LordsFire
Internet Wizard
AN: First update I'm cross-posting here. Seemed like a decent number to start on.
((()))
“Your highness.”
Katrina looked up from the memo she'd been reading during breakfast, to see Simon Johnson standing in the doorway of her quarters, a security team moving a cart with what looked like a thermally-insulated box in a transparent isolation chamber on it.
“What is it Simon?” Katrina asked.
“A package arrived today,” Simon said, “The sending name was 'A Lyran Patriot,' the addressing text and everything put together using some standard tradecraft tricks to make it fairly untraceable, especially given it was shipped in from off-world. The officer of the watch in the mail screening station called me in directly, and after reviewing its contents, I though you would want to see it first thing in the morning.”
“This must be fairly important then,” Katrina noted, rising from the small table where she had been eating, “Well, bring it in.”
“I am obliged to warn you,” Simon noted as the security team rolled the cart in, “The contents are rather unpleasant. I'm not certain if you'd prefer to finish your breakfast first or not.”
“I served in the infantry,” Katrina said, rolling her eyes slightly, “I'll be fine.”
“Very well,” Simon said with a nod, offering her a sheet of paper, “Here's a copy of the message it arrived with.”
Katrina took the sheet and read the message over; it didn't take long.
The game of houses can often call for subterfuge and intrigue, but there is a line between deception and treachery. When that line is crossed, the time comes for the tree of liberty to be watered with the blood of patriots and tyrants. I have a vested interest in seeing to it that the blood comes more from the latter than the former. With that in mind, I present a gift to the Archon; a little piece of mind, and a token of my esteem.
-A Lyran Patriot.
“At your word ma'am,” one of the security team said as Katrina set the message aside.
“Open it,” Katrina said with a nod.
The isolation chamber around the box was of the sort that came with a built-in set of long sealed gloves, so that whatever was within could be manipulated without the need of opening it. The leader of the security team stuck his arms into the gloves, and carefully unlatched the thermal box, before sliding the lid off.
The dead eyes of Aldo Lestrade stared up at Katrina.
“Well then,” Katrina said softly, staring at the disembodied head with powerful but somewhat conflicted emotions, “Somebody decided they'd had enough of 'The Dwarf.' Simon, did anything come with this that would give any kind of legal justification?”
“A recording of an extremely incriminating conversation with Duke Brecker,” Simon said, “Which included some limited incriminating information regarding Brecker, in regards to possible information leak through his daughter, who may have learned of the wedding before the official announcement. The overall course of the conversation, given this result, suggests that Brecker was knowingly fishing for incriminating statements on Lestrade's behalf to record.”
“What level of incrimination are we talking about,” Katrina said, stepping around the isolation box to study the frozen head from a different angle.
“He was speaking openly of planning to have yourself and Melissa assassinated,” Simon said, “Specifically in an attempt to derail the wedding.”
“It seems someone has both saved me the trouble,” Katrina said with a humorless smile, “And stolen my thunder. What of Brecker?”
“After the investigation into his affairs that just completed,” Simon said with a faint hint of irritation, “He has reportedly been vacationing on a private island for the last two months. In isolation, of course, so we can neither confirm that he has been there the whole time, nor find any evidence of him leaving it, much less traveling to Summer. I have a low-visibility team en-route to investigate; do you want me to add a more overt investigation?”
“No,” Katrina said, shaking her head and gesturing for the security officer to close the box, “Not after the last investigation just finished. The low-key team will do for now. I'll want to hear that recording though.”
“Of course ma'am,” Simon said, “What story will we be going public with regarding this?”
“The truth, of course,” Katrina replied, “It's no more or less than Aldo deserves.”
((()))
“What's the big bustle?” you say as you enter Aifric's room, closing the door behind you after Coaimhe gestures for you to do so.
“There's a big political shitstorm going down in the Commonwealth,” Aifric says, “Brunhilde just got squirted this ahead of the official announcement going out from the palace.”
You turn your attention to Brunhilde who, you find, is very blatantly pointing the camera on her tablet your way, an odd expression on her face.
“That news being?” you ask dryly, wondering what sort of reaction she's expecting.
“A few days ago,” Brunhilde says, “Someone delivered Aldo Lestrade's head to the Archon in a box, sans the rest of his body.”
“Actual Aldo Lestrade's head?” you ask, “Not a clever forgery?”
“Certain enough for official diplomatic dispatches between the Triad and New Avalon,” Brunhilde says, scowling a touch at your lack of interesting response or quote.
“Well in that case,” you say with a toothy grimace that could, by some charitable definitions, be considered a smile, “I wish success to whatever investigative the Archon has assigned to track down the responsible parties, and that whatever sort of warning or threat they were attempting to send, the Archon will ignore it with her customary implacability.”
Mary starts giggling behind Brunhilde, and Coaimhe snorts.
“You forgot to mention that proof he had committed treason was delivered with the head,” Aifric points out dryly.
“Dammit,” Brunhilde grumbles, “This is harder to set up properly than I thought. How do you lot do this all the time?”
“Practice,” you say with a small smirk.
“Let's try this again,” Brunhilde says, manipulating her tablet in a way that you suspect is ending one recording, and beginning another, “Rhiannon, what do you think of the official announcement that Aldo Lestrade has both just been proven to be a traitor, and his head has been anonymously delivered to the Triad?”
