Old Friends and New Enemies

[Andraste]

Only Cregan knew she was pregnant again, and Andraste didn’t know how long she would keep it that way. She was angry at him, and she was angry at everyone at once. There was a campaign launched on Spintir to boot the Jedi from the planet, and she had been working on the political side of things on Alderaan. To say that she was busy and exhausted was a vast understatement. So far this pregnancy was easier on her and she didn’t vomit nearly as much.

It had been some time since she had seen Wook, and they hadn’t trained in a while. She knew by now he would have mastered quite a bit with the Force with all the help she gave him. Their last communication was over Davik, and since then she had been growing more and more displeased with this Syndicate business. Andraste was surprised when he had asked to meet in person, as they normally communicated remotely. She invited him to her palace on Serenno, the grand building that also served as a Sith fortress. It was the most publicly known Sith building, the temples and academies on Korriban and elsewhere more discreet.

Her chambers were lined with beautiful couches and cushions, and there were handmaidens milling about lining the place with snacks and drinks for her and rich wines for Wook. Andraste was adorned in a simple, blue dress and she was watching her son attempt to make a toy ship fly with the Force. She had missed him entirely too much to be away from him. The Alderaan business took up a lot of time and she cherished every moment being home she could.

“Don’t put that in your mouth,” She sharply told the little boy as she suddenly realized the ship was zooming eagerly towards his waiting mouth. Her snap threw off his concentration and the toy collided directly with his forehead. This resulted in him sprouting into a whiny cry that was very obviously fake. Nevertheless, Andraste rolled her eyes and walked over, scooping the boy up to console him before Wook showed up. Elix had a wonderful way of derailing everything.

 

[The Wook]

Sent to Andraste's chambers. If it was anyone else, The Wook would have made some crude jokes about that to the staff. Andraste may be fine, but she had a nasty streak to her. And like three husbands. Ain't nobody getting involved in that mess. One cucked husband was about all he was willing to deal with, as he'd kinda done so in the past. Plus, she just wasn't that hairy. The faint sounds of an infant wailing about something, as infants were wont to do, reached his ears through the door ahead of him. The Wook hadn't met the tiny human yet, just seen him on a holo when Andraste called to get that waste of oxygen named Davik released instead of fed to a Sarlaac. He was still kind of annoyed over that.

Some handservant or footservant (how did you know the difference, anyway? What was the difference) opened the door for him and ushered him in. The Wook eyed some slim jims on the snack platter, and accepted a chalice of wine from another handfootfaceservant person. He sniffed it, and suspected that the vintage was expensive, rare, and whatever fancy wine terms got used. "Uughghhhgh awwgggghhh huuguughghg aaahnruh uuh. Raaaaaahhgh uughguughhhghghghhhgh uughguughhhghghghhhgh huurh uughghhhgh huuguughghg huuguughghg. Aarrragghuuhw raaaaaahhgh aaaaahnr raaaaaahhgh aarrragghuuhw uugggh huuguughghg," he growled as he set a bottle of liquor popular among Hutts on a sideboard, then took a seat.

@Sreeya

 

[Andraste]

“Stop being dramatic, Elix,” She scolded as he realized someone was at the door. Of course, he couldn’t very well act like a baby in front of strangers. She noticed him immediately stop crying and stare curiously towards the newcomer. Andraste set him down and looked up at Wook, offering him a warm smile. He would note that the dark side had left more of an imprint on her, her face gaunt and dark circles under her eyes. Andraste had to suppress a laugh as she watched him curiously sniff at the snacks and help himself. As he set the bottle down, Andraste had to think of how best to tackle this, “I’ve been feeling a bit queasy from something I ate on Alderaan,” She grimaced, pulling her glass of lemon water to herself, “I’ll be sure to try that drink later and let you know how it-“

“EEEEEEE!” Elix had all but waddled directly over to Wook, happily hugging him around a leg that he was quite minuscule next to. The boy buried his face in the fur, beyond thrilled at seeing a Wookiee up close. She wasn’t sure he had ever seen one even on one of his shows. Elix looked up with wide eyes, “Big…big ewok?” Now Ewoks were things he recognized, and his favorite show was about them.

“Try not to eat him,” Andraste casually told Wook before wandering over to take a seat. She invited him to sit across from her, but he was on his own dealing with the excited toddler. She eyed Wook for a moment before snapping her fingers for her handmaidens to leave, “So I hear you guys are taking some bold steps against the Republic,” She called a plate of fruits to herself, nibbling on some grapes, “Some Gammorrean squad attacked Chandrilla and you may very well have a war on your hands,” She left her displeasure for Nem’ro and the Syndicate out for now. She would address that when the situation called for it.

