Social Combat [Day 10, Early Afternoon]

[Jun-Tsu Farro]

Jun-Tsu stood at the tinted window, high on the spire of the People's Tower. She gazed down at the thousands of tiny craft and transports that whizzed by in proscribed lines along aerial boulevards. From up here, the entirety of New Adasta seemed almost orderly. As apolitical as the witch was, even she knew that the façade was a lie. Less than two days into her rule and she knew the seeds of new revolution, new rebellion fomented.

From beneath her low-drawn veil, she gazed out with hatred at everything below. Then again, if they didn't rebel against the rule of her daughter, they would be rebelling against whoever else sat on the throne. And if none sat on the throne they'd be rebelling and clamoring about that too. The masses were a squalling child, screaming into the night at the slightest discomfort, all impulse and need, unknowing of what they truly want, but just knowing they were upset with how things were.

Silently she allowed herself a moment of generalization and complete judgement, it was the only way she was going to keep her sanity. That, and getting away from Zoist as soon as she could manage.

[Sylvain Torsin]

Having been summoned by one of the most powerful women in the galaxy Sylvain arrived promptly at the appointed time. He knew Jun-tsu to be a confidant and friend... but also knew how responsibility was a great catalyst for change in any person. With these thoughts in mind he was shown into the room where Jun-tsu waited and bowed his head respectfully as he approached.

"Good afternoon Empress Dowager."

[Jun-Tsu Farro]

"Lord Mordax," her voice was distant, though welcoming, her eyes still fixed on the activity far, far below. "Zhank you vor coming."

There was something distracted about her demeanor.

[Sylvain Torsin]

He came to stand beside her and look out over the city in much the same manner as she was.

"It is a pleasure, as always. How can I be of service today?" He asked with his brand of sincere formality; the kind that presents decorum and respect to one deserving of such things.

[Jun-Tsu Farro]

She turned from the window with a languid flourish, the robes that ensconced her, billowing slightly to then come to a rest in a wash about her narrow frame. Lifting her hem she walked to a sitting area, laid out very similar to her meditation chamber at Lord Orethion's estate, though far more illuminated and less gothic.

Kneeling upon one of the padded mats arrayed around a central orb she gestured for Sylvain to join her. "I am not a political indiwidual. Indeed, I hawe zought to leawe az much of zhe material vorld behind to purzue mein ztudiez of zhe Dark Zide."

"To zhat end, I hawe been giwen leawe by zhe Emprezz-Regent to do juzt zhat az much az I vizh, but....I am not naïve, I know zhat I cannot vully diworce meinzelf from zhe pozition I hawe been giwen. Iv I do, I leawe mein daughter to zhe volvez who vould uze her. But...I do not know how to ztraddle bozh vorldz. I know zhat Arya und Baraz are ahead of me, vhich iz vhy I hawe brought you here. You are v'one of zhe only men I know zhrewd enough to compete againzt Baraz in zhe zocial arena. Not directly, of courze, but in ztrategy und tacticz."

"I need your help."

[Sylvain Torsin]

Sylvain followed her over to the mats and took a seat next to her solemnly as he listened. He nodded his head slowly as she spoke. When she finished he paused for a long moment before replying,

"You are wise to be skeptical of your allies... but what is it you fear? Your daughter will be used... she is not strong or wise enough to rule now... They will use her name to enact their own policies... but the question you must ask yourself is which policies are the ones which you feel transgress the relationship you seek from this... 'regency'. I can assist you if I know the lines you are unwilling to cross."

[Jun-Tsu Farro]

"It iz not a matter of polizy, zo much az a necezzity to know vhat it iz zhey are plotting. I prepare now vor zhe true tezt. Vhile zhe Emprezz haz already zhown herself to be villfull zhe iz young, und uncaring on zertain matterz of ztate, zhat iz all vell und good, but I vizh to make abzolutely zertain zhat vhen mein dahrling choozez to vinally take zhe zhrone in vull, und zhe Emprezz-Regent, vill be vorced to ztep down, zhat zhe doez zo vithout complaint."

"Zhe zame goez to Baraz. He haz zhown himzelf to be a man of zhe zhadowz, content to ply hiz gamez no matter hiz pozition, but ve bozh know he haz long coweted zhe pover of zhe Emperorzhip. I muzt know all zhreatz lewelled againzt mein dahrling zhat vould ztop her ineweitable azcention."

[Sylvain Torsin]

He nodded, "The problem with individuals like Arya and Baras is... the more you rely on them... the more dependent you become on their existence. The day will come where your daughter may have to tear them from their seats of power if she wishes to occupy her own... but Baras will make doing so an endeavor of self-harm that could doom your daughter's rule."

He paused, "The only way to succeed is to slowly wean yourself off of their influence... chop away a bit of his base at a time... slowly lessen the need for his existence until removing him won't undermine your daughter's reign significantly. The issue of course is that they serve a necessary and completely meaningful purpose to the Empire... So if they are not there... there will be others who need to begin filling their roles. In politics the best indication of the intelligence of a good ruler is to look at the people they have around them... She will need people who can fill the roles left by Baras and Arya... people she must depend on for her own successes."

