The Hutt's Palace

[Clash]

"I see you're tired, you should probably rest. But, since I'm running this you can't." Clash then bum rushed him, coming low and from such a short distance he was almost certain of making contact. He was trying to pin him to the wall so he could beat the crap out of him. He wanted to know Marco's limits, if he punks out then he is fired but if he overcomes then he has a job that has certain 'benefits.' Clash knew that if somehow the attack was evaded or reversed onto him that he would need a back up plan so he also made sure to get them nearer to a table full of sharp knives that if tipped over...

[Marco Wright]

As Clash charged at him he side stepped and grabbed his arm. He let him keep running so he'd run into the wall. He then moved Clash's arm behind his back before grabbing the other and doing the same. He smiled at the irony and pulled back a bit then pushed forward so he'd slam Clash into the wall. Marco then said, "Let me take a break and I'll let you go."

[Clash]

As Marco grabbed Clash's arms and tried throwing him into the wall he decided against the fact, against the simple, unimaginative move. Other than the fact that he refused to be out done by someone as young, brash and arrogant as Marco, he didn't want to give the man the impression that such a simple move would work in a real fight and have him get killed because he's too lazy to actually try.

 

Clash started running, putting even more distance in between them and as he was about to make contact with the wall he stepped up and ran on the wall. While above Marco he pushed off of the wall and landed behind the man, he shot forward and tried grabbing him in a sleeper hold with one arm around his neck squeezing tightly and the other arm holding his arm up, preventing any struggling. He knew Marco was tired and would have a tough time getting out of it, and if he didn't he'd get his wish of taking a break.

 

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[Marco Wright]

Marco stared with disbelief as Clash started to run up the wall. It was a pretty damn gutsy and awesome move. Soon though, the awe turnedto anger at the fact that the man thought he was not even a worth opponent. No one disses Marco Wright. His ego was one that if proven wrong, would; no matter how calm he was turn into a furious rage. An idea spawned into the mind of the young bounty hunter/assassins mind. He pulled out two blasters and fired at the ceiling above them. Dust came down and small chunks of broken tiles fell down. A fairly large cluster of tiles fell. Making haste, the man threw his blasters at it. With a woosh, it hit the tiles with perfect aim.

 

The force of the impact caused the tile cluster break into several pieces all heading slightly in front of Clash as he was running so it'd either hit him and knock him off or, he'd stop running and fall flat on the floor and have his attempt thwarted. Well that or Clash would evade it and hurt his pretty little face. Hopefully that he'd beat the man. He was getting quite board with this little practice session was getting boring and he longed for some real true action. Some real killing will be a really nice change of pace.

 

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[Kakuto Ryu]

Clash's move seemed a little better grounded. I dunno, I had a hard time comprehending why Marco' needed to throw away his weapons. It's not a strategically sound move, and you could probably break ceiling tiles with just gunfire. It seemed like a rather difficult move where shooting at him would have been just as, if not more, effective.

 

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[Clash]

Clash was pleased that Marco fell unconscious without too much of a struggle. Clash placed him onto the ground and instructed a henchman to take him to his room. Clash decided to sit down at a holonet feed and catch a few Pod Races to kill some time before Marco woke up.

 

(This post is subject to some editing since it's so short, trying to move things along though.)

[Trolloparga the Hutt]

A messanger droid arrives at the palace, making a few queries at the front gate to speak to the person in charge. The small spherical droid hovers on, then finding Clash, plays its message, showing off projection of a Hutt "female" in dazzling pink.

 

Hello boys. My name is Trolloparga lec Prissinisus, but you may call me the Hutt Mistress of Crime. I've heard about some stirrings here and decided to call y'all down to my place on Nar Shaddaa to discuss what we're going to do with the Hutt Criminal Empire. Look for the sign of the Sinful Worm in the lower levels.

