Star Wars Rise of Black Sun [No Longer Accepting New Players]

Lorahns

In the middle of the night, Immodet was awakened by the buzzing of his hologram communicator. The Black Sun Overlord's advisor looked at the display of the device, wanting to know who had interrupted his sleep. Then, he pushed on a button, receiving the incoming call.

Immodet: Xizor, why have you contacted me? Did something go wrong?

Xizor: No, your plan is working fine. The spice mines on Rori and Sevarcos no longer supply the Hutts, now they are supplying us.

Immodet: Yes, and?

Xizor: The Imperial Intelligence Services have conducted a research into the matter. Apparently, one person is responsible for acquiring spice from those mines for the Hutts. The woman is a disgraced Mandalorian, trying to make a living for herself. Imperial agents have tracked her to a planet called Boz Pity.

Immodet: Thank you for informing me. I will ask Vigo Shadow Trooper and Captain Tulkis whether they know anything about a Hutt presence on Boz Pity. Then, my operatives will deal with this ex-Mandalorian themselves.

 

The back of a cantina in some shady city on some shady planet in some shady system in a shady galaxy. If my memory serves me correct then I believe the planet is called Bespin.

Rozic: Another scotch on the rocks *hiccup* please
Waiter: Sure

As the waiter strode away Rozic face palmed the table. Ever since his release from incarceration Rozic hasn't been himself. His commlink began beeping so he answered it.

Immodet: For the one hundredth time Rozic please can you just get back to work.

Rozic lifted the commlink to his mouth.

Rozic: Listen bucko I'm not in the mood to talk to some fat slug hutt right now.

Rozic hung up and had another lot of spice.The waiter returned with his drink and started asking him questions.

Waiter: What's up dude, you've been here all day and I'm starting to think you can't afford your tab.
Rozic: Listen here matey. How about you go mind your own business: come back once the Empire has tortured you and changed you completely.

The waiter walked away with a disgusted look on his face. Rozic can still here the voices: What were you doing in a restricted zone?, We can make you talk, if you won't talk then we'll change you so much that you'll never be yourself again!

Those Imperials ruined Rozic. They invaded his mind and started taunting him until he broke, finally after days they released him: but he wasn't the same.
A group of Stormtroopers walked in and Rozic tensed up. The damn Empire can do what they want and you can't do nothing back. How could I let them do this? I can't let them win! I must get up and work. I'll be who I was and they can't stop me.

Rozic didn't seem to notice that if he started working again that it would help the Empire, he was to busy throwing his drink onto the floor. He stormed out of the cantina and made his way to the dock where his ship was waiting. Rozic grabbed his commlink.

Rozic: Scratch that General Immodet. Vigo Rozic here with a new update: I'm back in the game. How can I help?

 

Corellia
After receiving the message from Vigo General Immodet, Shadow Trooper ordered his informants to bring him all of the information they had on Boz Pity. What little they gave him was not promising. Boz Pity was apparently some kind of Mausoleum for a long dead alien species, and more recently a grave yard for the Clone Army following a bloody battle that had taken place there at the end of the Clone Wars. However, the very lack of importance of Boz Pity was suspicious to Shadow Trooper. The planet had no resources, civilization and was far from any profitable space lanes. In most circumstances such a place would be overlooked... making it an ideal place for someone to hide. Shadow Trooper dispatched Captain Tulkis and the remainder of his loaned Mercenaries to visit the world and search for clues.

Boz Pity
As soon as they entered the orbit of Boz Pity, a familiar Transponder appeared on the Black Sun ship's sensors. "Looks like there is a Besadii ship here after all" the Ship's Navigator reported to Tulkis. "Our scanner has detected the presence of one of the Corellian Corvettes we sold to the Hutts before the Kessel incident."
"Do you think they see us too?" the Pilot mused. "I Dunno." the Navigator shrugged. "The ship we sold them was obsolete but it may have been retrofitted with better stuff after we sold it."
"They don't seem to be reacting to our arrival." Captain Tulkis mused.
"We caught them with their pants down! Permission to engage them Captian!" This from one of the ship's security complement.
"No!" Tulkis roared. "The Vigo Council sent us here for information gathering purposes. If we attack them just now, we may not learn what they were doing here."
"What would you have us do than Captain?" the Navigator said.
"Send a report back to Corellia confirming a Besadii presence. Than I want you to set us down on the surface, just far enough so that the Hutt ship is just barely in range of our sensors."
The orders had been given and the crew set about their appointed tasks. Tulkis allowed himself a small smile. There was nothing in the galaxy that the Whipid enjoyed more than this work.

 

The Wheel; Section S-0
Conservative Jedi sat in the food court wing of the large observation deck, still within listening distance of the privacy screens though the Hutts discussion had long since ended, and the noise of Aruk gorging himself made the Vigo sick in the stomach. He quickly shut of the masks listening device and kicked back in his chair, sipping his drink. He wasn't exactly sure what the red liquid was, but it apparently didn't have much alcohol content. Good, he wanted to keep his senses about him for the coming hours. The private talk between Gorga and his Father was most enlightening. He had no doubts about their apparent loyalty to the Black Sun, but Hutts could be a very secretive species, playing their cards close to their chest. The rather candid conversation made apparent just how divided the Besadii clan was under Aroks leadership, whether he knew it or not.

The stars twinkled in the distance, and a planetoid rotated within view. It was a remarkable sight indeed. The party was loud and obnoxious for sure, but the Hutts influence silenced any would be protesters fast. There was some mistrust about between opposing sides, and Conservative Jedi knew he could use that. He spread gossip, and anger through the ranks. Turned members of the Bounty Hunters Guild against members of the Assassins guild, Mandalorian mercenaries against those allied to a clan, even Wookiees against Trandoshans. And While most physical conflicts were put down quickly by the Hutt guards that were stationed about, the undercurrent of animosity only grew. Soon groups began gathering, refusing to interact with those who did not fit with their click. Mandalorians and bounty hunters in one area, Assassins and mercenaries in another, droids, para military organizations, dignitaries, Pykes, all had their own spots and refused to even acknowledge those who did not fit in with their group.

