WCGW Chpt 97

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==Chapter 97 - What Could Go Wrong==
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18 April 3042
New Avalon (Federated Commonwealth, FedSun State Capital)
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First Prince Hanse Davion looked up from his paperwork and smiled as he saw who had entered his office. She was as beautiful as ever, Melissa Steiner-Davion, the love of his life, but the look on her face followed by the entry of Princes Champion Ardan Sortek soured his mood slightly. "To what do I owe this grand visit?"
"Hanse, what the hell are you doing?" Ardan Sortek asked
"What do you mean, Ardan?" First Prince Hanse Davion asked
"Don't play coy with me, Hanse. I can smell your bullshit a mile away. Plus, I brought back up this time. You know exactly what I am talking about. It is one thing when you let Quintus play his shadow games, at least he knows how to do it. But you carry too big of a footprint to be playing shadow games. Hell, you actually suck at shadow games. Luckily, Marshal of the Armies Felsner came to me before you totally screw whatever it is your doing up too bad. Now spill it." Ardan Sortek said, one of the few people who could talk to First Prince Hanse Davion that way
"You know how long I have searched for a location, far from prying eyes, to let Challenge Systems really go to work? I think I have found the perfect place, sort of." First Prince Hanse Davion said
"Sort of? Well, first, your painting a massive bullseye on Inner End for everyone to start looking at. I also had Justin brief me in on that attack that just happened. Quintus and Justin both agree that it was ROM, they just cannot prove it. I know Quintus' little project unit is based from there also. I know they found something, why else would you and Quintus make a trip out there at the last minute. Did they find your hidey hole?" Ardan Sortek asked
"Not exactly, but they found a SLDF cache that. While not top of the line equipment, is damned substantial. They are the perfect cut out to hunt me a secure location." First Prince Hanse Davion said
"Not if you keep planting your big ass feet into the operation. You want it quiet, you let Quintus or Justin do the heavy lifting. If they run into resistance, they can come to me. You stay focused on helping Melissa meld both nations into a single entity or Victor is going to have nothing but trouble when he takes over. Quintus is retired and basically out of the public eye, not that he was ever really public. Let him do the black ops coordination and stuff. I will have Felner release the equipment. Officially, the equipment will be assigned to the 9th FedCom RCT which you ordered to the Tortuga Dominions, sadly, it will all be lost in action out there. That will clear up that huge amount of paper trail. Hauptmann General Renegor will help make the arrangements to get the equipment close to Inner End, but not to Inner End itself. I will have Justin arrange a deep space transfer of the equipment to Quintus' pet unit. We can delay the equipment purchases to replace those we are transferring until the 9th FedCom gets back. That will then cover that paper trail. Now, what else have you done that might need to be cleaned up?" Ardan Sortek said
"You talked to Quintus and Justin before coming to see me, didn't you? Let me guess, Quintus is afraid I am going to corrupt his unit and steal it from him." First Prince Hanse Davion said with a smile.
"Yes, I spoke to both of them. Quintus is more worried that your going to ruin your chance by sticking your big nose into things best done behind the scenes." Ardan Sortek replied
"Then why didn't he come see me?" First Prince Hanse Davion asked
"Because your still the First Prince. As good as he is, Quintus cannot shake this much equipment loose without serious horsepower. Your just too much horsepower for the task. Plus, I am one of the few that will tell you to butt out and let the professionals handle the job at hand. Now, what else have you done that I might not know about?" Ardan Sortek asked
"Purchased a Star Lord Jumpship from Avalon Shipping. I was going to have the Family Trust pay for it." First Prince Hanse Davion said
"So that the title transfers have your fingerprint all over them? Hanse, your slipping bad. The unit can purchase the Jumpship directly from Avalon Shipping. If you were willing to do that for them, then the find they made will cover the Jumpship. If your dead set on funding it, Justin or Quintus can find a way to launder the money to be put back into their account cleanly. Your judgement is being clouded by the thought of finally finding your perfect location after all these years. If something needs to be done, you tell Quintus. If he needs further help he can go to Justin or myself. Clear?" Ardan Sortek said
"Crystal clear. What about you, Mel? You want in on the action?" First Prince Hanse Davion asked
"No need, Ardan is handling it quite well. I agreed to tag along mainly to drag you away from the office. I leave for Tharkad in a week and want some alone time. Oh, and I will be stopping by Mizar on my way. Now that you have been properly scolded, let's go somewhere private so that I can console you properly." Melissa Steiner-Davion said with a gleaming smile
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