Corporate unrest! (Mara and...others)

[Sporky]

(( Click for appropriate music. :3 Hope this post is adequate. ))

The clinking of expensive glassware, the creak of fine wooden chairs, the laughter at jokes only funny to the rich and snobby. All these sounds and more could be heard in the grand dining room of the Prophetable Investment, luxury craft and flagship of the Sark Industries fleet.

Sark Industries was quite the success tale. Having grown from a simple droid shop in Crevasse City on Alderaan, Sark Industries was now a veritable titan of industry, supplying a good chunk of current Republic technology. If you saw a new Republic tank? It was more than likely Sark technology. A new model slugthrower? Probably Sark. A new ship model? Odds are, it'd be emblazoned with the Sark logo.

And the man at the head of it all was Grigor Marcellius Sark, half-Umbaran and product of a politician's scandalous appointments. Sark had become a dominating face on the Holonet. Advertisements, press releases, humorous dance remixes of his speeches, you could hardly escape his face.

Sark was, of course, the host of this grand affair. the guest of honor was the newly-appointed junior senator of Arkania. Sark had been dealing regularly with her predecessor, and this was his first meeting with the... 'new meat', so to speak. So he'd turned the thing into a grand affair, with everyone who was anyone attending.

Perched on Sark's shoulder, like it always was, was Legion, Sark's avian-shaped secretary droid and personal attendant. Most assumed Legion was a one of a kind droid, made by Sark for his own personal use. such things were common among business owners, and Sark was no exception. The landspeeder, the depleted Uranium shotgun, and even the ship they also sat in.


And yet...the senator's droid looked remarably similar to Legion....

[Mara]

(((So sorry for lateness....Anyway, I hope I'm remembering things right, lol.)))




She still was getting used to this whole business, the business of being a Republic senator. Though only the junior senator for her planet of Arkania, Irrina Icharus knew that in most instances the title was mostly a formality, way to signal who had been in the 'business' longer. Each planet in the Republic generally had two senators, and it was rare than both would be elected in the same year. So it was quite natural and easy to call them by their status this way, instead of by any political leanings.

It was only just a week prior that she had learned of this upcoming meeting, something that had been scheduled much in advance by the previous junior senator--now the senior senator by default, due to her recent arrival--of Arkania. Despite the mere linguistics of the two senatorial titles, he had seen fit to just toss all his responsibilities on her, when it would have been easiest for him to maintain his contacts, meetings, committees, and let her just start from scratch. Perhaps Ina should have been grateful for the help, the small list of duties and contacts that she inherited, but she wasn't. The young Arkanian, an Offshoot of that species, knew what the other senator's motivations were for going against protocol. It was something she had been dealing with all her life--racism.

But as Ofi told her time and time again, it would be no good to protest this arrangement. Better for her to use the system to her advantage, instead of finding loopholes for her own gain. It might be slower, but it would be the right way. And so she had taken to her new duties and responsibilities, her committee meetings with as much vigor as if they had been her own to begin with, not some racist Arkanian's leftovers, one last jab at her having been elected to represent the Arkanian people.

So Ina prepared for the meeting. The other senator hadn't had many notes written down about it except for the place and time, and the person--a Sark. Ina took this to mean that the two had been meeting for many years, and the Arkanian man had had no need in recent history to use many details of his meeting with this Sark. In the sparse time of a week, half of which would most certainly be spent in travel time, she had done as much research as possible with Ofi's help about what this meeting would be contained of. From what they had gathered, this Sark was the head of Sark Industries, a developer of many things, but for her purposes, a supplier of some of the Republic's weaponry and technology. Despite this information, though, Ina wasn't quite sure why her predecessor had been meeting with this man. Surely a supplier would meet with the Chancellor? She just shrugged the notion off to her newness, figuring it was all apart of the learning curve.