@Clayton

 

[The Wook]

The Wook shrugged at Andraste's comment about not eating the baby that was now enraptured with him, and thought The Wook was a big ewok. "Aaaaahnr aaaaahnr, uggguh huuguughghg uughguughhhghghghhhgh aarrragghuuhw huurh," he answered nonchalantly as the kid tried to climb up his leg. The Wook took a large sip of wine before the kid started crawling around higher and bumping into things. Spilled wine always made a mess of his hair. A tiny hand found the top of his knee and Elix was now trying to haul himself up. The Wook ignored the kid and gave yet another shrug.

"Huurh, huuguughghg uughguughhhghghghhhgh. Raaaaaahhgh aaahnruh huurh Huurh huuguughghg. Wrrhwrwwhw hnnnhrrhhh aaaaahnr wuuh aaaaahnr aguhwwgggghhh huurh uuh uughghhhgh uughguughhhghghghhhgh huuguughghg huuguughghg," he growled, irritated. As corrupt as politicians were, one would think they would be more willing to get in bed with the Cartel. Instead, he had to do things the hard way and rig a karking election to get a senator in their pocket. Now look how that turned out. "Huurh aaahnruh hnnnhrrhhh huurh huuguughghg awwgggghhh huurh uughguughhhghghghhhgh Raaaaaahhgh rrhwrwwhw huuguughghg," he concluded. He'd intentionally lost a fight to one of the dumbest motherkriffers alive, and somehow the Republic had finally unraveled the ploy.

"Uggguh, raaaaaahhgh aarrragghuuhw uughguughhhghghghhhgh Uughghhhgh Wrrhw Huuguughghg wuuh raaaaaahhgh," he grunted as Elix managed to haul himself halfway up onto The Wook's lap, grabbing fistfuls of hair as he did so. "Uughguughhhghghghhhgh aarrragghuuhw huurh raaaaaahhgh raaaaaahhgh huurh hnnnhrrhhh uughguughhhghghghhhgh huurh huuguughghg uughghhhgh uughghhhgh. Wrrhw uuh huurh aaaaahnr huurh huuguughghg raaaaaahhgh huuguughghg aarrragghuuhw," which was really the best kind of problem-solving. There was slightly more to it, of course, but he didn't need the Sith fleet up his people's asses over some cleanup work.

@Sreeya

 

[Andraste]

Before the maidens left, she had asked for a cup of tea. It was presented to her in a very ornate and expensive tea set, and she quietly sipped from her cup as she looked at him. She never would have imagined herself living in the lap of luxury, and she was lightyears away from being a lowly guard at the Jedi temple archives. Now she lounged on a plush sofa sipping tea from a bejeweled cup that was probably worth a few thousand credits. Her mind was on Wook though, and she quirked an eyebrow as he was quick to mention the Gammorreans weren’t him.

He was right that the majority of the galaxy didn’t understand how the Hutts worked. There was no singular, organized structure where there was accountability. The Alderaan business brought a groan from her, “Yes, I’ve been maneuvering through the political mess that is Alderaan. I’m sorry to report that I will not be supporting Lucille to stay in power. She has become entirely unhinged,” She shrugged as she sipped again from the tea.

Meanwhile Elix successfully climbed into Wook’s lap and took a moment to catch a breather after all that hard work. It took about three seconds before he burst into a song from his show, “Eeeeewok Ewwwok how areeee youuu? Happy ewok, sad ewok I will be your fwiend too!” He smiled widely and gave him the biggest hug, burying his face into the fur and continuing to sing the song with his muffled voice.

Andraste was more focused on what Wook mentioned, her eyes narrowing slightly, “What’re you planning to do?” She asked sharply, “You know I’m not happy with Nem’ro and this Syndicate business. I know he’s plotting against me and I won’t support anything if that stupid insect is involved.”

@Clayton

 

[The Wook]

The news that Andraste was not supporting Lucille was no surprise at all. Now that the loth cat was out of the bag, the Cartel’s influence over Alderaan had been lost. There could be a way to salvage something out of it, but it was a stretch. Elix climbed up onto his lap and started singing after a quick breather. The Wook was fairly certain that he’d seen the show that Elix was currently signing about. He had also been high while watching it, so his recollection was a little vague. He did remember something about eating endless breadsticks, though.