Nearly an hour latter it was time for the stage event to take place. Several amazing acts, performances, and circuses of all sorts that entertained the crowed were set forth, and in the end their was an unmistakable sense of good will in the air. For a moment Conservative Jedi feared he had failed in his mission to disrupt this new Shadow Collective. Then silence over took the crowed, Aruk and Gorga slithered up onto the stage and the lights dimmed. In between them the glowing blue holographic image of Arok the Hutt took form. Quiet a bit smaller than Aruk, yet still visibly older, his once green skin had greyed with age giving it a blue tint, and his twisted feline like eyes were focused with a hard determination. Speaking in Huttese he greeted the crowed, and though a protocol droid was present to translate it the Vigo took note just about every being present had a translation devise of their own morphing the Hutts words into basic in real time.

Arok: "Hello my friends and associates, I trust you all have had a good time at this gathering, it is a shame it could not last longer, but we have more pressing business to attend to. Yes, you all know that which I am referring too, our mutual enemy the Black Sun! Recently the targeted a major spice operation on Kessel, owned and operated by our allies the Pykes, and in conjunction with my own Hutt clan, they proudly distributes Spice throughout the galaxy! The Criminal underworld prospered as we did, and all was in harmony. Yet many rotations ago a miner mistake was made by our Pyke friends, they took an Agent of the Black Sun Syndicate hostage after they caught him spying for the organization. It was a dangerous game they played, but a necessary one. Some days passed before they released him but it was not enough for those monsters! They sought vengeance, and they had it! Taking an armada they invaded Pyke space and massacred their people! I and my allies sought to help, yet treachery from within prevented it. The Hutt council under the influence of Black Sun puppets stepped in forcing my troops to withdraw. It was a tragic day when Oba Diah fell. I am sure you have all felt the repercussions on the market that have resulted. Prices skyrocketing, addicts suffering, entire corners of known space have been deprived of this vital commodity because the Black Sun sought to slaughter all those who opposed it! Now I ask you to stand with me in an alliance for the ages, one of grand power that will topple the Black Sun and all their allies once and for all!"

Conservative Jedi was appalled by the gross inaccuracies and absurd exaggerations in Aroks Speech. Though a few beings clapped more questions were raised than anything. The first was from a young teenager in green Mandalorian armor standing between the Bounty Hunters and the Mandos in the far right. "What's in it for us?" Something was distantly familiar about him, but the Vigo couldn't put his finger on it. Soon an uproar was about. Some of the older Mandos began shouting "What of the honor of battle? Is that not enough for you bounty hunter scum!" Roars came from the wookiees that were to fast for his mask to translate, and soon the Trandoshans were yelling as well. He didn't know who shot first but he wasn't going to stay around to see who fired the last. It seemed he had been more successful than he had expected. He heard explosions going off as he boarded the Shades of the Shine II a hundred floors down in the hanger, and he began transmitting to the Vigo council as he plotted the jump to Hyperspace.

 

Kessel Space

Titus's personal space cruiser entered orbit around Kessel. On board was Titus and newly recruited Zesha and Duunava. A message came in from General Immodet giving both Titus and s_heffley a new task to complete. One, find out what happened to ConservativeJedi321 's agent Ut-Reb, and second, to shut down the spice mine on Ryloth.

Shortly after the message ended Titus and s_heffley got into contact. s_heffley would shut down the Hutt's mining operation on Ryloth while Titus would investigate the disappearance of the Gungan.

Turning to the two Togrutas; "I have something to attend to. Unfortunately I have no time to show you the prison and the spice mines, but you two are smart I'm sure you'll figure out the best plan of action to running the facility. If you need me, don't call." Titus had himself a small laugh. "I'm hailing you a shuttle that will take you to the surface."

Once they were off the cruiser, the pilot set course to Ryloth. Once landed, Titus attempted to learn all he could about Ut-Reb's disappearance. If Titus had a bet it would be the Hutt's behind the silence.

Titus set out to discover some clues.

 

After discussing with Darth Master Titus S_Heffley began assembling a plan to shut down the spice mines of Ryloth. If everything went according to this plan, the Black Sun would achieve their goal without needing any forces of their own to disable the mines. All the forces they needed were already on the planet, in the from of the Free Ryltoh movement. Led by Cham Syndulla, the group was comprised of many Twi'leks looking to free their world from the Empire. It was originally formed to combat the Separatists looking to sell their race as slaves, and they were freed briefly with help from the Republic. When the Republic became the Empire, the group fought back against the same tyranny that they had faced in the Clone Wars.

Zeema, S_Heffley's smartest agent, was being sent as the negotiator to these Rebels. A key point was that the Twi'leks could not know that Zeema was from the Black Sun, and especially that she worked for their Vigo of Slavery.

One of S_Heffley's contacts on the world, named Drew, had reported sightings of rouge Twi'leks around his slaving outpost on the world. Drew fears an attack in imminent, and negotiating with these Twi'leks is necessary to prevent an attack. Luckily this info came in just days before, and it was exactly what they needed. Zeema sat in the pilot's chair of the Edge 2 and was headed for Drew's outpost.

 

OC: ConservativeJedi321 is there anyway you can PM me. I tried to PM you but it says I cannot.

 

Darth Rozic:
With the mines on Troiken, Mon Gozza, Rori and Sevarcos no longer supplying Arok the Hutt, Black Sun has gained supremacy over the spice market.
If Arok looses control of the mines on Ryloth, the Besadii clan will have no big supplier of spice left. s_heffley, Darth Master Titus
The other leaders in the Besadii clan, such as Durga's father, soon shall have no other choice but to withdraw their support from Arok.
When this happens, we can finally get rid of an so-called ally who has been secretly working against Black Sun for a very long time.

The sudden demand of spice, which Black Sun has to handle, also created some difficulties for our organization.
The smugglers of Shadow Trooper are working overtime, transporting spice all across the Galaxy.
However, I hear their job could be made more easy... Didn't I read in a report you were working on a new, ultra-fast starship?
Could you fasten up the production of that starship-class? What progress have you made already?

 

Though I am somewhat inexperienced in the Hutts psychology my fellow vigos, from my own operations it seemed like Aruk was anything but pleased to be taking orders from Arok. Only out of tradition, and seeking to protect his own skin has he submitted to that old slugs demands.