Days later they had finally been shuttled to a meeting, which took place aboard a ship, not in the company's headquarters as would be more fitting in her eyes. Again, she wondered what kind of meeting this would be, and what exactly she would be discussing with this man. Ina had been in a bit of a quandary in her small cabin of the shuttle before departing for the Prophetable Investment (another thing that struck her as odd, as she wondered whether the pun in the ship's name was intentional), deciding which clothing to wear. As it was supposed to be just a meeting between a CEO and a senator, she felt a bit less extravagant wear would be the key. But then again, everything about this meeting provoked something unexpected. In the end Ina had gone with something in between: a long simple gown of light pink shimmersilk, fitting her well but without showing a lot of skin. Something she felt appropriate enough without being overdressed, nor under-dressed. Her only adornment was her pedant necklace, a gift of her father's.


They--Ina and Ofi--arrived on board the ship, the senator carrying a large shoulder bag with items with which she thought to conduct a series meeting on weapons supplying. A bag within which Ofi also rode inside, for Ofi was AER-05, a small bird-like droid given to her ten years before. Ofi was Ina's link to the world. Her voice. Because not only was Irrina Icharus an Offshoot of her species, she was also deaf and only communicated with G.B.S.L., or Galactic Basic Sign Language. She would sign to Ofi, who would then translate to whomever Ina was addressing, and then respond through Ina's datapad, which the droid was wirelessly hooked into. It was a process that they had perfected over the years together, and it worked almost flawlessly.

Ina had been surprised when a few minutes after boarding they had been ushered quickly through the ship, so quickly that she had no idea where she was and gotten lost within seconds, and into a large room that appeared to be a ballroom. There were dozens of other people within the room, all dressed in finery and chatting with each other. Ina had seen hide no hair of her host until later, when they all moved into the next room for dinner.

At the dining table she was seated at the right of her guest, who she had not yet even gotten a chance to speak to yet, even about trivialities. And though she was not a woman who didn't dislike grand parties, she was still feeling a bit uncomfortable at the whole affair, having thought it would be just a simple meeting, from what she had gathered from the past meetings, not an invitation to a grand dinner. But what else could she do? She'd have to grin and bear it, easily enough, and wait until an opportunity presented to speak to the man in private. Until then, she would just sit there and enjoy her dinner. Ofi had moved from her shoulder bag, which was now at her feet, and perched on the edge of the table at her elbow, much to to the astonishment of the woman sitting on Ina's other side.

With a smile, she turned to her food. No matter what, it was bound to be an interesting night, anyway.

[Sporky]

(Sorry for shortness. D: Am writing this before work. )


Sark watched Ina with interest as she was led into the ballroom. An Offshoot..hm. Interesting. He made a mental note of this, filing it away with other trivia and random facts. Legion shifted its position a few times, prompting Sark to tap the table, an order to hop down, with Legion complied with. Giving a slight shrug, Sark ignored the droid's behavior, going back to eating the bowl of rice in front of him.

Sark was very fond of rice, as anyone who'd ever regularly dealt with him would tell you. Kinyen rice, to be exact, slathered in very thin and very watery rib sauce. It was a strange combo, to be sure. But Grigor Sark was a strange man, with strange habits. It was something you simply became used to.

When the bowl was empty, he silenced the room with a chime from Legion, and stood up straightening his tie. He spoke, his voice somewhat quiet, not the booming voice you'd expect from a business tycoon. "Welcome, everyone. I thank you all for attending this event, and trust that the food was enjoyable." A small murmur of agreement and a ripple of nods wen through the crowd, and Sark smiled slightly.

"Now that the dinner is over, the bars, nightclubs, and the holo room are open to you, if you choose to stay. I only ask that you enjoy yourself and..do try to not vomit on the carpets, hmm? The stains are hard to get out." The last comment sent a small pang of laughter through the guests, and Sark pressed on. "Nevertheless, I hope you have fun, and enjoy the rest of the night."

The guests filtered out of the ballroom, and Sark addressed the Senator. "Now then, Senator..I don't believe I've had a chance to address you directly. Good evening."