Andraste’s sharp distaste of Nem’ro was also no surprise. All things considered, after that fiasco on Ryloth, the Hutt was lucky to be alive. ”Huuguughghg uughguughhhghghghhhgh raaaaaahhgh wrrhw uuh aaaaahnr uughguughhhghghghhhgh raaaaaahhgh huurh aaaaahnr aarrragghuuhw, raaaaaahhgh huurh aarrragghuuhw uggguh wrrhwrwwhw awwgggghhh huuguughghg aarrragghuuhw uughguughhhghghghhhgh raaaaaahhgh,” The Wook growled in response, but in a non-threatening manner. Not that Andraste would seriously believe he’d threaten her. It would take a lot to make a personal alliance with her undesirable compared to hostility. He settled back into the comfortable seat. ”Raaaaaahhgh raaaaaahhgh awwgggghhh huuguughghg uugggh aarrragghuuhw uughguughhhghghghhhgh uughguughhhghghghhhgh huurh aaaaahnr,” he said. Nasty was putting it mildly. The D’Astan Campaign was the end of large-scale naval warfare due to the losses sustained.

”Raaaaaahhgh huuguughghg aguhwwgggghhh, raaaaaahhgh aaaaahnr aaaaahnr aaaaahnr wrrhwrwwhw huuguughghg huurh hnnnhrrhhh uughghhhgh. Awwgggghhh uugggh uughghhhgh aaahnruh.” He grinned a grin Andraste had seen only a few times before when he was on the trail of someone that needed their day to be their worst day ever. ”Huuguughghg aarrragghuuhw raaaaaahhgh raaaaaahhgh huuguughghg wrrhw huuguughghg uugggh huuguughghg, uughguughhhghghghhhgh uughguughhhghghghhhgh aarrragghuuhw aarrragghuuhw huurh uuh uughguughhhghghghhhgh. Uughghhhgh uughghhhgh raaaaaahhgh uughguughhhghghghhhgh. Huurh raaaaaahhgh huurh aaahnruh hnnnhrrhhh uughghhhgh uggguh uughghhhgh.” The Wook moved his wine cup to his other hand, as Elix had now started to tug on The Wook’s arm.

@Sreeya

 

[Andraste]

As Wook explained what he needed to do, Andraste eyed him curiously. She was familiar with the naval warfare that tore through this sector, though she had to admit she didn’t do much in terms of salvaging. By the time her focus turned to fleets, she had more than enough money to commission brand new ships entirely. Andraste sipped calmly from her tea, deep in her thoughts for a moment as she pondered his words.

“So you want to do all this without my people being up your ass,” She always spoke very candidly with him. Andraste never felt the need to use her usual polite and careful tones with someone that roared at her to talk, “Fine. But I have my own request in turn,” She leaned over to set the ornate cup down.

Meanwhile, Elix had stopped singing and was now rubbing his face into Wook’s fur. He paused for a moment and then leaned back slightly and blinked up at him, looking very sad, “Ewok doesn’t like Elix?” His bottom lip began to tremble. Andraste noticed this and rolled her eyes, “Put a hand on him or something or your eardrums are about to burst,” It was a promise too. He could let out some almighty shrieks that would be heard across the entire palace and send all her handmaidens clutching their ears in pain. For someone like a Wookiee with sensitive ears, it would be absolutely devastating.

“Recently, Spectre was a part of a plot to kill off the Head of House Harlow,” Andraste went on, her focus back on the task at hand, “This would have been a tremendous win for me and Hutts with that insufferable House out of the running. Only Spectre managed to blow up the wrong guy,” The anger in her was becoming obvious. As a Force sensitive, Wook would easily be able to feel traces of it and the dark energies that suddenly surrounded her. Even Elix was temporarily distracted from his near tantrum as his little hands clutched fur, “All of that work was done for absolutely nothing. The head of Harlow remains alive and well and able to pursue his agenda against the work I’m doing in Alderaan. Furthermore, I believe Spectre dragged some of my people into this ridiculous plot – names he very well might blurt out now that he’s got himself captured,” She laughed bitterly, “Yes, captured. My request is this – do nothing to break him out. I want that little shit to rot forever in a prison. Do this and you and anyone but Nem’ro can have free rein of this sector and any other Sith space you need to use.”

 

[The Wook]

The Wook wrapped a large arm around the kid as he rather liked having his eardrums intact, and briefly mussed up Elix's hair. The news of how precisely how horrible Spectre had messed up did not greet him well. If he hadn't gotten captured, that would be one thing and possible to smooth over by fixing the job. Not anymore. The Wook groaned and rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand while anger radiated off Andraste. This was just kriffing phenomenal. The Wook liked Spectre, and as much as Andraste was pissed off at the human, he was a vital part of the Cartel.

