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Meeting an Inquisitor
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| Crin_Star | Date: Friday, 21 Jan 2011, 10:53 AM | Message # 31 |
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Major general
Group: Users
Messages: 313
Status: Offline
| "You have my answer, Inquisitor, and quite frankly I am appalled by your actions and words here today and will be filing a report with your superiors right away. Volus has been nothing but cooperative with you and your investigation which should have ended with official reports and statements. If you suspect something from us then let me put it to rest right here, sir. Volus -is- and has been loyal to both his majesty and the empire, we are his loyal subjects and to say otherwise without any proof, as I know for a fact you have none, is, quite simply, slander. While you may be an agent of his majesty but I am a Senator and am due the respect as such, which you have not shown today. So if you will excuse me, this interview is over and if you want any more questions answered you may direct them to my office. I will be heading to the bridge now to confer with your superiors." She said finally annoyed with the man turning to head towards the door she had come through.
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| Rath-Deschain | Date: Friday, 21 Jan 2011, 11:23 AM | Message # 32 |
 Colonel general
Group: Users
Messages: 857
Status: Offline
| Deschain sat for a moment, the briefest of moments as Senator Star rose and began to move away. It was obvious that the polite tactic had not worked. The covertly-threatening tactic had not worked. That left Deschain with a number of options. Unfortunately, he had a meeting with Admiral Corvus to attend, orders to deliver to Captain Proul and, most importantly, a renegade Inquisitor and his Jedi friends to capture. An annoyed aristocrat was not something he needed to spend enormous amounts of time on. From where he sat, Deschain crooked a finger, locking the doors to the hallway. In the following motion, he closed his hand ever so slightly, releasing the Force in the grip. It would not be tight, but enough to hold her fast and prevent her from speaking easily. He was also prepared, should she reach for a weapon, to react with further force. "Listen, Senator Star, and listen very well, for I shall not repeat myself. There are only three men above me. The Grand Inquisitor, Lord Vader and His Imperial Majesty. My word will be taken above yours. You are a Senator and nothing more. You exist at the will and whim of myself and His Imperial Majesty. I do not care for inconclusive reports and papers. You have shown that you are not willing to prove that you have no involvement with Jedi and that alone is sufficient cause for me to permanently remove you from your post and see that a new, better-fitting Senator is installed for Volus. "Do not test me, Senator Star, especially not when my Purifiers are in the Volusian palace and the Imperial Starfleet has a presence in orbit. I will ask you once more to voluntarily submit... and then I will arrest you on suspicion of high treason and inject you myself. Choose."
Rath Deschain
High Inquisitor
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| Crin_Star | Date: Friday, 21 Jan 2011, 11:39 AM | Message # 33 |
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Major general
Group: Users
Messages: 313
Status: Offline
| Crin would not go for a weapon but for a comm device instead pressing the button to call the bridge. "Admiral..put me.." she struggled with her words for a moment forcing them out. "To the Grand Vizier." she finished off struggling with her words her eyes fixated on the inquisitor. He would know that as a representative of Palpatine that Pestage would count as one of his superiors and that if reported it would likely mean that he would be in deep crap as Senators still held a lot of weight in the Empire. Even vader couldn't arrest one without damn good evidence and had to come up with bogus excuses to detain one. (Episode IV) "inquisitor is attacking me." she struggled out so that at least the Admiral would hear what was going on. If it came down to it the Volusians would be nearby enough to respond. She had not thought about being armed when she had come in here but now she berated herself for the lapse in judgement. "You don't have..the authority."She couldn't have known the Inquisitor was ahead of his time openly threatening the people who controlled the budget of Imperial Intelligence.
