A Nascent Threat

[Regulus Varo]

Varo bristled at her uncouth behavior in questioning, and instead opted to get to the bottom of this, once and for all.

"Suppose this is something with substance then. What proof do you have of such a broad conspiracy, linking noteworthy men from Ankaa?"

[Ariadne Fyrian]

Her own patience was wearing thin under the constant barrage of thinly veiled vitriol emanating from him.

"There are letters that Kariun sent to those men, and they to him. Unfortunately those he received are now at the bottom of the ocean, thanks to the scuttling of my ship. However, those that he sent he signed with his signet, if it is proof that you seek.

"How else do you think my father was able to so easily take the Lantern?"

[Regulus Varo]

Varo paused for a moment, convened with two nearby Satraps, and returned to face Ariadne, seemingly placated for a moment.

"I petition the Chairman for a two hour recess to measure the validity of Madam Fyrian's statements."

The Chairman nodded, rapping his staff on the floor to temporarily adjourn the inquiry. Satraps quickly rose, bustling about to and fro. Varo made little effort to mingle. He moved straight to the floor, to Ariadne.

"Come with me."

[Ariadne Fyrian]

Aside from a suspicious narrowing of her eyes she gave no other indication of surprise at his approach. If she was put off by the Satrap's wish, she quelled them swiftly. Draxus was nowhere to be seen in the sea of bodies, but the Glaucan knew it best to not dwell on this for long.

Shifting to the side, Ariadne gestured for him to lead her to wherever he wished.

[Regulus Varo]

Varo wasted little time as he walked briskly, exiting the Oratorium. He didn't bother with a litter, and instead simply gestured with a nod of his head to a half dozen men posted near the entrance. By the cut of their tunics, they were Necian soldiers, but forbidden to wear their armor and full weapons within the city.

"Accompany us to the Consular District. Quickness is a virtue."

Despite seeming slight and aged, Varo was a lean and hard man, and he moved as he spoke, with a swift and direct motion.

[Ariadne Fyrian]

The sight of the soldiers was enough to cause her to slow her pace, and Ariadne paused on the steps outside the Oratorium. What was this new game? It aroused her suspicions fully, and the Glaucan looked at Varo's back for only a moment before once more resuming down the stairs, her pace a cautious one.

The consular district? And why was her presence necessary?

Reaching up to finger her medallion, she remained silent for only a short amount of time.

"I fail to see why I am needed," she growled out.

[Regulus Varo]

"You have intimate knowledge of this conspiracy. Root it out, like a sow to a truffle. We have only moments, if what you say carries any weight more than the incriminating paper it may be written on."

[Ariadne Fyrian]

She ground to a stop, staring at him.

"Is this not something that must be bought before the rest of the Satrapy? Surely this must be sanctioned before action is taken... "

Confusion reigned over anger then, and she stubbornly remained where she stood. Was what the Satrap sought to do allowable? From all of her previous dealings with the Satrapy, limited as they were, it seemed as though a certain amount of procedure was to be adhered to.

[Regulus Varo]

"Why do you think I called for the recess to begin with?"

He looked annoyed, and the crows feet at his eyes lengthened as he squinted.

"Round up your demagogue if you must. I'm sure Csephion Draxus would wish to settle this loose end as badly as I."

[Ariadne Fyrian]

Taken aback at his vehement words, Ariadne felt her body tense, but she made no move to retaliate through physical force.

Instead, she kept her voice civil, though it was easy to detect the venomous undertones laced throughout.

"If that is truly what you wish."

[Regulus Varo]

"I don't, frankly. I find Draxus contemptible, vain, rapacious, and ruthless, and I revile him for perhaps every reason that you respect him. But I'm pragmatic enough to know how you feel, and I need your cooperation immediately."

He shifted the weight on his feet, and tucked a hand into the crook of his robe.

"Whatever you do, do it now. I won't be burdened by indecision."

[Ariadne Fyrian]

Though biting, the truth in his words caused a bud of respect to form, and Fyrian straightened her posture. The gills on her neck opened as if to suck in air, and she tensed her jaw.

"Very well."

