Turn sent.
An ornate goblet smashed into the wall, breaking into a hundred pieces. Three hundred firebirds on the black market, a thousand year old antique destroyed because of a disagreement. Lady Gorakhan was furious.
"What's become of you, Nikolai?! Father would be ashamed of you." Lady Gorakhan hissed with wrath.
"Be careful, Gorakhan. You know I have support from the Cossacks legion. Don't even entertain the thought of insurrection. We've been through this once before. I wouldn't want to cut off your other hand." Zebulon II disdainfully replied.
Gorakhan self-consciously thought to her cybernetic gauntlet.
"Perhaps you are better suited for Istakhr, sipping fine wines in grand palaces high atop the cliffs, discussing how best to make a profit?" Gorakhan threw the insult, hoping to wound Zebulon II.
"Suppose we go through with this plan, at what cost, for what gain? Does another house try to capitalize on any weakness if it goes awry? Let the other houses and the Leaguemeister war with the Patriarch, then strike when he is weak."
"Dear brother," Gorakhan sarcastically began, "we have to earn respect. We've learned that here in the jungles of Severus. The biggest, the strongest, the most battle hardened rise to the top and instill fear and respect. To sit around on your hands until there is no chance of loss or grief is the coward's way out. Maybe the pious Li Halan would see eye to eye with you, but not us, not our family. We are almost unanimous in our desire to take De Moley at long last. Every house knows we have coveted it for decades. Many of them war with the church themselves. What message does it send that we still dare not make our move? It broadcasts timidness."
Zebulon II was quiet. He looked up at the painting of his father, in all his grandeur. A father that won a hundred military campaigns, even some in the far reaches of Pandemonium, to increase the fame and glory of his house. Zebulon II had experienced many victories, but never against a powerful adversary. Now in his 40s, time was running out to make a lasting legacy for himself. While loved by the people, he was a clear shadow of his father, an afterthought, the diminishing of a great bloodline.
"Sister, you think I hate you, but I do what is best for this family. You are hot-headed and brash. But now and then, you offer a perspective I respect and admire. That is why you are in line for succession, not my son. I authorize you to muster the second and third fleets for hostile action against the church and any supporters in the De Moley sector. But do not strike until you are fully ready. We will have a fight on our hands, across the galaxy, and must be ready to handle every threat the Patriarch will throw at us and perhaps any opportunistic rivals. De Moley is not the only concern. I realize now that this is the time to make a name for ourselves."