[Mara]

(((Am assuming Sark is not participating in the Wizard thread on Kuat....)))


Ina had been having a pleasant enough time at the dinner, eating in companionable silence with those around her. The food was delicious, and it somewhat made up for the whole business of this unexpected dinner party and lack of conversation from her host. For a while at least, she had forgotten any worries, all the reasons she had had for coming to this meeting on this ship in the first place, any uneasiness she had had upon noticing that this would not be a simple meeting between associates (if that's what this Sark and her predecessor were). It was actually nice to have a comfortable, and comforting, meal where she could take her time and wasn't interrupted by politics.

Ofi on the other hand, was uneasy. Or perhaps on guard was more of a better term. Though her tension and quietness wasn't quite as palpable as she had been on Kuat and confronted with her 'siblings' after many years of living without them, it was still there. Ina probably had not noticed, but the little droid had. This Sark fellow appeared to also employ an AER. One who hadn't been at the meeting. But Ofi didn't find this completely strange, knowing the designation and past of this one of her 'siblings.' And she was feeling on edge ever since she saw him, keeping a better eye on her friend, and wondering exactly what this meeting would be about. And if it was a trap set up by the other senator from Arkania. Despite the good she was doing, both Ina and Ofi knew that enemies had popped up all over.

It was until much later, when she had finished her food, that her pendant buzzed, not the vibration that normally denoted a coming presence, but one that Ofi had worked into the mechanism to alert her to use her datapad. For it was much easier to do it subtly than for the droid to dance around and wave awkwardly at Ina to get her attention, as they had done in the past. Though, the message wasn't entirely necessary. She had noticed that her host had begun speaking and was reaching for the device at the moment the buzzing started against her collarbone. Ina could read lips at times, but unless someone knew and spoke slowly and carefully enough, it was just easier to read the words Ofi scrolled for her.

His pleasantries were neutral enough. But she had half expected some sort of explanation of the purpose of this party. Perhaps that would come later, she supposed. Ina's pale eyebrows rose slightly as the man continued. There was a club on board this ship? What exactly was the purpose of the Prophetable Investment? And who exactly was this man? Obviously there was more to the story than what she had garnered in the short time before the meeting.

Nevertheless, Ina figured this was as good a time as any to find out when they would get to meet, if they would. So she picked up the napkin from her lap and dropped it into her plate, and instead of making to follow the others out, she stood by her chair, making to go for her shoulder bag. Ina had just righted herself again, putting the bag on the seat of the chair, about to turn to her host, when her pendant alerted her that a message was forthcoming. This time, she hadn't noticed Sark speaking; her head had been turn away.

Picking up the datapad, she read his words, hoping that he would not think her rude and ignoring him. Ina would have to have Ofi explain things to him. She didn't like doing so in most cases; the woman didn't care in the least about her deafness but didn't go out of her way telling everyone she met, either. Most of the time, the other being figured it out quickly enough.

Perching the datapad on top of her shoulder bag, she began signing to Ofi, who had turned to face her friend in the time the other party goers had left the room. She was instructing the droid to thank their host for the dinner, responding at first with polite chatter, as he had, also nothing bothering to give out her name, as he hadn't, despite already knowing the man's name. Then she went on with the necessities, and asking about the meeting.

When Ina had finished, Ofi began speaking in her odd mechanical female voice. "The senator wishes to thank you for the lovely dinner. She says it was very delicious. Complements to your chef." She paused momentarily, for effect, before moving on. "She also wishes you a good evening and excuse her for seeming impolite. She was merely checking her datapad for translation as the senator is deaf." Another pause. "Now that the pleasantries are out of the way, the senator wishes to be frank, asking the purpose of this dinner party and wanting to get down to the proper business at hand. Sir."

[Sporky]

It was only at that moment that Sark really took notice of the senator's droid.Briefly, his eyes flickered back and forth between Legion and Ofi. They were quite similar...curious. Of course, Sark knew that Legion had originally been found deactivated in a field, and hawked for sale by some random street merchant, but he'd never thought that there could be others. Ah, well. It was probably nothing. Just an amusing coincidence.


