. . "Hotel Imperial - Transporation Bldg - Imperial City: Selene The hushed lobby of one of Selene's most renown hotels drowns in red. From the wine tinge of the plush carpets, that cover the highly polished permacrete floor and absorb nearly all steps taken along their path, to the deep mahogany of the reception desk and the delicate ruby hue of the walls, the color red permeates the area with its distinct, warm tint. The main floor is not extremely large, but arranged in a pattern suited well to comfort and style. The long desk - a central feature in all such establishments - is always manned by two human hotel clerks, and offset at most times by well mannered porter droids ready for their calls. The biggest part of the lobby is occupied by a lounge, with low couches and deep brown tables, wh"@en . . . "Having recently returned to the Empire following the War of the Throne, Danik Kreldin holds an awards ceremony."@en . "13"^^ . "Hotel Imperial - Transporation Bldg - Imperial City: Selene The hushed lobby of one of Selene's most renown hotels drowns in red. From the wine tinge of the plush carpets, that cover the highly polished permacrete floor and absorb nearly all steps taken along their path, to the deep mahogany of the reception desk and the delicate ruby hue of the walls, the color red permeates the area with its distinct, warm tint. The main floor is not extremely large, but arranged in a pattern suited well to comfort and style. The long desk - a central feature in all such establishments - is always manned by two human hotel clerks, and offset at most times by well mannered porter droids ready for their calls. The biggest part of the lobby is occupied by a lounge, with low couches and deep brown tables, where hotel guests congregate with visitors, watch personal renditions of today's holo news, or simply relax. The turbolift doors are made of transparisteel with embedded logos. Traditional staircases provide access to the upper levels, alongside turbolifts that operate within the Hotel levels. It is commonly known that many galactic officials who come to Selene to visit the high governmental offices stay in Hotel Imperial. NOTE: There is a HIGH concentration of stormtroopers throughout the city during the festivities. Contact Scaven, Tyler, Korolov, or Danik before doing anything -against- the Empire during your stay here. All weapons would have been taken at the spaceport upon arrival, no exceptions. -=-=-=-=-=-=<>=-=-=-=-=-=- => Kenji => Lanil => Sandor => Claven => Award Ceremony Decor object => Lauranne -=-=-=-=-=<>=-=-=-=-=- Award Ceremony Decor object The head table is set up so that platters of food can be set right at the head table and those seated there will get served at their seats. All the other tables, pre-plated dinners will be brought out to speed serving everyone. Actual decorative appearance of the tables brought in for this event includes white tableclothes with black serving dishes and black candles for the main table, then white tableclothes with white dishes and additional (though fewer) black candles at the rest of the tables. Music is piped in before the ceremony begins, more quietly during the meal eating, then again at the end if needed. During set instances for toasts and accolades, any music will be stopped then resumed again after. The servers of this function are sharply dressed in starched white serving suits. They move quickly, obviously trained to perform the tasks of the evening as bring food for all the guests seated at the tables. Serving staff move among the tables, making sure glasses for dinner have wine in them, and flutes for toasts have champagne. Danik Kreldin cracked his neck as he went over his dress uniform one more time in the back room of the hotel, making sure not a loose thread remained and his ribbons and medals were all aligned properly. The ceremony had been organzied by Lieutenant Lauranne Tremichall and set into motion by himself, and would surely be a fun evening. An award ceremony has not taken place for quite a few years, mainly due to Malus, Danik figured. But in any case, this would be the first ceremony for the crew of the Conqueror since the rise of Malign and a whole lot of awards would surely be given out. A lot of the crew that had been given leave to come was already here and it was time to start the show. Kreldin walked out from the room and into the main hall where everything had been set up, quite nicely he might add. He walked over to the head table, where the rest of the high command had been sitting, and signaled the band to begin playing. The Imperial March struck up, and the room fell silent as the Imperial Honor Guard marched in to the song. Lanil is standing off to one side, talking with one of the members of the set up crew, \"No, no, no! This is wrong. Put the centerpiece table in front of the head table, not in the middle of the blasted room!! Get it together man!\" The crewman nods and rushes off hurridly. Hearing the music pipe up, the Commander looks up to see what is going on. Spotting Kreldin, he heads over, \"Evening, sir. Starting the climb back up the ladder, eh sir? Anyways, I'm getting this last minute stuff taken care of, we're almost ready to go, if those bumbling fools would just get it together? Where's Lieutenant Lauranne, she knows how to organize these things better than I do.\" Contrary to his usual demeanor, Sandor seemed more than a little uncomfortable in the present conditions. For enlisted men, such grand presentations as these didn't inspire nearly as much satisfaction as he imagined they did for the officers, and other higher-ups. They were just an opportunity for you to slip up, and keeping that in mind, Sandor took extra care to make sure that his dress uniform was in order ahead of time, treating it with almost as much care as he normally would his rifle. \"What a waste,\" he mumbled to himself, as he sat on one of the side tables, directing his attention towards the head table. It didn't matter what was discussed by Sandor's compatriots, the so-called masses, everything of genuine importance surely would happen in the center. And Sandor, though still fresh to the military, wished as though he'd been kept out of there for most of his life that he could be sitting there in place of one of the actual occupants. \"I'll get my chance..\" he spoke aloud, prompting a few confused looks from some of the other men sitting nearby, but he paid them no heed. That had to be the key, Sandor reasoned. Lauranne has been supervising the arrangements of the decor and place settings and other necessary items of the main hall. She takes a final moment to check in the hotel's kitchen to be sure dinner is keeping to schedule then gives her own uniform a once over to make certain she is herself fully prepared for the evening. She does not want anything to go wrong this evening, but she knows that if it does her people are capable of dealing with any eventuality as well as she can. With that thought in her mind she now proceeds to the table she was assigned to be seated at for the ceremony. She is mildly chagrinned upon realization an extra centerpiece was just brought in, but it has been directed to the head table already so she would have to leave it to the serving staff to deal with having less tableroom than anticipated when it is time to bring out the food. \t Tonight would be one of the last nights that Moff Blake Lorent would spend on Selene, his leave from Athaniss already running much longer than he had anticipated. Nodding to the Stormtroopers that stand at the door, Blake scans the room quickly before heading towards the front of the room. As much as he hated the extra attention that being a Moff came with, the man took it with a grain a salt and rolled with it. Nodding to several people as he approaches his seat, Blake pulls out his chair and takes his seat. Sacrificing being comfortable for the appearance the was neccesary when sitting in front of room of people, Blake refrains from leaning back into this chair, this night truly was going to be a long one, and he was not even there to collect an award. The doors open in a grand fashion both swinging open loudly by a pair of men in naval dress uniforms that stand at crisp attention as an older man steps forward. Many may recognize him as Admiral Honos, commander of the fleet blockading Dreven, \"Ladies and Gentleman! Soldiers of the Empire! Rise for the Warlord.