Interview (Julius and Cai Xu)

[starwarsgirl008]

Cai found herself trotting down the streets of Coruscant, going to yet another interview.

That seemed to be all she did. Interview after interview. Of course she dreamed of traveling the Galaxy and bringing the people stories of war and diplomacy. Of government and of tragedy. Perhaps on day, but for now the simple interviews on Coruscant were enough for her.

And, she did see how they were important. The average person needed to know the intentions of those at higher power. They needed to know their opinions. After all, it was often these little details that started the huge events throughout the Galaxy.

Cai strolled into another building. This time she was set to interview the Prime Minister of Corellia. Surprisingly, Cai knew very little about him. But that would most likely change by the end of the day...

[Cavalry King]

Julius sat comfortably on an elegant armchair inside his penthouse suit in one of the many top notch Coruscanti residential areas catering to his type. He used this residence as his base of operations on Coruscant. He loved the planet but rarely visited. Today, however, he was supposed to be interviewed by a highly reputable journalist. Always one for publicity, Julius invited her and welcomed the interview. He wore his uniform from Corellia, decorated with the honors of nobility and service. Around him were several well armed Corellian bodyguards, uniformed in military dress regalia, and a well trained kath hound lay next to him. He wished to show elegance, through his lavishly decorated home, and power through his uniform and his guards.

He waited in his chair for the young woman to arrive. CE-25-4, a Corellian Enterprises protocol droid, stood outside the apartment waiting to greet her.

[starwarsgirl008]

Cai arrived at the building complex where an elegant droid met her. Cai accepted the greeting, after which she was directed to a room.

There sat a man. Dressed elegantly, Cai could assume he was of high power and had a good deal of money.

Walking over to him, she followed the intorduction procedure. With a thin smile, she extended her hand. "Hello. I am Cai Xu with the HNN. I was wondering if I could ask you a few questions for an upcomming installment of our show."

[Cavalry King]

Julius gave a polite friendly smile to the reporter. He knew who she was and she knew they had already arranged the interview, but he said nothing, assured that she was only going through the formalities. "Come, come, miss Xu, no need for such formalities, but yes I would." he chuckled after his friendly reply.

He quickly examined the woman and sought to determine how best to appeal to her personality - something that had saved Julius many times. He also began probing her surface level thoughts, a force skill he had mastered years ago and held a great control over. The probing would be unnoticeable to all except for skilled Jedi masters, but he did not sense any large force presence when she entered so he felt he was safe. He did this almost passively now, with anyone he met, it was a way he could control and keep tabs on people. His skill helped him stay on top and he would ensure that this interview went as he planned.

"How may I help?", he said afterwards, giving her the go-ahead

[starwarsgirl008]

"Well..." Cai said, fidling through her pocket to take out a notepad and pen. "With the changing condition of the Galaxy, certain political figures in the Republic are becomming increasingly important in both protecting and informing the average person." Cai paused. "It is also important to know who you have put your trust in. Thus, could you explain what exactly you do. Your daily tasks as well as your goals for the future?"

[Cavalry King]

The Corellian smiled at the question. It was unbecoming of a gentleman to speak of himself, but since she asked, it gave him the permission. He did enjoy talking about himself. Her thoughts, at least on the surface remained focused on the interview, he did not sense any particular feeling attached to what she was saying. He wondered if she enjoyed what she did or if this part was merely a perfunctory duty she performed. He didn't think about it for very long though, he spoke quickly after she was done and answered nonchalantly with a quizzical look on his face as if he had to think about what he did. As he spoke, he projected a sense of friendliness and sincerity through the force. Again, only experienced force users could pick up on this passive use of the force. Most would get it as a gut feeling or perception, while those weak minded enough often would become enamored with him after only a few words. He had practiced and focused his training and manipulation of the force in this area for many years, and now he was enjoying the benefits.

