Going To War - Samaal's Negotiation

[SilverBones]

The pop and hiss of hydraulic locking clamps and the airlock cycling would be deafening, were it not for the array of sound-reactive filters in the Tenno Negotiators headgear. Dressed in the skintight suit of his people, overlaid with his robes of office, Samaal was one of the best at what he did. Whereas other Tenno donned Warframes and fought for supremacy on the battlefield, Samaal used words and listened to the subtle sounds and silences between hidden meanings.

 

Two of his armored kin moved to his side however. The Nekros and Ember flanked his sides as he walked off of the transport. The Lotus was a cautious director and even though the two Warframe-covered Tenno sported no weapons, Samaal knew that they were more than capable with their natural abilities. Behind the procession of three, the only armed member of their party stayed in the doorway of the transport, covering their descent with the barrel of a Soma; the Rhino a very imposing sight to bear.

 

“Tenno,” came a slick, welcoming voice at the bottom of the ramp.

 

Samaal looked at the docking port at the bottom of the ramp and nodded in greeting to the Corpus Acquisitions Commander standing there, flanked by no less then fifteen crewmen, all armed in various forms of military equipment. All of them looked nervous, aside from the silver-tongued, diplomat greeting them.

 

“You must be Dala-Mir,” Samaal said in return. “I see the tales of Corpus hospitality are well founded.” He said, the Tenno gesturing to the armed escort, it was a polite reminder that weapons were not a part of this meeting. The Corpus – a thin, bureaucratic maggot – gave Samaal a long smile.

 

“You cannot begrudge me my protections, Tenno. Do not fear, they are not to join us in negotiations. It shall be you and I with Alad-V only.

 

“Then let us be about our business, Commander,” Samaal said with a smile in his tone, but something in there let the other diplomat know that he did not like these surprises. Pausing, he looked to the Nekros as the tall, thin Tenno glanced at him. Something unspoken passed between the two that seemed to unnerve Dala-Mir, but in a flash Samaal was done and simply nodded.

 

“Lead on, please.”

 

Dala-Mir nodded, a touch more relaxed and led the procession of three Tenno down the glassy corridors of the Corpus ship. Samaal may not have been much of a warrior, but he was observant. They were being led through no less than four security checkpoints; several laser barriers with attached camera security and Moa deployment stations lining every wall. It made him marvel how his kin managed to assault such places when in full alert. He was certain the Nekros and Ember made note of such things themselves.

 

The Commander led the group to a room, sealed off by large sliding doors and a terminal opening the security. Turning around the corpus diplomat gestured to the two Warframe-laden Tenno and then glanced to Samaal.

 

“Your guard must wait outside. Only you are allowed inside.”

 

“Very well,” Samaal said after a moment and stepped forward. The door opened, and as he passed the threshold, he paused, looked back at the Ember and Nekros, giving them a small nod after a moment of heavy silence. Dala-Mir looked between the two of them for a moment, but again, seemed relieved when the two warriors stepped back, taking positions on each side of the door in a waiting position. Samaal strode into the room with noble grace and gave a small glance back over his shoulder as the large doors closed behind him.

 

“Please, sit.” Dala-Mir said, guesting to a seat on the large, rectangular table. Picking a seat at random – rather the one Dala-Mir selected –Samaal sat straight and confident as he watched Dala-Mir sit at the opposite of the table.

 

“Will Alad-V be joining us presently?” the Tenno asked, but the answer came in the form of an electronic wave of sound.

 

“I am already here, Tenno.”

 

A flickering holographic display opened up in the middle of the table and the thin, smirking face of Alad-V looked down from his raised position. It was a large hologram, designed to be imposing and set the scales in his favor from the start; the volume raised to be bordering on uncomfortable, but the Tenno had already prepared for such things.

 

“Alad-V.” Samaal said brightly, but there was a coldness there. “I am surprised that you wished to deal with the Tenno directly instead of through one of your Acquisition Commanders,” he said, gesturing to Dala-Mir. “Your reputation for caution proceeds you, however.” He said, nodding in the direction of the holographic generator.

 

“A wise businessman chooses his investments well,” Alad-V stated flatly, his voice a mixture of honey and venom. “…My personal safety - especially in the presence of such efficient murderers - is one of those investments I do not gamble with.”