He is, after all, Aroks most likely successor. Sure some others in the Besadii may try to lay a claim, yet it is nearly guaranteed that if something should happen to Arok, Aruk would be the one to take his wealth and his titles. Most of Aroks siblings have long been dead, and Aruk, besides being one of the few relatives to never have shown any outwardly ill intent towards the clan leader, is the oldest of his own siblings.

He has a lot to gain, but also a lot to loose if he acts too soon. He will not be easy to persuade I fear, only when he sees undeniable evidence that Arok will fall, and fall soon, will he completely withdraw his support. Yet perhaps other have more insight than I.

In the coming days I hope to start putting together a plan of action so we might get at Arok himself. His Collective is scattered and beaten, but he will attempt to unify it again, count on it. We will need to act fast before he can put together a dedicated effort to cooling heads.

 

General Immodet
Boz Pity
In the dead of night, 5 commandos crept silently towards a landed starship. They were all covered head to toe in camouflage paint and they carried silent ballistic weapons and blades rather than the louder and more conspicuous Blaster Carbines. At their head was Captain Tulkis, using his species legendary tracking and hunting techniques to get them safely and silently too the objective. When they reached the crash site they found only one sentry, a lone Mandalorian wearing Black and Gold armor. "Should we take em out Chief?" one of the Mercs asked. The Whipid held up one hand, a wait on my go signal. "If it was a Hutt sentry, I would give the go ahead, but Mandalorians are more tricky."
Suddenly, and without warning the Mandalorian pointed a rocket launcher at the underbrush where the Mercs were hiding. "I know you're in there." The voice sounded very harsh and serious but definitely feminine. "Come out now and maybe I won't blast you all the way to Saleucami."
"Wasn't the Vigo allied with the Mandalorians and the Hutts while he was under his alias? Maybe we can bluff our way through" Tulkis told the men
"You wasn't there on Dxun chief!" This objection raised by one of the loaner mercs, a grizzled veteran who had been loaned to the Corellian for use in the Besadii campaign. "I know Mandos, served with Vigo s_heffley's slavers long enough to work with a few." The man continued. He pointed at the Mandalorian sentry stationed by the ship "And that on her armor, them don't look like Death Watch markings."
"We'll be careful than. Wilkins, Ferro, get out there and show her your hands. The rest of us will stay in here and try and pop her if she looks like she's gonna make a move on you." It wasn't fair but Tulkis always sent out the guys he liked the least. That way if they did end up getting popped it wasn't such a loss.
"You Death Watch?" Wilkins asked nervously. "We're the representatives sent by the Corellian. Are the Besadii with you?"
"They are around." The Mandalorian said coolly. "So you people were at Dxun then?"
"That's right!" Wilkins said smiling. "We're friends yeah."
"No you're not. My friends all died on Dxun. This for them you chakkars!" The missile obliterated Wilkins and Ferro before they could even drop their smiles.
"Stang. Looks like we got a situation here!" Tulkis said. As he raised his slug rifle to shoot at the Mandalorian, he thought he heard the old veteran whisper
"Told ya so."

 

Alderaan; Black Sun HQ
As ConservativeJedi stepped off the turbolift he was greeted by two friendly faces. Otsisa and Wravachar were waiting for him. They both got out of their chairs when they noticed him, but he signaled them to remain seated. "It is good to see you both here safely, when I heard about Ut-Reb I feared the worse." Otsisa gave a small smile. "It was nothing Vigo, those Hutt slime didn't know what hit them." Wravachar moaned a sad declaration. ConservativeJedi patted the large Wookiee on his shoulder, which he noticed had a large bandage on it. "You were very brave, lucky to escape too. There was nothing you could have done, someone was expecting you. I'm just disappointed Ut didn't escape as you did." Otsisa folded her hands and looked down. "Will Ut-Reb be alright boss? We will save him right?"

Taking a seat the young man stared off in the distance briefly. "You know the Black Sun isn't exactly in the business of rescues. We've all read the records of what happened to Vigo Aalagartassle when he was captured by the Republic... Vigo s_heffley is in charge of uncovering exactly what happened to Ut-Reb. I will urge him to attempt to retrieve our friend alive, but there are no guarantees. Particularly under the assumption he finds him that way." Silence fell between the lieutenants for a few minutes, before the Vigo finally decided it was time to move on.

Otsisa had been named his chief lieutenant not long after his promotion to Vigo, and he deferred to her now. "Any Word from Ut's contacts? We need to find Arok. I'd bet every credit I have that slugs behind this!" The pink Twi'lek gracefully stood up from her seat and moved over to the communications consul. "Well first Vigo, I must say that word of your action on the Wheel has spread fast..." "But neither the Black sun nor my involvement have been uncovered right?" Shaking her head she answered "Not as far as I can tell, but Arok is frightened. Even with no evidence he insists the Black Sun must be responsible for his troubles. Not to mention since two high ranking clan members were present the Hutt council is taking the danger as a series threat." "Let them investigate, they will only find what I have left for them to find, a bunch of crabby mercenaries and bounty hunters who already hated each other. The fuel was already there, I just introduced a spark, and really Arok did that himself" "Your actions sent Aruk into an episode! His health was already poor, his doctors doubt he'll survive another century."

Pacing now the Vigo was worried. "This is not good, Aruk must survive! He is a direct link to Durga, and Aroks most likely heir. If he croaks before Arok, we risk creating a succession crisis. Durga will not be accepted nearly as quickly as Aruk as Aroks successor." Otsisa seemingly calmed now turned to face him. "Not to worry, if rumors can be trusted, and when they come from our people they usually can, Aruk is recovering. Though he will require a repulsorlift to move for some time." "There is another risk, if he is going to die anyways many of his competitors won't see a problem with hastening it. Even for those few Hutts left who respect the rules of Venerability they will see it only as quickening what is inevitable, not causing his death. Extend our network, keep an eye on the other clans activities too, above all the Desilijic Tiure." She nodded quickly and returned to face the terminal. "Yes sir."

"Any information on Aroks actual location?" She took a moment to think about it before answering. "Possibly. Like you said We have been observing Aroks closest contacts and we think we have made a mark. Wara of clan Sceandoa. She has made several trips to the Besadii palace in recent months, she quit three weeks ago, but the other day she made an unscheduled departure to the Du Hutta system."