He tapped Legion on the back of the head, and the little droid turned to look at him. "Do fly ahead to my office and prepare everything, hmm? And tell security they're free to enjoy themselves, too. Activate some of the RRs to compensate."Legion hopped off the table, and flew down the hallway to do the tasks he'd been assigned.

He then turned back to the senator and her droid, nodding at it before addressing the concerns. "Ah, yes..the party. Well, truth be told, it was simply a slight hiccup in shceduling software that double-booked both events. I simply decided there would be no harm in combining them. That way, my guests would not feel that a business meeting was more important than their prestigious time, and you and I can enter said meeting with a lighter disposition, and not all frumpy and steely-gazed. That was all, really." He waited, then, for the droid to translate his explanation.

[Kuhblam]

(OOC: Never RP'ed a droid before, so new experience. )

An optical sensor lightened up as a droid stepped forth from a wall containment cell. Bipedal legs painted with stark golden yellow durasteel shambled slowly through the ballroom, shifting along the Prophetable Investment's tapered expensive wooden floors as it carried along the distinguished upper body housing of RR-Series CPD-A34TT, the central security command droid for its creator's political event as well the entire ship. Stiff, unproven, but remarkably stunning with its newly painted and polished exterior, the droid was still something of an odd sight amongst the rich and powerful currently inhabiting the room. Its design was a radical departure from the usual humanoid appearance of most multi-purpose combat protocol droids. The bright golden paint made A34TT stick like a sore thumb even more, but to most it was a simple attendant serving drinks or acting as a translator for the guests it deemed worthy.

Its sensors was constantly tracking just about everyone within the ballroom, and from the database of the guests A34TT was running background checks and matching records with the actual person present. Optical sensors ran a trace over the Arkanian offshoot speaking with its creator. Irrina Icharus. Junior Senator of Arkania, primary guest of the evening on official records, 27 years of age, 5'9", 145 pounds. Personal notes from the creator's database in A34TT's central processor stated her as naive and young to the political world. Of course, the droid didn't exactly care on Sark's secret wordings on his guests. It lived only to serve the creator, with its current primary directive to ensure no harm at all to Grigor Sark and its secondary directive to ensure no non-fatal harm to Senator Irrina Icharus. The tertiary directive programmed into his central processor was to both adjust every droid in the room to a hostile combat protocol programming while also killing everyone within the room with due prejudice with the exception of Grigor Sark. There was nothing out of the ordinary so far, however, and thus A34TT continued its usual scans.

The droid's upper body swiveled to the side on a hydraulic piston as data transferred from a deferring security droid was relayed to A34TT's CPU. As usual, another party-goer was defaming the creator's floor with unusual fluid-like material spewing from its mouth. The droid would automatically have had the water sack removed to a discreet location had he not identified it, however, as the highest of Sark's major guests besides the Senator, a high-level official from Czerka Corporation's elite echelons. Deciding it would better to discuss the matter with the creator himself before alienating one of his business partners, A34TT raised his master on a built-in com-unit as it hypothetically frowned inside its front torso port venting. A thick Coruscanti accent arose forth from the droid's advanced vocabulator.

"Question: Master, I apologize heavily for interrupting your rendezvous with the Senator's droid attendant, but it would appear the esteemed Master Farkas from Czerka Corporation is proceeding to defame this deck's floors with fluid-like organic bile. Would you have me remove him? He has no attendants and is beginning to bother Master Crixsus from BlasTech Industries."

[Mara]

As she waited for her friend to translate her sign language answer to Sark, Ina turned away from her datapad, turning her body to stand more directly in front of the man. Though she couldn't speak directly to him, it would be rude to not look the man in the eyes. Plus, the senator felt that she was a good judge of a being's character by watching their faces, their movements, reactions. Being deaf, she had had to rely on other ways to communicate, and understanding body language was a big part of that. She may not be able to hear what Sark said, but his intentions would ring clear to her eyes as she watched him.