\" He declares taking a step to the side and saluting, standing firm and awaiting the figure to enter the room. And he does. Malign enters the room wearing total black. His double breasted tunic and trousers fit neatly and have no signs of rank or any insignia, he belonged to all branches of the military, clasped to his shoulders by a pair of silver bucklers as a black flowing cape, and on the back of the cape was a white Imperial Starburst. He stood silently to receive the salutes before moving toward a reserved seat toward the front of the room. Once he makes it, accompanied by Honos the Admiral works the long cape off the Warlord's shoulders folding it and handing it to an aid behind him. The Warlord raises a hand and then is seated without saying a word. His hazel eyes glance out over the crowd without passion. The Imperial March continued on as the Imperial Honor Guard spread out in military formation and set them selves up around the head table, standing at firm attention. Their military precision was perfect, just as one would expect from an Imperial Honor Guard. Danik nodded to Lanil slowly, and shrugged. \"Very well, Commander. See to it,\" he said, and then walked around the head table to the front, where a podium and microphone had been set up for him. By now everyone had been seated, at least for the time being. Attendants of Lauranne's crew directed Blake to his reserved seat just as the doors opened up. The entire room stood up at once to usher in the arrival of Warlord Malign, and the band kept silent as he made his way into the room, his seat reserved at the front of the head table. Danik himself snapped to attention, bringing his hand up to salute the Warlord as he passed by. When the Warlord took his seat, things settled down. Danik took center stage at the podium and waited until the room quieted down. \"Good evening, and welcome to the Conqueror Award Ceremony. This is the first award ceremony in several years for the crew of the Conqueror, and a lot has happened over these past few years. We have been through the rise and falls of several Emperors and are now in a new era of prosperity, and we are all honored today to have Warlord Malign himself grace us with his visit. You should all be extremely proud of yourselves, loyal soldiers of the Empire. You have served your Empire well, and today you will all be rewarded for your bravery, loyalty and devotion to duty. We will first begin with the opening ceremony, where we will issue out the awards beginning from the lowest ranking individuals. Following this we will serve the soup and salad and move on to the rest of the ceremony and then the main meal...\" he said, breaking for a few moments. A datapad had been set out on the podium with a list of the award winners and their awards. He started by calling out the lowest ranking individuals first until. As a man was called up to receive his awards, a member of the Honor Guard would bring out a case containing the said awards and hand it to the man. Finally they worked their way up to Sergeant Sandor Woden... As much as it pained Sandor to even be present at the ceremony, he was beginning to warm up to the idea, given the people present. He'd seen a number of high ranking officers, and even Warlord Malign himself, which struck a chord in the Sergeant's mind regarding the importance of the ceremony. And good things seem to happen to those who do well in the company of great men, at least, so Sandor had allowed himself to believe over time. And although he recognized Danik, as well, Sandor surmised that it would be considered poor taste for him to say anything to the man, before or after the ceremony. Sandor waited through the early awards patiently, knowing that for his efforts, at the very least he would recieve something. At least, he had to hope he would, given his position and how blatantly obvious it had been made to him over his brief length of time in the military that enlisted men were given almost no value at all. Hearing his name, Sandor waited no more than a second or so before standing, and approaching the podium where Danik now stood at a brisk pace. Upon arriving, knowing that most eyes were watching him, he took extra care to execute an almost flawless salute, something he'd been practicing of late, hoping it would be enough to satisfy his role in the otherwise decadent display going on around him. \t Finding himself standing again, just as soon as he had taken his seat, Blake's hands grip tightly in the small of his back. With a polite nod to Lord Malign as he walks towards his respective seat amongst the table, Blake waits for the appropriate time and sits once again. After the Council, Blake had little idea as to the Empire's view on Athaniss' recent productivity and as such he was slightly uncomfortable around the Dark Lord. Swallowing the lump in his throat, Lorent looks out into the large crowd of people, waiting for the awards ceremony to to begin. After what seemed like ages, Danik Kreldin makes his way towards the microphone and the announcing of the awards begins. Impassionate eyes, almost empty, were what the Warlord was using the peer at the crowd and to give the occasional glance at Danik as he speaks. This was one of the rare occasions people would get a look at him without a heavy cloak and a hood on. He crosses his arms politely as an aide from behind begins pointing at a datapad and speaking quietly with him. He keeps his tone low and speaks with the man for a few moments. Then he suddenly snaps to attention and moves toward the door quietly. As he leaves the Warlord leans over and explains a few things to Admiral Honos who sits directly to his left. Honos wasn't a Grand Admiral, but most of the High Command knew he was Malign's most respected Military advisor and they had become rather close friends through their working relationship. Danik's speech was good, but wielded some of the bland flavor that was drilled into Imperial speech, especially in the Military, where was the passion? The Warlord would be forced to contemplate on this as the ceremony begins to move underway. Lauranne readies herself when the band begins the March, then rises at the command and stands at attention. Although she has never attended an awards ceremony in all the time since she was assigned to the Conqueror she does not seem as uncomfortable as some of the other young officers around her. Laure resettles herself in her seat as everyone else does and she listens to Danik's words. She watches as each who is called takes their turn approaching Danik at the podium then returning to their seats. Sergeant Woden's extra care with his salute is taken by Laure to be a show of pride in the Empire and what the Sergeant has done for the betterment of the Empire. As Danik was handing out the awards, the waiters began to pass out the soup to the members of the head table. The soup was then handed out to the masses, though in smaller porportions. Danik, meanwhile, returned the salute to Sandor. \"Sergeant Sandor Woden, you are being awarded the Bronze Star, Star of Veers, the Good Conduct Medal, and a Combat Operations Ribbon with two stars of distinction ,\" he said. An officer approached Woden and opened up the medal case, pinning the medals and ribbons to the sergeant's uniform. \"Sergeant Sandor Woden has displayed amazing courage and his extreme devotion to the Galactic Empire throughout his short career, evident by his fast promotions through the rank radder. He is an impressive soldier and is the most note worthy infantryman aboard the Conqueror.