Eyes locked with his for only a few short moments longer, she moved to step past him.

"If it must be done, then that is the whole of it. Draxus may remain where he is for now, if only to quiet your own discontent with this whole affair."

[Regulus Varo]

Varo didn't waste any more words, and instead nodded, gesturing for the soldiers to accompany both of them. Unencumbered by the finery of a litter, they moved deftly through the crowds, eventually arriving at the relative proximity of the Consular District.

"Kazza Moheen's villa is just ahead."

He looked to the Necian soldiers, who wore no weapons beyond the small daggers that were universally permissable.

"Move quickly and be discrete. Hold the emissary, but neither he nor his family must be harmed if it can be avoided."

Not slowing stride, Varo approached the gates, walking onto the premises while the slave attendant struggled to keep up.

"Summon your master. Tell him that Regulus Varo is here."

[Ariadne Fyrian]

She was at his side, watching as the slave scrambled to fulfill the Satrap's bidding. Her own stride matched that of Varo's, and she allowed her eyes to roam the expensive front courtyard. It seemed as though Mohaan had brought the exotic finery of Ankaa with him; a sort of foreign oasis in the Necian desert that he'd been assigned. A wistful sigh at the looting that she was sure would take place once the Ankaaran was found to be guilty of a crime that he did not commit.

"You will learn to trust me," she spoke quietly to the Satrap as a sound from inside the house could be heard; no doubt Mohaan questioning his servant.

[Regulus Varo]

"Trust is an anathema to democracy. I have no time for it."

The soldiers were quick, gently but firmly grouping the slaves and family members into a large and ornate atrium. Varo watched as Maheen angrily protested this treatment.

"On what grounds is this for treating a consular emissary? Like any Necian subject? I will lodge a formal complaint of this!"

Varo didn't budge, and his hand worked deeper into the fold of his robe.

"Emissary, forgive my brusque tactics. The security of our state is at issue. I will make our presence here brief."

[Ariadne Fyrian]

She watched as Mohaan spoke; it was impossible to mistake the outraged tone in his voice, and for the briefest of moments, she felt a stab of sympathy for the man and his family. But, it was a short-lived feeling, as her own self-preservation easily won over any other feeling to be had. The evidence had been delivered already, tucked away in the Ankaaran's study amidst the rest of his correspondence from Ankaa. Shuffled in with the endless scrolls as if they'd always been there.

When Mohaan turned his glare to her, she pursed her lips.

"Kariun Fyrian is dead."

He gave an indignant grunt despite the Necian guardsmen around him.

"And what does that mean to me, aside from safer coastlines."

[Regulus Varo]

"That is what we're here to find out."

The soldiers were efficient in their pilfering. They cordoned off the family and servants, a pair of each tackling a couple of rooms at a time.

They didn't have to wait long. One of the soldiers approached Varo and Ariadne, gesturing to talk with them away from the family, for discretion's sake.

The Satrap walked with Fyrian to an adjacent sun room to speak with the soldier, who carried a scroll with him.

"Satrap, we found this item of interest."

Varo quickly took the scroll at the sight of a familiar broken seal. He unfurled it, scanned a few lines, and quickly rolled it up, his intense expression fixating on the former pirate.

"Then it's true."

His jawline tightened.

[Ariadne Fyrian]

She remained graciously silent, staring back at Varo with an even expression. It would be improper to hurl his previous disbelief back into his face at this point in time. Squaring her shoulders back, the Glaucan looked past the Satrap, her lips in a thin line - a strange sort of mixed scowl that conveyed a small degree of hurt stemming from his earlier disbelief.

"I was told to speak the truth today, and I have."

[Regulus Varo]

"That you have."

Varo tucked the scroll into his robe, and studied her face.

"You know what this is, don't you? The first spear thrown in a million. If Kairun hated us so much, then his vengeance is well purchased."

[Ariadne Fyrian]

"It is regrettable, but fact all the same."

Unflinching under his scrutiny, Fyrian brought her hands together, lacing her fingers. She looked out through the arching doorway of the atrium, to the waiting group surrounded by soldiers.

"Is Mohaan to be brought back with us then?"