An extra long pause for a glance down at her datapad told her that Ofi had translated well enough, and that the droid was done speaking. Ina stood quietly, waiting for a response from the businessman. Instead though, he turned to his own droid, one that Ina hadn't noticed before--perhaps it had been hiding earlier--and one that looked almost exactly like her friend. A bit of surprise and confusion fluttered through her mind briefly as she thought back to the meeting on Kuat and whether this man had been there. Ina didn't think he was. But this droid, it looked like an AER, though she didn't know which number designation. In any case, Ofi seemed to be ignoring it. She would have no doubt noticed the other droid much earlier, but Ina had also noticed that since they had been on Kuat, her friend had been acting rather strange once back in the company of her fellows. Something to ask Ofi about later; now, there was business to attend to.

Though not directed at her, Ofi had also translated Sark's words to his droid to her datapad. Ina didn't like to be cut out of anything. She wouldn't have Ofi eavesdrop, of course, but if something was being said in her presence that a hearing being would have heard easily and would have been allowed to hear, Ofi sent the words to the senator's datapad for her perusal. Ina rarely responding to anything not addressed to her, but sometimes the other conversation could be helpful later on. Right then, though, the words were so much jumble to her. Obviously he was making things ready for their meeting. But what was RR? It didn't matter; Sark was speaking again, this time to her.

Well, more so towards Ofi, which always made the Offshoot bristle a little bit. Her droid may be the one speaking for her, but when other beings failed to include her in a conversation just because she couldn't openly converse always bothered her. Ofi could hear and translate just as fine if the other was looking at her, not the droid. But besides a stiffening of her posture, she didn't let out any other outward showing of her displeasure, keeping a pleasant smile on her face. Always the dutiful senator, was Ina.

Swallowing a sigh, she turned to the datapad again, as the man's words starting scrolling across the small screen, directly imputed wirelessly from Ofi's sensory equipment to the device in her hands. Ina was a bit dubious about his explanation for their business meeting turning into a bit of a party beforehand. She didn't really believe a man of this stature--though she had barely met him, she had read a lot about him through his posture--would let such a simple mistake like that happen.

But she was willing to go with it, for now, and nodded after reading his 'apology,' before turning back to the rest of his words. Words that just expanded on what he had said at the beginning, not mentioning the real business task at hand. Words that called her frumpy and steely, if she hadn't been loosened up with a dinner and drinks. Again, this man was stirring up feelings within her that she knew weren't proper in this situation. Ina knew she'd have to be careful if she were to keep up the relationship of the other Arkanian senator who dropped it on her lap.

Ina paused, before tucking away the datapad and beginning to sign to Ofi. She had to try to be cordial and yet get the man to speed things up. Being here more than she needed to be was not something that was high on her list. Hopefully they could get things finished off this evening, and she could depart in the morning. If all things went well. Which Ina had no idea if they would; she knew little about what had went on between this man and the other senator.

"The senator understands and wishes no ill to your other guests. However, if there is somewhere else we may go, she would like to get to the real purpose of her being here. Sir." From someone not used to the droid's voice, the words could seem harsh, but they were meant with the best intentions. And Ina was glad that Ofi had kept it short and sweet. As long as nothing was lost, she didn't mind if Ofi did a little self-editing of her words.

[Sporky]

Sark nodded politely in the general direction of the senator and her droid. Admittedly, perhaps the party was a bit much. But no matter. It was over now, business could beg-

He turned to address the RR-series that had spoken to him regarding the president of Czerka. Farkas, you old fool...never could keep your liquor down, could you? "If he is bothering the other guests, then yes, have him escorted back to his shuttle. I shall see about having a care package sent his way."

He turned back to the senator. "Yes, well, my apologies. I have sent my secretary ahead to prepare my office. I was a little cold earlier, and there was a small glitch in the mood lighting, but that should all be fixed momentarily. I assure you, our meeting will be comfortably warm and well-lit."