 

“You flatter us,” Samaal said coldly. “…however is that not the reason for these talks? We both know that your transmissions have incurred the wrath of the Grineer Empire. I do not believe Sargus Ruk will care much for your precautions.” Alad-V did not change his pasted-on smile, but his eyes grew hard when the hard hand was played against him so soon.

 

“The dogs do not worry me, Tenno. However the domination of the system benefits no one, the Tenno included.” He said, then nodded to Dala-Mir.

 

“We have been authorized to offer your Tenno clan as well as many other sects of Tenno operating in the system resources, credits and equipment. Given the level of technological superiority and access to Orokin relics we have, you will find working with the Corpus a lucrative option.” The drawn-faced diplomat said, rubbing his hands. “In addition, we will offer further trade in equipment after the conflict is settled to further increase relations between the Corpus and the Tenno.”

 

Samaal seemed to pause, as if waiting for something else.

 

“You cannot say fairer than that.” Alad-V smirked after an uncomfortable pause.

 

“You have yet to mention the Tenno pods you discovered and are holding captive.” Samaal said firmly, but with a layer of feigned interest, offering them the chance to correct their mistake. Dala-Mir’s face seemed to drop and turning to Alad-V for an answer, the smirking, Corpus leader leaned back in his chair, reaching down to his side to pet the top of his personal mechanical dog. It seemed the Tenno had uncovered more of the encrypted message then was previously thought.

 

“All empty, much to my disappointment.” Alad-V replied with a snake-like smile. “…Nothing but technology we already own.”

 

“Odd then that you would use such… well-known technology for this ‘Zanuka Project’ of yours, no?” Samaal asked, but his pleasant demeanor dropped quickly seeing Alad-V’s brow furrowing in response. “You have several of our kin in containment, undergoing experiments in your project and you think that mere resources will satisfy the need to fight for you?” Samaal asked.

 

“We have simple terms,” Samaal said, rising to his feet, causing Dala-Mir to inch back slightly. “…Return our kin to us and we will fight without need of baubles and trinkets from your vast stores.”

 

“Impossible.” Alad-V said simply, leaning forward and arching his fingers in front of his face as a wide smile ran the length of his lips. “My… acquisitions were made at great personal expense. Already the project is underway and I will not turn back on it now.” He added with a sneer. “And yet you know above all other things, if the dogs run unchecked in this system there will be no hiding place for you, or your precious clans.”

 

Samaal looked around the room, seeing Dala-Mir looking very uncomfortable with the situation and turning back to Alad-V, he stood straight, considering the options. It was true in that the Grineer were a rabid force of heavily armed and armored soldiers, and if Sargus Ruk wanted the Corpus punished for their transgressions, Samaal didn’t doubt he would raze the solar system to do so.

 

And yet, somewhere, his kin were being treated like laboratory rats, all for Alad-V’s pleasure and profit.

 

“Perhaps I did not explain myself clearly, Alad-V.” Samaal said, his tone bordering on dangerous. “You have in your possession, Tenno. We find this fact unacceptable. If you wish to engage the services of our clan, then we will accept the release of our kin a suitable gesture on behalf of the Corpus and will aid you in the defeat of the Grineer… to further both of our survival.” He added and then paused, his tonality changing to a dark promise.

 

“I need not remind you what happens to those who have faced the combined force of the Tenno in the past do I?” he asked.

 

“We recall your traitorous heresy, Tenno,” Alad-V said, his voice taking on a dark, threatening edge, but his ceramic smile and sickening arrogance still shone clearly in the shimmer of the hologramatic image. Reaching down, Alad-V clicked a button on the side of his chair and to either side of the walls, panels slid open, revealing a small squad of Elite Troopers and Moas. Samaal took a step away from the table and back towards the door, his hands dropping his sides in a ready position as he looked at the guards and then back up to the image.

 

“I can see that your clan will not side with us, traitor. It is of no surprise.” The Corpus mastermind said with a smirk. “…in the end, your clan is just one in many; several of which have already seen reason.” He added, causing Samaal to curl his lip up in distaste.

