Ahto West and West Central

*His eyebrow rose again. Hell, he may as well leave them at the top of his forehead the way this interview was going.*

"Relegated to negotiating Kolto contracts too? How highly must the Jedi value your talents"

*He didn't like the way that Iniquitous could so easily sprout Jedi dogma and bluster away as if it hadn't been only a few months ago that he had abruptly changed sides. The man had more faces than a bargaining Hutt which again amused Caed with the irony of his former title. Faceless Lord my right bollock! Dude had so much front that is was surprising he didn't fall flat on any of his many guises. No. This was just another act. A suit he was trying on to be discarded as soon as something better came along. As soon as the going got tough Inky would get evil again. Of that Caed was certain. He was also certain that if he came crawling back to the Dark Tide that he, Caed Maas, would be there to slam a blastdoor in his faceless, yet facemany, face... (Narrator frowns at that last for a moment... then shrugs and runs with it)

He looked at the whiskey bottle with a bored expression, as if this conversation was beneath his dignity. It was. I mean, look at them. These two beings of epic power sitting her discussing a kriff medical contract. How the kriff did we end up in this RP. We should probably fight but I'm a purist. I'll see the RP through no matter how strange it is to me. So... Whiskey bottle. No tumblers...*

"You expect me to drink out of the bottle like some bum? Just 'cos you Jedi have no image to uphold aside from your rugged vagabond look doesn't mean the rest of us can't have a bit of self respect."

*Of course Caed was attired and presented as meticulously as he always was with highly polished boots, finely cut clothing, intricate hair, and a carefully sculpted expression. He was kind of the Sith version of Adi in that respect but far FAR cooler.*

"The details of what we need have been commed to your distribution center. I guess the reason I'm here is to see if you would sell to us..."

*He smiled, again with zero humour.*

"and if not to... persuade you to change your mind."

*He decided to forgo mentioning the other matter, especially with Max listening. He had no idea where Fett's allegiance lay and, until he did, the man was to be treated as an enemy.*

*He leaned back in his seat, listen to the man talk. He always felt a certain satisfaction in hearing what the Sith had to say, and more so -HOW- they said it....He snickered at Caeds refusal to drink from the bottle, as if he was some high powered lord from some far off planet instead of an lowly envoy for his former comrades.*

"In the old days, my Brother and I....well, lets just say you would have went back to my darling Sister in Law in multiple little bags. We preferred to do business here, in this place. If you look closely, you can see the blood stains on the floor."

*He stopped, looking at Caed with a thoughtful expression. He nodded his head towards the doors to the deck of the old bar.*

"Come with me"

*He stood, motioning the Sith to follow him out onto the deck. There he pointed at the giant glass sculptures on the man made beach just below the bar*

"You see those statues Darkling? Those are the people of the IF. My Brothers legacy. "

*He looked at the statues. There was Ath na Dagobah, Pyros, Himself, An Tiarna, and even Maximus. There was one of his Niece Arhiia, Dearg, Avidus and a couple others whos names were lost to the writer at this moment...He smiled fondly*

"When you have statues to yourself, when you have you name carved into a kriff moon, then you can come here and demand anything of me you wish"

*He spun on the man, anger clear on his face now*

"I have been Emperor. Leader of one of the biggest factions in the Galaxy. Brother to one of the most feared and hated men in the Galaxy, Brother in Law to your own Lord. I was the man who ordered the genocide of Csilla, the man who decimated Honoghr.....And who are you? Sent here by SInistra because you cant be trusted with anything important. When any of these things you have accomplished, child, then and only then can you come to my home, and attempt to demand anything of me. You ask. And you ask with respect, or you WILL go home in a box...."

*Caed followed the tall Jedi to the bar and listened to the verbal rhetoric spewing from the arsehole the man used as a mouth. The guy talked thee same inflated Sithspit be him Jedi or Sith it seemed. Studying the staues and not really finding them that impressive, Caed pursed his lips thoughtfully, tilting his head this way and that, weathering Dace's scornful diatribe. He was vaguely amused by the man's anger, humoured that he had seemed to touch a raw spot on the mans over-inflated ego.*

"My apologies, -Master Concordia-," *Finally a use of the Jedi name yet so mocking that he may as well have called him Master Bellend.* "I wasn't aware that I had demanded anything from you..."