He stood, and dusted a few specks of rice off of suit suit, also straightening his tie out of habit. The festivities were over, he was full, and business was about to be done. He had a good feeling about this. "If you would accompany me, then?"

[Mara]

(((Sporky said I could just go again, Kubs...)))



Now that the dinner party was over and she had made her intentions known to her host, Ina was hoping to finally get to the purpose of her being on this ship in the first place. She had to get an overview of what Sark's relationship had been with her predecessor, what it entailed, and then, how she could be of further service and hopefully preserve whatever relationship this man had with the Republic. But first, they had to get the meeting started.

Before that could happen, though, they were interrupted by a large droid stepping nearby and delivering a message to Sark, obviously his master. Again, as before with the smaller AER, Ofi transmitted the droid's words to her datapad to read. She suppressed a shudder at the words. It was no matter for her attention, and after a quick skim of the words and Sark's answer, she pushed it from her mind. Not really noticing the fact that this other droid also seemed to think that his master was talking to Ofi, no Ina herself.

Thankfully, Sark turned to her almost right away after speaking to his large droid, expending any thoughts she may have been spending on this Farkas and his... problems. His new words rolled across her datapad, transmitted wirelessly from Ofi's sensory equipment into the device in her hands. Ina had to pause and read it over a couple more times. She was confused as to why this man spent most of his time talking about lighting. How that had to do with getting down to the business of their meeting and discussion, she didn't know. Perhaps the man was just distracted. However, the Offshoot decided to file it away for later, just in case.

Ina answered him with a nod, feeling that nothing else was really needed for her to say. Especially not some chitchat about the heat and lighting in his office. Those didn't concern her; she just wanted to get to the matter at hand.

Seeing that he was preparing to leave, most likely to lead her to his office for the meeting, she picked up her shoulderbag and hefted it up, tucking the datapad back inside. Ofi flew back over and perched on her friend's shoulder as they began walking away from the table and out of the large room. This time, Ind hadn't needed any translation to know what Sark's words were, and not because of her rudimentary skill in reading lips. It was his posture that told her that finally business would be at hand. And she followed him, perhaps a little more eagerly than befit for a senator.

[Sporky]

Truth be told, Sark was also looking forward to getting down to business. He had played the part of excellent host, and he had no doubt that the senator was impressed with the great Mr. Sark. How could anyone not be? An extravagant event planned on top of a business meeting, explained away as a hiccup in Legion's scheduling software. Droids were far from infallible, and it was simple and common enough to not notice a 'double booking' until it was too late.

The hallway leading from the grand dining room to Sark's small-ish office was as extravagant as the rest of the ship. Artwork, busts, models, statues. This was very much a pleasure craft, and a testament to the accomplishments of Sark. He had chosen most of the hallway's decorum by hand, leaving the rest to Legion to pick out based on his master's preferences.

But the hallway wasn't opulent in just static displays. The floor beneath their feet was covered by what appeared to simply be a red velvet carpet, until one looked closer. It was actually high-tech, more 'mood' technology that sent off small 'ripples' of color based on mood determined by their gait. Sark's steps sent off ripples of light blue, showing his relaxed mental state.

Sark's office was the same. A desk made of solid japor ivory wood, shaped like two feathered wings sweeping back from the entrance, putting Sark's squishy, grub-shaped (An oddity, but Sark had been increasingly interested in grub and larva shaped items as of late) chair between them, giving the image of him being embraced by the wings as he sat down.

On one side of Sark was Legion, nestled snugly into one of its 'sockets' in the ship, which gave it access to the yacht's systems, acting as his master's eyes and hands, lording over his property as a king would lord over his castle. Its visor was dimmed, only a faint yellow instead of the bright, piercing icterine that was normally there, and its sensor 'mohawk's' LEDs were also dimmed. For a droid that usually looked like a much more menacing version of Ofi, Legion could look rather harmless at times.

