Emperor Hayashima Togoki, Ultimate Majesty of Terra, and leader of the vast majority of the human race, recieving a report about recent occurences on Tarin. Dossier on the war in hand, his best advisor, Mirama Hoyoko, on hand, he thought he had a way for everything he wanted for his species to fall into place. 

"Tarin, as you know, has huge deposits of an extremely valuable mineral knowm an renthulium. This is being fought over in a proxy war between the Aurolian Federation and the Concordat. Providing ground support for either side could be exchanged for a share of the renthulium, providing funds for a more substantial interstellar navy." She told him, keeping her eyes firmly on the polished marble floor. She was afraid, like everyone was, that should she even glance at the Emperor, she would burn into a pile of ash.

"Yes, it makes sense. But which side?"

"Supporting a losing side might allow you to get a better deal, as they will be more desperate, but is more of a risk, and might end up costing more in the long run by using more troops. Supporting a winning side will do the opposite - good and bad, but runs the additional risk of being turned down. In that situation, you could threaten to support their enemy, returning them to the bloody stalemate they've suffered for so long already, but that would be just as costly for you as for them. However, currently neither side has an apparent advantage. Perhaps waiting it out would be the best option?"

"You know me, Hoyoko. I'd rather not sit by idly while my goal is so close, just to watch it slip through my fingers like sand. If not the war, then something else needs to be my focus. I can't do nothing."

"Then how about something more subtle? You know, of course, of the small handful of Assar-Rhen who miss the comforts of their past modern lives. There is one we have established regular contact with, and the entire species has proven to be capable enough. If one were to get to the front, say, on one of the ships that illegally traffic people from the planet, she could send information to you, perform sabotage, or even capture someone for ransom, as you decide. It would be a foothold through which your influence in the area could grow."

"Then let it be so."

[hr]

Jessica Vex's family had come from one of the many areas throughout the world which had to be forcefully conquered by the Empire, as her name clearly suggested. Never feeling at home, she travelled from place to place, but all were part of the Empire, so all were the same. Eventually, she went to the one place in the world that wasn't just another like the last one: the Assar-Rhen (taking the name Kopsotia, meaning "elegance"). But she grew tired of this, too. She was the sort of person who needed to travel, but had nowhere to travel to. She found her solution back where she began: she could get off-planet if the Empire wanted her there. So she sold her unique capabilities to them.

She got to the meeting point. Her skin was schockingly pale, she was from the white tribe. At least it wasnt blue, or green, she could pass off as human like this. She wore a scarf, to hide her spore-slits. And now, a very faint light, gliding towards her. A small, black shuttle, no larger than a van, landed quietly next to her, and the door raised open. The pilot, an Ishkaan, took his money and got underway quickly. The Invigilator guns "didn't see them", of course. Everything was going smoothly so far. She would soon be taken up to a small pirate space station, then transferred to a vessel better suited for longer journies. After that would come her arrival in Tarin, her mission, and her reward: her freedom.