\" With that over, Danik extended his hand towards the sergeant. Sandor could hardly believe his ears; this was a lot more than he'd expected. Could it be that he was wrong after all, that they really did care about it's enlisted men? Or was Sandor buying into what Danik told him too easily? That thought definitely crossed his mind, forcing him to falter for a second, distracted, before realizing that Danik had offered him his hand. Taking the hint, albeit a little late, Sandor met the man's handshake, adding a nod of thanks as well. Making sure to recover a sense of military efficiency, with so many people still watching, he turned and walked back to his seat, sitting through a set of compliments with a lot more excitement than he'd had a few moments before. After shaking hands with the sergeant, Danik returned to calling out names. It took a while, but they moved through the ranks until they came upon Lauranne. \"Next up, Lieutenant Lauranne Tremichall,\" he said. \"Lieutenant Tremichall is the chief organizer of this event, and a fine job she has done with it. For her devotion to duty and loyal to the Empire, Lieutenant Tremichall is being awarded the Star of Canis, the Good Conduct Medal, and a FleetOps Ribbon with Two Stars of Distinction. Lieutenant Tremichall has shown tremendous zeal in her station throughout her career, clearly evident by this event,\" he said, as the officer approached the podium with her medal case. Lauranne blinks once as she sees just how much Sergeant Woden has to be proud of too. She claps just a moment longer for Sandor than she did for the other award recipients as he returns to his seat. A quiet thank you is given to the server who places her soup on the table before her and she blinks again as she realizes she is smiling to the young man. She picks up her spoon now and takes a taste to hide that she has managed to fluster herself. She may have been trained to be able to prepare meals such as this one and even to serve those at the main table, but she is also friends with those who work with her. A moment later, however she is dapping at her lips then rising as she finds herself now called to the podium. Laure marches up to the podium and like Sandor salutes, hoping no one realizes the pleasure and excitement she imagines to be radiating from her face. Warlord Malign stands as Admiral Honos slips him an award box, \"It would appear the Imperial Military Government has an award for one of its officers. Please wait one moment on the food.\" He says coolly opening the box to show a medal known as the The Order of Liberation, \"This medal is awarded to those who show particular zeal in the promotion of the New Order. Such persons have striven to expand, preserve, and Improve the New Order throughout their Imperial Careers. Some may disagree with me, for awarding this medal, but fighting a weak Empire for loyalties to the old and strong is a sign of loyalty and not treason. Now the Empire is strong, and with the aid of everyone here we will retake what is ours and establish galactic order.\" The Warlord turns to Danik, \"Congratulations Kreldin, you have earned this.\" He says handing it to Admiral Honos who turns to offer it to Danik. \"Please return to your meals, congratulations to everyone.\" The officer pinned the medals and ribbons onto Lauranne's dress uniform accordingly, and then stepped away as Danik himself extended his right hand. \"Congratulations, Lieutenant,\" he said, and then went back to finalizing the awards. There were plenty of more to give out. Finally, after a while, it had ended and all the awards had been issued. Kreldin was a bit tired now, but it wasn't over yet. Warlord Malign stood, immediately silencing everyone in the room. Danik himself turned to face the Warlord and listened intentively. Danik felt incredibly nervous, and one would be at a time like this. He was at a loss of words, but quickly reestablished himself and took the medal case from the Admiral. \"Thank you, sir!\" he said, saluting Malign. Following Kreldin's award, platters were brought before the head table, but pre-plated dishes were handed out to the other tables. The main entree was roasted fowl with steamed mixed veggies, with mashed potato and gravy on the side. Rolls and butter had already been set up at each table, with dinner spices laid out. With the Warlord's blessings, the party began. Lauranne is having a hard time keeping from smiling at the officer applying the medals and ribbons to her uniform. As she shakes Danik's hand a part of her smile is indeed seen upon her lips as she replies to him with, \"Thank you, Sir!\" before marching proudly back to her seat where her salad is now sitting in place of her soup. When Danik has also received an award, she claps an extra moment for him as well before returning to her meal. With a renewed sense of vigor, Sandor began to attack his meal. Now and then he would jump into people's conversations, displaying a sense of extroversion that he usually didn't possess. But, he was excited, and still only a young man after all. Politics and procedure could wait, as far as he was concerned. And as for the rest of the people, they could, too. At least the ones outside of his table.. although, he did notice that people were moving about more freely now. Perhaps he'd do the same, after he finished the most important part of the ceremony, the quenching of his hunger. Once finished her food, Lauranne walks among the tables, talking to several people. She doesn't say much, just congradulates them for awards received before moving on again. Eventually she slides back to the kitchen, to see if any extra help is needed with getting desserts ready, but her crew have things well in hand and usher her back out again. At that she returns to her seat to wait, talking quietly to anyone who approaches her. Danik had received quite an extensive amount of medals. He had thirteen in all, now. An eventful day, he figured. Now that the awards were all finished, and the entrees served, Danik walked about the room, electing to eat later on. He approached Lieuteannt Tremichall's seat, smiling. \"Excellent job, Lieutenant. Good work with the ceremony. And, congratulations on your medals.\" Although his plate was far from finished, Sandor was nominally a restrained man, and took the care to make sure that he didn't overeat. While the food was no doubt delicious, he wouldn't be very useful in combat if he ate too much of it, and out there, that would mean death. Something that few men really wanted to seek out. Leaving it to the orderlies to clear his plate, Sandor stood and sought out what few people he remembered from his previous experiences; most of them were dead, and one injured, preventing him from attending. Such was the fate for the enlisted man, however, once an operation sours. Having finished with those he could find, however, he proceded to note Danik standing next to a woman he didn't know, but vaguely recognized from the awards ceremony. It pained him to realize that he hadn't been paying attention to such details, but, Sandor could not remember her name. Bearing that in mind, he approached with caution, offering to them both; \"Congratulations on all of your achievements,\" flashing his head to Danik, and then to Lauranne, and cleverly avoiding use of either's name. Danik shook Sandor's hand, nodding. \"Yes, indeed; you two both did well tonight, and for good reason. And thank you, Lieutenant,\" he said. His new set of ribbons and medals fit in quite nicely, he thought. \"Sergeant Sandor Woden, this is Lieutenant Lauranne Tremichall, the chief organizer of this event. Lieuteant Tremichall, this is Sergeant Woden, a fine hero. Saved my life once,\" he said, smiling. \"I should go have my food before it gets cold, now. Smells delicious,\" he said, and left the two to themselves so he could indulge in some the roasted fowl that had been set up at his seat. Not missing a beat, Sandor added aloud to Danik's compliment only seconds after he had walked away, likely before he was even out of earshot. \"He's right, everything was absolutely wonderful. Your cooks did a wonderful job, Lieutenant,\" he grinned a bit, knowing that if Kreldin had been talking to her, and from her medals, that she must be exemplary in her field. \"And the ceremonies have turned out extremely well, too, I can see why you've been decorated so well.\" Lauranne can't seem to stop smiling. She watches Danik as he heads to his seat in order to enjoy his portion of the wonderful meal her crew set out tonight. She now turns her attention fully to the Sergeant and rises, gesturing for him to walk. \"I don't know about you, but I'm too excited to just sit still right now. This has been quite a grand evening already, and I'm not sure it is all done yet.\" She actually blushes faintly as Sandor adds his congrats for how well her team has been able to handle the evening. \"I will be sure to let my people know that their work has been appreciated by those it is being done to honour, thank you again.