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| Rath-Deschain | Date: Friday, 21 Jan 2011, 11:49 AM | Message # 34 |
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Colonel general
Group: Users
Messages: 857
Status: Offline
| It was obvious that Senator Star would have issue speaking, let alone breathing. Deschain wasn't about to simply let her put her requests in through a communications device. By the time she had said 'Admiral, put me,' Deschain would simply tighten his grip and prevent her from speaking further. Star's refusal to cooperate with the investigation was more than enough suspicion. Her evasive answers and resistance to his mental probing, something that ordinary people did not simply pick up on out of nowhere, had been more than enough to arouse his suspicions. Oh, there might be recriminations for this, but his exemplary service record and the lack of support Star had in the Senate might well alleviate some of the punishments that could possibly come his way. Senator Star was far too difficult to manage and, as such, Deschain would simply tighten until she fell unconscious from loss of blood; an action that would take somewhere between eight and ten seconds. An arrest order would be issued immediately for her, of course, and Admiral Corvus and Captain Proul would both be notified. If need be, further action would be taken to ensure Volusian compliance. In the meantime though, Deschain's injector of OV600 would be put to good use on the Senator.
Rath Deschain
High Inquisitor
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| Sate_Pestage | Date: Friday, 21 Jan 2011, 12:23 PM | Message # 35 |
 Lieutenant general
Group: Moderators
Messages: 639
Status: Offline
| Meanwhile, on Imperial Center, Sate Pestage was in his expansive office doing the only thing he truly loved—working. It was still morning, but already today had been a good day; he had seen to it that Mical de Crion would be greeted on Tallaan with a manufactured protest against him (a protest that, sadly, would become violent), he had confronted the crown prince of Aeeq with proof of his sexual misdeeds and persuaded him to inform on the treasonous activities of his father, King jar-Addrass, and he had received a progress report from the Grand Inquisitor on his hunt for the remaining Jedi—there were, he was told, a number of promising leads. Done with the comm for now, he leaned back in his chair and swiveled it to face out the viewport, his elbows planted by his sides and his bony fingers interlaced before him. It was raining, as usual. Pestage never tired of it. It was then that he received a priority signal from Moff Assange, of the Derra Sector. Pestage sighed, hoping against hope that it didn't have anything to do with Volus. The Grand Vizier was tired of hearing about Volus, but he accepted the message regardless. Assange, who was looking uncharacteristically uncomfortable, informed him that he had on his desk a request for a warrant for the arrest of Senator Crin Star, which had been bounced up the chain of command to Assange and, now, to Pestage. The Grand Vizier raised an eyebrow—no one wanted to put their signature on it. Understandably, he supposed. He assumed, as Assange had at first, that it must be some mistake, but then he was told that the request had come from an Imperial Intelligence operative. Pestage's brow furrowed, and his gaunt fingers typed his clearance into the confidential records and retrieved the identity of this "operative." Rath Deschain. So, it was an Inquisitor. Pursuing one of these leads, no doubt. But what was he doing, trying to arrest a Senator? Pestage, who was prone to headaches, felt one coming on. Two recent incidents came to mind; one, Armand Isard's overzealous arrest of Senator Oriel, and two, Inquisitor Animus's disastrous "sting operation"—or whatever it was—here on Imperial Center. This incident at Volus seemed like a confluence of the two. In the former case, Pestage had needed to do damage control, and fast. Senators were simply too prominent and too powerful to arbitrarily arrest, or bully. If any one of them was arbitrarily arrested or bullied, the entire Senate would go into revolt. Pestage would not be happy, and neither would Palpatine, who expected Pestage to keep the Senate compliant. So far, he had. But this incident could imperil all of that, not to mention imperil his life, and the life of whoever was responsible for this. Pestage wouldn't rush to judgment, however, even if he personally didn't trust these Inquisitors. It could be, though, that Senator Star had done something treasonous, or stupid. The former seemed unlikely to Pestage, but he needed to know more. He instructed Moff Assange not to approve the warrant yet, and to notify Inquisitor Deschain that he would like to discuss it with him immediately. Assange complied, some of the color returning to his face as the burden of having to make a decision was lifted from him. Pestage made a note of the Moff's helplessness, and the number of times already this month that Pestage had needed to intervene in Volusian affairs. Assange might need to be replaced, but he would do for now. The image of Assange faded from the Grand Vizier's holoscreen, replaced by an image of his secretary, who told him that Grand Admiral Takel was in the reception room, waiting to see him. Let him wait, Pestage said. He had another subordinate to deal with first, he thought as he turned once more to look out his viewport, awaiting Deschain to make contact with him.