What say?
[] Write-in.
((()))
((()))
“Your highness.”
Katrina looked up from the memo she'd been reading during breakfast, to see Simon Johnson standing in the doorway of her quarters, a security team moving a cart with what looked like a thermally-insulated box in a transparent isolation chamber on it.
“What is it Simon?” Katrina asked.
“A package arrived today,” Simon said, “The sending name was 'A Lyran Patriot,' the addressing text and everything put together using some standard tradecraft tricks to make it fairly untraceable, especially given it was shipped in from off-world. The officer of the watch in the mail screening station called me in directly, and after reviewing its contents, I though you would want to see it first thing in the morning.”
“This must be fairly important then,” Katrina noted, rising from the small table where she had been eating, “Well, bring it in.”
“I am obliged to warn you,” Simon noted as the security team rolled the cart in, “The contents are rather unpleasant. I'm not certain if you'd prefer to finish your breakfast first or not.”
“I served in the infantry,” Katrina said, rolling her eyes slightly, “I'll be fine.”
“Very well,” Simon said with a nod, offering her a sheet of paper, “Here's a copy of the message it arrived with.”
Katrina took the sheet and read the message over; it didn't take long.
The game of houses can often call for subterfuge and intrigue, but there is a line between deception and treachery. When that line is crossed, the time comes for the tree of liberty to be watered with the blood of patriots and tyrants. I have a vested interest in seeing to it that the blood comes more from the latter than the former. With that in mind, I present a gift to the Archon; a little piece of mind, and a token of my esteem.
-A Lyran Patriot.
“At your word ma'am,” one of the security team said as Katrina set the message aside.
“Open it,” Katrina said with a nod.
The isolation chamber around the box was of the sort that came with a built-in set of long sealed gloves, so that whatever was within could be manipulated without the need of opening it. The leader of the security team stuck his arms into the gloves, and carefully unlatched the thermal box, before sliding the lid off.
The dead eyes of Aldo Lestrade stared up at Katrina.
“Well then,” Katrina said softly, staring at the disembodied head with powerful but somewhat conflicted emotions, “Somebody decided they'd had enough of 'The Dwarf.' Simon, did anything come with this that would give any kind of legal justification?”
“A recording of an extremely incriminating conversation with Duke Brecker,” Simon said, “Which included some limited incriminating information regarding Brecker, in regards to possible information leak through his daughter, who may have learned of the wedding before the official announcement. The overall course of the conversation, given this result, suggests that Brecker was knowingly fishing for incriminating statements on Lestrade's behalf to record.”
“What level of incrimination are we talking about,” Katrina said, stepping around the isolation box to study the frozen head from a different angle.
“He was speaking openly of planning to have yourself and Melissa assassinated,” Simon said, “Specifically in an attempt to derail the wedding.”
“It seems someone has both saved me the trouble,” Katrina said with a humorless smile, “And stolen my thunder. What of Brecker?”
“After the investigation into his affairs that just completed,” Simon said with a faint hint of irritation, “He has reportedly been vacationing on a private island for the last two months. In isolation, of course, so we can neither confirm that he has been there the whole time, nor find any evidence of him leaving it, much less traveling to Summer. I have a low-visibility team en-route to investigate; do you want me to add a more overt investigation?”
“No,” Katrina said, shaking her head and gesturing for the security officer to close the box, “Not after the last investigation just finished. The low-key team will do for now. I'll want to hear that recording though.”
“Of course ma'am,” Simon said, “What story will we be going public with regarding this?”
“The truth, of course,” Katrina replied, “It's no more or less than Aldo deserves.”
((()))
“What's the big bustle?” you say as you enter Aifric's room, closing the door behind you after Coaimhe gestures for you to do so.
“There's a big political shitstorm going down in the Commonwealth,” Aifric says, “Brunhilde just got squirted this ahead of the official announcement going out from the palace.”
You turn your attention to Brunhilde who, you find, is very blatantly pointing the camera on her tablet your way, an odd expression on her face.
“That news being?” you ask dryly, wondering what sort of reaction she's expecting.
“A few days ago,” Brunhilde says, “Someone delivered Aldo Lestrade's head to the Archon in a box, sans the rest of his body.”
“Actual Aldo Lestrade's head?” you ask, “Not a clever forgery?”
“Certain enough for official diplomatic dispatches between the Triad and New Avalon,” Brunhilde says, scowling a touch at your lack of interesting response or quote.
“Well in that case,” you say with a toothy grimace that could, by some charitable definitions, be considered a smile, “I wish success to whatever investigative the Archon has assigned to track down the responsible parties, and that whatever sort of warning or threat they were attempting to send, the Archon will ignore it with her customary implacability.”
Mary starts giggling behind Brunhilde, and Coaimhe snorts.
“You forgot to mention that proof he had committed treason was delivered with the head,” Aifric points out dryly.
“Dammit,” Brunhilde grumbles, “This is harder to set up properly than I thought. How do you lot do this all the time?”
“Practice,” you say with a small smirk.
“Let's try this again,” Brunhilde says, manipulating her tablet in a way that you suspect is ending one recording, and beginning another, “Rhiannon, what do you think of the official announcement that Aldo Lestrade has both just been proven to be a traitor, and his head has been anonymously delivered to the Triad?”
What say?
[] Write-in.
((()))