\" Danik sits down in his seat at the head table and quickly began to eat. The fowl was great, especially with the addition of several of the spices set up at the table. Some white wine from the Selene vineyard was poured into his glass by a waiter. Danik personally never had white wine, usually sticking to Corellian ale, but hey, first time for everything. His uniform was getting full of medals and ribbons. It was going to weigh him down eventually. He was the most highly decorated officer in the room at the moment, and that only expanded his already big ego. An eventful day indeed. Sandor nods in reply to her, darting his eyes about for a moment before speaking again. \"Yes, it really is a wonderful night. I mean no offense, but, I'm not very good at events like these, stuffed in with a lot of other people. It's a wonder I've even made it this far, given that.\", he chuckles a bit, mostly to himself, while remembering bits and pieces of his basic training as he spoke. Had it really been so long since then? It couldn't really, but everything seemed so far away now. \"Lieutenant, I don't mean to pry, but what do you think of Kreldin?\" Sandor hoped she would answer honestly, still confused about how Danik had reacted to him in previous instances.. maybe, as he had personally congratulated her, she knew him well enough to say. That Danik even remembered what had happened at Naom Char was enough to make Sandor wonder about him, in a number of ways. Lauranne nods to Sandor as he explains about his feelings of unease in a setting such as this. \"Something I hear often enough, not to worry. This is my first such event as well, but I have the benefit of training for it, albeit I was trained to prepare the food and serve, not be served. It all works out though, that I have a minor advantage for comfort levels.\" She looks to Sandor a moment, thoughtfully, as he asks about Danik. \"You know, I don't recall seeing him around on the Observation Deck. I have known a number of his fighter pilots over the two years or so that I've been aboard the Conqueror, but we don't tend to talk about work.\" She shrugs a bit, \"People are my business in a way, and he feels like someone who can be counted on when it really matters.\" The Commander emerges from the backroom, and gradually makes his way over to the head table, trying his best to be as least noticible as possible. Coming to an empty seat next to Danik and the Admiral, he greets them both with a curt bow, \"Evening gentlemen, my apologies for missing the main event of the evening, I was in the back keeping everything held together. It seems even here I can't escape the call of duty.\" With a plate in hand and waiting patiently in line at the long food table is Ensign Kenji eyeing the many delicacies and luxurious foods prepared for this glamorous event. He picks the occansional fruit and handsandwiches placing them on his plate all the while terribly bored throughout the event. His eyes drift away from the table and towards the various officers sitting, eating, those awarded probably showing off and bragging. Kenji really needs to carve his name into stone one day... Not really being able to help himself, Sandor grins, realizing that she speaks more truth that she really knows. Or that she's saying, at least, Sandor quickly ammended in his thoughts. That did remind him, though, he still had business with Danik to resolve, so Sandor offers a salute to Lauranne. \"It's been a pleasure speaking with you, and congratulations again on your work here tonight. If this truly is your first, I can only imagine how well your next event will perform.\" As a matter of taste, Sandor decided to wait until she'd replied to turn to leave, but immediately after he would have to seek out Kreldin. If the man hadn't been appeased, all of his work could easily have been for nothing, Sandor realized. Though it appeared at first glance to Sandor that Danik was still attending to his food, as Sandor drew closer he realized how little it really mattered. Though it would probably not be a smart idea to insult the man somehow, Sandor had gotten away with worse the last time he had sought him out. And before even announcing himself, Sandor offered a salute, knowing that Danik wouldn't be able to see it but that others would, as a test to see if he really would pursue Sandor over even a trivial matter, much less what he really wished to discuss. \"Sir, how is your food?\", he asked, not wanting to reveal his real question just yet. Danik washed down the food with his wine and and sighed. It was actually quite good. Before Danik could taste some of the desert that was just now coming out, which included some \"Choco Demise\" and \"Berry Puffs,\" some of Danik's favorites, he was interrupted by the appearance of the sergeant. \"Ah, Woden... pretty good. I hope you had a good time.\" Sandor looked to the plate, realizing that everything seemed to be in order. He'd interrupted the man's dinner, and had saluted him from behind, yet Danik took no action, at all. That would have to be enough, although the young Sergeant still was a bit concerned, with Danik's reputation and all. If he had known the man was so powerful, he would have, perhaps, taken a bit more discretion ahead of time, but nothing could help that now. \"I have, everything has been conducted to a superb degree of attention tonight, but,\" Sandor's voice then drops to little more than a whisper, \"Have you recieved the payment yet? I tried to get it to you, but, I just want to be sure about this sort of thing\". Something about the way Sandor spoke almost seemed afraid, though not nearly so strong as that word. Perhaps cautious, given the circumstances, but this was the only opportunity he could see getting close to Kreldin again without tracking him to the observation deck again. Lanil gets a drink off the platter that one of the waiters is carrying around, but stops him before he can run off, \"Seaman, make sure that the cooks prepare at least one dairy-free dish, I don't want a repeat of last time with Lieutenant Morris, he swelled up like a Hutt last time.\" The crewman nods before heading back to the kitchen, \"Aye sir!\" Satisfied, the Commander returns to his seat, \"So, Danik, anything interesting happen while I was working my tail off back there?\" Danik could not sense what Sandor was thinking, or feeling, so he was oblivious to Sandor's reactions. Danik wasn't one to get angry over failure to comply with proper procedure, or etiquette, especially at a place like this. Maybe in battle. Danik did not concern himself with such nonsense. \"Oh, yes, I did. Good job, by the way...couldn't have done it better myself, though I'm sure you enjoyed my last minute heroics. That girl almost got him!\" he said. \"But yes, I have the credits, thanks. Guess you weren't playing me after all,\" he said, and then his attention turned to Lanil. \"Interesting? Other than my new medals, no,\" he said, grinning. \"Same old, same old. Everyone get their awards, everyone is happy.\" With a sigh of relief, Sandor nodded to Danik, though the man was now speaking with someone he didn't recognize and probably wouldn't notice that, either. It felt rewarding to know that Danik, too, was a bit suspicious in the circumstances, as would only be natural for any red-blooded human being. Turning to Lanil, Sandor offered a salute; rank was rank, after all, even in seperate branches. Truly, the man must have been busy, if he had been keeping the seams of this ceremony from unraveling, and Sandor felt a twinge of respect to the man, but felt silly for it but seconds later, as he didn't even know the man's name. \"I'll leave you two to your conversation, then.\" he interrupted, giving Danik a salute this time, before turning and proceding to his original seat. On the periphery. \"Always the periphery..\", Sandor muttered to himself, before fading into the more casual conversations amongst the enlisted men. Lanil nods, \"Aye, I here you sir. Mind informing me as to what I received?\" He notices a fancy slim box off to one side, and the Commander has an inkling as to who it may belong to... \"Take care, Sergeant,\" Danik said, watching as Sandor left. He then turned his full attention to Lanil. \"This? Oh, yeah,\" he said, sliding the box over to him. \"Two stars for your FleetOps ribbon, a Long Service Medal, and a CombatOps Ribbon,\" he said, opening the box up and placing it next to Lanil. \"Anyway, it's getting late...have one of the attendants pin them on you. I'll be returning to the Conqueror to get some sleep...you can supervise everything down here, I'm sure,\" he said, and stood up from his seat. He offered a final salute to Admiral Honos before making his leave. Lanil nods, \"Good night, sir.