Setting
Originally built millennia ago as a bomb shelter for Leonis refugees during the Vorlix, this massive military complex was bought and re-purposed into a lavish manor by Tech Con founder Miles Hagan. Desiring to create a home that properly epitomized both the "refined elegance and imposing authority" that his corporation embodied, Hagan spared no expense in outfitting the mansion with every Aschen luxury his near-limitless affluence could finance. Today, it stands as a testament to Aschen architectural skill and the sophistication of Langaran aristocratic appetite.
Nestled snugly into the lush Leonis countryside, the Hagan manor boasts some of the finest facilities in all Langara, complete with sumptuous gardens, extravagant dining halls and prodigious art galleries. It is not uncommon for parties or galas to be held here for the entertainment and pleasure of Aschen patricians. That said, one shouldn't be entirely objectified by the manor's disarming opulence. Beneath the flash and glamour, the Hagan manor vaunts an extensive security system, complete with enough firepower to hold off a small army. Indeed, the manor is every bit a garrisoned fortress as it is luxurious estate.
All appearances aside, the "Castle of Leonis" is said to hide some dark secrets beneath its decorated exterior. Many of the underground shelters and safehouse catacombs leftover from the Vorlix still remain intact beneath the manor grounds, the dark and unwieldy secrets lurking therein known only to the mansion's residents. The entire residence is a monument to audacious avarice and inhuman gluttony. Here is where the sly drama and cutthroat ambitions of the Hagan family begin and end, eternally perpetuated by a viscous emotional medley of of greed, lust and capitalistic drive. For all its gaudy abundance and impenetrable defenses, the Hagan manor is easily one of the most dangerous places in all of Langara... Enter at your own pleasure. Stay at your own risk.
Miles Hagan - Owner, founder and former CEO of Tech Con. The builder of the manor. Is currently retired, living in luxury in the Aries Ocean. Visits the manor on occasion.
Dominic Hagan - Son of Miles Hagan and current CEO of Tech Con. Inherited the rights to the manor along with the company. Current proprietor and caretaker of the estate.
Julia Hagan - Daughter of Miles Hagan and half-sister to Dominic. Julia will often take up residency in the manor when not off touring for her various modelling contracts.
Nikolas Denaris - Faithful butler to the Hagan family and former Confederate war veteran. Nikolas is a trusted servant and is the general overseer of the manor's upkeep.
Rhea Vaeros - A Patronus/Terran diplomat, currently staying at the manor at the behest of Dominic. An important political figure in Langaran politics and one of the last diplomatic ties between the Aschen and the Terrans.
Jacquelyn Rose - A Isirian woman of mysterious history. A friend of Dominic's who occasionally stays at the manor at his insistence.
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"Nik," he called out, exasperated, "lot happened while you were out. Dad and Jules are back. They made a scene and Rhea left the mansion." He looked past the jolly butler at the much sterner-looking woman on his flank. "Ms. Kruse, I believe?" he offered her a warm (though obviously hurried) smile, "pleasure to meet you. I'd shake your hand, but..." A chime went off somewhere in Dominic's coat pocket. He whipped out yet another cell phone, scowling as he read the message on the screen. He looked apologetically at Shari. "...you get it." He pointed at her. "But your assignment still stands. You are the official bodyguard of Ms. Rhea Vaeros, effective immediately. Her survival is essential to Tech Con's standings with Terran industry." He gestured to the phone at his ear. "I've been trying to get a hold of her for the last eight minutes. Nothing's going through." He looked to Denaris. "Nik, would you please get my contact datapad? I'm going to put in a call with the LDA." He grumbled. "No doubt they've been spying on her since the day she walked through these doors. I'm sure they know where she is."
The edge of one of the woman's eyebrows twitched ever so slightly as she heard the news. Her sturdy gaze held fast onto Dominic's smaller form.
"What you are telling me," began the woman, an edge to her already coarse tone, "Is that the woman you sent me to guard is gone?" Her fingers curled in toward her palm very briefly, then sprawled out again. "I see, already, that you have a talent for keeping an eye on your business. I hope you understand that I've traveled a long way to get here." She let a pause float by patiently, then, snidely, she stated, "I do hope you find her soon."
"More than enough, Mr. Hagan," she remarked, clenched hands behind her back tightening their grip on one another. A silence followed the statement, but not one in fear as a result of Dominic's statement. It was far too easy to tell that this woman would not falter, even given the worst of the situation. No, perhaps it was a smidgen of respect that the man had the balls to respond the way he did. This meant, to some measure, that she was not employed by a complete moron.
Or perhaps he still was. She could not be entirely sure.
As he led the mercenary down the grand hallways of the manor, Dominic was carefully weighing the situation at hand. Shari Kruse was Tech Con's best mercenary. The problem was, it seemed, that she knew it. There was an ego to the girl that was as cold as it was intimidating; a confidence and poise that the young Hagan both admired and mistrusted. Power in a woman was an attractive feature, but Shari was his to command, not the other way around. He couldn't have the bodyguard of Rhea Vaeros second-guessing her boss. It was a struggle for dominance between the two of them. Dominic needed to win.
"Your dossier is quite impressive, Ms. Kruse," Dominic remarked nonchalantly as they walked, "I understand you've had high-risk details on Terra, Akorant, Niihama... even Blackrock. Your dedication to your profession is commendable." He looked curiously over his shoulder. "...most of those assignments were garrison contingencies, if I remember correctly. Skirmishes and tactical advances. Not much bodyguard or protection work." Dominic turned into a large atria. A grand piano stood off to the corner with several couches and tables gathered near the far end. The Hagan family crest, crossed with two gleaming blades, was mounted above the nearby wall. Apart from that, there was a large carpeted space.
"Langara, Caprica specifically, isn't anything like the foreign worlds you've been fighting on," Dominic continued casually, "things are clustered. Obscured. Deceptive." He stopped near one of the couches and turned to face Shari.
"Do you feel prepared for this assignment? Even in light of all your various..." he smiled charmingly, "...disadvantages?"
"Disadvantages, Mr. Hagan?" she asked in a scoff so very well disguised as a simple question, one asked with the most sarcastic surprise Dominic would ever hear from the woman. "I did not hear anything about disadvantages, however, I did catch mention of a challenge."
The tilt of her head returned to its same position before, and Shari returned to becoming that imposing statue that she normally was.
"I will go to find the diplomat. I refuse to stand here and wait while nothing productive is being done."
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