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| - The Vichten estate was alive with activity today. Professional landscapers, led by an Ithorian crewchief were grooming the trees and shrubs. A group of technicians were busy installing sensor equipment on the roof of the hangar, while a masonry crew finished up the remodeled hangar exterior. Axel roams the grounds of the estate in a repulsor cart. He'd normally fly a swoop, but he needed to be able to see more detail than 200 kph would allow. With a fresh cigar hanging from his mouth he slowly meanders along, the cart at a creeping speed. Darkness always follows him and inside that darkness is doom and sadness. This was one of the many curses of power and a primary stigma that wraps itself tightly around the aura of the Sith. Malign was one of them, he had sacrificed everything he knew as a life and dropped his old name for a "title" and a "rank". Some people dare call him by his name, but is as pointless as calling someone by an event in their past. He was an agent of evil now and had little use for much else but the tools and beings to execute a million commands and goals given to him by the Emperor and a few of his own. Havoc was one of Malign's personal goals and he had little patience with those who could not see the beauty in the chaos that usually followed in his destructive wake. However, in the recent weeks he had found someone that seemed to fit the build of a being he has searched the entire galaxy for, a person which might understand what he wants more than the return of his daughter, hidden away from the Jedi. Today, was a day of revelations and that day brought him to the pristine and elegant estate of Axel Vichten. The Sith passes through the gate wearing his more famous, spacer garbs, with his hands in his pockets flipping a credit chip around his fingers. His aura spreads like a cold black liquid across the terrain as he lets his senses spread out to find his target, in the Force it was like a growing shadow spreading from an epicenter covering up the area and sending shivers down the spins of area workers he touched their hearts knew their fears and proceeded to his target. He made no attempt to hide his presence from Axel Vichten, who by now must have had his fill and even if he was not totally attuned to the Force he would know who was paying him a house call. Having a glass of wine in his hand, Dareus strolls out from the dining area, and heads along past the sitting terrace, and chuckles as he sees Axel slowly wander by, almost slow enough to be going backwards in that repulsor-cart. For a few minutes, he looks around, wondering if he can even walk on this manicured lawn, or need to find a path, deciding in the end to just walk carefully across it, "Ok...I feel like I'm committing some sin by walking on this grass; it's worth more per yard than my beachhouse...." Taking another sip of his wine, he walks along the slow moving craft, and jokes, "Maybe I should jog and see who wins?" Coming from a slightly different direction, Tal'sin spies Axel riding along in his cart and chuckles to himself. He puts a cigar to his lips and lights it, waiting for the duo to pass him. As they do, he jumps onto the back with his feet dangling off the end. Not having heard Dareus' comments, he leans back to address the two. "Y'know, I think I've seen Hutts move faster than this scooter." He chuckles to himself and nods a greeting to Dareus. Axel, just from sheer exposure to the Sith, gets that creepy feeling again. Without even looking, he knew who had just paid him a housecall. Every hair on the back of his neck stood to attention and the flesh on his arms felt like it was knotting up. A few puffs from the cigar and he reaches for his comlink. "Let him in," he tells the guards at the gate, providing Tyler didn't just move past them with but a waive of the hand. Dareus's antics seem to go unnoticed for the most part but Tal's do not. "You might want to catch the next ferry," Axel says in a muffled tone to the Twi'lek. Whether Tal dropped off the back or not, he didn't care. Axel pushes the cart back into a higher gear, drifting less than a meter above the manicured lawn and towards the gate. He was in his own domain now, this was more than just another ship, this was his legacy. This was a home built in the memory of his deceased wife. Axel was not going to be pushed around here of all places. He'd welcome the Sith as a guest, but the extent of his servitude ended there. As he draws closer, he slows back down to a final stop a few meters away from Darth Malign. "Welcome to my home. To what do I owe the honors, old friend." The 'old friend' part having a slight hint at sarcasm in his tone of voice. After a few moments the gate of the estate was opened to him and he strolls in. Even though the Sith were not known for being polite or respectable beings, Malign shows he had a side of him that was, keeping his heavy boots off the smuggler's grass and walking down a small walkway toward the figure on the repulsor craft. Then lips curl into a brief smile, but he quickly erases it to maintain a stoic appearance. The additional figures now flanking Axel's craft were both remembered by the Sith their imprints in the Force alone was enough for him to recognize the figures, and the irony did not seem to want to leave his mind thinking back all those months in the past when two men were enemies and he rescued one from another. The galaxy and the future were always in motion, but such things never ceased to surprise or sicken him. Axel's vehicle was now moving forward more rapidly as the Sith halts his stroll and he moves forward toward his location. Axel's friends would receive no ill will from the Sith, not today at least. Vichten's words wash against the edges of his senses and the Sith shows no emotion, "Sarcasm is a good way to find yourself bottom