Sate Pestage
Grand Vizier of the Empire
Assistant to Emperor Palpatine
Chair of the Imperial Senate
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| Rath-Deschain | Date: Friday, 21 Jan 2011, 12:36 PM | Message # 36 |
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Colonel general
Group: Users
Messages: 857
Status: Offline
| In between the time it took for Moff Assange to contact Chairman Pestage and for Pestage to hear out the Moff's issues, Deschain had more than enough time to inject the serum of OV600 into Senator Star's unconscious body. It would take a few moments for the drug to fully seep in and, as such, Deschain waited patiently and quietly. When he was sure that the drug would have taken hold (and, indeed, from Senator Star's personnel files, there was no allergies to the contents that OV600 was made up of), he settled a hand upon her brow to begin reviving her. It should be around the time when she might begin to come around that his comm chimed, alerting Deschain to the call from Chairman Pestage. "Chairman Pestage! A pleasure to hear from you. How are things on Imperial Center? Rather pleasant, I hope?" Deschain's voice was light and airy, filled with the tone of a man who was near to a goal of some sorts.
Rath Deschain
High Inquisitor
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| Sate_Pestage | Date: Friday, 21 Jan 2011, 12:40 PM | Message # 37 |
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Lieutenant general
Group: Moderators
Messages: 639
Status: Offline
| "But of course, Inquisitor," Pestage said, "the weather, and indeed everything on Imperial Center, is controlled by the Empire. I see the hunt for the Jedi has taken you to Volus?" he said, wasting no time in proceeding to the point. Not that he had any desire to see Grand Admiral Takel, of course (although it would be good fun to confront the Admiral with the knowledge of his exotic infidelities), but this was an issue that, Pestage suspected, required some haste. "I am told you see a need to detain Senator Star. This is, as we know, a rather drastic step. Praytell, what is happening, and why is this necessary?" The Grand Vizier's tone of voice was neutral, not accusing Deschain of anything but not giving him the benefit of the doubt, either.
Sate Pestage
Grand Vizier of the Empire
Assistant to Emperor Palpatine
Chair of the Imperial Senate
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| Crin_Star | Date: Friday, 21 Jan 2011, 12:46 PM | Message # 38 |
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Major general
Group: Users
Messages: 313
Status: Offline
| Criin was coming around after being revived. "chairman." she said in her daze loud enough that her clearly drugged voice would carry over the comm.
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| Rath-Deschain | Date: Friday, 21 Jan 2011, 12:58 PM | Message # 39 |
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Colonel general
Group: Users
Messages: 857
Status: Offline
| "Where shall I begin, Chairman Pestage? It is a convoluted tale and I shall try to explain without wasting much of your valuable time. While tracking down associates of Caden Sturn in recent days, I have come across mention of a Separatist movement of some repute whose leader I am not yet able to name. Underlings of this leader tend to operate in cells, answering only to one figure or another and they are spread among numerous planets. The word from one of these miscreants is that this deceitful and rebellious group is gathering Jedi and mercenaries to strike at Imperial holdings. "Now, to the point. Senator Star's behavior is... questionable... in the Senate. You, Chairman, of course deal with her on a more regular basis than I, but I do keep up with politics. Low approval ratings. Questionable wordings of certain statements. Senator Star often walks a fine line between insubordination and heresy. "I requested an interview with the Senator after receiving a rather disturbing statement from a captured Jedi Master who has since been sent on to Prakith for further questioning and conversion. I know you are a man who puts little in faith in the ways of the Force, Chairman, but I am compelled by it to investigate further. Recent pirate activity at Volus was met with little response until the Imperial Fleet was due to arrive. A Jedi, and not only a Knight but a Master came very close to compromising Volus' battleship which would cause untold damage until stopped. If this was not enough, Senator Star possesses mental training of a level that one could have only received directly from a Jedi. Her former leader, a certain Trask Largero, is assumed dead at this point, yet she will not openly answer whether or not she is involved with any Jedi plots. If she has nothing to be afraid of, she would have simply submitted to a simple line of questioning under truth serum; an option that any good and loyal servant of the Empire with nothing to hide would be more than glad to do. If I may say so, Chairman, I have offered such a choice to a Moff and the man complied immediately; more than willing to prove his loyalty and innocence. Instead, Senator Star behaved irrationally and, I regret, had to be briefly subdued. She is unharmed though, and is currently possessed of the drug. If there is anything illegal, she will confess to it, Chairman. According to our brilliant Imperial scientists, there is no current resistance to this drug."
