Rheinland's Starquake I

[Backo]

Eliza knew that ALG would readily side with IMG against the Maltese, but she never expected them to assist the Miner's Guild against one of the four lawful houses of Sirius, especially one that Rheinland is in good relations with. This wasn't good news, not for Malta at least. This was indeed more worrisome than the EFL.

Once Valdez entered the observatory though, her grim train of thoughts regarding future diplomacy quickly vanished, pushed away by the awe of the view. The deep ocean, illuminated by the facility's lights was wonder to behold, perhaps only seconded by the majesty of the Razgriz Abyss in Phi or the phenomenon she had dubbed "burning eye" in Omicron Sigma.

"Amazing..."

The Maltese whispered under her breath. For a moment she could feel free from the worries of what the future held for her or for her nation. This distraction though was cut by Kat's voice as the agent continued sharing further information about what transpired in Omega-3.

In truth, Eliza didn't care much for the Guild's assets in the Omegas. All this mess was just a convenient excuse to permit hostilities against the IMG in Newcastle for her. Without tarnishing diplomatic standing with Bretonia more importantly. The IMG had played the martyr card before in Tau-23. They kept their exclusive rights to the Niobium fields and pretended to be oppressed by the Gallic Crown when in fact they welcomed their new "conquerors" with open arms as that meant the competition from BMM was virtually eliminated. At least that's how Eliza saw things as a Maltese.

The Maltese girl took a seat on one of the couches and crossed her legs. Perhaps this could rival the expensive penthouses on planet Curacao, that paradise world generously provided for the rich class that could afford Orbital Spa and Cruise's billing. The view though, her eyes trailed back to the transparent portion of the room, was perhaps even better than what the rich class was used to enjoying. Kommissar Laurenz was an interesting bird, Eliza originally imagined her to be much more dull and uninteresting. This was a pleasant surprise to say the least. And so was the bottle of Omicron spiced rum that was most likely the bounty from a Corsair wreck or purchased by one of the Zoner merchants.

Eliza's eyes sailed back to Kat. It turned out it wasn't just a Maltese custom to have internal conflicts. Rheinland had it's own fair share of those if what Katharina was sharing was as grave as she made it out to be. The lack of internal unity was bad for an ally but it was good when found in an enemy. Problem was that Eliza did not know which of the two the Bundesrepublik was going to be. She gave a small nod of acknowledgement before speaking her thoughts.

"Hate's a strong word, Kat, I'm merely concerned with Malta's well-being. My only interest in hostilities against the miners is pushing them out of our Taus so that they cease being a threat to our convoys. Malta is a single world, import and export is crucial for us and having the Miner's Guild around threatens that. The only benefit from this conflict in the Omegas for us was being given the carte blanche to begin hostilities against them in Newcastle with the hope of drawing their attention and some of their forces from the Tau systems."

Eliza paused for a moment. She wasn't sure if she was sharing too much information herself. Perhaps it was for the better, after all mutual trust was needed if the two of them were to plot their plans for mutually beneficial domination of all of Sirius. This silly thought amused the Maltese into a smirk that she tried to hide by continuing.

"I hope this confidentiality will be mutual, señora. There are certain plans and scenarios that I've ran through my head regarding the uncertain future that would be just as dangerous for me, the legion and Malta if they reach the wrong ears before their potential execution."

The Maltese smiled, the night was off to an interesting start.

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Republic of the Sword and Sun