first in a fountain again, Axel Vichten." His words were cool and calculating he was no doubt not here for a friend to friend meeting. He pulls the creditchip from his pocket he had been fiddling with and holds it up, "The Empire is not the only beings in the galaxy that hire useful beings, the Sith need their agents as well. In fact I am looking for agents of chaos as always." He steps forward within a few more steps of the craft and lets his hands hang down from his side now, "Is there anything interesting I should know Vichten?" his brow perks as his presence which was already heavy in the air suddenly grows thicker as he was no exploring the ebbs of energy and impressions here on the estate. Dareus follows along slightly behind Axel's car, still keeping his distance slightly and sighs, that annoying feeling deep inside his gut when he realises who just showed up. Quickly he finishes the glass of wine and looks it, longingly now that it was empty; and shakes his head, reaching into his coat pocket to quickly withdraw a flask, wasting not time taking a sip from it. He just looks at Tal'sin for a brief second, raising an eyebrow; but shrugs it off, standing a few extra feet away from the meeting, "None of my business." a casual word to the Twi'lek that's nearby. A brow raises at Axel's comment, but the green Twi'lek pays heed to his host's warning. Rolling off the back of the cart, he lands on his feet. He feels a slight hint of what Axel did, but as he had far less exposure to the Sith than the other man, he is only reminded of something familiar. Something dark; something painful. Still not recognizing the cause as Malign, Tal'sin pops up from the ground and enters the manor at the first entrance he comes across. Looking over his shoulder before he enters the building, he moves in the direction of his room. "Not that I wish to discuss at this moment," Axel replies, stepping off of the small craft. "What kind of pay are we talking about and what kind of chaos do you want?" Straight to business, yeah, Axel had a lot on his platter already at the moment, but the opportunity for advancing himself further in the wealth of power in the galaxy always grabbed his attention. Axel stubs out his cigarette and approaches to within less than a meter of the Sith. "I know you to have more power in your soul alone than I do in a warship, Malign. I know that fighting you would be useless, but I do ask that you drop the threats and show some respect when you are in my domain. This is my home, not a ship which is a tool of business. I may hold office on the Haze when I desire, but here..." his voice remains calm and pseudo-polite. "Here is my estate, my home where I will be shown respect, whether real or not." Millions of people would share Axel's sentiment of having respect in the home. Malign's hazel eyes were intense as he stares unblinking at the smuggler as he demands to have respect in his home, few understood what respect was in the terms of the Sith. The fact that he stood here in his home was respect, the fact he had allowed Axel to live as long as he has and serve the Empire and Emperor were respect, threats were his culture now and he would have to learn to accept them as that if he ever expected to get anywhere in the Empire. A lesson in the etiquette of the Sith is a painful lesson and Malign didn't even want to expel the energy it would require for such an action. He simply holds the credit chip up, "I want explosions, Axel Vichten, across the galaxy in neutral space. Not just ships or houses or buildings, but high profile things with meaning and symbolism. For each landmark you destroyer I will pay you ten thousand credits." The Sith shrugs, "I believe that is a fair bargain." Ten thousand credits was meager in a lot of ways to the truly affluent but the allure of this was to be paid for doing something that was fun. Dareus shrugs to himself as Tal'sin disappears quickly into the house, and takes another long sip from his flask;and decides this probably isn't the best place for him to be at this point in time. He turns and begins to head off towards the landing pad in no particular hurry; almost a slow meandering speed while he takes several more sips from his flask; returning the cap and putting it back into his long leather coat. "You want me to blow up landmarks in independant space?" Ax says with a slightly confused look. "Ten grand to attack something in a system who's largest security force couldn't even scratch the Haze." He sighs. "I'll think on it," Axel says before motioning towards the manor itself. "In the meantime, please, come inside. Have a drink if you wish. I want to know more about the reasoning behind attacking independant space. Republic, Corporate, any of that and I'd be all over the idea, but independant space is like my backyard and I want to know, providing I do take the assignment, why I'll be doing such a thing." Axel doesn't really expect straight answers, but just for his own conscience, he needed absolution before attacking neutral space. "You have any specific targets in mind?" Ax has already started walking towards the entrance to the manor, forgoing the much less strenuous ride on the repulsor craft. "I don't pretend to know what goes on in the minds of the Sith, but unless you have specific targets in mind, I don't see an outcome that means anything in a galactic scale." Questions were good. The Sith shrugs silently pacing behind Axel a few steps his doom following him, "I said neutral space, Axel Vichten, that would include the Corporate Sector and other worlds not directly involved in the civil war." Malign was quietly in an even tone, "There are always motives behind such things, none of which will ever be very clear except for the need for fear in the galaxy." He continues behind the smuggler at a leisurely pace taking in the sights around his estate, "The key is that