He tilted his head, "I can offer to help with this endeavor to a point. This is a long game to be played... Taking their bases out from under them is not an easy task, but one I could pursue in time. My only concern is... the comment you made earlier concerning my... 'heresy'... and your daughter's willingness to accept such an 'abominable' path. If proximity to your daughter lessens my chances for survival... that makes it a less than appealing proposition."

[Jun-Tsu Farro]

"She vill, in time, zeek to raize zhe empire in dewotion to zhe Dark Zide, zhiz I know, but how zhat affectz zhoze not of her vamily, I do not know. I hawe not zeen, zhrough zhe woid, iv zome great purge iz coming, only zhat in time, she vill purge zhoze clozezt to her of all invluence vrom zhe Light. Ser Thalalaz, und hiz adherence to zhe Light, vill not be tolerated, und vizh hiz deazh mein dahrling vill learn a great lezzon in zacrifize."

She allowed the words to rest in the silence that followed before continuing, "Zuch actionz give me reazon, indefinite az it may me, to zhink your own procliwitiez may put you at rizk. Zo I am no prophet. Zhe rizkz you chooze to take on mein behalf are yourz to take, und I vill not forze you. I owe you zhat much."

[Sylvain Torsin]

“And what keeps her from reaching much the same end as the last Emperor...? You speak of an Umbral Dark separate from the Dark he used... But I think you create delineations that have no true basis in reality. The Dark he utilized is the same which we all tap into... He came to his plan by following its tenets. He understood it far more than we do... Most have noble intentions when they begin a new venture... they lose it along the way without some measure of moderation.”

[Jun-Tsu Farro]

Jun-Tsu smiled, "It vaz, in a vay, zhe zame pover, yez, but zhink of it iz zuch. Ve touch zhe pover of zhe Forze, ve rezt upon itz invinite zurface. Zhrough our vill ve mowe it, ve make ripplez, eddiez, vavez und currentz. Zhe Forze iz all around uz, und ve manipulate zhat pover in ewer growing reachez beyond uz. Zhink of zhe Emperor az a man who, razher zhan manipulating zhat pover az it exiztz around him, zaught to zvallow zhe ocean. He iz poverful in zhe Forze, yez, az he conzumez more und more, to hawe it rezide vizhin him. Vhere he feedz, a great hole openz up, replaced by hiz bloated body."

"He ztealz zhat pover vor himzelf, und like colliding atomz, vhen zhe bondz of zhe Forze are ripped azunder a great energy iz releazed in itz deazh. Zhat iz zhe pover zhe Emperor zaught. Tranzient pover, zhat moment of explozion vhich poverful but momentary."

"I did not lie zhat day bevore zhe Emperor, he vaz a fool becauze he could not zee beyond zhe momentary pover zhe gained vrom zhe Forze. He vanted only to conzume more und more und more. Mein dahrling Vas-Tsu does not need to consume zhe Forze, zhe doez not need to deztroy zhe Dark Zide to vuel her azcenzion. Zhe iz an embodimen of zhe Dark Zide. She does not zit upon zhe ocean, zhe iz zhe ocean."

[Sylvain Torsin]

“I know you believe that... but such natural metaphors are fraught with logical inconsistencies. She is not the Force... She too is merely a part of it. Able to manipulate it because she has a strong connection to it. But the Dark does not function as you say... it never has and never will; it is opposed to its nature. Things of this nature do not change just because we want them to. That kind of myopic thinking is the penchant of ‘faith’ based approaches. She will desire for more one day, for she is not the ‘ocean’ as you put it... and without some form of moderation it too will consume her as it did the Emperor.”

He paused, “I will do what I can to aid you and your daughter. She has great potential to bring order to the galaxy. But the Empire is paramount... not the prodigies who run it. She will need people like Baras... if not him specifically, then others to fill his roll. As long as she serves the Empire and not her own megalomaniacal aims there will be no need to remove loyal servants like myself. If you truly wish the best for your daughter... you will help raise her to what she should become for the Empire... not the horrible specter she is predisposed to become due the circumstances of her birth.”

[Jun-Tsu Farro]

"I zuppoze zhe zhould juzt giwe up her tiez to zhe Dark Zide un follow you into zhe Light." Jun-Tsu affixed him with a weighty stare not at all please by the near heresy he spoke about her daughter and his empress. "Zurely zhat iz vhat you vould prever. For, az zhe je'daii might zay, zhe Dark Zide iz too fraught, too dangerouz, afraid az zhey are of zhe inferno."

[Sylvain Torsin]

“No... for it is simplistic beliefs that seem to frame that choice as a simple binary decision. Theoretically there are two poles; the light and the dark. But people are neither light nor dark... they are differing shades of grey. To rule a society purely off of misanthropic self-interest is to become what you just killed. Acting in line with the same methodologies as your predecessor will invite a similar end. Assuming you know better because of your faith despite a bevy of evidence to the contrary takes you into the danger of willful ignorance.”