"Raaaaaahhgh uughguughhhghghghhhgh. Huuguughghg uugggh aguhwwgggghhh. Huurh huurh uughguughhhghghghhhgh awwgggghhh, aaaaahnr uughguughhhghghghhhgh huuguughghg uggguh aarrragghuuhw," The Wook grumbled. There were a couple options to handle that issue, none of them pretty. "Raaaaaahhgh Huurh huuguughghg wrrhwrwwhw, raaaaaahhgh raaaaaahhgh uughghhhgh aarrragghuuhw?" Killing Harlow now that the man knew there was a target on his back was tricky. There might have to be significant causalities. The Wook closed his eyes and sighed at the inconvenience of the whole situation. "Aarrragghuuhw huurh uughguughhhghghghhhgh huurh huuguughghg huuguughghg uughguughhhghghghhhgh wrrhwrwwhw. Aughghhhgh wuuh awwgggghhh uughghhhgh raaaaaahhgh huurh." If Spectre survived an attempt on his life in prison, it would push him towards a deal with the Republic. That would be bad for business.

@Sreeya

 

[Andraste]

Andraste began to calm down, realizing that she didn’t like being tense around Elix. The little boy vibed off her emotions quite a bit and he looked terrified. However, he was distracted by Wook putting an arm around him and he squealed in delight. He burst into a song again and promptly fell asleep moments later, nuzzled against him and completely hidden away behind the wookiee’s massive arm. Andraste shook her head at Wook's words.

“There’s no time to pull off another job on Harlow,” Andraste had considered that angle already. She knew it would be more difficult as Harlow was very much aware of the attempt, and he would know someone else was coming. At Wook’s second suggestion, she let out a bitter laugh, “That would have been the better idea – except he managed to get nabbed by Jedi. Likely they are already interrogating him and he has already spilled his guts.”

Andraste drew the tea to herself again, quietly sipping from it, “If he implicates Sith, it could very well mean a NAP breach – which I don’t mind. However, it’s going to war quicker than I’d like,” She paused for a moment before eyeing him suspiciously, “I’m hearing rumors about Hutts attacking Sith holdings. I’m guessing they’re not yours, but there have been traces to Nem’ro. Between this and my dislike for the Syndicate, I’m getting more and more inclined to reconsider the alliance,” She knew it’d be a bomb dropped on him, but she had always been honest with Wook. Even from the beginning she never truly lumped him along with the rest of the Hutts as an Empire. He had always come through for her anytime she needed him and she wouldn’t turn on him personally, “Take measured steps to disassociate yourself from the stupidity of the Hutts. They are well on their way to a two-front war. It starts with people like Spectre and Nem'ro."

 

[The Wook]

Nothing about this situation was good. He knew Wyck only barely, having met just once. There were no favors to call in there. No leverage for Spectre's release. "Uughghhhgh uughghhhgh raaaaaahhgh," he grumbled to himself as Andraste continued speaking. He finished the wine, which did little to improve his mood. Nor did Andraste. He almost regretted coming to this meeting, it was uncovering more problems than he cared for. "Raaaaaahhgh hnnnhrrhhh, Huurh raaaaaahhgh uugggh uughguughhhghghghhhgh uughghhhgh uughguughhhghghghhhgh wrrhwrwwhw huuguughghg wuuh," he said. The Syndicate, which had at one point been perilously close to seizing control of the Cartel, had stagnated and was beginning to crumble even more with Spectre's capture. Nem'ro, who once had his greedy appetite on Svallos' position now was doing kark-all on Ryloth. The existing structure couldn't last for much longer, especially if Nem'ro drew Andraste's wrath. Something would need to be done for sure.

"Raaaaaahhgh aarrragghuuhw huurh uugggh uughghhhgh Raaaaaahhgh. Huurh aguhwwgggghhh uughguughhhghghghhhgh huuguughghg aaaaahnr uughghhhgh aaaaahnr. Huurh awwgggghhh aaahnruh wuuh huuguughghg aarrragghuuhw raaaaaahhgh huuguughghg," he grunted over Elix's snoring. He couldn't stop Andraste from having her Sith kick people's asses in her own territory, but hopefully he could buy enough time to make her not want to venture into Cartel space. To prove an alliance was still beneficial.

@Sreeya