"Well, you certainly are correct about many things, especially it being important to know who you put your trust in. These are trying times. People are not as they seem. As Prime Minister of Corellia I first and foremost serve my country - the monarchy and thus by extension, the people. I see to the day -to-day governing of the office and organize the government. I take directives from our monarch and implement them to the best of my abilities. This is no task I do lightheartedly or haphazardly, it is one I take great care and focus in." Julius considered his next few words carefully, what were his plans for the future, surely she could not be told the truth, so he maintained his political story. "My goal for the future is to see the continued growth and prosperity of the kingdom, especially in these trying times I seek to better Corellian defenses and overall readiness in case of a crisis, and to health and safety of our monarch, my esteemed cousin."

It was a good answer, it answered her question sufficiently, and had the perfect balance of vague idealism with a concrete definitive plan, and an optimistic sentiment to close. He was happy with his answer.

[starwarsgirl008]

Cai smiled to the answer of the question. But for some reason, she got that gut feeling something wasn't right. The man in front of her was happy, polite and kind, when most of teh famous people she interviewed were snobby, arrogant and just plain mean. Cai heard the energy in his words, and felt that he was actually thinking deeply about his answers. She just had the gut feeling something was off. But put it to the side, thinking it was just her tire mind babbling off.

"As a Prime Minister you must see a lot of crisis come and go. What is the worst thing that couald happen now, and how would you solve it?" for once this was a question Cai wanted to know the answer to. She often asked the same old questions, which was exciting at first, but eventually everyone seemed to answer the same. However, this question was open, and involved deep opinion, and could really show the character of a person.

[Cavalry King]

He immediately picked up on her slight apprehension, her mind was stronger than he thought. Passive force persuasion didn't seem to affect her much. He would not do a mind trick in public though, she might have seen one done before and report him for it. He did not change his outward joviality. He chuckled at her question and shook his head as he smiled, wearily he said, "I fear answering a question like that honestly for fear that it just might happen." He gave a clearly forced chuckle, as if to mock his own statement and continued, "The worst thing that could happen at this point in time, as at any point in time but now most definitely, would likely be if something happened to the immediate members of the Royal Family. There would be many contenders to the throne from other family members and would likely tear Corellia apart. I would solve it by following the law and doing what was best for Corellia. As Prime Minister I would oversee the succession of a new King or Queen and help to maintain order in the kingdom. But I would rather not like to consider that circumstance. "

His fear was a genuine one. He had long sensed that something devastating was going to happen to the Royal Family, but he was not sure what. And he was unsure of how to act because, the situation may lend itself to his improvement. No one could blame him for not acting because there was no way he could "know" it to be true. He continued passively sending positive energy to the woman through the force, trying to soothe her and help charm her over.

When Julius' natural charming abilities failed, he often called on the force for a little help; not everyone could be swayed by a few kind words and a friendly demeanor.

[starwarsgirl008]

Cai was a strong-willed woman. Off hours, she was bubbly and friendly, but she could be serious and did have an opinion, and a major one at that.

At Julius' first comment Cai sent out a thin smile. It was all she could produce at that time. She needed to keep her cool, and just finish the interview.

At Julius' answer, Cai just thought how the man looked at Corellia as the most important place in the world. Of course Cai had a small byast attitude toward Coruscant. It was her home planet. But her years as a reporter loosened her up, and she began to look at the Galaxy as a whole. Each planet held it together, each planet was important. That was that. Her attitude toward the man was now worsened.

"What do you think Corellia has done for the Republic, and at that what have you done personally?" Cai asked. This wasn't a question she had written in her notebook earlier, but she thought it would show the man's true colors. His answer would sway Cai to either like or dislike him entirely.

[Cavalry King]

Julius was a little taken back when she asked what Corellia had done for the Republic. Surely she knew the great importance of his planet, but he would answer with the same friendly demeanor. "In all modesty Corellia has dutifully served the Republic since the earliest days of the Republic. Corellia serves as a major ship building center for the Republic. Corellia builds the fleets that keep out galaxies safe, plus a few extra credits in our pockets."