This was interesting, there wasn't much there, the only planet of note was Du Hutta itself, a sort of retreat world for Hutts of all clans. "Hm, could they be lovers? Doesn't seem like something Arok would do, having a steady girlfriend isn't his style, he has always been a player, yet all of this is strange. We really provoked him by taking Kessel." He said slightly amused. "Could he be trying for an heir?" Otsisa shook her head without a second thought. "Hutts don't require a mate to reproduce, if he wanted an heir he would have done so himself, and more likely do to his advanced age, he would have done it centuries ago. I'm thinking this is either an alliance, or just a fling, possibly both."

The vigo soaked in all this information, and came to a startling conclusion. "She's useing him to advance her own clan, it has to be. Maybe hoping to make some prestige, money, or titles after his death. She is way to young for him, even by Hutt standards. Thank you Otsisa, I will inform the Vigo Council."

 

Upon Xizor's request, all members of the Vigo Council were asked to attend an urgent meeting. According to the Falleen Prince, a situation had occured on Boz Pit that needed to be brought under the attention of the Black Sun leadership. During the meeting, Xizor showed recordings made by an Imperial probe droid. The droid had been sent to Boz Pity to acquire information about the rogue Mandalorian woman responsible for selling Imperial spice to the Hutts.

Xizor: While searching for settlements, the probe droid stumbled upon a Besadii ship, probably the same ship Captain Tulkis talked about before he went off the grid. However, there is something strange about the ship... When the probe droid's body temperature scanners scanned the ship's proximity, no intelligent life forms were detected. So, either no intelligent life forms were present, or the Besadii are using special suits. Apart from that, another strange occurence happened. When the probe droid detected an explosion further away, it was suddenly takken out by an ion grenade. The attackers, however, clearly underestimated Imperial technology. Before the droid's sensors shut down, a sequence of words were picked up.

As the recording began playing, someone appeared next to @s_heffley's secon-in-command Ben. The guy listened carefully to the the sequence of words, trying to make sense of it. When the recording stopped, the mysterious person suddenly spoke up.

Gleem: That's a dialect used by a group of western Mandalorian clans. They are the ones using the special suits, not the Besadii... Both the Death Watch and the rogue Mandalorian woman's clan often are considered enemies of the western clans.

Before leaving the meeting, Gleem took a careful look at Prince Xizor. Not too long ago, he had been tasked with eliminating Xizor. At the last moment, the order had been recalled by the Black Sun Overlord himself. As Gleem left, the meeting didn't go on for much longer. After all, Vigo Shadow Trooper was quite eager about sending a warning to Captain Tulkis, informing the Whipid about a strong Mandalorian presence on Boz Pity. Unfortunately, Shadow Trooper didn't know he was already too late...

 

Ryloth

Titus found himself at a loss for options. Asking around would be much too time consuming as well as highly unlikely of being fruitful. The only viable option was to contact fellow Vigo ConservativeJedi321. Ut-Reb was on a mission assigned by his master; so CJ would prove most beneficial in the Intel department.

After speaking with Conservative, Titus figured he'd received enough information to set out for Ut-Reb. He had learned Vigo Shadow Trooper had sent some smugglers to watch the Hutt's docks in case a bribery Ut-Reb paid to certain Ryloth officials found its way into the Hutts hands. This would be Titus's first destination.

Approaching a well known Hutt dock, Titus slowly but swiftly traversed through the darkness. He preferred to be unnoticed, but if he was, being non-suspicious would definitely help. It seemed to work, nobody followed him. Scanning the docks, Titus kept his eye out for anything that seemed amiss, or a group of smugglers. If they were good at their job, which he assumed they were given Shadow Trooper sent them, it would be difficult to spot them.

The Vigo's suspicions were confirmed. No trace or sign of any smugglers. "Where in the blazes..."

"Shhh...don't want to draw any attention there, mate." Titus jumped, startled. A haggard man, wearing torn clothing, missing a combat boot, a bloody beard and about 30 years in age lie on the ground, in the darkness. Titus approached, hand on blaster. "Who are you? What happened here?"

"Ahh...you're a few days late friend." Titus knelt down taking in a closer look at the man. Blood trailed for about 5 meters. At the main source of the blood trail lay even more men. This must be the smuggler crew. "Who did this? Was it the Hutts?"

The man gave a blood filled chuckle.."Does it matter? Hutts or Ryloth government officials..They are hand in hand, buuu...." The man's voice trailed off as he breathed his last breath. Dead end. Pun intended Titus guessed.

Unfortunately Titus searched through the smuggler's possessions. Any clue would be of help. After searching all of the dead, he found a locked datapad. His hacking skills were rusty, but he went to work. While hacking, Titus thought about what happened here. He presumed; Ut-Reb went to bribe Ryloth officials, who then turned to their Hutt allies with this information of bribery. The Hutts then sent goons after Ut-Reb. If he had a bet, Titus would've put his money on this dock being where Ut-Reb was taken. The Hutts ambushed the smugglers, killing everybody but Ut-Reb. Why they would keep the Gungan alive was still murky.

The datapad lit up, bringing satisfaction to Titus. A video stream immediately began to playback footage of the CCTV around the dockyard. Suspicions were confirmed as Ut-Reb was spotted in the dockyard preparing to enter the smuggler's shuttle when enemy targets opened fire on the men. These ops were highly trained as they masterfully eliminated their targets while safely extracting one. The footage ended.

ConservativeJedi had mentioned a man by the name of Orn Free Taa as a possible contact. Titus left the docks in search for this Ryloth Imperial Senator.

 

The Edge 2 was docked on the small and shoddy but functional landing platform next to Drew's slaving outpost on Ryloth. Zeema had already been there a few days, and still the security systems that she watched daily with the normal guards of the outpost had shown no signs of the so called rouge Twi'leks. Zeema knew the full fledged attack wouldn't occur in the daytime, but still she expected at least a few scouts to show their faces on the cams.

5 hours had passed into the shift when the alarms began to beep. Zeema and the rest of the guards quickly dropped their Sabacc cards that they were using to pass the time and checked the systems to see what they were dealing with. 3 Twi'leks armed with rifles were crawling through the tall grass. Two appeared to be male, one with blue skin and the other with red. The third, crawling in the middle beside the two males, was a purple skinned female. The guards armed themselves with blaster rifles, but Zeema only took a small pistol. If she was going to negotiate she would need to look non-intimidating.

