Alliance Acquisition Specialists (Carnelian and Nix)

3 Hours Later

The flight from the city wasn't terrible, scattered ice storms, mild winds.  The long twilight that covered Frost 97 glowed softly off the unbroken snow.  The beauty of ice planets is something to behold, and Carnelian would take the cold over the dozen or so paradise planets any day.  Not that he felt the cold, his kind didn't truly feel temperature like others did.

Reaching the coordinates,  Carnelian touched down softly, and he did not have to wait long before a lone figure approached him.  Carnelian bowed slightly, and smiled while addressing them.

"A pleasure to meet you face to face, Captain.  I assure you, you're time here will not be wasted."

---

WC 116

Carnelian grinned down at the smaller changeling.  He was short in stature, his biogems a sort of bronze color, maybe copper.  However, he knew better than to judge a changeling based on looks alone.  His research had brought up a trend of ruthlessness and brutality.  Fortunately for the both of them,  Carnelian had decided beforehand to forego the usual Changeling Cattiness (tm) and instead try to quickly come to some form of agreement.

"Me?  PTO?  Not anymore, not for a good long while.  I am indeed Carnelian, or rather Lord Carnelian.  Not sure if my old title still holds nowadays, but I'm still fond of it.  Just Carnelian to you though!  I'd like for us to be on the same page here."  He straightened up, glancing out in the direction of the palace, however many hundreds of miles away it was.  This was the important part.  "I've gone through the dossiers of roughly twenty commanders within the Frost Forces, and you were the only one I found suitable for what I have in mind.  I have reason to believe that the current path the empire takes will lead it to it's own ruin, and the fault lies, I believe, with the current emperor.  Normally, you'd have to rise through the ranks to even make it close to the palace, but I don't believe we need concern ourselves with that.  I think a more... violent approach is required.  Not today, not tomorrow, but soon.  Are you interested?  In the throne of the emperor, of an empire that is actually sustainable?"

Having said his piece, Carnelian stepped back somewhat.  Now, to see what Nix would think.

---

WC 275
TWC 450
PL 4800 / Bonus 35%

Carnelian's eyes glinted as he grinned, the unusual black sclera casting a chill.  Excellent questions, he expected no less, and he had acceptable answers prepared for every one of them.

"Now, why would they bug someone who no longer exists?  No, I am under no scrutiny, and you will find my name on no watchlist, by the PTO or the empire itself.  On the subject of the empire, Shibo says his specialty is finance, yet planets near the outer edge have started to crumble, in debt and with no help coming,  and planets closer still are showing the signs.  Is this not truly a sign of mismanaged money, handled by an amateur at best?  Not that you would know, they've kept this decline a secret, especially from those smart enough to make the connections.  But I've seen how the galaxy is supposed to be run, with an iron fist and an iron spine, and a trained eye and a sharp mind.  I chose you, Captain Nix, because of one simple fact:  You value quality over quantity, a very rare trait in the current hierarchy.  I offer you the throne, really, because I have no want of it.  Not anymore.  I've seen my share of command and leadership, and while I detest the current occupant of the throne, I'll not burden myself with it.  Much better to put someone in power who actually knows what to do with it.

Carnelian's mouth curled into a sneer with those last thoughts, his distaste and... dissatisfaction clear to Nix.

---

WC 263
TWC 713
PL 4800 / Bonus 35%

---

"I'm financed through several shell corporations, the main one of which I will not speak of unless we're working together.  As for underlings and the like, I'm still working on it.  I have a few potential hires in mind, but I decided to go for the important ally first.  And you shouldn't be so quick to diminish me or the power I bring to your cause."

The ground shattered and split with each step, magma gushing out from between the cracks.  Opposite him, a whirlwind of stone and broken earth orbited his red-furred opponent.

"I've seen combat that would break the majority of the population of this planet."

His fists clenched at his side, and his eyes narrowed ever so slightly.

The saiyan charged him, surprising him with his speed.  A slab of muscle ten feet tall shouldn't be able to move like that.  But with every blow, his body reacted, growing stronger, faster.

"I fought the saiyan warlord, Faust, on the ruined planet Mesa 2 in the six hundred fourth age.  In single combat.  My body perished, but my soul lived on."

And as he fought back...

"MY LIFE ENDED, BUT MY SPIRIT PERSISTED."

His spirit soared.

The display of the scouter back on Nix's ship crackled over with static, the numbers becoming an unreadable alpha-numeric string, before settling back down to the numbers it was showing before.

Carnelian slumped from his proud stance, sweat and strain visible on every inch of his body, his chest shaking with each breath.

"I'm sorry, I've only been here for four days now, I'm still recovering... What I'm trying to say is, I'm... Invested, in... securing a more suitable emperor.  I died for it... hah, hah... once, and though I can't give that particular gift again, I'll do what I can...  Captain."

---

WC 300 / Total 1013

PL 4800 / Bonus 35%

Carnelian stared down Nix, then snarled at him.  "You're making a grave mistake, you fool!  Opportunity has come and left, and you are no better off than you were before!"  Turning around, he shot the ship he came in on, destroying one side entirely.  "Oh no, what terrible misfortune!  It looks as though I shall die here, buried under the ice, as a traitor deserves!"

And with that, Carnelian leaped into the air and flew back to the city.

Two hours later, he was back in his office.  With a groan, he released the clasps on the additional weighted plates on his legs, and eased himself into the high-backed chair.  He had just the way to end this escapade.  Lounging lazily, he typed away at a short message, and swiped it away.