 

Oh, and make sure you're not followed, doing that whole random hyperspace jump bit and scanning for tracking beacons. I want to see all of you and not Black Sun or the police.

 

With that, the message droid self-destructs.

[Clash]

Clash turned to the droid and listened to its message before it exploded. Clash stood up and left a holo recording of a message for Marco instructing him where to go. He left it on the table before he made hsi way to the Dark Wind. Once there he checked the hull for any beacons or any other tracking device, once satisfied that there weren't any he entered the ship. He set in some coordinates and relaxed, it would be a long ride and he could get some sleep in.

[Marco Wright]

Marco groaned as he woke up sitting in his bed. His head ached from the fight and he cursed under his breath. Marco looked around fairly disoriented from the blows he received. He got up, tussled his hair, and grabbed some Corellian Ale from the mini fridge near the door and proceeded to chug it. The Bounty Hunter/Assassin looked around and found a datapad on a table nearby.

 

Marco read the contents and groaned. The last thing he wanted to do right now was travel off planet. In fact, all he wanted to do now was sit down, take a nap and watch a couple episodes of *"Two and a Half Gungans." But no, he'd have to move his lazy ass and fly around in a space ship. He sighed, as long as he got his paycheck at the end of the week, he would be happy.

 

Marco grabbed his gear, put on his armor, and holstered all weapons. The change in administration might prove to his advantage. Hutt's weren't known to pay more than needed, but the fact the new leader was so inexperienced, would hopefully put more dough in his bakery.

 

Marco opened the door and walked back into the interior of the Hutt base. The dark dungeon like motif never got old. He blinked several times adjusting to the lighting. He walked around advancing towards the final goal of finding some sort of a hanger bay. He hoped that he'd be able to leave Tatooine without having to go outside. He had no clue why Hutts loved this planet so much, it's a scorching hot pile of dust, and don't slugs dry out?

 

He kept walking around, refusing to ask for directions; he didn't want to show any sign of weakness. He finally found the bay and let out a small sigh of relief. He needed to rest; he was still tired from the fight and would nap on the trip. Marco walked into the nearest ship, hot wired it and left the bay. Once he left the atmosphere he entered the coordinates for random jumps then the final of his destination. Marco then took a nap waiting to reach Nar Shadaa.

 

*Special thanks to John for that reference.

 

((OMG I MADE A POST!!! Jesse returns. For now”¦))

[Dordjooba the Hutt]

The base that once was, carved from stone had sunk into the sand and was all but destroyed. The self-destruct was overridden and it was now a hunk of rock buried deep in the sand.

 

There was cool serenity that rose from it's resting place; the peace of the sand interrupted by only small fluctuations in the wind's hast pattern across the sea of brown.

 

However, as the time turned on, a low rumbling sound barreled across the sand that amplified as it got closer, destroying the tranquility of the site. A large drill and several other large machines were being carted out to carve holes through the sand and construct what could only be called a rather foolhardy endeavor to make a passage through the sand.

 

There was no expense too great however for the team as they swallowed their pride and attempted the rather difficult and frustrating task. Plans were being drawn up, things were being changed and the entire base that had been home to entire Hutt's legacy was being changed and improved. There would be security checks added and things would be different this time.

 

They have to be...

As soon as the mass preparations were started and put into place, a large cover story was put out to the nearby Tatooine city that a large team of moisture farmers were setting up a large plantation on what could only be described as an "awesome find". There was no word, no mention of placement.

 

The townsfolk didn't even gossip, because they couldn't.

 

By nightfall, the entire populace would be dead or gone. The innocents put to work and sent home after their work was done, the men recruited and sent to various places with their families and the resistance poisoned or assassinated in what appeared to be "accidents". Those who had families had special consideration and those that were put to work and not outright recruited for the cause were told that they were constructing something of grand splendor and/or they were farming. After the work they would all be given a mild sedative that would cause them to pass out and erase all of their short term memory hence erasing the proof of the Slug's existence; their relatives or the resistance would be replaced with a few other people loyal to the Hutt's cause keeping the ignorance of the town at bay and letting the Hutt's existence fade.