The group rushed to the side of the outpost where the cams had picked up the scouts, and Zeema prepared to go out the door leading to the area.

Guard: Should we come with you? You might need backup if things get ugly.

Zeema: I will no doubt need backup if things get ugly. However, I don't think these Twi'leks will listen to reason if they have blasters pointed at them. Stay here, I will go out. If you see things turn sour, you can come out and save my skin.

With that she stepped out the door. It snapped closed behind her, but she new that in a moment if would be open a crack for the guards to see through. Seeing her, the Twi'leks stood up and pointed their blasters at her, making her raise her hands in a sign of surrender.

Zeema: I come in peace and have a proposition for your leader, Cham Syndulla. Please lower your weapons.

Blue Male: We don't take orders from you, lady. But you will be seeing Cham, alright.

And with that, three stun bolts rose to meet her.

 

A GM Approved entry

IC: Bookman/ Nal Hutta
(Bookman's appearance)

A sewer is a place few beings in the galaxy actually wanted to be in, especially if they are sentient. The man known simply as Bookman found himself in possible the worst in the entire galaxy as he trudged through the filth that came through the Hutt underground channels. He had already begun to regret his decision to meet with this particular contact... and his choice of meeting place was rapidly strengthening that opinion. But if what he claims to have is real, this will get me out from under the slugs collective thumb. For good. It was a risk worth taking, since Arok was rapidly becoming a bad sentient to be working for. There was a certain irony to going someplace that only a Hutt could appreciate to potentially bring one in the ground, and that was not lost on Bookman. But having his druthers... well, he should have brought a breath mask. Not that they were sold on Nal Hutta.

It was definitely an oddity for Bookman to be living on Nal Hutta, and it hadn't been through any choice of his own. Arok has tracked him down and politely forced him into a corner as Arok had threatened to kill him should he not provide his services solely for the Besadii Clan, and Arok in particular. In short it had been an offer that Bookman couldn't refuse. As a result of that, Bookman had decided that he was never working for a Hutt again after he got out of this situation. Arok had made a simple mistake after more than a decade of having Bookman as a slave in all but name, the Hutt had begun to actually trust the human. And Bookman had vowed to make Arok pay, and not just in embarrassment but in blood. But embarrassment would be a good enough start as were the Hutt not disgraced he would remain untouchable to one such as Bookman, lacking in allies as he was. He had attempted to reach out to Black Sun before this most recent kerfluffle had begun but due to their history with Hutts in general he'd never actually heard back. Maybe were he to bring down Black Suns current most hated being in the galaxy that would change. Or maybe it wouldn't. Either way he would be leaving Nal Hutta soon. Not that it could ever be soon enough for his liking.

Trudging through the sludge that he dearly did not wish to have any inkling what any of it actually was, and doing his level best not to through up more than he already had, Bookman finally came to the rendezvous point. And of course no one was there. Great, now I have to wait in this muck. I very well may just kill this man when he shows up. That was one thing about Bookman that most people failed to understand, he was not above killing someone should it prove necessary. Or in this case a pleasure for ruining not only his sense of smell for who knew how long, but his suit would have to be disintegrated. Even if it were possible to get the stains and stench removed, the memories of where he had worn it would come back and that was not something he wanted under any circumstances. He would have to make sure that not meeting in sewers was one of his conditions after this. Nice bars, maybe a restaurant, even a dive. Maybe pet stores. What clandestine meetings took place in pet stores? Just anywhere but sewers.

Breathing as lightly as he could, Bookman waited and felt the hairs inside his nostrils burning. Stars only knew what this was doing to his lungs. Well, I never wanted to live forever... Having decided on giving the man five more minutes Bookman fingered the grip of his slugthrower. He was a bit of an anachronistic individual, preferring more outlandish tech that shields weren't as good at stopping. And when Jedi were more common, something they couldn't reflect back at you with their blasted lightsabers. As he was fingering the krayt dragon bone grip a splashing off to his left down one of the six tunnels that met at this particular junction grabbed his attention. That there was a light accompanying it was the only reason he didn't immediately draw his gun, as the beasts that lurked in these tunnels were not something he wanted to run into. Again.

"Master Bookman?" A voice called out from around a corner in the second from the left tunnel.

Scowling, Bookman replied "About damn time. This is not the sort of place you make someone that you want to do business with wait." It was an effort to keep the snarl from his voice, but that would mean breathing in more deeply. Anything that meant breathing more of this caustic mess was to be avoided.

"I'm sorry Master Bookman, I... I got a little lost." The man that stepped around the corner was someone that Bookman knew. It was Arok's majordomo.

"Then maybe make sure that you set up a meeting somewhere that you know next time." Looking the pathetic looking Twi'lek over Bookman was suddenly reasonably sure that this was a test of some sort. Twi'lek simply did not put themselves into risky situations. There was a reason that they filled so many majordomo positions, and that was because they could be trusted to never try and rise above that position. Almost. There were always exceptions, but this particular one was not one that Bookman would have ever pegged as one such. "Tell me why I should trust anything you have to tell me Tyli'it."

"Because I can read the writing on the wall just as well as anyone Master Bookman, and I don't particularly want to die when Arok goes down either. But I'm afraid I don't have the contacts to make use of the information that I'm offering you." Tyli'it fidgeted with one of his headtails nervously. "I know that you do."

While true, Kud'ar Mub'at in particular coming to mind immediately, depending on what the information actually was he might not be able to do as much with it as Tyli'it seemed to think. For instance, if it was something that needed to be gotten to a group like Black Sun to be of the most use, well... his previous attempts there had been less than auspicious. "Fine. You still haven't told me your price, and frankly I don't like making deals or even meeting without a general idea of what it will cost me. Particularly when it isn't money that the seller is interested in. I don't deal in favors Tyli'it. I accrue them."

"No, no Master Bookman, nothing like that. I want to go with you, wherever you go. You... You seem to have a way of coming out on top. And after this, there is no way I can stay in Hutt space. They will kill me, as there is no one else that could know about what I have to give you. You must promise. You must!" The feat would have been palpable were scent not been completely overridden by their current surroundings.