\" He stands as Danik departs. Taking his seat again, he grins to himself, \"Two stars, a new ribbon, and a medal. Well it's still better than nothing.\" Chuckling, the Commander sips idly at his wine."@en . "RPlog:Imperial Awards Ceremony"@en . . "Hotel Imperial - Transporation Bldg - Imperial City: Selene The hushed lobby of one of Selene's most renown hotels drowns in red. From the wine tinge of the plush carpets, that cover the highly polished permacrete floor and absorb nearly all steps taken along their path, to the deep mahogany of the reception desk and the delicate ruby hue of the walls, the color red permeates the area with its distinct, warm tint. The main floor is not extremely large, but arranged in a pattern suited well to comfort and style. The long desk - a central feature in all such establishments - is always manned by two human hotel clerks, and offset at most times by well mannered porter droids ready for their calls. The biggest part of the lobby is occupied by a lounge, with low couches and deep brown tables, where hotel guests congregate with visitors, watch personal renditions of today's holo news, or simply relax. The turbolift doors are made of transparisteel with embedded logos. Traditional staircases provide access to the upper levels, alongside turbolifts that operate within the Hotel levels. It is commonly known that many galactic officials who come to Selene to visit the high governmental offices stay in Hotel Imperial. NOTE: There is a HIGH concentration of stormtroopers throughout the city during the festivities. Contact Scaven, Tyler, Korolov, or Danik before doing anything -against- the Empire during your stay here. All weapons would have been taken at the spaceport upon arrival, no exceptions. -=-=-=-=-=-=<>=-=-=-=-=-=- => Kenji => Lanil => Sandor => Claven => Award Ceremony Decor object => Lauranne -=-=-=-=-=<>=-=-=-=-=- Award Ceremony Decor object The head table is set up so that platters of food can be set right at the head table and those seated there will get served at their seats. All the other tables, pre-plated dinners will be brought out to speed serving everyone. Actual decorative appearance of the tables brought in for this event includes white tableclothes with black serving dishes and black candles for the main table, then white tableclothes with white dishes and additional (though fewer) black candles at the rest of the tables. Music is piped in before the ceremony begins, more quietly during the meal eating, then again at the end if needed. During set instances for toasts and accolades, any music will be stopped then resumed again after. The servers of this function are sharply dressed in starched white serving suits. They move quickly, obviously trained to perform the tasks of the evening as bring food for all the guests seated at the tables. Serving staff move among the tables, making sure glasses for dinner have wine in them, and flutes for toasts have champagne. Danik Kreldin cracked his neck as he went over his dress uniform one more time in the back room of the hotel, making sure not a loose thread remained and his ribbons and medals were all aligned properly. The ceremony had been organzied by Lieutenant Lauranne Tremichall and set into motion by himself, and would surely be a fun evening. An award ceremony has not taken place for quite a few years, mainly due to Malus, Danik figured. But in any case, this would be the first ceremony for the crew of the Conqueror since the rise of Malign and a whole lot of awards would surely be given out. A lot of the crew that had been given leave to come was already here and it was time to start the show. Kreldin walked out from the room and into the main hall where everything had been set up, quite nicely he might add. He walked over to the head table, where the rest of the high command had been sitting, and signaled the band to begin playing. The Imperial March struck up, and the room fell silent as the Imperial Honor Guard marched in to the song. Lanil is standing off to one side, talking with one of the members of the set up crew, \"No, no, no! This is wrong. Put the centerpiece table in front of the head table, not in the middle of the blasted room!! Get it together man!\" The crewman nods and rushes off hurridly. Hearing the music pipe up, the Commander looks up to see what is going on. Spotting Kreldin, he heads over, \"Evening, sir. Starting the climb back up the ladder, eh sir? Anyways, I'm getting this last minute stuff taken care of, we're almost ready to go, if those bumbling fools would just get it together? Where's Lieutenant Lauranne, she knows how to organize these things better than I do.\" Contrary to his usual demeanor, Sandor seemed more than a little uncomfortable in the present conditions. For enlisted men, such grand presentations as these didn't inspire nearly as much satisfaction as he imagined they did for the officers, and other higher-ups. They were just an opportunity for you to slip up, and keeping that in mind, Sandor took extra care to make sure that his dress uniform was in order ahead of time, treating it with almost as much care as he normally would his rifle. \"What a waste,\" he mumbled to himself, as he sat on one of the side tables, directing his attention towards the head table. It didn't matter what was discussed by Sandor's compatriots, the so-called masses, everything of genuine importance surely would happen in the center. And Sandor, though still fresh to the military, wished as though he'd been kept out of there for most of his life that he could be sitting there in place of one of the actual occupants. \"I'll get my chance..\" he spoke aloud, prompting a few confused looks from some of the other men sitting nearby, but he paid them no heed. That had to be the key, Sandor reasoned. Lauranne has been supervising the arrangements of the decor and place settings and other necessary items of the main hall. She takes a final moment to check in the hotel's kitchen to be sure dinner is keeping to schedule then gives her own uniform a once over to make certain she is herself fully prepared for the evening. She does not want anything to go wrong this evening, but she knows that if it does her people are capable of dealing with any eventuality as well as she can. With that thought in her mind she now proceeds to the table she was assigned to be seated at for the ceremony. She is mildly chagrinned upon realization an extra centerpiece was just brought in, but it has been directed to the head table already so she would have to leave it to the serving staff to deal with having less tableroom than anticipated when it is time to bring out the food. \t Tonight would be one of the last nights that Moff Blake Lorent would spend on Selene, his leave from Athaniss already running much longer than he had anticipated. Nodding to the Stormtroopers that stand at the door, Blake scans the room quickly before heading towards the front of the room. As much as he hated the extra attention that being a Moff came with, the man took it with a grain a salt and rolled with it. Nodding to several people as he approaches his seat, Blake pulls out his chair and takes his seat. Sacrificing being comfortable for the appearance the was neccesary when sitting in front of room of people, Blake refrains from leaning back into this chair, this night truly was going to be a long one, and he was not even there to collect an award. The doors open in a grand fashion both swinging open loudly by a pair of men in naval dress uniforms that stand at crisp attention as an older man steps forward. Many may recognize him as Admiral Honos, commander of the fleet blockading Dreven, \"Ladies and Gentleman! Soldiers of the Empire! Rise for the Warlord.