Varrick shakes his head. "No. Chaos was a means to an end, not an end in itself. I wanted a chance to better influence humanity to my ends. The chaos of war would have allowed me to make more contacts, control more people, shape humanity's fate. But now, I have you instead, a councilor in the emperor's court. Perhaps through you, I'll be able to effect my plans in a different manner."
"I have a plan. Gods willing, it'll let us hold out until the XVth Fleet gets here, without too many casualties." He gets to ordering his ships into the bull horn formation. After making sure that none of the orders will be audible to the enemy, the comms officer connects the enemy admiral through. "Enemy fleet, you are tresspassing in the territory of my liege, Prince Regnant Xal'shan of Ietra. We are over twice your number, and have a dreadnought. You cannot win, and we are within our rights to destroy you. However, we will give you a single chance to escape with your miserable lives. If the priestess Elena of the Order of the Jade Rose were to surrender and offer the prince an apology in person, we will let your fleet go back to your miserable empire, after being disarmed. We require an immediate answer."
"Oh, you didn't want..." She curtsies. "Yes, admiral." She leaves Xavier alone. The water is just what's needed to relax his muscles, the heat doing wonders after spending so long in the chill of the warehouse and tunnels. Looking at the events available, he sees there's all sorts of things he could see: Plays, from comedy to drama and everything in between, fights, armed and unarmed, between sentients and animals, humans and aliens, men and women, etc. Musical acts are present too, from many different genres. There's an extensive holovid collection as well.
Elena frowned. What was with the hunt organised for her? Something was off... She prepared a message and sent it to the enemy Admiral. "To Ietra's fleet. Your transmission is breaking. The Empire thanks you for your assistance in dealing with the pirate fleets. As it was decided earlier with the Prince, your fleet can resupply on the planet and make repairs, before we make our combined strike at the pirate's base. I will notify the governor to prioritize your communication systems." She paused and smiled pleasantly. "After the pirates are cleaned, the agreed meeting between Prince and Emperor will take place. We will see you on the planetside to talk about the details." She finished. Her entire talk was pointed to confuse the enemy, to make them question, to allow Admiral Thrax more time to strike... Elena turned to Admiral. "It's your show now, admiral." She said as she observed the battlefield.
Xavier enjoyed his time in the bath, before he had a look for some clothes, his uniform being a bit to scruffy after the day. Looking at his options, the admiral decided to leave his suite and have a look at the plays.
Wonderful... Eanne quickly took off her clothes and showered, washing away the sweat from last night's activities. Afterwards she got dressed and brushed her hair, then checked herself in a mirror, feeling refreshed and ready to start the day... and by that she meant going back to her servants and getting some new underwear before doing any work. (Still a little out of it, so this post feels a bit off. Also, I really should have given some thought to Eanne's servants and what forces she brought along when coming to the capital – though I already have a few ideas.)
"Hahaha! So that's what you plan to do, huh?" Vizelle chuckled, "Interesting. You seek to become a god once more? Fufu, but still I wouldn't mind working together. It will give me a better chance to steal your power." She said with a grin.