On the other was Sark's holonet terminal. There was no browser open, just an instant messenger program, showing Sark's handle to be capitalismDeity. Sark made no secret of this being his handle, citing irony as the reason for choosing it, as sometimes people referred to him as a 'god of capitalism.' It was rather silly, but ironic enough to warrant Sark choosing it as his messenger handle. Only two names were online on Sark's list, corporateInheritor and gamblingArachnid, but the little status light next to the names showed that whoever they were, they were both set to 'DO NOT DISTURB'.

The rest of the office was very much like the hallway that led up to it. The two most eyecatching things in the office were 'life-sized' golden statues of both the TS-series, Sark Industries' first droid and the product that catapulted it onto the galactic market as a major contender, and the TS-A model, a prototype currently being fielded by the Republic military as a counter to reports of a Sith droid sporting a light laser cannon. One might have suspected that they were actually functional models made out of gold, but they were just statues, little things revealed that.

The security of the office was quite apparent if one simply looked up. Watching the senator's every move was a pair of turrets in the ceiling. One was a 14mm slugthrower turret, the other was a medium repeating blaster. Both sported optics the same icterine color as Legion's visors were normally. Only Sark knew that this meant they were under the direct control of his droid, others assumed it was just a coincidence or maybe just color preference.

Everything about this ship was completely, perfectly decadent, very much Sark's not so subtle statement of "I'm rich, and better than you. Can you tell?"

Sark wore an expression that was halfway between neutral and warm as he sat, straightening his tie again out of habit and folding his hands on the desk in front of himself. He allowed Irrina, through her droid, to speak the first words, and did his best to exude an aura of non-threat and benevolence.

[Mara]

As Sark led the way ostensibly to his office, Ina couldn't help but notice the decorations of the halls of the ship on the way there. But unlike, she supposed, most of his guests that took this passage, she was very much unimpressed. In fact, the display of extravagance rather disgusted her. It wasn't that she didn't know that such riches existed in the world. She herself had not had a very humble upbringing either, but there was a difference between this man she was following and her father. Her father didn't take things for granted, nor felt the need to flaunt his wealth. No, the good Dr Rand actually worked the more harder for it, despite his increasing age.

Her mood darkened even more as they finally entered the office, a slight flush pressing up against her pale white cheeks. If only such money could be used for the good of the galaxy instead of displays of opulence and domination, then a good many beings who were now poor would not be. Diseases could be cured. Planets healed from war. Slavery ended and equality established everywhere. Just because credits and wealth could do almost anything didn't mean it needed to be used for almost everything.

Focused on this disgust and also the task at hand for which she was here in the first place, Ina had taken no more than a cursory look at the room. She was more concerned with finding a place to sit, and perhaps a table they would do business by. Having to spend the whole meeting with this Sark behind his offensive desk with her sitting in front of it hardly spoke of a business partnership between a senator and a CEO. It made her feel... less. And that was something she utterly hated, from those who looked down at her because of her deafness, her species. Her occupation and her ideals. It didn't matter what; it still bothered her horribly no matter the reason.

Ina stopped in front of the desk, not sitting down. As much as she wanted to get down to business and get out of her, the setting right now was not conducive to how she wanted this meeting to go. She may be a green senator, but she was far from stupid. Quickly, she began signing to him, her fingers flying, sometimes a hand slapping another to emphasize a certain word. It was the only outward sign of any disapproval she might be feeling; the rest of her body, including her face, was the practiced neutral of a politician.

Anticipating her friend's needs, Ofi had popped out of the shoulder bag almost immediately and alighted on one of the wings of the desk. She watched Ina's fingers for a moment before starting to speaking, not looking in Sark's direction once. "The senators wonders if there is not a better place for the meeting to occur, for she wishes this to be on equal terms. Somewhere with a table perhaps to lay out any documents or datapads, where a discussion could happen more readily. She is as eager to get this matter settled as you undoubtedly are, but she will not proceed until she feels comfortable."