\" He declares taking a step to the side and saluting, standing firm and awaiting the figure to enter the room. And he does. Malign enters the room wearing total black. His double breasted tunic and trousers fit neatly and have no signs of rank or any insignia, he belonged to all branches of the military, clasped to his shoulders by a pair of silver bucklers as a black flowing cape, and on the back of the cape was a white Imperial Starburst. He stood silently to receive the salutes before moving toward a reserved seat toward the front of the room. Once he makes it, accompanied by Honos the Admiral works the long cape off the Warlord's shoulders folding it and handing it to an aid behind him. The Warlord raises a hand and then is seated without saying a word. His hazel eyes glance out over the crowd without passion. The Imperial March continued on as the Imperial Honor Guard spread out in military formation and set them selves up around the head table, standing at firm attention. Their military precision was perfect, just as one would expect from an Imperial Honor Guard. Danik nodded to Lanil slowly, and shrugged. \"Very well, Commander. See to it,\" he said, and then walked around the head table to the front, where a podium and microphone had been set up for him. By now everyone had been seated, at least for the time being. Attendants of Lauranne's crew directed Blake to his reserved seat just as the doors opened up. The entire room stood up at once to usher in the arrival of Warlord Malign, and the band kept silent as he made his way into the room, his seat reserved at the front of the head table. Danik himself snapped to attention, bringing his hand up to salute the Warlord as he passed by. When the Warlord took his seat, things settled down. Danik took center stage at the podium and waited until the room quieted down. \"Good evening, and welcome to the Conqueror Award Ceremony. This is the first award ceremony in several years for the crew of the Conqueror, and a lot has happened over these past few years. We have been through the rise and falls of several Emperors and are now in a new era of prosperity, and we are all honored today to have Warlord Malign himself grace us with his visit. You should all be extremely proud of yourselves, loyal soldiers of the Empire. You have served your Empire well, and today you will all be rewarded for your bravery, loyalty and devotion to duty. We will first begin with the opening ceremony, where we will issue out the awards beginning from the lowest ranking individuals. Following this we will serve the soup and salad and move on to the rest of the ceremony and then the main meal...\" he said, breaking for a few moments. A datapad had been set out on the podium with a list of the award winners and their awards. He started by calling out the lowest ranking individuals first until. As a man was called up to receive his awards, a member of the Honor Guard would bring out a case containing the said awards and hand it to the man. Finally they worked their way up to Sergeant Sandor Woden... As much as it pained Sandor to even be present at the ceremony, he was beginning to warm up to the idea, given the people present. He'd seen a number of high ranking officers, and even Warlord Malign himself, which struck a chord in the Sergeant's mind regarding the importance of the ceremony. And good things seem to happen to those who do well in the company of great men, at least, so Sandor had allowed himself to believe over time. And although he recognized Danik, as well, Sandor surmised that it would be considered poor taste for him to say anything to the man, before or after the ceremony. Sandor waited through the early awards patiently, knowing that for his efforts, at the very least he would recieve something. At least, he had to hope he would, given his position and how blatantly obvious it had been made to him over his brief length of time in the military that enlisted men were given almost no value at all. Hearing his name, Sandor waited no more than a second or so before standing, and approaching the podium where Danik now stood at a brisk pace. Upon arriving, knowing that most eyes were watching him, he took extra care to execute an almost flawless salute, something he'd been practicing of late, hoping it would be enough to satisfy his role in the otherwise decadent display going on around him. \t Finding himself standing again, just as soon as he had taken his seat, Blake's hands grip tightly in the small of his back. With a polite nod to Lord Malign as he walks towards his respective seat amongst the table, Blake waits for the appropriate time and sits once again. After the Council, Blake had little idea as to the Empire's view on Athaniss' recent productivity and as such he was slightly uncomfortable around the Dark Lord. Swallowing the lump in his throat, Lorent looks out into the large crowd of people, waiting for the awards ceremony to to begin. After what seemed like ages, Danik Kreldin makes his way towards the microphone and the announcing of the awards begins. Impassionate eyes, almost empty, were what the Warlord was using the peer at the crowd and to give the occasional glance at Danik as he speaks. This was one of the rare occasions people would get a look at him without a heavy cloak and a hood on. He crosses his arms politely as an aide from behind begins pointing at a datapad and speaking quietly with him. He keeps his tone low and speaks with the man for a few moments. Then he suddenly snaps to attention and moves toward the door quietly. As he leaves the Warlord leans over and explains a few things to Admiral Honos who sits directly to his left. Honos wasn't a Grand Admiral, but most of the High Command knew he was Malign's most respected Military advisor and they had become rather close friends through their working relationship. Danik's speech was good, but wielded some of the bland flavor that was drilled into Imperial speech, especially in the Military, where was the passion? The Warlord would be forced to contemplate on this as the ceremony begins to move underway. Lauranne readies herself when the band begins the March, then rises at the command and stands at attention. Although she has never attended an awards ceremony in all the time since she was assigned to the Conqueror she does not seem as uncomfortable as some of the other young officers around her. Laure resettles herself in her seat as everyone else does and she listens to Danik's words. She watches as each who is called takes their turn approaching Danik at the podium then returning to their seats. Sergeant Woden's extra care with his salute is taken by Laure to be a show of pride in the Empire and what the Sergeant has done for the betterment of the Empire. As Danik was handing out the awards, the waiters began to pass out the soup to the members of the head table. The soup was then handed out to the masses, though in smaller porportions. Danik, meanwhile, returned the salute to Sandor. \"Sergeant Sandor Woden, you are being awarded the Bronze Star, Star of Veers, the Good Conduct Medal, and a Combat Operations Ribbon with two stars of distinction ,\" he said. An officer approached Woden and opened up the medal case, pinning the medals and ribbons to the sergeant's uniform. \"Sergeant Sandor Woden has displayed amazing courage and his extreme devotion to the Galactic Empire throughout his short career, evident by his fast promotions through the rank radder. He is an impressive soldier and is the most note worthy infantryman aboard the Conqueror.\" With that over, Danik extended his hand towards the sergeant. Sandor could hardly believe his ears; this was a lot more than he'd expected. Could it be that he was wrong after all, that they really did care about it's enlisted men? Or was Sandor buying into what Danik told him too easily? That thought definitely crossed his mind, forcing him to falter for a second, distracted, before realizing that Danik had offered him his hand. Taking the hint, albeit a little late, Sandor met the man's handshake, adding a nod of thanks as well. Making sure to recover a sense of military efficiency, with so many people still watching, he turned and walked back to his seat, sitting through a set of compliments with a lot more excitement than he'd had a few moments before. After shaking hands with the sergeant, Danik returned to calling out names. It took a while, but they moved through the ranks until they came upon Lauranne. \"Next up, Lieutenant Lauranne Tremichall,\" he said. \"Lieutenant Tremichall is the chief organizer of this event, and a fine job she has done with it. For her devotion to duty and loyal to the Empire, Lieutenant Tremichall is being awarded the Star of Canis, the Good Conduct Medal, and a FleetOps Ribbon with Two Stars of Distinction. Lieutenant Tremichall has shown tremendous zeal in her station throughout her career, clearly evident by this event,\" he said, as the officer approached the podium with her medal case. Lauranne blinks once as she sees just how much Sergeant Woden has to be proud of too. She claps just a moment longer for Sandor than she did for the other award recipients as he returns to his seat. A quiet thank you is given to the server who places her soup on the table before her and she blinks again as she realizes she is smiling to the young man. She picks up her spoon now and takes a taste to hide that she has managed to fluster herself. She may have been trained to be able to prepare meals such as this one and even to serve those at the main table, but she is also friends with those who work with her. A moment later, however she is dapping at her lips then rising as she finds herself now called to the podium. Laure marches up to the podium and like Sandor salutes, hoping no one realizes the pleasure and excitement she imagines to be radiating from her face. Warlord Malign stands as Admiral Honos slips him an award box, \"It would appear the Imperial Military Government has an award for one of its officers. Please wait one moment on the food.