Blinking twice, Bookman considered. While he wasn't particularly fond of the toadylike Twi'lek in general, he knew that they had certain uses. And depending on what situation he ended up after this, having some underlings might not be the worst idea. If there was any one thing that he knew about Tyli'it it was that the man knew his business. And were it necessary he could always simply remove him if things weren't working out. All things considered, it wasn't the greatest price to pay. "Fine. But you had better have some very solid information that will result in Arok's immediate ouster. And I mean hard proof Tyli'it, not just your word against his."

Relief washed over the Twi'lek as his shoulders slumped, and he took a step forward with his hands outstretched. "Thank you Master Bookman! Thank you! You will no-"

Stepping back Bookman cut him off. "Enough. Just give me the information."

Reacting like he'd just been kicked Tyli'it shrank back. After a moment, and a sigh from Bookman, Tyli'it silently reached into one of his pockets and handed Bookman a datachip. "Everything is on there."

Slotting it into a heavily encrypted datapad that he pulled out of his pocket, a constant necessity in his line of work, he glanced over some figures. After several moments a very disturbing smile settled onto his face. Oh this will do nicely... and when he saw what holo footage was there as well he looked up at Tyli'it. It was all he could do to not laugh. He finally had his freedom in his hand, be it through blackmailing Arok or any number of other things. "I think I may find a use for you after all." Aa the skin of my next boots. There is no way I will ever trust you with anything. "Go. I'll give you instructions later, after I've figured out exactly what I'm going to do with this." He knew one person he was going to be trying to get in touch with. One small segment of one of the videos should be sufficient introduction. After all, everyone in the underworld knew Bookman. Even if it was only as a cautionary tale not to be so good at your job as an independent. Unless you were Mub'at. No one went against the spider.

Turning back, it was time to soak in an industrial strength solvent to get rid of this stench. It was the perfect time for Tyli'it to shoot him in the back, but the majordomo was so happy at the prospect of a new life that Bookman knew he had nothing to fear. After that bath, he had a message to send. And new life to plan himself.

Tag: None yet, next post there will be one.

 

OOC: Darth Master Titus s_heffley ConservativeJedi321 Darth Rozic
As you all can see, we have a new player. The Mad Zookeeper
I would to welcome him to the Black Sun game! Hopefully, you have a great time playing the game.
My fellow gamemaster and I have worked together with the new player to make his character's introduction tie into the current storyline.

 

Welcome to the game The Mad Zookeeper!

 

Welcome The Mad Zookeeper

 

Welcome The Mad Zookeeper! I was just wondering if we'd be getting a new player soon.

 

ooc: Well I already greeted our new friend in PM so I will just post my update while I'm at it.
IC: Alderaan: Black Sun HQ
Conservative Jedi now stood in the central hub of the facility, taking in the beautiful sights and sounds of a functioning black market. Despite Ut-Rebs unfortunate disappearance his contacts, and economic base had only grown in the past few months. Already established contacts brought new blood into the fold, talking to friends, cousins, allies, and all, his market was now practically a living organism in itself, fully functional, though all intel, orders, and goods ran through him at the Alderaan base. The platform he stood on was high, giving him an amazing view of nearly five hundred employees running around doing their daily business, whether it be at their own terminal, the communications arrays, or in the front observing the massive screen showing the supply and demand curves of numerous items. He felt proud looking down upon his operatives, he hadn't been a Vigo long, and yet he had accomplished so much. And yet the endless problems rolling in from his operatives never seemed to cease.
Operative 1: "Sir, several spice connoisseurs in the Anoat sector are declaring a boycott of Black sun spice in protest of our actions on Kessel!"
CJ: "Ignore them, a few pathetic collectors won't make a difference in demand, once addicted our customers stay for life, it will take much more than that to affect our income."
Operative 2: "Vigo, the sector governor of Lasan has accepted your price for the T-7 Ion disruptors!"
CJ: "Splendid! Have them packaged and prepared for shipment at your earliest convenience, under heavy guard, that sector his a hot bed for rebels!"
Operative 3: "Sir, our contact on Rishi wishes to know when the next shipment of spice is due, he has run out of product!"
CJ: "How and the blazes am I supposed to know!?! I'm not in charge of shipment, talk to Vigo Shadow Troopers operative in the sector, he can give you a better answer then I. Though I hear the smugglers are spread thin as it is, so don't expect a committed answer."
Operative 1: "Sir, Otsisa Frerwalka on line 364!"
CJ: "Alright, I'll take it here."
Turning to face his communicator he was greeted by the pink features of his Twi'lek lieutenant, dressed in a black form fitting battle gear, she was flanked by two mercenaries, and several large trees were just visible around her.
Otsisa: "Hey Hon, good to see you, hope I'm not interrupting anything." She smirked
CJ: "Just the wonders of Economics my dear, Have you verified Aroks presence on Du Hutta?"
She grimaced slightly.
Otsisa: "We've been stalking the Besadii palace for days, if he is here he is locked up tighter than the Banking Clan vault. It would be so much easier if we could just go in guns a blazing Vigo."
CJ: "You know why that's not an option Otsisa, a blind deaf kowakian monkey lizard would be able to trace such action back to the Black Sun."
Otsisa: "Not if its done right." She mumbled slightly. "Look, that palace is built well, our scanners can't get past the walls, and Arok is nowhere in sight, but we have verified Wara the Hutts presence here as our intel indicated. She comes out on the terrace every night after dark to star gaze."
CJ: "Aruk claimed Arok was getting paranoid, if he is there he won't come out unless he has too. Keep an eye on Wara, she might give us an indication of the truth, but Do Not Engage!"
Otsisa: "Got it boss, the men are jittery though. Some have been eaten by swamp creatures, and others feel like we're being watched..."
CJ: "Be careful Otsisa, we can't afford to loose to many men, we lost a lot for Kessel and we are still rebuilding."
Otsisa: "Careful? Like you were on Dxun?"
CJ: He couldn't help but grin at that, typical Otsisa. "Goodbye Lieutenant Frerwalka, and good luck."
Otsisa: "Got it boss, see ya latter."
And the communicator fizzled out.
Tags: The Mad Zookeeper

 