 

“Take him and the others outside for processing. I want them all in my inventory by the end of the cycle.” Alad-V said and looking to Samaal one last time, he smirked. “You are naïve to think I had not planned for your pride, Tenno.”

 

“No,” Samaal said sadly. “I had expected this.”

 

With a flash of light, the troopers in the room, as well as the Moa’s found their weapons spontaneously shattering and shorting out, becoming useless. Samaal stood back as the origin of the light flickered into view.

 

The Loki moved like a hurricane around the room, the Dual Vasto pistols barking in loud claps, causing flashes of light to shine off of the tables until blood splattered in wide patterns upon them. In a matter of seconds, the sounds ended and as the smoke fell to the floor among dripping blood, Samaal looked up at the shocked Alad-V and nodded. “I would rather fight alongside the enemy I know, then bow to lowlife, flesh-merchants like you.”

 

“Idiot!” Alad-V barked in return. “…When the Grineer have finished with their ‘war’, who do you think they will turn on next?”

 

“I think our choice has been made.” He sated simply. Outside the sounds of dull thuds, followed by alarms and the sounds of screams overcame the silence, even through the heavy door. Shouting in rage, Alad-V slammed the console with a fist in front of him and the communication went black. Walking calmly to the diplomat, Samaal grabbed the Corpus, twisted his arm into a tight hold and dragged him towards the console, slamming his face into the glass.

 

“Open the door if you want to live.” He said darkly and with a gibbering whimper, the parasitic half-man typed in his code. No sooner had the door opened; Samaal pulled the man back, wrapped an arm around his head and twisted it to break the spine. As Dala-Mir dropped dead, Samaal stepped over the body with a distasteful snarl.

 

Outside, the Ember stood, covered in flames and the Nekros was in the process of raising several shades of Corpus to fight alongside them and act as fodder in their escape. Once they were done, all three Tenno warriors stood looking at Samaal, awaiting an order. Samaal may be a diplomat, but he was still Tenno.

 

Those who did not fight, commanded.

 

“Search the ship. I want no cargo hold left unturned. If there are any pods on board I want them found.” He said, but even then he knew it was unlikely. “Kill everyone on board. No survivors.” He added and the three Tenno nodded in agreement before departing, picking up Corpus weapons in which to scour the ship.

 

Standing among flames and fallen Corpus, Samaal sighed.

 

“Lotus,” he spoke into his communication as the face of their guide came into view. “…Diplomatic relationships with the Corpus have failed. Contact Sargus Ruk and tell him that we will be coming to aid him in his eradication of our mutual enemy.” He said and the paused before adding.

 

“Tell the clan… we are at war.”

Edited October 28, 2013 by SilverBones

[tasteofsound]

Very entertaining. Please write more. I don't break the shade from which I lurk often, but I have deemed it necessary to compliment you and ask that you continue writing these fanfics. Thank you in advance.

[SilverBones]

Very entertaining. Please write more. I don't break the shade from which I lurk often, but I have deemed it necessary to compliment you and ask that you continue writing these fanfics. Thank you in advance.

 

Thank you for leaving your shadowy domain to comment, sir!

 

I am going to be writing more down the line, I am sure :)

[El1te]

Very entertaining,going to bookmark it so I can read it later when i got more time :)

[Geneticfate]

Just because, you did not write about something to complain about how uneven sides were or blah blah blah. I will take a gander at this little piece later. Thank you for doing something productive with your time spent on and off warframe. It's honestly a nice thing to see.

 

Edit: was too tired to read this all once I found it. Will report to you later on how I thought about it :D.

Edited October 28, 2013 by Geneticfate

[Hammerdin]

Damn. I want moar of this so much! Loved the way you made me imagine the script with your way of writing and you almost made me turn to grineers side! Moar of this and you can make me do anytihng wow. Please keep up the good work! :3

[yuikami]

“I am already here, Tenno.” <--- I already wanna punch him imagining he said this with his voice...

 

Anyway, this is so fun >:D This's what The Corpus get!

[KF5AQX]

Fascinating take on the lore. This is why DE needs to hire fan writers to do the lore, instead of half assing it themselves.

[Drakeardian]

Everyone runs when a Tenno goes to war