1963-06-27 - Who is the Pawn?
Summary: In which the Black King and White Queen discuss plans and recent events. Machinations ensue.
Related: None
Theme Song: None
shaw emma 


It's the Estate; located on the edge of the Upper East Side, this fancy old building looks like it might be a five star hotel or perhaps even a national embassy. It's old, but an architectural classic, with columns and arches and rich marble. It's the height of luxury and excess and is ten stories tall, and by all rights it should have been torn down and had hundreds of apartments and condos built in its place, considering this is some of the most expensive real estate in the nation. It might have been, except it's Sebastian Shaw's home in New York City.

Inside is as refined as the outside, with polished wood, marble and the finest leather and ivory everywhere: and where anything looks to be gold, it is gold, not bronze or brass. All the servents are dressed in fine, hand-made suits— though half of them are clearly security and not truly servants.

Sebastian's private study is a large room on the top floor— there's an elevator of course— that overlooks a giant window that has a view of the city beyond. Shaw waits in front of the window for Emma, his assistant having called hers and invited her for drinks and dinner at the Estate. He already has his glass of fifty year old scotch in his hand, which he is savoring with small sips from time to time.

Emma, of course, has full and unrestricted access to the Estate, and the servants don't make a point of showing her where she knows to go.

*

Emma Frost is quite adroit at finding her way in, having been here many times before. And aside from the guards at the door, none of the other servants even know she's arrived - having just so happened to turn their heads at the right moment, or been distracted at a convienent time. Her power is a useful one. And why bother the servants with the knowledge of where she's at and how she's coming and going - the little people don't need to know these things. Not that she doesn't trust them. She can look inside their heads. But its the point of the matter.

And besides, the Russians have been watching her. Somehow. Probably from very far away. Even so.

In any event, Emma lets herself into the Black King's private study, and makes her way over to the giant window. "Darling, how are you this evening?" she asks, moving towards his side. She'll save the news for now.

*

As Emma comes over, Sebastian turns a look to her and smiles slightly, "You look radiant, my love." He gestures to the desk behind him, where a bottle of the finest white wine that money can buy chills in ice with a glass by it. He made a point to have it here for her. "I find myself slightly annoyed." he admits, "I was arranging to back Francis to take over as Capo of the Cavassini family, but it seems a third party has taken interest in the matter." Shaw doesn't often get directly involved in things as small as mob bosses, but sometimes he has hobbies. "Some fool with a mask." He rolls his eyes slightly and shakes his head, sipping his scotch.

*

"As always." Emma says confidently, picking up the glass and the bottle and pouring some of the wine into the glass. "There are a lot of those these days. Its going to get worse. Homo sapiens doesn't handle change or new stimulus very well, and even our people are still scared. Society has nowhere to go but down." She takes a sip of the wine. "You look handsome yourself, dear. What are you going to do about it?"

*

"In a way, down is to our advantage." Shaw nurses his scotch with a thoughtful expression as he turns his attention back to the skyline, watching it as if the world were for sale and if he were considering if he should buy it to put on a shelf or to break apart and sell for scrap. "This mess with Mutant Town can only work in our favor. As the humans oppress us, more of our people will see that we are the answer. We are the future and the humans extinction is only a matter of time; as the neanderthals went so shall they." But then he gives a slight half shrug, "I haven't decided if I'm going to do anything at all; he's only a human. Granted, the Cavassini have been useful tools from time to time, but I might just let the dogs fight it out and then buy out whoever wins. They can't see past money at all."

*

"I'm not so sure one of them isn't the same as another." Emma says. "They are afterall, as you said, only human." She glances out the window. "We have larger concerns. The Russians have contacted me. They want help destabalizing the social situation, and have offered Frost Industries extensive contracts in East Germany in exchange for some basic industrial espionage against an oil company as a test. Everything they offered fits our agenda, but they seem to know a great deal about me."

*

Sebastian turns and gives Emma a long look, his expression hard to read; but of course she knows he's going through the implications in his mind, and he's not very pleased by what it adds up to. "I don't particularly like it when people think we are the pawns to be moved on the board, but I do not mind being underestimated when its possible to turn matters to our advantage." He purses his lips tightly, "That said, increasing our ties to Russia and Soviet Germany could be useful for long term objectives. Do you feel you are in a compromised position?" His concern is mild, but genuine. He's confident in Emma's ability to protect herself.

*

"No." Emma says. "They'll try, of course. They probably are hoping to use some of the…incentives as leverage. But they went to significant efforts to contact me. If we go through and then don't accept the contracts, it will confuse them." She pauses. "Perhaps enough so that we might make some real contact. I have no desire to end up compromised, or my company. Politicians and military planners get confused when pawns don't act as expected. It never occurs to such people that they might be dealing with a different piece. They realize how dangerous I am, but I don't think they actually understand entirely, yet."

*

"I reccommend you proceed, then. You are ever brilliant at playing whatever part it is you need to play, my White Queen. They won't realize they have a lioness and not a kitten until it suits our purposes to reveal it to them." Sebastian lifts his glass over towards Emma for a toast with a warmer smile, "To the lioness on the hunt." After they clink, Shaw adds thoughtfully, "Of course, if there is any way in which I may be of assistance…?"

*

"I believe it only a matter of time until they contact you, as well." Emma says, clinking the wine. "I think they are watching both of us from afar. I'm not sure how. Their agent seemed to have some chemical way of temporarily blocking mind reading, at the cost of…" She pauses. "Well, his mind was barely functional. If they are not directly watching the two of us, it may be indirectly. When they approach you, it will probably be by surprise, and with a knowledge of your weaknesses. I suggest a show of strength, dear. Good cop, bad cop. Make it clear your willing to work with them, but on your terms."

*

The prospect of someone trying to surprise him has Sebastian looking displeased. In that special way of his which is almost a smile, in that special way that makes him so very, very dangerous. "I will have security increased simply on principle. Someone has made a very serious error in judgement if they think they can turn me into a pawn— and I am not so skilled at manipulation at you to play the part, my love." He wrinkles his nose slightly, "But should they try I will make a binding counter-offer, and will make sure to show my displeasure over the way the matter was handled."

*

Emma smiles. "I would expect nothing less, dear." She looks out the window. "Really, I am surprised they went down this avenue. Someone has made a mistake, and they'll be paying for it. We should reach out with the Hellfire club, throw a party. See what connections we can make in Russia on the side. We've already made inroads with our military." She pauses. "How has your new friend, the General, been behaving, by the way? I trust he's still appropriately…grateful."

*

"I am not as surprised, but I have very little respect for the communist fools. They are a useful piece on the board, geopolitically and militarily, but they have taken an idiotic peasants complaining as some sort of secular religious creed, and then perverted it into a poorly run and inefficient monstrosity." Sebastian, the Arch-Capitalist, snorts in disgust as he shakes his head, "They will lose this cold war, it is inevitable; but that means they are all the more of possible use to us. We just need to make the proper strings attached." He nods then in agreement, "Yes, we'll arrange a social event. Something international. I'll reach out to the other branches and make arrangements." Then he smiles in amusement, "The General is smart enough to know his place. He doesn't need reminding." For now.

*

"I expected nothing less." Emma says, simply, setting the wine down. "I'm getting tired dear. Shall we…retire, for the evening?" She arches an eyebrow suggestively.

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