Boz Pity:
After just a few seconds of the firefight, Tulkis knew that he and his team were severely outgunned. Although they still outnumbered their target 3-1, the Mandalorian was armed with the notoriously powerful Mandalorian armor, a Disruptor rifle. a flamethrower, several concussion grenades, and of course the Merr Sonn Rockets which she had used to blast the unfortunate Ferro and Wilkins. Against this walking armory, the tools Tulkis had were woefully inefficient. His team had armed for a stealth raid, not open combat so they had packed only light recon armor for protection, and had replaced their usual Blaster Carbine, with more silent but less powerful weapons like blades and slugthrowers. Tulkis was thinking that a retreat to the ship was in order; if they could manage to make it to their star ship they could get a hold of more adequate firepower to turn the situation to their favor. Unfortunately for Tulkis, the passage they had used to enter the clearing was now closed off by flame. The Mandalorian had known their entrance point and smartly closed their avenue of retreat by setting the brush alight with her flamethrower. The only way to escape was by running through the open clearing, which would place them right in the Mandalorian's sights.
"Alright guys. She may be heavily armed but there are three of us still around. If we rush her we still have a chance of getting out." "Are you insane!" one of the Mercs screeched shrilly. "I saw what she did to Wilkins with her rockets. There is no way I'm going out there!" "Stay in here and burn then!" Tulkis replied. He turned to his other man, the old slaver veteran. "How 'bout you."
The Veteran grinned. "Let's party!" The two of them broke cover, screaming war cries. Tulkis was surprised when there was no return fire. "What in the hell's is going on." He felt the cold unmistakable feeling of a blaster pressed against his hairy back. Kark. He had forgotten that the woman was only the camp's sentry.
"Drop the slugthrower!" This time the voice was male, although this time the Basic speech had a different accent then the woman's. One much more unfamiliar to speaking the tongue he would judge. Tulkis was quick to comply.
"You are the famed pirate Captain Tulkis." It was not a question. So they knew who he was then.. interesting. "Are you surprised? This trap was baited especially for you.. or rather for your master the Corellian. We know about his recent machinations in the Spice Trade. Such a lure would be irresistible for one such as he."
"You know my purpose then, but I'm still wondering what your's is? Surely you didn't keep me alive just to chat?"
"As a matter of fact, we brought you here to do exactly that. A mutual friend of ours, a certain Besadii servant named Sloth told us some interesting things about the true events on Dxun. But the things we must discuss are not intended for the ear of a mere lapdog. We will take you back to your ship and you will give us the Corellian!"

 

Dxun - several days earlier

Not too long ago, the Mandalorian compound on Dxun had been the meeting place of potential allies, willing to breed new life into the so-called Shadow Collective. Now, the building and its surroundings were turning into the site of a ferocious gunfight. Sloth, who didn't dare to leave the conference room on his own, remained seated waiting for the Besadii guards to show up. He kept waiting for quite a long time, but nobody appeared. Meanwhile, the gunfight slowly became less and less noticeable from inside the room. Considering such thing as positive development, Sloth finally decided to start moving. Without paying much attention to his environment, he began running towards the exit. Reaching the exit, he waited for a second assessing the situating outside. To his surprise, no dead bodies could be spotted laying on the ground. Maybe, the battle hadn't been that big after all, he thought. As Sloth entered the courtyard, he suddenly felt a gun to his head. Out of nowhere, a bunch of Mandalorians appeared taking him with them to their leader.

Mandalorian soldier: We captured one of the Besadii servants, commander. All hail Mandalore! Don't worry... You know me, I will make him talk.

Mandalorian leader: Yes, I am sure you will. Those weak-minded fools after all possess no honor, they only care about saving their own lives. The information he provides us with, will be used to avenge our fallen brothers. Death Watch, Besadii, Black Sun... They all will perish. All hail Mandalore!

Then, Sloth was blindfolded by one of the Mandalorians. When his blindfolds were removed sometime later, the Mandalorians had bound him to a tree. Although Sloth felt a sign of relieve, his feelings quickly changed. The jungles of Dxun, after all, were filled with dangerous beasts. Without anywhere to go, he could be considered a dead man walking.

Mandalorian soldier: If you don't give me any information on your associates, those beasts will devour you. Don't worry, I have the same thing planned for your boss, Arok the Hutt, when we catch him. Nobody messes with Mandalore!

 

Ryloth

By now s_heffley was surely here on Ryloth executing his plan to decommission the spice mine. After investigating the docks, Titus shifted his focus onto corrupt Twi'lek Senator Orn Free Taa. The Twi'lek's reputation has begun to sour on his home world. The people are starting to catch on to his motives, which of course is himself. ConservativeJedi321 had stated Taa would most likely have sold information to the Hutts regarding a certain deal between Ut-Reb and himself. So Titus tracked him down.

Growing ever more wary and uncomfortable on his home planet, Taa would most likely have guards surrounding him every second of the day. Getting close to the Senator would now be a little bit more difficult. More fun that way, Titus supposed.

One of the senator's office buildings on Ryloth was located in the capital city of Lessu. Humans were a common sight on Ryloth due to the Clone Wars. Even though walking around would not arouse suspicion, being as covert as possible was the best option. The Vigo navigated the city with his hooded cloak up, concealing his facial features. He neared the senator's building where he scoped out the perimeter.

The perimeter was busy. Many armed guards were making rounds outside the building. Orn Free Taa was definitely paranoid. But on this night, he had the right to be. Titus waited a half hour. He counted 4 guards total; one for each face of the building. The guards would switch positions every ten minutes. Titus decided he needed a better vantage point. Spotting a hill a quarter of a mile into the distance, he settled for this perch. From his cloak he revealed a sniper rifle blaster. He set up a tripod and laid down on the ground. Looking through the scope, he kept an eye on the guards. He quickly weighed his options in his head.

They would all be silenced. Titus was a mercenary, a ruthless one at that who would end someone without a second thought. But these guards did not need to pay with their lives. No, the Vigo wasn't senseless and merciless. He switched his sniper to stun, and unleashed one shot towards the bodyguard facing north. Ten minutes later, the other 3 guards went to switch stations. As another bodyguard approached the north wall, Titus stunned them as well down to the last guard.

The stun bolts were enough to keep someone out for half a day; so Titus knew he had time to work. He dissembled the tripod as well as the sniper and set it all back in his cloak. Making his way back down to the senator building, he stashed the cloak behind some trees. Back at the building four guards lie on the ground unconscious. As uncommon as this may be, no citizen stopped to help. They seriously must not approved of Orn Free Taa, Titus thought.