Spoiler: Persuasion Roll D100: 22+15 (Persuasion Skill)=37 (Fail) "How droll. Prepare to be annihilated." The Admiral signs off. Thrax chuckles. "Time to show them what we can do. Until the XVth get here, we're outnumbered 2 to 1, maybe 3 to 1. Good! I'd call those about even odds!" The crew, inspired by Elena's speech, gives a raucous cheer, before burying themselves in their work. Battle of Ietra VI - Phase 1 Spoiler: Elena's Fleet Roll D100: 53+30 (Elena's Speech)+20 ('Entertained' Thrax)=103 (Crit) Spoiler: Enemy Fleet Roll D100: 64+30 (Massive Numerical Advantage)= 94 (Crit) The enemy fleet comes fowards like a spear, aimed for the heart of Elena's crusade, trying to split her force in two. In response, Thrax has his most heavily armored ships arranged in a horizontal line, in their path. The more maneuverable ships and boarding craft will move around the enemy's headlong charge, like the horns of a bull, and flank them. The first phase of the battle is fiercely fought. The main battle line of Elena's fleet opens fire with their guns, and the priestess watches as the front most ships of the enemy begin to ripple under the assault and explode, the debris from their wrecks impeding the charge and damaging the enemy's shields, making the next ships easier targets for Thrax's gunners. The enemy have the numbers to endure, however, and they begin to return fire with a vengeance. Hundreds of projectiles, missiles, laser and plasma bolts slam against the shields of the line ships, and several begin to explode. Elena is nearly knocked off her feet as one particularly nasty explosive hits the flagship's shields. At the last moment, the bull's horns close in. Phase 2 Spoiler: Elena's Fleet Roll D100: 76+30 (Elena's Speech)+20 ('Entertained' Thrax)=126 (Crit) Spoiler: Enemy Fleet Roll D100: 14+30 (Massive Numerical Advantage)= 44 (Fail) The two horns, made up of light, fast cruisers and escort ships, close in on the enemy's broadsides. The enemy's horde is massive, but in trying to use their spearpoint strategy, they've packed themselves too close together, a problem escalated by the fact that much of the enemy fleet is made up of undisciplined pirates and mercs. Many enemy ships get in each other's way and are unable to fire for fear of hitting one another. For Elena's crusaders, however, it's a target rich environment. They open fire with abandon, and the enemy begins to die. Shots press their shields to the breaking and then rip through them into the thin armour underneath. The black void of space begins to grow orange, as the enemy ships begin to explode, each explosion hitting the ships around it, too close to get out of the way, and making them the next victim. The enemy assault begins to reel back. Phase 3 Spoiler: Spec Ops Team 68+15 (Spec Ops)=83 Spoiler: Enemy Heavy Cruiser D100: 19+30 (Massive Numerical Advantage)+15 (Space Marines)=64 Amidst the chaos, no one notices a small dropship and a few escorting fighters making their way through the wreckage, towards a heavy cruiser, one of the mainstays of the enemy fleet. The dropship crashes through into the hangar of the cruiser, releasing its payload of spec ops troopers. The men do their bloody work, carving their way through enemy marines, taking casualties along the way, but nothing that impedes them on their mission. They make it to the bridge, using nerve gas to wipe out the captain and his crew, before commandeering the ship. Then, acting under orders, the spec ops men pilot the ship to list dangerously, before activating thrusters. As the troopers return to the drop ship and leave, the ship plunges through the enemy fleet, ramming ship after enemy ship. Spoiler: Dreadnought Roll D100: 59 +30 (Massive Numerical Superiority)= 89 (Pass) The cruiser barrels its way towards the enemy flagship, but before it makes contact, the dreadnought fires its immense main gun. The huge railgun sends forth a beam of superheated metal which carves through the cruiser, bisecting it, before both of the drifting halves explode. The dreadnought only takes very minor shield damage from the debris. Phase 4: Spoiler: Does the XVth Fleet arrive on time? D100: 33 Back on the bridge of the flagship, Thrax swears, as he looks for any signals indicating that the XVth Fleet has arrived. Joining him, Elena sees nothing. They're not here yet. Looking out, Elena sees the dreadnought turning, beginning to make its way away from the battlefield, where it can engage its FTL drives and run. Without the XVth Fleet to cut off their escape soon, there will be nothing Elena and Thrax can do to stop them, unless they act now...and put themselves in range of that giant rail gun. Thrax looks to Elena. "What do you think, ma'am? The rest of the enemy are going to flee without the dreadnought, but should we go after it? On the one hand, that main gun is almost certain to cause casualties if we send ships after it, and it'll have a huge crew to fight against our boarders. On the other hand, it would make a great prize if we captured it, and since it's undamaged, if we let it go, it might come after us again, and hurt us bad next time. What's your command, do we try to destroy the dreadnought, capture it, or let it escape?"
He finds that the maid has noticed his lack of a wardrobe on the planet, and left him a uniform according to his rank. Heading out, the young admiral is able to follow some raucous laughter to an outdoor amphitheater. There, he finds a comedic play on, about a bumbling heroine who accidentally manages to save the galaxy from a race of godlike aliens, to the consternation of the great nobles and military figures. It's a satirical piece, but the nobles don't seem to mind, laughing wildly as the heroine clumsily prat falls and trips the self destruct of an enemy flag ship, the scene accompanied by holograms which show the special effects.