 

The entire city of Anchorhead was abandoned and the only figure that roamed betwixt its sandstone walls was a large seven foot Doshan with the eyes of a Krayt looming through the wicked stormy sands.

 

"There isss no sssign of life here." The Doshan said, nodding to himself, turning off his comm and letting his entire figure sink into the sand with rapid force. Particles of sediment flew everywhere as pushed and eventually sailed through the oceans of particles with little to no effort.

 

A large figure draped in a big tan coat near the dig/construction site, blocking his image from view to everyone accept those closest to him, responded through the comm in a deep rumbling voice.

 

"Good, I think it is time to start gathering forces. We'll be ready soon"

 

The large figure smiled as he put down the comm and looked once more out to where his glorious home had once sat. That ignorant bastard shot me down; this time though, I'm not giving him the satisfaction.

 

It's good to be back.

[Dordjooba the Hutt]

Dordjooba slithered through the town of Anchorhead still dressed in his tan cloak, but bothering less to sneak now that he knew there was no one here. He was accompanied by a team of crack engineers and architects that were working to plant the Hutt's secret underground entrances throughout the city. Dordjooba was only showing them where at the moment, but he prided himself in watching his decisions go according to plan, because it didn't always happen.

 

The cranes off in the distance, occupied his mind though, because even when he knew his 'new' base was being physically built under the sand and anchored to the planet floor, he also knew there would still be ways to infiltrate it should people get really creative.

 

So, as he worked through the town, marking spots, the slug contemplated to himself ways of torturing any intruders and ways of modifying his cards so that they'd explode upon contact with anyone not certified to hold them. He informed the engineers and they confirmed that it could be done.

 

There was construction of another sort being done near Mos Espa as the celebration of Boonta Eve was arriving and Dordjooba could hardly wait to be the host of his first podrace. He'd picked a worthwhile spokesperson for the event and was constructing a new stadium on the track to mirror the one that used to be there. Then he hired, through his broker Kaldena, a handful of bookies to attend and, through another alias, sponsored a league of stalls and shops throughout the plaza to people looking for an opportunity to sell their stuff.

 

The overall sell would be good, what with the admission and the concessions both in and out of the stadium operating at Dordjooba's whim, but the event wasn't for a while, so all he could do was let Kaldena handle the PR until the event was in full swing.

 

When the thought's of his podrace venture came to a close though, the slug's comm began to beep away silently at his side. He almost didn't notice it because of his lingering thoughts of pods racing down the flats of Tattooine, but after a few moments, he picked up the beeping comm and listened to the beautiful red woman on the other side of the decrypted video comm.

 

Kaldena explained to Dordjooba the situation on Nar Shadaa as well as a weapons update from Nal Hutta, explaining that something was being sent right away to his location and the slug preened visibly. The signal was a little too strong for the environment and the engineers, who were lagging behind him before, began asking if he wanted any more spots marked.

 

Dordjooba laughed a little because he didn't even see them there and at their inquisition offered a terse no before he departed the city and grabbed a rupulsor ride back to the soon to be finished palace.

[Dordjooba the Hutt]

A small squad of Weequays rolled up to Dordjooba as he finished his rounds, indicating where the secret underground escape passages to his soon to be completed underground base should be and requested an audience.

 

The city of Anchorhead was abandoned and had low risk of anyone watching aside from Hutt scouts, but Dordjooba asked if the men would accompany him into a nearby house anyway. A slow rolling sandstorm was starting to come in and the slug wanted to avoid any other small lingering potential threats outside.

 

Once inside though, it seemed all of the Weequays seemed quite resistant to interrogation. It was if they had bad news and were afraid it might lead to a lethal outcome if Dordjooba should get mad. They were half right, but they should have known that not giving him the information just made him more irritable.