He thought about what he had done for the Republic, this would be perfect to win her over because Julius was a renowned philanthropist. He had donated vast sums of his money to various Republic Charities and donated money to the Republic government itself. Plus as Prime Minister he has pushed Corellia to heightened defenses in case of a war and he recently signed a massive contract to build several Republic Fleets, an investment largely out of his own pocket. "I am but a humble citizen of the Republic doing what I must for the betterment of all. I may have donated a few credits and helped with the Navy but my personal contribution is one that many in my position would have done." He spoke with a friendly modesty. He knew perfectly well that he did not have to pat himself on the back publicly to get his contributions out. They were well known and helped place his Spotless reputation as a true paragon of virtue and decency in politics and business.

[starwarsgirl008]

"I have one final question." Cai stated. She was partially satisfied with Julius' last answer. She was comforted by the many charities he had donated to and such, but she still had that gut feeling that something wasn't right. It didn't matter though. She would be out of there in a matter of moments.

Her final question was somewhat of a combination of her past ones. It would take a lot of thought. "What state do you see the Republic, and for that matter the Galaxy, in 10 years?"

[Cavalry King]

He smiled and with a sigh and feigned look of thought he said, "My vision for the galaxy is a stronger, united, and much more efficient one. With strong leadership over the next decade, I can see the Republic more lively than ever and a bastion of hope and peace in the universe."

It was not really answering her question as she put it, but his political training had taught him to seize opportunity to evoke hope in people. That way he looks to be a strong character for political power. He did not entirely believe what he said, but he gave no indication of it, years of saying things he didn't believe or intend to do, had taught him how to mask his true feelings about the words he said.

It seemed she was wrapping up her interview and so he said politely, "would you care for any refreshments before we conclude this?"

He kept up his friendly demeanor, the kind where most people felt as ease with him and were able to warm up to him easily. He hoped he could finish that way with this journalist, especially for her sake.

[starwarsgirl008]

Cai listened to Julius' final response. She couldn't help but role her eyes. It was the classic response. He didn't answer her question, but simply bragged his support of the Galaxy's well condition.

Then he asked her for some refreshments. This was getting more and more suspicous. No one had ever asked her for refreshments. "Uhh, no," Cai said with as much friendliness she could put into it. "thankyou, though." she remembered to add.

With that she spat out another eye role, and began to pack up the few things she brought.

[Cavalry King]

Julius picked up on her cynicism and smirked. He determined that he didn't like her and would have her watched. Perhaps a little bit of surveillance would shed more light unto her character. He smiled gently and asked her politely, "I can have you transported to wherever you might need to go in my luxury speeder if you would like. And if there is anything that I can offer you, don't hesitate to ask. I am a generous man, and you have been kind enough to sit down with me this evening. If there is nothing else, I bid you good day."

He got up from his chair and walked over to a large window pane that gave a glorious view of the upper levels of Coruscant. The life, the movement, the desperation of millions. He liked the planet. Perhaps one day he could expand his operations here more, but that would have to wait. There was too much at stake now to take any risks.

[starwarsgirl008]

"I am in no need of your services!" Cai said, with a little agression this time. She had lost a bit of control, but the man continued to offer and offer, which had never happened before. Cai couldn't help her thoughts, and headed for the door. Her report tonight would be interesting...

[Cavalry King]

Julius was shocked, and a bit insulted when his genuine hospitality was rudely refused by this journalist. She was clearly unprofessional and found it difficult to believe she made it this far with such poor people skills. She would definitely be watched. It would be very unfortunate if she lost her ability to write though, Julius snickered at the thought. Spiting people always pleased him. Coruscant now bored him. He would leave on his yacht the next morning. He had more important things to do than travel all the way to Coruscant to be insulted by some upstart journalist.