Rath Deschain
High Inquisitor
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| Sate_Pestage | Date: Friday, 21 Jan 2011, 1:33 PM | Message # 40 |
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Lieutenant general
Group: Moderators
Messages: 639
Status: Offline
| Upon hearing Senator Star in her impaired condition, a number of possibilities went through the Grand Vizier's mind, and none of them were sympathetic to her. Foremost among them, that the simplest course of action would be to proceed with the interrogation, kill her when it was over, and come up with an explanation for her death after the fact. But no, she was clearly in the company of Inquisitor Deschain. No one would accept that her death was an accident, and there would be an investigation that Pestage might be unable to stop. Another possibility; proceed with the interrogation and then contrive to erase her memory of it. No, too risky. Memory wipes were unreliable, and the damage from her interrogation (rashes, etc.) and the presence of this drug in her body would demonstrate that something had happened, and that the Empire had obviously done it. It wasn't that Pestage wasn't sympathetic to hunting down the Jedi--he wanted to be rid of them as much as anyone. But his foremost priority now was to keep this quiet. Proceeding with the interrogation didn't appear to be an option unless the Senator was found conclusively guilty of something. If not, it would appear that the Empire was frivolously persecuting an Imperial Senator, and a member of the Loyalist Committee no less. Not that Pestage held the Loyalist Committee in any particular regard, but it was useful to have its members believe themselves to be uncommonly feal and, thus, uncommonly privileged. Torturing and killing one of their number would not be conducive to this. Unless, again, she was conclusively guilty. Pestage needed to know more about why the Inquisitor thought she might be. "You will forgive me for setting aside the Volusian response to piracy, Inquisitor," he said, leaning back in his chair and interlacing his fingers before him once more, "I'm not sure what this is meant to suggest, except clumsiness. It's certainly not something I would think the Senator is involved in, clumsy though her words are at times. As for refusing to submit to this.. 'test,' I know of you from Carratos, Inquisitor, and from other campaigns. I know that you are, shall we say, adamant in your pursuit of justice. This is admirable, but I can see how it may be discomfiting to some, particularly Senators who, I can attest, believe themselves to be a privileged class." "And you are quite right that I am skeptical of the Force," he went on, "but I know enough of it to know that a Jedi Master is formidable indeed, and that by all accounts the Volusians were rather efficient in dispatching this one, what was his name, Ka Dek? Let us return to him though, if you will oblige me. What was this 'disturbing statement' he made? Am I correct in assuming this statement is what aroused your suspicions of the Senator?" He wished that he could speak more candidly with Deschain, but with Senator Star in range of the conversation, he needed to watch what he said. It was possible, after all, that he would need to buy her silence when this was over with.
Sate Pestage
Grand Vizier of the Empire
Assistant to Emperor Palpatine
Chair of the Imperial Senate
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| Crin_Star | Date: Friday, 21 Jan 2011, 3:05 PM | Message # 41 |
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Major general
Group: Users
Messages: 313
Status: Offline
| Crin shifted a bit on the floor still mostly incoherent due to the drugs flowing through her system. She could hear voices nearby speaking about things she could almost picture but then they would slip away. "Answered his questions.." she moaned out shifting more.