 

The Hutt's demeanor changed dramatically from slightly interested to irritated until the pressure of the slug's intimidating stare broke one of the men in the front. This particular operative was dressed rather nicely for a Weequay, but he still bore a tad gruffness about him that suggested a thug rather than a bureaucrat.

 

"Umm... Sir, we were keeping tabs on the Black Sun issue on Coruscant like you tasked us to and it seems they have moved to Dubrillion. One of our own had to lose an arm and a leg, literally, to get that information and although we are certain it is true, the leader is not with them. We have no knowledge of where Smash is sir, but we know he is in active duty, because he was last seen on Coruscant before the citadel's destruction."

 

Dordjooba's normal charcoal gray countenance paled a bit and the stress lines on his forehead creased so much that small objects could be laid to rest and never fall off the curvature of his wrinkles.

 

"That is bad news." Dordjooba said solemnly and half to himself. Dordjooba hadn't the foggiest where Smash could be and that in and of itself was disconcerting, but now that the Black Sun weren't obvious targets and couldn't easily be tracked aside from their home stronghold on Dubrillion, Dordjooba had no choice but to go on the defensive.

 

"Alright Dajelan I trust you have all the info you need. I want you to process all known employees of the Black Sun as of its destruction and I want to know what goes on all around that sector of Coruscant just in case they make a move to reclaim it. If they do, don't stop them, just let me know." Dordjooba said quickly, moving in the direction of his long tan cloak and large Data pad. "I want a distress call sent out to all permanent employees of my clientele and I want them to stay tuned for a live video conference on the large viewing screen in the Nar Shadaa underground base. I need each base locked down to the best of its ability, drawing as many outside employees as you can into the hideouts discreetly. I will also need all cardholder employees inside the bases to prevent theft of our property, construction hastened and I will need a place to hide."

 

Dordjooba knew Smash was an enterprising individual, especially given the broad source of power he plopped onto Dordjooba's doorstep years ago; he knew Smash was planning something somewhere, he just didn't know what it was or how it was going to play out. All he knew, was that he didn't want to just lie down and take it this time. If the man wanted to play fair he'd play fair, but if he was going to be crazy like last time, there is no harm in being too safe.

[Vladimir Faust]

Vladimir Faust, in pursuit of Terra, hedged his bets on her arriving on Tatooine. His hunting instinct told him his ultimate quarry would be here, though whether or not Terra would have come here first was up for debate. And really, it was her he needed to keep an eye on.

 

Parking his ship out in the desert some distance away from Mos Espa, Faust kept a carefully low profile, having helped lay waste to the city while engaging Ventra... Tori... in one of their first duels. Though he emerged victorious, the sense he still lost in some sense grated. Sure Kari, fell to the dark side, but he still felt something off from that whole bloody encounter. Taking a note at the racing track under construction, he checks his disguise before heading fully into town.

 

Wrapped a pale sandy-brown cloak about himself and covering his face with cloth and a hood- ostensibly to keep the sand out and the twin suns off, though also to conceal his identity and blend in with the environment. He rents a speeder and heads towards where he knew the Hutt's old palace, using his sixth sense to avoid other lifeforms. He'd approached it carefully with a fly-by in his ship, monitoring it from high in the stratosphere, then deployed a handful of remotes to spy closer. Even so, he wanted a more personal look.

 

Parked in a distant dune, he surveys it carefully through a set of electronic binoculars, scoping the area out. His eyes narrow thoughtfully at this. There was serious work being done here, though the moisture farms at the outset told of a cover parameter. Smart. Very smart.

 

For a moment Faust contemplates making a personal approach, but that risked detection. There was something being done there, but there was also no guarantee if that would lead to whoever was running this organization. Probable, but not certain. Best to bribe or mindrape some worker into giving feedback on what exactly was going on and provide some closer intel.