*He leaned over for a closer look at the statues, noting the name plates with a narrow-gazed frown. He didn't recognise any of the names really. Some rang vague bells, the same that a porters name may crop up from time to time due to the fact they had it written on a name tag or some Sithspit. They obviously hadn't made much of an impact on the galaxy and where were they now? Not commanding some vast empire for sure.

He shook his head in amused pity at the sad little shrine to failures past and would have let the matter drop, seen as it was raising the old mans blood pressure, apart from his meticulous need to pick apart details.*

"Um... They're not very impressive are they..."

*They did fit under a bar after all.*

"I mean... They're not very opulent..."

*They were made of glass which is, after all, merely melted sand.*

"I'd have thought Dark Lords of some prestige would be more ostentatious in their vanity..."

*He turned to face Dace completely, his posture relaxed and casual though he kept the Force under control and had done since the Jedi's, if that's the game they were playing here, anger. He found his former colleagues outburst interesting and rather predictable, surmising that perhaps little had changed. Why he'd decide to wear this mask would always be a mystery but deep down, under the robes and servile platitudes, he hadn't changed that much.*

"That you would seek to belittle me with your incessant ramblings of heroics long past and deeds buried in the dust of decades gone by, threaten me with the idols of mediocre Lords so woeful in their failure to hang onto what they had, is a testimony to your own inadequacies. I in no way seek to take what is yours or to subvert you into acceding to any demands I may or may not make of you."

*His voice was all calm reasoning but his eyes were twin suns blazing forth their disapproval. The scorn hadn't hurt him at all and, though he was highly amused by the outburst, had done nothing but make him pity the man who was once so great in his eyes all the more. He was quick to check himself on the disapproval too, blinking his eyes so they returned to their former, passive, hazel.*

"It is not my place to approve or disapprove of you. This path you walk was your choice and I will stand back and watch you walk it as you will..."

*His voice, for the first time in this encounter, turned hard all of a sudden, and he released the restraints he had placed on his presence, letting it roil out to match the Jedi's, a boiling cloud of darkness, not threatening but not hiding.*

"I thought you'd have enough courtesy to offer me the same consideration, being a man of Arkanian nobility..."

*He let out a faint sigh, disappointment bleeding off him. Real disappointment this time, no mockery attached.*

"I was obviously wrong."

"Oh. You mean my sisters 'family' that did their Genetic 'Magic' on me? How many Arkanians do you know who are as big as I Caed? I have not been Nobility for longer than you have been alive."

*He arched an eyebrow at the other man as he let his own darkness roil....and nearly laughed. If only this man knew....If only they all knew. At this moment, his comm went off again. He checked the message and grunted. Looking back up at Caed he grinned*

"Opulence was something we strove against. Too many baubles goes to ones head. The trappings of power are what lead to the downfall. My path is my own. Tell your Master I will think on her request for Kolto. I have business to attend. Please, avail yourself of the bars hospitality."

*He turned and walked back into the bar, stopping and turning to face the Sith Assassin once more, stepping forward and leaning close to the other mans left side, talking quietly*

"The men behind those statues were more impressive than anything I have seen or heard this day. When you feel you are ready to take your place on the beach, and have let go of your own need to be 'impressive', when you have let go of your constant need to be outwardly better than those around you.....you know where to find me"

*He then turned, and with a condescending pat on Caeds shoulder, nodded to Max as he left*

"Max, I am afraid we will have to finish this discussion later Brother"

*And with that, he quietly left the Mortus, heading to the Citadel and his snub fighter*

*The Sith Assassin frowned in genuine confusion as the tall man now calling himself Dace Concordia turned and headed out the bar, calling after him...*

"But I -AM- better then everyone around me."