\" He says coolly opening the box to show a medal known as the The Order of Liberation, \"This medal is awarded to those who show particular zeal in the promotion of the New Order. Such persons have striven to expand, preserve, and Improve the New Order throughout their Imperial Careers. Some may disagree with me, for awarding this medal, but fighting a weak Empire for loyalties to the old and strong is a sign of loyalty and not treason. Now the Empire is strong, and with the aid of everyone here we will retake what is ours and establish galactic order.\" The Warlord turns to Danik, \"Congratulations Kreldin, you have earned this.\" He says handing it to Admiral Honos who turns to offer it to Danik. \"Please return to your meals, congratulations to everyone.\" The officer pinned the medals and ribbons onto Lauranne's dress uniform accordingly, and then stepped away as Danik himself extended his right hand. \"Congratulations, Lieutenant,\" he said, and then went back to finalizing the awards. There were plenty of more to give out. Finally, after a while, it had ended and all the awards had been issued. Kreldin was a bit tired now, but it wasn't over yet. Warlord Malign stood, immediately silencing everyone in the room. Danik himself turned to face the Warlord and listened intentively. Danik felt incredibly nervous, and one would be at a time like this. He was at a loss of words, but quickly reestablished himself and took the medal case from the Admiral. \"Thank you, sir!\" he said, saluting Malign. Following Kreldin's award, platters were brought before the head table, but pre-plated dishes were handed out to the other tables. The main entree was roasted fowl with steamed mixed veggies, with mashed potato and gravy on the side. Rolls and butter had already been set up at each table, with dinner spices laid out. With the Warlord's blessings, the party began. Lauranne is having a hard time keeping from smiling at the officer applying the medals and ribbons to her uniform. As she shakes Danik's hand a part of her smile is indeed seen upon her lips as she replies to him with, \"Thank you, Sir!\" before marching proudly back to her seat where her salad is now sitting in place of her soup. When Danik has also received an award, she claps an extra moment for him as well before returning to her meal. With a renewed sense of vigor, Sandor began to attack his meal. Now and then he would jump into people's conversations, displaying a sense of extroversion that he usually didn't possess. But, he was excited, and still only a young man after all. Politics and procedure could wait, as far as he was concerned. And as for the rest of the people, they could, too. At least the ones outside of his table.. although, he did notice that people were moving about more freely now. Perhaps he'd do the same, after he finished the most important part of the ceremony, the quenching of his hunger. Once finished her food, Lauranne walks among the tables, talking to several people. She doesn't say much, just congradulates them for awards received before moving on again. Eventually she slides back to the kitchen, to see if any extra help is needed with getting desserts ready, but her crew have things well in hand and usher her back out again. At that she returns to her seat to wait, talking quietly to anyone who approaches her. Danik had received quite an extensive amount of medals. He had thirteen in all, now. An eventful day, he figured. Now that the awards were all finished, and the entrees served, Danik walked about the room, electing to eat later on. He approached Lieuteannt Tremichall's seat, smiling. \"Excellent job, Lieutenant. Good work with the ceremony. And, congratulations on your medals.\" Although his plate was far from finished, Sandor was nominally a restrained man, and took the care to make sure that he didn't overeat. While the food was no doubt delicious, he wouldn't be very useful in combat if he ate too much of it, and out there, that would mean death. Something that few men really wanted to seek out. Leaving it to the orderlies to clear his plate, Sandor stood and sought out what few people he remembered from his previous experiences; most of them were dead, and one injured, preventing him from attending. Such was the fate for the enlisted man, however, once an operation sours. Having finished with those he could find, however, he proceded to note Danik standing next to a woman he didn't know, but vaguely recognized from the awards ceremony. It pained him to realize that he hadn't been paying attention to such details, but, Sandor could not remember her name. Bearing that in mind, he approached with caution, offering to them both; \"Congratulations on all of your achievements,\" flashing his head to Danik, and then to Lauranne, and cleverly avoiding use of either's name. Danik shook Sandor's hand, nodding. \"Yes, indeed; you two both did well tonight, and for good reason. And thank you, Lieutenant,\" he said. His new set of ribbons and medals fit in quite nicely, he thought. \"Sergeant Sandor Woden, this is Lieutenant Lauranne Tremichall, the chief organizer of this event. Lieuteant Tremichall, this is Sergeant Woden, a fine hero. Saved my life once,\" he said, smiling. \"I should go have my food before it gets cold, now. Smells delicious,\" he said, and left the two to themselves so he could indulge in some the roasted fowl that had been set up at his seat. Not missing a beat, Sandor added aloud to Danik's compliment only seconds after he had walked away, likely before he was even out of earshot. \"He's right, everything was absolutely wonderful. Your cooks did a wonderful job, Lieutenant,\" he grinned a bit, knowing that if Kreldin had been talking to her, and from her medals, that she must be exemplary in her field. \"And the ceremonies have turned out extremely well, too, I can see why you've been decorated so well.\" Lauranne can't seem to stop smiling. She watches Danik as he heads to his seat in order to enjoy his portion of the wonderful meal her crew set out tonight. She now turns her attention fully to the Sergeant and rises, gesturing for him to walk. \"I don't know about you, but I'm too excited to just sit still right now. This has been quite a grand evening already, and I'm not sure it is all done yet.\" She actually blushes faintly as Sandor adds his congrats for how well her team has been able to handle the evening. \"I will be sure to let my people know that their work has been appreciated by those it is being done to honour, thank you again.\" Danik sits down in his seat at the head table and quickly began to eat. The fowl was great, especially with the addition of several of the spices set up at the table. Some white wine from the Selene vineyard was poured into his glass by a waiter. Danik personally never had white wine, usually sticking to Corellian ale, but hey, first time for everything. His uniform was getting full of medals and ribbons. It was going to weigh him down eventually. He was the most highly decorated officer in the room at the moment, and that only expanded his already big ego. An eventful day indeed. Sandor nods in reply to her, darting his eyes about for a moment before speaking again. \"Yes, it really is a wonderful night. I mean no offense, but, I'm not very good at events like these, stuffed in with a lot of other people. It's a wonder I've even made it this far, given that.