 

Bundling his wrappings tight around him, he takes off for the nearest city, Anchorhead. Faust frowns as he approaches, sensing that this time he was being watched. Interestingly enough, the city felt amiss, and not unlike a place he graced with one of his "special visits" in times past- severe trauma in the Force, followed by a void of life. Intreagued, he keeps a steady approach towards the city. Terra would have to wait.

 

His approach is calm and casual, as one oblivious to what happened, though all of his senses are on alert, his hands by a gun and lightsaber, as he silently summons back up from his ship as a precaution. The city was definitely barren, though he could not recall Black Sun being quite so vicious to the opposition's home territory. He picks up a few sentient lifeforms, but cannot make them out. Trying to stay off the radar of the watches he knows must be there, he reaches into the folds of his cloak and produces another remote, sending it spinning into the air in the direction of those lifeforms- letting its 3D camera beam the results back to him.

[Dordjooba the Hutt]

After talking with his advisers/spies and meeting up with Vlahjik, the slug was rapidly on his way out of Anchorhead with his massive tan cloak covering up his sweating charcoal gray form. The cloak, although miserably impractical, pushed for a sort of camouflaged invisibility for Dordjooba. The only proof left of his presence as Dordjooba slithered through the sand was the curvature of the trails of sand left behind, but Vlahjik went with him to cover his trails and keep an eye out in efforts to protect his boss...

 

___________________________________________________

 

 

A small wavering sound rang out as several technicians filed through the sandstone Anchorhead houses with large drills and power tools. They were so busy doing their jobs that none of them really noticed a flying mechanical remote, hovering over their shoulders.

 

The device was unknown and didn't cause much ruckus so no one really paid attention and just thought it was one of Dordjooba's gadgets to facilitate their construction efforts and progress, but the civilian scouts who had been in the meeting with Dordjooba hours before the remote's arrival, noticed the Remote's presence and began milling about, sending communications about a new arrival in the city. One particular comm message was sent to Dordjooba portraying the ordeal in detail, but was muffled in a crowd of several others. It seemed they all had their purposes and as the calls began to end, the unit of civilian scouts moved back toward the palace construction site, adding certain elements to their wardrobe so they'd fit in with the construction workers.

 

 

_________________________________

 

Dordjooba received two small comm messages, one from Anchorhead and one from Kaldena, concerning two different issues, but at roughly the same root.

 

It appeared that an agent of the Black Sun was indeed present on Nar Shadaa and some sort of remote like device was recording activity in the town. What is your game Smash? Why all of the secrecy? Last time you sent nearly your entire fleet against me for a proposal, but now you choose to take a delicate hand?

 

Dordjooba was extremely suspicious and although the slug considered turning back, he wasn't entirely convinced and kept on heading into the sand, hoping for something more conclusive as to the flow of the entire situation.

[Vladimir Faust]

Faust watches keenly through the remote, gathering up the sense of a massive construction project at work. The details were still fuzzy, but it was something being done underground beneath Tatooine's sandy surface. He contemplates moving in for a closer look, but ultimately decides to withdraw. He didn't want to give his hand away too quickly, and really, he would best be served by extracting the information from those workers in a very harsh and direct fashion not suited to his current exploration.

 

Recalling the remote to him, Faust tucks it back into his robes. Still sensing the possibility of being watched, he decides for a somewhat dramatic, but clean exit to conceal his egress. Reaching into the folds of his desert robes, he appears to throw something down to the ground, causing a sudden bellow of sand to rise up in a concealing column. When the sand and dust settles, the hooded Hunter is gone. In truth, it was a simple Force trick, not a smoke bomb, blasting the sand up in a column, but it would be sufficient.

 

Making his way back to Mos Espa, Faust unloads his speeder, then treks out into the desert and to his ship. Discretely taking off into hyperspace, he sends an encrypted comm back reporting the limited find he had, then sets coordinates for Nar Shaada.