"It's a pleasure meeting you, Syr." You shake his hand. "Seubi, come with me for a second." You drag him out with you, ignoring his questions until you can pull him into a off-the-path hallway. He folds his arms and looks at you, leaning on one wall. You fold your arms and look at him, leaning on the other wall.
This conversational impasse lasts for a couple of seconds. The conversation branches in front of you. In one it ends with you marking Seubi down for a quick and permanent jaunt into the sun. In the other… you don't know. Your vast and terrifying knowledge of politics fails you. "So what's this about?" Seubi asks first.
"You getting on grand with Alessandro?"
He shrugs. "Sure. Kinda twisty sort of fella. Not bad for a gens."
"You shouldn't use Luca as a base for them. Didn't you work with 'em, before you made L.T. Admiral?"
"Yeah, but that was when I was still young and untested and still a barb." He stops and waits for you. Clamming up, turning into a limpet. Everything he has and could say is locked behind nacre shell lips. You would have thought up a plant metaphor but plants do not, as a rule, exhibit the traits you are currently attributing to Seubi. "He's not bad."
"Didn't he try to get me fired?" Seubi makes a complicated little ambiguous flutter of his left hand. "Oh, that does remind me, I still don't know who convinced that gens Russo-Ricci guy to off me."
"Search me, sir. I thought it was the ENEMY, with how active they are recently. I think I've seen more action in the last year or two than I did the last decade."
"Eminently possible."
"And returning to the original question, are you still mad about Alessandro? I thought you sorted things out with him. You did act as such during the trials."
"Investigations," you correct Seubi. "That's true, isn't it?"
"He's a good chap. Like I said, a twisty fella. But that's just the kind this here front needs. I'm better, obviously, but I'm not gens, and my rank only goes so far."
"Uh-huh."
"You're using him pretty good, and I'm not ass-kissing. Pointman for internal politics and all. Aren't you worried that you know, he'll turn?"
"Why? You seem to be getting along grandly with him. Far be it for me to doubt your character witness."
Seubi nods. "That's fair, that's fair."
Okay. Now comes the big one. Obviously he has been around you and the general block enough to know when to previcate and even elevate one of his compatriots to your attention. Very good, Seubi, you would almost be proud. "Have you thought about ever returning to Centre?"
"I've never been to Centre," he points out. "Border boy all the way through. Closest I've been was Port Calaay."
"Even so. Centre's in chaos for long enough. We can make a deal with the ENEMY, get them off our backs, long enough for us four to waltz in and set things to rights."
"Like I give a crap," Seubi yawns. "Sir, I have followed your career recommendations. I say fuck'em. My family, my royal fucking family that turned my microstate from a patchwork of warring atomic tribes to the Serene Peace, had to do everything but lick balls for a military visa into the 'glorious' Empire. The pay was good, note the past tense, was, good, but now there is no pay. Sir, with the racket we have constructed I foresee a fairly profitable future where lucre flows freely to the deserving. I see no, zero, zilch reason to reach above our station and engineer a change in the civilian government, violating one of the most sacred pillars of state. Let the sons of the Empire handle it. It is no business for us, the bastard wall manned by half barbarians, whole barbarians, and exiles. I shall happily and merrily work my way into a plum "
You raise an eyebrow. "That's pretty heartfelt."
"I shall work double in cynicism and meaningless sarcasm to make up for the sudden lack."
"See that you do." Okay. Now think. What's his deal? You think he wants you to think that there's no conspiracy. That your triple threat aren't conspiring against… no, they're not conspiring against you. You don't have that much proof. Seubi wants you to think that everything's as it was. Perhaps they are. Maybe they just like to talk to each other, rank to rank, have a nice bitch session about their dumbass boss and their dumbass underlings. Perfectly reasonable. You've done that a bunch of times. But do you want to take that risk? This is something that could end you in the chop.
WHAT'S HIS DEAL?
[]- BETRAYAL: He wants to ice you. No two ways about it. Think, Marquis, he's friendly with Alessandro, and so is Luca. What did Alessandro do? Try to get you fired. You think just because you lavished that fuck with a rank and a cursorary help, he's suddenly your ride or die? Please! Yon triple threat is going to ice you out of your position, sooner or later. It might be lethal, it might be bureaucratic, but it all portends in your power, your vast and awesome control over the Northern Front, being denuded. So do something about that!
[]- INDEPENDANCE: The rank of Lieutenant Admiral is too small for Seubi, who is a prince nevertheless. He's pissed that his birth rank never gave him shit in the Empire, which one, it shouldn't, given that he joined the military where everyone's a maggot (unless you aren't a maggot), and two, is totally understandable. Does he want your job? Either Chairman of the United Shipping Board or Marquis-Admiral, both impossible ranks for this shrub to achieve. Yet you get the feeling he's reaching for it. His alliances with two gens, one a meathead, the other disfavoured, points to him as a burgeoning kingmaker within your army.
[]- SKATE OUT: You think he's planning to quit. This is going to play merry double triple hell on your org chart. Really! The nerve! You need him, one to interface and smooth over any issues with the auxilae, two to be your number two. Imagine a world where people forsake their sacral duty for a plum pension and maybe a no-show consultancy job. It would be hell! In any case, you gotta figure out what to do. Maybe dangle a couple of juicy assignments to him, or drown him in work, anything to stop him from handing in his notice of retirement.
