HIH Princess Arya Padmé Jello

Despite her recent success on Cinnagar, the Imperial Princess was unsatisfied with her progress. While the Emperor had claimed to have been satisfied with her performance, Arya knew better. The events on Cinnagar would reverberate through neighboring systems, and it was entirely possible that there could be disturbances in the Core itself. That would be extremely dangerous for the Imperial House.

Arya had always felt that she was more suited to the art of court politics than she was to warfare. This was precisely why she had asked her father to allow her to perform this mission to begin with: if she was to rule the Empire in the future, then she couldn’t have any such gaps in her knowledge.

Over the last few days, she had been able to think of little else. Her father was then necessarily rather concerned. He had given her another assignment to occupy her in the meantime, but Arya knew that his motives were rather transparent. He wanted to boost her assurance before she continued with her pursuit of the mystery Sith.

The quandary she had been assigned was thus: two Outer Rim Worlds, Ton and Os, were engaged in a dispute over the killing of seven alleged criminals by Ossian authorities. The Tonnites were outraged at this perceived assault on their sovereignty and demanded reparations be made to the families of the criminals. Her task was to arbitrate their dispute and to supervise a satisfactory settlement under Imperial auspices. At the moment, she was conducting a Holo conference with the Ossian ambassador and a Tonnite village elder.

From the start, the conference seemed more than fruitless. The two individuals had even chosen to disagree on how they would greet the princess.

“It is such an honor to speak with you, Your Imperial Highness. The Thorncleft of Os highly esteems your Empire and appreciates your mediation efforts,” gushed the Ossian ambassador of an indeterminate gender.

“Mediation!” hissed the Tonnite elder, “I know all about Imperial mediation. Especially at the point of the sword, as that scoundrel Emperor is known for. To add insult to injury, he delegates his shkriens brat to dictate terms to us? The Tonnite Braves will not bow down before some puny female child, not even to gaze under her skirt.”

Arya inhaled sharply at the barrage of insults, but it was the globular Ossian that responded first. He began a short harangue that involved gesturing with multifarious limbs and a panoply of pigmentation changes.

“Your inexcuseable behavior betrays the base guilt of your people, ‘elder.’ Violence and thievery are in your very nature. If you will not speak like a civilized being, then we shall leave—with the Princess’s pardon.”

The Tonnite merely looked contemptuous.

Arya exhaled to calm herself. “Ambassador, that will not be necessary. We’ll have to forgive the dear elder—it has probably been some time before he’s been with a woman. He knows not what he says.”

The Ossian’s pigmentation turned blue with amusement while the Tonnite—like most humans—merely grew red-faced with rage. Arya had no intention of letting him speak, though: the talks must not get bogged down in an exchange of insults.

“The Empire does not wish to impose conditions here, but it seems that I am without choice. Were I not to do so, there would be no diplomatic talks at all—to that end: the Empire will stipulate that the murderers will be tried in a court of law, with a jury consisting of impartial Imperial senators. The penalty will be paid manual labor for the Ossian people, the proceeds of which will go directly to the murderer’s families. I trust this is a mutually beneficial arrangement?”

Even the elder looked thoughtful. “My opinions on the Empire have not changed, but I find this a wholly acceptable solution.”

Naturally, he did not go as far as to actually thank the princess.

The Ossian’s praises were far more exaggerated and a trifle tedious, but they did—eventually—end.

And when the business was concluded, Arya learned of something even more interesting. Apparently word was out that her little Sith friend had been captured…”