Message edited by Crin_Star - Friday, 21 Jan 2011, 3:11 PM |
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| Rath-Deschain | Date: Saturday, 22 Jan 2011, 6:44 AM | Message # 42 |
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Colonel general
Group: Users
Messages: 857
Status: Offline
| With the briefest of movements, Deschain would gently pinch off her blood flow again, inducing the unconscious state. He had the feeling that Pestage and himself should be able to speak clearly, without fear of the Senator overhearing, especially while all this was going on. It was still quite possible to kill the Senator and explain is away. A shuttle accident, a malfunction between two craft. Deschain could disappear for a time as always and then resurface somewhere else. True, memory wipes were spotty and even Deschain didn't trust them. If the Volusian Senator did indeed get rashes from the interrogation, odds were good that nobody would care because said rashes would prove Star's guilt of consorting with Jedi; a fact that would quell even the most complaining Senator. "The Volusian response to piracy is questionable still. If Star does not have a hand in it, then King Motour is the next likely subject. Indeed, Star answered my questions, but she might well have lied. "Returning though to Ka-Dek, Chairman. I have some knowledge of him from reading his file. Ka-Dek was never a true warrior. He was more of a scholar and a lover of peace. He did not commit to battle as some did and even then, he was loath to take lives. I have my doubts as to the prestige of Volusian security. "You are correct that Star was implicated in his statement. His original statement was... 'The King and the Red Queen, a plot the Imperium to undo; the ship... plot.. Star... Red Queen; Volus in arms.' This admission came under the drugs that the Volusians issued to Ka-Dek to keep him silent. Once he was fully awake, his statements were more clear and concise. He admitted to me that a talent he held in the Force was that of Prophecy; something his personal records also confirmed. He made this statement to me: "In my dream there were three figures, the King, the Red Queen and the Ship. These are cards in a divining ritual I learned on Umbara during my training in the force. But I digress, in the dream.. I saw that the Red Queen, who I sensed was a powerful orator would found an order of knighthood, a new order, one dedicated to the downfall of the Empire. The King.. I sensed was a petulant and weak willed man, tied to objects, pointless objects of great size, palaces, ships.. and so on. I saw the Red Queen see to it that the ship was stolen, and this would be blamed upon the Empire.. Once this "betrayal" happened the weak king would ally himself with the Queen to found this order.. It ended with six humans, dressed in a military uniform, The Red Queen, the King, the Admiral, the crone, the sage and two Jedi, Master and Apprentice. And I knew, here already were the foundations on Volus, the seed of liberty.. They stood in a room, a large room, in a palace, vaulted and gilded. Each took from his side a light saber and activated it. Crossing the blades in the center. Perspective then switched, for a second to the six figures approaching a prostrated Emperor.' "This statement gave me pause, Chairman. The raid on the Avenger did come with them using Imperial codes; albeit dated ones from a dead man, and the Avenger was practically crewed as a ghost ship. It would have been an easy matter for Ka-Dek and a few others to steal it. I must add, Chairman, that a platoon of Purifiers have been stationed aboard the vessel to prevent any attempts, Volusian or otherwise, to thieve this vessel from Volus. But, back to Ka-Dek's statement. "The Red Queen as a powerful orator; Senator Star is indeed 'powerful' at speaking in her own, blunt way that makes her little favored by some. She is opinionated and cares little what the Senate thinks of her. King Motour is indeed a weak-willed man, or struck me as such from the time I met him. He fawned as much as possible and, once again, the Volusian palace is garish and large to the extreme. This very ship I am on is archaic and large in design, yet hardly functional. the Admiral, crone, sage and Jedi I have yet to ascertain the identity of. "This brings me to the final point, Chairman: the drugs issued to Senator Star will not wear off for some time. I wish to question you here, before her, so that we can ascertain the truth. Your questions for her as well, will work."