*He watched as Dace headed past Max, offering a few words that he didn't bother to try and overhear. His penetrating gaze fell on Maximus Fett for a moment and he contemplated joining him. He also contemplated following Dace but doubted he'd be able to do so without attracting attention... at least not so soon anyway. True his forte lay in such insidious endeavors but Dace would be expecting it. it was unlikely either of them fell for the charade they both perpetrated throughout that entire encounter. Caed's diplomatic mission and Dace's apparent lightside conversion were both shams. Caed knew the first was obviously and was damn sure that, though it was possible Iniquitous believed the benevolent Sithspit he spouted, that the Faceless Lord still lurked within.

Caed grinned suddenly at the words of the white-haired man, finding amusement again in the rapier-like exchange of verbals they had undertaken. What fun it as to match ones wits with another of equal disdain. He almost skipped as he headed over to the bar, gesturing for the guards that had remained stoically at ease over near the door. He indicated them to take a seat and looked at the barman, a disarming smile playing at his mouth and big brown eyes ingratiating and earnest.*

"I'll have a round of drinks, your best champagne. Master Concordia said to put everything on his tab..."

*He leaned forward in mock-conspiratorial fashion, Force swirling easily to his touch, manipulated with equal ease, and directed at the man in a subtle mind-trick.*

"Not that he ever has to buy a drink here eh?"

*Loaded tray in hands the stoic assassin, a jovial grin on his face, meandered through the tables to where the guards sat, setting down his load and taking two full glasses. He flashed the guards a wink before moving off to the table Maximus sat at, still seemingly lost in his own thoughts. He plonked a glass of champagne down in front of the morose-looking man before he took the seat opposite, smiling mockingly at his former ally.*

"Maximus Fett as I live and breath..."

*He raised his glass in his right hand and adopted a seriously grave expression.*

"A toast to absent friends?"

[narration:dxtfa8x2]He didn't say anything as Dace tried to defend his actions. He didn't say anything when Caed came into the bar and started having a conversation with Dace. All Maximus did was turn around, lean on the bar, and have another drink.

His head was swimming right now. There was so much going on that he couldn't sort through it all. Instead, he stood there, hand on his glass. His eyes were unfocused, his mind racing. He was aware of what was going on around him, but was all blurred.

He didn't know how long it had been, but all of a sudden, Caed was at the bar beside him.[/narration:dxtfa8x2]

[quote="Caed Maas":dxtfa8x2]"Maximus Fett as I live and breath..."

[narration:dxtfa8x2]He raised his glass in his right hand and adopted a seriously grave expression.[/narration:dxtfa8x2]

"A toast to absent friends?"[/quote:dxtfa8x2]

[narration:dxtfa8x2]Maximus turned his head, and for a few seconds, all he did was stare at Caed with a blank look on his face. Calmly, he reached out, grabbed the champagne glass, and took a drink. His eyes were still glassed over, but he knew he couldn't just sit here and waste away. He shook his head, snapping himself back to reality. He looked at Caed, and then finished his champagne in one gulp. He tossed the glass behind the bar, not caring whether it broke or not.

Maximus turned from the bar, talking to Caed as he left.[/narration:dxtfa8x2]

Let's go.

[narration:dxtfa8x2]Without another word, Maximus opened front door of the Mortus, and disappeared into the sunlight.[/narration:dxtfa8x2]

*The normally reserved Sith laughed at Maximus' abrupt manner and followed suit, downing his drink and huring it at the bar. The server growled and yelled, shaking his fists at the grinning assassin, not seeing the guards quietly slid a small case under their table. Backing away mouthing platitudes and apologies, Caed reached the door and opened it, ushering the guards through then following himself.

They headed down the street after Max and, once they had caught up with their stoic companion, Caed pulled out a small device. He smiled at Max and depressed a button on it as he spoke a single word.*

"Boom..."

*Nothing happened. No roaring explosion from behind them. No eerie orange glow lighting up the sky. No towering cloud touching the heavens. , a frown marring his angular features as still nothing happened.

With a sigh and a shrug he continued on down the street towards his ship.


An hour after they left orbit a click sounded in the case left under the table as the signal finally managed to activate something. A ticking started...*