General Jack Valkare loosened his tie as he looked out onto the city from the top of one of the tallest buildings in Orion. He was quite sure that this meeting had to be a security nightmare for the Imperial Guard. Ice had spread across the windows in the outer rooms, with snow cascading from the sky outside. It was the beginning of the year-long winter on the planet Steel Butterfly, the start of another four-year cycle of seasons. Unlike Earth, which has all four seasons in the length of a year, Steel Butterfly has a new season approximately every year, and in the capital of Monarch Heights, it typically got quite cold.
Monarch Heights was aptly named, the highest level in the ecumenopolis that was the planet Steel Butterfly. A single, continuous, worldwide city. However, the elegant Imperial Capital on Monarch Heights was only the tip of the iceberg. Below the plates holding the ‘Heights in the clouds was a massive industrial sector where most of the population of the planet lived. Even farther from the sun were the slums, home to the underworld and the dastardly. Valkare couldn't remember the last time he had ventured down to the slums, and now wondered if he had ever traveled lower than the industrial sector.
The sun was setting over the metallic horizon. Eric Esthar straightened his tie as he gazed into the mirror. The young lawyer had risen to great prominence in the Imperial government due in no small part to his outgoing personality, and it was his job to facilitate the display of the Empire as well as the mingling between their visitors. The Emperor’s health had been declining rapidly as of late, and it had increasingly become Eric’s job to be the public face of Orion. He had yet to decide if he liked the responsibility.
“I doubt there will be many single women tonight.”
Eric turned around to see Victor Braddock, Director of State Affairs, standing in his doorway. Victor was not the friendliest of people, and often had a knack of saying the one thing that would upset a person. His blunt honesty had not made him many friends in the Empire, but his consummate work effort and efficiency had avoided him from making too many real enemies. In to regards to Eric, it seemed he found joy in implying that he was not yet cut out for the job.
“I still try to look my best,” Eric replied.
“Perhaps it’s not the women you are after?” Braddock asked, a grin spreading across his lips.
“Perhaps you speak from experience?” Esthar quipped.
“Perhaps not,” Victor muttered. “Either way, this is an opportunity for foreign investors, not a ball. You should be focusing more on the properties and technologies, not the cut of your suit or the sparkle of your ridiculously priced watch.”
“The investors will be investing in me as much as they are in what we have to offer,” Eric replied.
“These aren’t businessmen, Eric,” Victor said, condescending. “These are diplomats, investing on behalf of their governments. I know it gets confused often here, but do you even know the difference?”
“Governments fall easier,” Eric replied, taking one last quick look at his suit and turning around. He smiled an award winning yet painfully artificial grin before quickly pacing out of the room. Smug, Victor followed behind.
“They should be arriving now,” Jack Valkare said, catching up to Eric and Victor in the halls and joining their stride to the main reception room.
“Ah, General,” Braddock announced amidst the security surrounding them. “So nice of you to grace us with your presence.”
“It amazes me that you get invited to these things at all,” Valkare muttered.
“I’m the money,” Braddock replied, his smirk ever-present. They rounded a corridor and came to the main reception room.
The room itself was lavishly decorated but with a sense of class that avoided any garish notions. White was the main color, adorning the tables, chairs, and chandeliers, but the walls were a dark burgundy, and the trim a gold not too ostentatious. It certainly was a sight to behold, and the exact type of first impression the Empire wanted to give.
“They’ll be coming down there,” Valkare said, turning and pointing to a grand staircase in the rear of the room.
“Any minute you say?” Eric asked.
“Like I said, most likely they’re already here,” Valkare replied, staring up the staircase. Diplomacy wasn’t his strong suit, and yet amongst a notorious ass and a young kid, it seemed that this was his party to lead. He shivered, although he couldn’t be sure if it was from the cold, or the idea he just had.
Eric Esthar - Jack Valkare - Victor Braddock