Another fifteen minutes passed before the front door to the building snapped open. A blue Twi'lek emerged from the door furious. "Where are my guards! Worthless scrap they are!" He turned and saw his four bodyguards on the ground and saw an intimidating human hovering over them, eyes fixated on nothing. "You...who are you? What do you want? Do you know who I am, I will have the Emperor and his puppet deal with you! Do you hear me!!"

Titus raised his head and stared into the Senator's eyes, "Stop your pleading you fat Twi'lek. Here," Titus gestured to the pile of bodies, "...sit down, please." Orn Free Taa looked confused.."ah, I, what..."

"SIT, now. We have much to discuss." Orn Free Taa uncomfortably and nervously sat on the pile of sleeping bodyguards. "A Gungan came to you with a proposition. You then sold said proposition to the Hutts which has resulted in the disappearance of this Gungan. Now what I would like to know is the whereabouts of this Gungan."

"What?! You have it all wrong, I wasn't the one who met with the Gungan. The person who met with him came to me with the information that is all I know." Titus was not satisfied. "So what you're telling me is upon this man giving you information, you are the one who sold it to the Hutts?"..."no....yes maybe that is what happened but I did not put a hit on your Gungan friend I only negotiated a selling price with them."

Titus pulled a blaster pistol from his leg holster and placed the barrel on the Twi'lek's lekku. "You will tell me where I can find these Hutts. If I find them and the Gungan is dead, be sure that I will return. I will start with removing your lekku. Once that is gone you will lose some fingers...I think you get my meaning. Speak.."

Orn Free Taa blabbed all the way back to Coruscant senate building, figuratively speaking of course.

With his newly acquired information on the Hutts, Titus made off for what he hoped was the last destination of this trip.

 

Corellia
After attending the briefing with General Immodet, Vigo Shadow Trooper tried to relay a warning to Captain Tulkis about the dangers on Boz Pity. Unfortunately his men could not make contact with the away team. Tulkis was undoubtedly following recon protocols by staying radio silent, but it did unnerve the Corellian when he was unable to at least raise communications with the operatives left on the Starship. After hours of tense waiting, the Vigo was relieved when his communications tech finally confirmed a response from the away team. "Put Tulkis on the view screen in my office. I'll take this communications privately." the Corellian told his man.
Shadow Trooper was greeted by the familiar visage of his trusted Lieutenant. Something seemed off to him however. While Whipid facial expressions are a lot harder to read than humanoid ones, Shadow Trooper thought he could detect a hint of worry in the Whipid's body language. "Vigo." The Whipid growled. "We found the Mandalorian at the Besadii crash site, as you commanded."
"Really?" This was suprising to Shadow Trooper. General Immodet's intel about the Western Clans had made Shadow Trooper anticipate a rather different outcome. "Where there any complications."
"Some." Tulkis grimaced. The unease on Tulkis's face was obvious now. "You're not going to like this."
"Does this have something to do with the Western clans? Vigo General Immodet warned me about.."
The Vigo's statement was cut off by a new, unfamiliar voice, one of the Mandalorian interlopers. "We know about Dxun, Corellian. The Besdii servant confirmed your involvement in the betrayal of our people."
"That was a rather unfortunate event." Shadow Trooper tried to add a tone of regret to his voice. "I will admit that Black Sun was indeed present, but our purpose there was not what you think!"
"And what was your purpose than?" the Mandalorian riposted. "During the Clone Wars Black Sun was among the forces of the Shadow Collective. Together with the Hutt Cartel and the Death Watch, you assassinated the rightful leader of our people and plunged our people into conflict. On Dxun, Black Sun once again met with the Hutts and the Death Watch, and once again the Mandalorian people were betrayed and slaughtered."
Shadow Trooper sighed. "The Shadow Collective is just as much an enemy of Black sun as they are to you. The beings that attacked you on Dxun are attempting to form a cabal to seize control of the Criminal Underworld from Black Sun."
"You expect me to believe this story!" the Mandalorian raged. "You are a criminal, trying to dodge his just punishment."
"Not just a criminal. I am also a business man." Shadow Trooper. "While you may not trust me on a personal level, know that to me, matters of commerce are sacrosanct. All I ask of you is to listen to a little proposal I have thought up. I would like to offer a little transaction. I will give you the location of your true foe, the mastermind of the Dxun Massacre. Enclosed in this transmission is the location of the commander of Death Watch. Use this information as you see fit. All I ask in exchange for this favor is the safe return of my crew."
"Very well. You better not be playing me false, or there is no where in the galaxy you can hide from Mandalore's justice. Send the co-ordinates to your lap dog's vessel. If they check out, we'll send him back to you."
With that, the Mandalorian cut the transmission. That worked out better than I hoped. Shadow Trooper thought. While that little chat had gotten a little tense for a moment, at the end of it the Vigo had accomplished the two goals of diverting the Mandalorian's fury from Black Sun, while also potentially removing one of their deadliest opponents in Arok's Shadow Collective.

 

Dxun - present day

For days, Sloth had been locked up in a cage intended to capture animals. Although the majordomo had known better times, he was pleased the Mandalorians finally left him alone. His captors probably were busy following up on the information provided by him. Around noon, the doors of the cage opened up. A Mandalorian appeared in the doorway, holding something in his hands.

Sloth: Have you come to feed me? Please, I am so hungry...

Then, Sloth noticed the Mandalorian was holding a knife. As the heavily armored soldier approached, the Hutt majordomo feared for his life. Unexpectedly, the Mandalorian used the knife to cut his prisoner loose.

Sloth: Are you releasing me? Finally...

Mandalorian soldier: Your information checked out. Unfortunaltely, you couldn't tell us the location of your master, but I expect we will find him soon enough. You are free to go.

Sloth: Thank you. I won't tell anyone what happened here, I swear!

As Sloth left the animal cage, he experienced feelings of relief. However, when his Mandalorian captor activated his jetpack, he knew something was wrong.

Sloth: You can't do this to me! There is no settlement in close range. The beasts will devour me. You promised to keep me alive if I helped you!

Mandalorian soldier: No, I promised to set you free. That is something entirely different. If there is warrior hidden inside you, you will survive, but I doubt so.

As the Mandalorian soldier flew away, Sloth witnessed the flickering of animal eyes nearby. It didn't take long before screams could be heard from inside the jungle.