The Pecos Meeting

[Hemlocke]

Fashionably late was better than not having shown your sorry hide at all, at least that's what the newest Guildmaster hailing from Holmon held to be true, having been brought on the wings of the Deliverance, the defense vessel that struggled to remain true to its namesake, always either too late to the punch, or being disabled shortly after first blood, with its battered hide and questionably trustworthy crew, it was astonishing Guildmaster Rutherford trusted them with his safe transportation at all, leaving one to wonder the significance of potential history. Soon the oddly rhythmic, almost musical clicking sounds of metal plated boots on the bunker floor, rustling metal adornments and the easily recognizable pop of a lighter followed by the rush of ignition and quiet smoldering of harsh chemical could be heard filling the entry door to the meeting hall. There stood an man of indiscernible background, with the looks of a scruffy, wet-dog about his physical characteristics, a tapestry of ink in full display through his questionably loosened attire that bordered on inappropriate for such a meeting, looking more like an underbelly roughneck than a Guildmaster. Rutherford took a slow inhale of fresh air, letting the grey haze fill his lungs as he regarded the others present with only a slight hint of curiosity, so-far-in seeming quite mellow, if not disinterested. Having listened to the live-feed of the meeting on his way into orbit, Rutherford had some things to say, naturally, but took a moment to find a vacant chair, which he proceeded to spin until its back faced the table, before bringing himself down into it with his chest to the back, laying his left arm across the top of the spine, and laying his chin on his arm almost like a rebellious teenager would, though he was clearly older, his lazy eyes wandered towards Albert at the podium, glancing over the projector behind him only briefly, before finally speaking in a low, casual, soothing tone that carried with it a sense of serene calm, despite the serious nature the conversation had inevitably turned towards, he seemed entirely lacking in irritation. The Houses were merely sleeping beasts that needed be lead into a bear-trap every now and then to be reminded the fringes were not their stomping ground, it was a tug of war that in Ruthorford's mind would continue unto eternity, and thus, one needed to save their energy for the moments it mattered most.

“Apologies for my tardiness, the physical landscape of the corridor mimics the political quite harshly."
“In my personal, completely unbiased opinion, I believe we shouldn't aid a single house, as on all sides we have been disrespected and made convenient pawn by each Empire we have the unfortunate position of neighboring, and should instead dedicate our spare resources to expanding and shoring up our existing holdings against the next inevitable boot to our necks, as you have decided to do with Madeira, already. While I couldn't blame someone for thinking otherwise due to recent publishing's by compromised media, I should remind those present that to fight Liberty is to fight Bretonia the same. ”

Rutherford paused briefly, holding a finger up to indicate he wasn't quite finished, reaching up his black leather glove toward his lips, plucking the lifeline from his lips and reaching awkwardly towards an ash tray, balancing the chair's foundation to gain an extra inch to banish the used body hanging off the edge of the stick before bringing his chair's foundation back unceremoniously with a thud to its previous position, and resettling into position.

“While I'm sure we all doubt direct intervention after multiple military embarrassments from either House, their interest, either together or individually, is not only still aligned with an outcome that sees us uprooted from our resource pools in Coronado, they have the ability to support other actors that are very much still present towards that goal, and I believe, aiding Kusari will bring a two-fold issue, strengthening a House that will one day turn towards us once again, and drawing Liberty's jealous eyes towards us during this moment of instability."
“Well.. in summary. With the environment in the core Taus having once again reached a boiling point, I consider it unwise to gamble for pay offs by reaching too far as I just did, and potentially fall over in the process by spreading ourselves too thin. I believe it wiser, and safer, to ensure to the best of our ability, that our foundation here is as firmly rooted as we can manage, before anything else.”