each successful attack must be followed with an organization claiming responsibility. I have a few ideas for this, one would simply be to cast blame on existing criminal syndicates, another would be to start a liberation front that claims since people are not fighting against the Empire, they will proceed to punish people for sitting idly an Emperor rules on Coruscant, we could cast Danik Kreldin as the leader of this organization, a brilliant character assassination if any." He lets the words settle and the proposition float. Usually a Twi'lek of action, Tal'sin was getting himself set and ready to defend the manor from a potential Sith onslaught, but as he watches the discourse between Axel and Malign, he decides his thoughts were overkill, and looking down at the F-31 in his hand, decides his efforts would have been underkill. Shaking his head of out-and-out foolery, Tal'sin places his equipment back where it belongs and moves downstairs to where the two men will shortly be entering the manor. The Sith may give him another powershot of dark energy, or any respect he has for Axel will keep the Twi'lek safe. Either way, Tal'sin takes his chances. Axel nods, taking it all in. "The problem with popping Danik's name in there is that everyone already thinks him to be dead. It would be much harder to convince people he was involved in any form." Axel continues his pace towards the house, smoking while he walked. "I guess I could borrow an Olumi Osahn fighter for the job, bomb some things. Or, I could probably get a ground guy to place some demolitions if that is your preference." Axel stops for a moment. "You want to take down the Maffi, don't you?" Axel smirks a moment. "I know more than one person who wants to do that. They have plenty of support in the Corporate Sector, but if that is destroyed somehow...." Ax trails off for a moment, his mind beginning to churn and put together plans. He was pretty good at misdirection surprisingly. After all, he informed the Sith of Kreldin's plans. Now Kreldin was forever out of Axel's hair and the Sith think that he did them a favor. Axel had caused a bit of chaos in the Empire, stirred up trouble all over the place, and by god, he had fun. An enemy's enemy is a friend after all. "Danik Kreldin doesn't need to be the target then. Bring down the Maffi and Zhao with this effort and I will be just as pleased with the results. The blacksun also needs to be rooted out and destroyed; the Empire is not pleased with the underworld these days, Mr. Vichten. The Blacksun of old were useful and influential but these days it is a former shell of itself and a waste. I am not opposed to underworld activity but it needs to be better designed than what is pushing the current markets in neutral space." The pair continue to walk toward the estate but the meeting was running low on fuel the proposal was presented it was only a matter now of accepting it and deciding what the next step would be in implementing it. The Sith pulls a cigarette from his inside jacket pocket and places it into his mouth lighting it with an igniter and taking a long draw from it, "Never thought you to be a farmer." The Sith says idly referring to the vineyards. Axel looks to the vineyards, deciding to answer that inquiry first while he ponder who would be the best target. "I outsource labor for the farming of the grapes. I picked the location because of the quiet area. My life is full of rapid motions and intrigue these days, I needed a place that was slow and relaxed to get my mind off of things." Axel refrains from mentioning that this was his late wife's favorite location on planet. He had planned on purchasing this place years ago, when it first came on the market. After Eyrie's death though, his focus became more on drugs and vengeance than reminiscing. Axel forces his mind to drift back to the business at hand. They were drawing closer to the front door of the estate, and a servant opens the door for the men. "I'll do what I can, providing there are no attacks on Caspar. As soon as I am propositioned for any destructive activity here, I move on. My involvement would end there. Also, I don't want credits. I want something more useful to me." The estate was pristine and reminded him of his own estate on Corellia, but his was a large empty house full of broken dreams and a lost family, when Malign fled to the rim in search of his family again, Korolov took power and the traitor Kreldin destroyed his estate and erected his own. The Sith had a long history of sorrow, when he defected to the Rebellion now more than twenty years ago he lost his wife and son as a reprisal against him, now Gabrielle and Sonja are as good as dead to him. His hazel eyes turn as he finds another subtle link in the intertwining destiny of two men who were both jaded beyond normal repair, "Who killed your wife Axel Vichten?" his voice was strangely emotional now as he was softening for a moment his senses never went down but his exterior stoicism vanished and a more human like figure emerged from a thick black shadow veiling him, "And what is more useful to you than credits?" maybe the previous question and this one were intertwined somehow, a Sith manipulation a means of convincing Vichten to sell his soul to the cause of evil. "Her death was because of a Bothan attack." Axel says in a cold tone. "She didn't die for nearly a year after the attack though." Axel sighed. It was Eyrie that had started off as his bodyguard. It was her who forced him to learn more how to defend himself on the ground as well as in space. She stood by him when he was weening himself off of the spice so long ago. "After her death, I lost it. I spent a year on Ryloth strung out on every drug available. I plotted revenge day after day and after killing the wife of four bothan ambassadors and the planetary government pardoned me for my attack on their