He softened his tone a bit and added, “I’ve lost one close to me over such brashness... You yourself have admitted to a lack of expertise in the social realm. If you wish to build a successful Empire it cannot be build on a theoretical world. It must be based in the moment and place that is now and interact with the people as they are... not as we wish them to be.”

[Jun-Tsu Farro]

"Beliewe az you vill, but you vill not drag mein daughter'z Empire into line vizh your new enlightened outlook. Counzil me on political realitiez, zhat I aczept, I ewen azk vor. You are a cunning man who trained under v'one of mein mozt dangerouz vuture riwalz. Help me move zlowly und zubtely tovardz mein aimz, und gazher pover to riwal mein enemiez. I desire und petition your counzil on zhiz."

"But do not lecture me on zhe vayz of zhe Dark Zide, or itz plaze in zhiz new Empire. I vill not tolerate it vrom v'one who haz turned itz back on itz teachingz, und underztandz zo little of itz pover. You zee zhe Dark Zide az nozhing more zhan zelfizhnezz...how little you must zhink of all of Houze Farro for our dewotion to itz myzteriez und myzticizm. Ve, who hawe not deztroyed ourzelwez, nor zought zhiz great pover ve now vield. Und do you understand vhy? Vhy ve are able to vork in tandem? Able to ztop vrom zeeking only perzonal glory zhrough zhe Dark Zide? Becauze ve are taught, all of uz, of zhe pover ve hold togezher. Of zhe miraclez of zhe Dark Zide vhich ve can produce az a gazhering. Becauze our aim iz not pover, it iz unity. V'onenezz, clozenezz, conwergence vizh zhe Umbră-Ușoară. To dizpel zhe zeparation between ourzelwez und zhe Dark Zide, und liwe in abiding vizh it. Zhat iz our driwing, unvavering pazzion. Our obzezzion."

"Keep your muddled philozophiez, und zenze of zuperiority in your correctnezz, zhat, at leazt, zhowz you are ztill Zith. Vollow zhe pazh your believz driwe you, but you vill newer zhake mein vaizh nor zhat of Houze Farro in zhe Umbră-Ușoară."

[Sylvain Torsin]

He simply shook his head, "I have turned my back on nothing. If you wish to interpret my counsel as some form of condescension due to your life-long battle against those who have looked down on you that is your choice... It is a choice made on false pretenses for I have long respected you and your house... but it is your choice nonetheless."

He continued after a brief moment, "The truth is you have no idea what I think of the dark... You discount what I say because it does not fit the interpretation that you possess and wish to straw-man my arguments to discredit them. This does nothing for you... justifying your own beliefs and decisions by pointing out imaginary flaws in others doesn't make your rule or methods any more or less adequate. A closed mind is an imprisoned mind. And that is not the way of the Dark Side."

He added, "The moderation and cooperation your family shows is precisely the kind of system that is required to make social interactions work. Chaos has a function, but unchecked it will destroy everything of value. Stability has a function, but unchecked it will destroy everything of value. I speak to you as a friend and colleague... one who has a greater mastery of the Force than most. You mustn't lose your faith in the Dark to understand and utilize the powers which can destroy it. To ignore your own potential weakness is to pre-determine your own fall. I speak in way of warning and support... not as some proselyte to convert you to some vague ideology."

[Jun-Tsu Farro]

"I can counzil mein daughter only zo var. Zhe vill be a villvul ruler und I vould hawe it no ozher vay. I can, iv it iz your vizh, awize her avay vrom doing avay vizh zhoze ztrong in zhe Forze who do not pay homage to zhe Dark Zide. Und perhapz ewen to tvizt zhem into zomezhing uzeful to her. A check againzt zhoze of zhe Dark Zide who vould challenge her. Zhe vill not tolerate your direct presence, but many a clandestine group exiztz vizhin zhe foldz of Imperial bureaucrazy."

[Sylvain Torsin]

"I will do what I need to survive my friend... I speak not for my own personal safety; for only I am responsible for that. I speak for the betterment of the Empire. For progress. To be more than what we have been... to succeed where Marka Ragnos, Naga Sadow, Exar Kun, and Vitiate have failed."

[Jun-Tsu Farro]

"Veak empirez vall, ztrong empirez zhrive. Zhe vay of zhe Dark Zide iz vor zhe ztrong to rule zhe veak, vor zhe predator to take itz prey. Ewery regime endz, ewen zhe original regimez of zhe jen'jedaii ended to make vay vor new Dark Lordz of zhe Zith. In zhe end ve vill zee iv our Empire iz vorzhy of zurwiwing in zhe eyez of zhe Umbră-Ușoară. I vill, ov courze, do eweryzhing I can to zee it lazt vor a millennia or more, but ve zhall zee, if our planning can truly zhwart all zhat iz arrayed againzt uz."

[Sylvain Torsin]

"And I will do what I can to ensure there is an Empire for your daughter to inherit one day... So we may see the validity of her methodology." He replied with a slight bow of his head.