planet and many lives were lost."

Blaxdon stepped back from her and rubbed his right eye and sighed. "Its a lot I know but well here we go" As soon as he said that the brilliant colors of this home plant came into view. Lush greens and sparking blues of the ocean filled the horizon. A light pink beam flickered from the tree line and locked onto the ship. He tried to smile at her as they were brought in and set down on a massive landing pad. Sure enough people were lined up at either end. A red carpet rolled out to the ships door and music could be heard playing. Shaking his head he started towards the door.

"I already know this isnt going to go over well.." Right before he opened the door he grabbed a robe and tugged it on to cover his face and head. He knew he looked different and had to hide that.
 
The room--closet--they were in was small and cramped. Celix found his legs almost wound up in the Princess' skirts. How the hell did she move around in these things without tripping so much?

"We have to escape fast don't we?"

He tried to pry her arms off of him but after several unsuccessful tries, he turned his attention elsewhere. He
slid over to try and work the door but it appeared jammed.

"Should we tackle them and steal their clothes?"

He looked at her. Knock them out and steal their clothes. That was crazy enough to work. "I have to get this stupid door open first," he muttered. And of course they'd have to catch the pirates by surprise. With a soft grunt, he finally managed to get the door to open and found one pirate alone and bent over trying to tie something with his back to them.

Celix slipped behind him while glancing around, a heavy wrench from the closet in hand and knocked him out. He caught the pirate by the back of his shirt before he fell on the floor and pulled him back into the closet. "I think you'll fit in his clothes," he told the Princess, still glancing around. The coast was still clear but for how long?
 
Left on the ship. Always left on the ship. The droid lounged in Kendra's chair beeping its mandates to itself. This... was.... boring. "86% likelihood of not having anything better to do." the droid excused itself. Minor things like securing the cargo according to weight distribution and flight optimization could be done later.

"Optional mandate #617: Stop getting oil on my chair every time I leave the ship." it beeped before looking down at the chair it was in. "Last oil change 4 days ago, levels at 20%, likely hood of leakage 6.31%. Joints creaking slightly the droid stood looking and examined the chair. Relived he stood and headed towards the service bay. Perhaps an oil change wasn't such a bad idea.
 
Blaxdon stepped out with his new pilot and was greeted by his aid. A lovely woman dressed in a silky green ivory gown and headdress. She gave him a bow and everyone behind her did the same. As they moved away from the ship the people rose to their feet once more and went on to clap and cheer. They were quickly escorted inside the main building, up some stairs and then towards some massive wooden doors. Stopping short of the doors his assitant spoke first. "My Lord." A woman spoke softly but with great urgency. "My Lord they are waiting for you, dont worry it will be alright." she touched his arm as the two guards on either side of the door opened them and he stepped inside.

"Now then as for you Miss." The aid smiled. "If would come with me, we have a suite set up for you were you can clean up, get some rest alright. You can see Blaxdon after the meeting okay." The woman gave her a soft smile. "here we are" She opened the doors to a massive room. It had everything she could ever need and at the far end the french doors were open to a sprawling garden with a pond. It looked like a dream. "If you need anything, anything at all please feel free to let me know. I am Ogloriana, at your service." Bowing to her she backed out of the room and closed the doors.

The meeting that Blaxdon had been called into became silent as he walked in. Once he took his seat the whispering began. "Order, order.." the cleric demanded. "Now then. We are aware of the situation, those that could be saved where and we will morn the loss of those that did not make it. Thankfully that lovely Ambassador Ziranova has made it out alive and surprisingly enough it was thanks to Tharn and his men." The speaker looked at Blaxdon and motioned for him to stand and remove the cloak. Blaxdon did and the room filled with gasps. Blinking and feeling weak Blaxdon was ready for the worst.

"Our own 225th had a hand in some of the dealings with the beastly pirates and has the scars to prove it. We own him our thanks. All charges towards him will be dropped and as soon as he is fit for travel, he along with other members of the board will meet with the Ambassador. Rumor has it that the Galactic Council has peace talks in the works. Welcome home Blaxdon, now go with the aids there and take care of your face."

The room was up in a roar of approval and praise as he was escored out. It was all huge shock to him. How did they know so much? And she was alright after all. That made him smile. Thoughts of her got him through the hours of surgery and painful graphing to get him looking human again.
 
"Well what the shit." Kendra wasn't sure what all the finery and frippery was all about. All she did was bring a guy home. Well, she guess he WAS a prince and all, so maybe it was just a little bit of thanks. Kendra decided it would be rude not to take advantage of the hospitality, so she more than made herself at home in the room she was provided.

Yet, being a restless one, she couldn't keep herself sittin' still for too long. She DID have a business to run and unlike the royalty of the galaxy, her time was money!

Kendra had returned back to the ship to contact her client. Handing over the cargo went over as flawlessly as it always did. Once everything was sent out, Kendra picked up some new cargo for shipping to some other locals. Business was boring business.

Yawning, she checked a time clock while tossing her clipboard off on to a stack of crates. Her handy-dandy droid was being ever helpful as always, spouting off it's usual nonsense.

"Okay, we need to get off this planet. Yet, here I am waiting around like that guy is going to show up to say 'Hey, thanks for talking me out of being a dumbass back there!' Damned politics. You know they put me up in some fancypants room? If I had any sense I would have asked for a reward. Yeah, yeah... Come on then, lets get this ship sealed up."


Ew. Princess Hanatia SO didn't want to put on a stinky guard's clothes. But it WAS her idea, wasn't it.

"Don't look! Not until we get married, okay?" Hanatia then turned her back as she wiggled out of the puffy overly decorative dress she had been wearing. Getting herself in to the guard's clothes was really easy, but boy did they smell funny! She couldn't help but huff once or twice, at least until she opened up her little purse and pulled out a tiny bottle of perfume. A little spritz and problem solved!

"Right, now lets start sneaking!" She was already latched on to his arm, and tugging him down another corridor!
 
Sitting on a storage crate calculating the total mass of the universe out of sheer boredom, it had already gotten to over a billion decimal points when it was rudely interrupted by a whiny organic. Though this particular whiny organic was the owner so with a lot less creaking than usual snapped to attention... well looked at Kendra anyway. "A reward would help but I don't see the use of a room when you have a bunk here."

"You know what I got?" It asked her, "I got a spam message from mulacorp telling me to tell you you have won an instant prize and thats when I had to shut down for five minuets as a malignant code self replicated itself... I kept a sample if you'd like to see."

Without waiting for a reply it slid off of the crate with a sloshing sound and walked towards a wall panel an in seconds set the ship to lockdown.
 
Blaxdon was released and went around looking for Kendra but came up empty. He asked around but they all said she had left. Nodding to the news he returned to his own quaters and remained there. He didnt take any meals and refused contact with the outside world. He left very few instructions one of which was to have money set into the buisness account of the pilot that saved him and the last was to send word that he hoped the Ambassador Ziranova, was well and he would host her once she was able to travel. That was all he had to offer. Blaxdon returned to his daily life of artificial duties. Lonely once again his heart sank into the pit of his stomach missing the only two women in his simple life that made things fun. He did miss one more then the other, but least he had spent time with each one and that was better then none at all.