planet...." Axel sighs and turns to face the Sith. "Why do you care? Is this just a way for you to find a weakness in me? My time for mourning is over. I focus on everything but my past now." That was a total lie, and it was apparent. Nothing but the smell of spice and the hangar signified the man. The entire estate was like a shrine to his dead wife. He seems to forget or ignore the question about credits, at least for the moment. A server droid rolls up, a tray of empty glasses sitting in one hand. "Can I offer you gentlemen a drink?" it asks in a feminine voice. "Please, have a seat in the parlor where there is a nice fire burning and the bar close by. Should you need anything, Master Vichten has quite an assortment of beverages from around the galaxy." The Sith was fast as every and full of guile as he quickly rushes up into Axel's face placing a gloved hand flat against his stomach and leaning forward to whisper into his ear, "Liar." He hisses into the smuggler's ear, "You attacked Bothans because of a grudge you had with one Bothan, you both are guilty for the millions of deaths resulting of two powerful egos colliding, you mourn for your wife, but any decent human would morn for all those destroyed in your wake." The Sith pulls back to his full height and belts out a light laugh, "But you Axel are not a good person you have the audacity of the Sith." He smirks, his hazel eyes turning to the droid, "Water." He says politely he wasn't in a drinking mood; his own memories were in his head about his family. In his twisted quest he has probably killed more people than Axel Vichten. Once the water comes the Sith takes the glass and drinks all of it and deposits the remains of a cigarette into it placing it on the tray before the droid can move away from him, "Axel Vichten, we are two common souls with a history of similarities. I respect you, but understand that you sometimes should not tempt the patience of a Sith. I do not say this as a threat, but as a warning for a friend, because one day achievements like yours will place you before our Emperor and he is not the type to accept any tones except subservient." The Sith smiles darkly as he notices Tal'sin in the room with them, "Interesting company, seems you have a house full of those who manipulate or kill Bothans, you gentleman need to find a better hobby." Malign turns toward the door and says, "You have twenty four standard hours to name your price for these missions Axel and your terms officially in the form of a hand written letter delivered by a close friend to the Imperial Embassy in Plaxton City. Your loyalty to Caspar is nave, clutching to it is like trying to find a replacement for your lost wife, but if you choose to live you will let go off these pointless emotional blocks and stumble forward and find a new kernel of emotion to focus on, hatred and with it the ability to destroy." With that the Sith moves rapidly toward the door leaving the smuggler to contemplate his offer. Just about everything the Sith said was true. Axel initially attacked the Bothan planet because of a clash between Peshk Vry'lya and himself. Noone had known Eyrie was dead when the Bothans attacked his penthouse. The best doctors around didn't know about the microscopic fragment of durasteel that had embedded itself under her skin and worked it's way, ever so slowly through her body to her lung. He had slaughtered hundreds of thousands of innocent lives because he wanted to show one man that he had more power than the head of the Republic. Sure the Emperor of the time paid him, but Axel was planning the attack before proposing a strike against 'industry' was ever proposed. He would have attacked even without the Imperial funding. "You'll get my letter," Axel says. Yes, Caspar was his home. It was also his weakness. It was the home for both him and his late wife. They had met and fallen in love on the beaches here. She died in his arms in the hospital here. Maybe it was time to put the crutch behind him. Oh how he hated Darth Malign, but he respected the man regardless of his hatred. He even envied the man in many ways. To have the power to push aside even the strongest of enemies was something Axel longed for. To inspire fear with but a look... To inspire loyalty without show of force, only with the threat of it... Axel was power hungry. He hadn't cared who he hurt on his path of power. He was good at manipulating people through the art of misdirection but he was not the master the Sith was. "Oh, you will get my letter, Tyler Damian...Darth Malign...My Enemy and my friend." Axel mumbles, and moves forward into the study to start writing the letter. Axel's Letter in Response: Hand written on expensive parchment with a reddish-brown ink. Darth Malign, You wanted a hand-written letter so here it is. Written not only by my hand but inked with the blood of my own hand as well. You asked me what was more important than money? Do you not know that yourself, or is this merely a test of how well you think you know me. I will tell you what is more useful than money. STRENGTH. Until I faced you, I thought I had strength. You showed me I was wrong. Strength buys power, which is the ultimate goal. No one can be handed power, which is why I do not ask for that in return for my services. I ask for strength. You want a more detailed description of what I want... You said it yourself. I am not a good person, I have the audacity of a Sith. If becoming a Sith is what gives me strength, then by the gods, teach me the way. I hate you beyond reason, Tyler Damian. At the same time, I respect you. I would even fight by your side, given the opportunity. I would also kill you if given a like opportunity, but I know that would not be possible in my current capacity. Show me the power, show me the strength. Show me the ways of the Sith. Axel
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