\", he chuckles a bit, mostly to himself, while remembering bits and pieces of his basic training as he spoke. Had it really been so long since then? It couldn't really, but everything seemed so far away now. \"Lieutenant, I don't mean to pry, but what do you think of Kreldin?\" Sandor hoped she would answer honestly, still confused about how Danik had reacted to him in previous instances.. maybe, as he had personally congratulated her, she knew him well enough to say. That Danik even remembered what had happened at Naom Char was enough to make Sandor wonder about him, in a number of ways. Lauranne nods to Sandor as he explains about his feelings of unease in a setting such as this. \"Something I hear often enough, not to worry. This is my first such event as well, but I have the benefit of training for it, albeit I was trained to prepare the food and serve, not be served. It all works out though, that I have a minor advantage for comfort levels.\" She looks to Sandor a moment, thoughtfully, as he asks about Danik. \"You know, I don't recall seeing him around on the Observation Deck. I have known a number of his fighter pilots over the two years or so that I've been aboard the Conqueror, but we don't tend to talk about work.\" She shrugs a bit, \"People are my business in a way, and he feels like someone who can be counted on when it really matters.\" The Commander emerges from the backroom, and gradually makes his way over to the head table, trying his best to be as least noticible as possible. Coming to an empty seat next to Danik and the Admiral, he greets them both with a curt bow, \"Evening gentlemen, my apologies for missing the main event of the evening, I was in the back keeping everything held together. It seems even here I can't escape the call of duty.\" With a plate in hand and waiting patiently in line at the long food table is Ensign Kenji eyeing the many delicacies and luxurious foods prepared for this glamorous event. He picks the occansional fruit and handsandwiches placing them on his plate all the while terribly bored throughout the event. His eyes drift away from the table and towards the various officers sitting, eating, those awarded probably showing off and bragging. Kenji really needs to carve his name into stone one day... Not really being able to help himself, Sandor grins, realizing that she speaks more truth that she really knows. Or that she's saying, at least, Sandor quickly ammended in his thoughts. That did remind him, though, he still had business with Danik to resolve, so Sandor offers a salute to Lauranne. \"It's been a pleasure speaking with you, and congratulations again on your work here tonight. If this truly is your first, I can only imagine how well your next event will perform.\" As a matter of taste, Sandor decided to wait until she'd replied to turn to leave, but immediately after he would have to seek out Kreldin. If the man hadn't been appeased, all of his work could easily have been for nothing, Sandor realized. Though it appeared at first glance to Sandor that Danik was still attending to his food, as Sandor drew closer he realized how little it really mattered. Though it would probably not be a smart idea to insult the man somehow, Sandor had gotten away with worse the last time he had sought him out. And before even announcing himself, Sandor offered a salute, knowing that Danik wouldn't be able to see it but that others would, as a test to see if he really would pursue Sandor over even a trivial matter, much less what he really wished to discuss. \"Sir, how is your food?\", he asked, not wanting to reveal his real question just yet. Danik washed down the food with his wine and and sighed. It was actually quite good. Before Danik could taste some of the desert that was just now coming out, which included some \"Choco Demise\" and \"Berry Puffs,\" some of Danik's favorites, he was interrupted by the appearance of the sergeant. \"Ah, Woden... pretty good. I hope you had a good time.\" Sandor looked to the plate, realizing that everything seemed to be in order. He'd interrupted the man's dinner, and had saluted him from behind, yet Danik took no action, at all. That would have to be enough, although the young Sergeant still was a bit concerned, with Danik's reputation and all. If he had known the man was so powerful, he would have, perhaps, taken a bit more discretion ahead of time, but nothing could help that now. \"I have, everything has been conducted to a superb degree of attention tonight, but,\" Sandor's voice then drops to little more than a whisper, \"Have you recieved the payment yet? I tried to get it to you, but, I just want to be sure about this sort of thing\". Something about the way Sandor spoke almost seemed afraid, though not nearly so strong as that word. Perhaps cautious, given the circumstances, but this was the only opportunity he could see getting close to Kreldin again without tracking him to the observation deck again. Lanil gets a drink off the platter that one of the waiters is carrying around, but stops him before he can run off, \"Seaman, make sure that the cooks prepare at least one dairy-free dish, I don't want a repeat of last time with Lieutenant Morris, he swelled up like a Hutt last time.\" The crewman nods before heading back to the kitchen, \"Aye sir!\" Satisfied, the Commander returns to his seat, \"So, Danik, anything interesting happen while I was working my tail off back there?\" Danik could not sense what Sandor was thinking, or feeling, so he was oblivious to Sandor's reactions. Danik wasn't one to get angry over failure to comply with proper procedure, or etiquette, especially at a place like this. Maybe in battle. Danik did not concern himself with such nonsense. \"Oh, yes, I did. Good job, by the way...couldn't have done it better myself, though I'm sure you enjoyed my last minute heroics. That girl almost got him!\" he said. \"But yes, I have the credits, thanks. Guess you weren't playing me after all,\" he said, and then his attention turned to Lanil. \"Interesting? Other than my new medals, no,\" he said, grinning. \"Same old, same old. Everyone get their awards, everyone is happy.\" With a sigh of relief, Sandor nodded to Danik, though the man was now speaking with someone he didn't recognize and probably wouldn't notice that, either. It felt rewarding to know that Danik, too, was a bit suspicious in the circumstances, as would only be natural for any red-blooded human being. Turning to Lanil, Sandor offered a salute; rank was rank, after all, even in seperate branches. Truly, the man must have been busy, if he had been keeping the seams of this ceremony from unraveling, and Sandor felt a twinge of respect to the man, but felt silly for it but seconds later, as he didn't even know the man's name. \"I'll leave you two to your conversation, then.\" he interrupted, giving Danik a salute this time, before turning and proceding to his original seat. On the periphery. \"Always the periphery..\", Sandor muttered to himself, before fading into the more casual conversations amongst the enlisted men. Lanil nods, \"Aye, I here you sir. Mind informing me as to what I received?\" He notices a fancy slim box off to one side, and the Commander has an inkling as to who it may belong to... \"Take care, Sergeant,\" Danik said, watching as Sandor left. He then turned his full attention to Lanil. \"This? Oh, yeah,\" he said, sliding the box over to him. \"Two stars for your FleetOps ribbon, a Long Service Medal, and a CombatOps Ribbon,\" he said, opening the box up and placing it next to Lanil. \"Anyway, it's getting late...have one of the attendants pin them on you. I'll be returning to the Conqueror to get some sleep...you can supervise everything down here, I'm sure,\" he said, and stood up from his seat. He offered a final salute to Admiral Honos before making his leave. Lanil nods, \"Good night, sir.\" He stands as Danik departs. Taking his seat again, he grins to himself, \"Two stars, a new ribbon, and a medal. Well it's still better than nothing.\" Chuckling, the Commander sips idly at his wine. From SW1ki, a Wikia wiki."@en . . . . . . . . . . "Imperial Awards Ceremony"@en . . . .