Rath Deschain
High Inquisitor
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| Crin_Star | Date: Saturday, 22 Jan 2011, 8:14 AM | Message # 43 |
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Major general
Group: Users
Messages: 313
Status: Offline
| Actually reports would have indicated that at the time of the incident the ship in question was fully crewed and manned as it had only just been placed inside of docks. There had been no chance of it being stolen and as Deschain should know from being on board the ship it was -fully- operational and quite efficient in both design and function. The crews were kept busy, yes, but they were able to complete individual tasks quickly. Motour had only been helpful to the inquisitor due to his position within the empire and was not a weak willed man. Crin herself had been seen in a variety of colors favoring darker blues and blacks more than any other as Sate would likely know as she often wore such colors in the Senate. ((And I might add since the gift of prophecy would count as a special ability and it wasn't requested the entire dream would be considered invalid. Thank you and good night)
Message edited by Crin_Star - Saturday, 22 Jan 2011, 8:49 AM |
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| Sate_Pestage | Date: Saturday, 22 Jan 2011, 7:09 PM | Message # 44 |
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Lieutenant general
Group: Moderators
Messages: 639
Status: Offline
| 'The Senator answered my questions, but she might well have lied.' Pestage closed his eyes and massaged the bridge of his nose with his gaunt fingers as Inquisitor Deschain went on to describe the Jedi's vision. Well, purported vision. "Inquisitor," he said, once Deschain had finished, "Has it occurred to you that perhaps it is this Jedi who is misleading you, not the Senator, and that he is doing so precisely to send you on a wild bantha chase questioning the loyalty of Imperial officials while this Jedi's accomplices remain unidentified? Not to mention that, as you said, Caden Sturn is still on the loose, and your leads on this Separatist leader aren't getting warmer while you're on Volus." The Grand Vizier suspected that Deschain might protest, and understandably so, but he raised a sympathetic hand to pre-empt him. "It is good that your troops have secured the Volusian ship," Pestage said, "But truly, Inquisitor, your talents are needed elsewhere. Some unspecific 'vision' that a Jedi claims to have had, about a 'Red Queen' and a 'Crone' and a 'Sage' and other nonsense is hardly reason enough to start torturing Imperial Senators. What if this Jedi had named you as a conspirator, Inquistor? Or His Majesty? I would not believe either of these without evidence. I understand why it is you have done this," Pestage paused, glancing at Senator Star for a moment to assure himself that she was as uncommunicative as Deschain had said, then continued. "His Majesty has plans for the Senate in due time, but this is not that time. Until that time, he expects me to keep the Senate compliant, and this does not help." "Let the Senator be, and I'll deal with her when she recovers," Pestage assured him. "While you're on Volus, however, surely your time would be better spent torturing the Jedi to find out who his accomplices are? He didn't act alone, according to the report I've seen. Quite a few rebels were involved. Find out what you can from him, Inquisitor, then please, return to the search for Caden Sturn and this Separatist leader. I may have some useful information for you too, as concerns his identity. Keep your ears open for a being calling himself 'Shiva.' He may be the Separatist you are looking for."
Sate Pestage
Grand Vizier of the Empire
Assistant to Emperor Palpatine
Chair of the Imperial Senate
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| Rath-Deschain | Date: Saturday, 22 Jan 2011, 11:27 PM | Message # 45 |
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Colonel general
Group: Users
Messages: 857
Status: Offline
| Deschain was silent as Pestage laid out his disbelief. There was little he could do to counter the Grand Vizier. The name of 'Shiva' was an addition he did not have before, but now, it mattered little. His primary lead was the Volusian senator and he could not simply give up so easily, admission of Palpatine's plans for the Senate or not. "Ka Dek has been sent to Prakith for further questioning and... conversion. Or death. Chairman, he was of little use to us. As you mention, I shall ply my talents elsewhere... but it cannot hurt to ask questions without harming Senator Star. Two questions is all I would ask of her: the first, 'have you had any dealings with Jedi in your time as Senator of Volus,' and 'have you aided any Jedi, including Largero, since the execution of Order 66.' This would give us our answers."
Rath Deschain
High Inquisitor
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