Heading out, she stumbles into Chernobog, who gives a chuckle. "Up already? I'll have the shuttle ready to take you wherever you want."
"I seek to guide humanity. To bring it up from the muck it's in now, but keep it from ever reaching the heights it did in my time. Growth, without stagnation, and without drawing the ire of the Old Ones." He chuckles. "Very well. Carry out my aims, and I'll help you reach heights of power you couldn't even imagine." He holds out a hand.
Xavier found a place to sit and enjoy the play, some light-hearted fun should be just what he needed after the day.
"Fufu. A pleasure." Vizelle chuckled as she reaches out for his hand. Though it was more than obvious she was aiming to simply use him to her own goals. A challenge on whether who will be sitting upon the throne.
“Good morning, and thank you, Duke.” Eanne gave a small bow in greeting. “Yes, as much as I enjoyed your hospitality it's about time for me to go back to my duties. But first I'd like to go and check on my servants before doing anything else, so a shuttle to bring me to the spaceport will be appreciated.” She smiled politely at the Duke. (I imagine Eanne brought a small number of heavily-armed and heavily-armored ships that appear less dangerous than they really are, and they are all waiting in the spaceport. She'll probably start taking some bodyguards along when going out from now on, too.)
Sitting down to watch, Xavier is surprised by the play. A lot of the jokes are simple slapstick, but there's actually quite a bit of witty humour, and a likeable cast. The lead, played by an alien actress, does a good job of making her character cute and loveable, but adds a layer of emotional depth that helps keep the comedy from getting stale, since the jokes are quite formulaic. At the end of the play she gives a bow, and recieves a standing ovation from the crowd. "I say, one to watch, don't you think, old boy?" Xavier realises that the man next to him is speaking. "What did you think of the play? I do so adore getting the reactions of those new to our little theater."
As she reaches out for him, he grasps her wrist, and putting his other hand on her shoulder, forces her to her knees before him. "Don't forget, though. The weak serve the strong. I lead, you follow."
'Ah, yes, she is quite a good actress,' Xavier nodded to the man, before he looked back at the stage for a moment, 'I quite enjoyed it, whoever wrote it has a talent for the little details that make it more than just a string of jokes. The lead's charisma carried it quite nicely, I think. You are part of the crew then?' He extended his hand, 'Name's Xavier von Azurrose, pleased to meet you.'
Without much physical strength, Vizelle drops to her knees. "Hehe. Indeed. But then again, how long until our roles are reversed?" She giggles, grinning as she replied.
"Of course, your wish is my command." He chuckles. Before she leaves, Sitra comes out to wish her new friend good bye, and then the shuttle takes Eanne away. Back at her flagship, Eanne is pampered by her servants, who take care of her every need. As she exits her room, a voice says "Decide to go out on your own, last night, did you?" Turning, Eanne sees Bec Hallaran, her head bodyguard. Bec is the daughter of the previous chief bodyguard, who died around the same time as Eanne's father, and is one of the best swordsmen on Samodiva, if not the best. Eanne is free to replace the redhead for someone else, but for now, she's in her father's old role. "Please, Bec, as much as you'd like it to be otherwise, our lady is your boss, you are not hers. She can go where she wishes, accompanied or otherwise." Delphis, Eanne's butler, says from the other side. "Morning, madame."
The man shakes it. "Crew?" He chuckles. "I'm a playwright, the very one who wrote the production you just enjoyed. Horst Belville, at your service, and thank you for the praise. I do try to add a little pizazz to my comedies." On the other side of Horst, a woman groans. "Please don't encourage him, he's got a big enough head already." Looking over, Xavier sees a blonde who has attracted a lot of attention from the other spectators. She slides a hand across Horst, to Xavier. "Zara Tyne. I'm an actor, here." Horst chuckles. "An actor? An actor? She's a bright, burning star, and a delight to work with." Zara ignores the elf. "I've not seen you here before."
