The Shadow's Gambit

[Moon Knight]

"Nayc," Fett replied. "Must have a backdoor." It had been unfortunate that both of them had turned their attention to the datapad just in time for Seraph's arrival, but he was certain they would have noticed the arrival of multiple contacts through the camera display they had of the corridor outside.

 

His chrono ticked 2300. "Well let's not keep him waiting," he said, standing up. He popped the strap on his sidearm holster to check the weapon's charge, having opted to leave behind the overt assault rifle he typically favored. This didn't smell like a trap, but he was a cautious man. The power pack read full just like it had last time he'd looked.

 

ShadowFett palmed the datacard, returning the 'pad to his belt, then once Mirdala was ready they crossed the hall. The door slid open about a second after they arrived, and he discreetly slid the card back in the delivery slot as he entered a darkened room beyond.

 

What had once been a residential room seemed to have been converted into an office of sorts, a broad desk facing the doorway flanked by two armed men silhouetted by the backlight of a small lamp on the desk itself. The light would have made their features indistinguishable and they stood perfectly still perhaps as an intimidation tactic, but Fett's visor adapted for the low-light automatically and defeated the illusion. "Let's hear it," he said to the guards tersely.

 

To his disappointment the light went out and was replaced by a large blue-tinted hologram of a steel-masked face partially shrouded by a white hood. "Welcome, ShadowFett and Mirdala Ad'Goran," it spoke in the same doctored voice as the message they'd received. "I am Seraph. Some time ago I came upon proof that the Shadow's Gambit is in fact controlled by and funding the--"

 

"Stop," Fett interrupted him. "I didn't come here in person to talk over holograms. Come on out." He beckoned to the door to the left of the desk, behind which he could quite clearly see Seraph's wireframe through his active penetrating radar.

 

The hologram paused for a moment, then terminated and the lights came on dimly. The guards fidgeted, having to come to terms with the fact that these Mando'ade were a different breed than the others who had come through this office. The sense of control over the situation had already shifted away from them.

 

After a moment the door opened and Seraph emerged, still masked and cloaked, though Fett of all people couldn't hold that against him. "You'll have to forgive the theatricality," Seraph spoke. The mask garbled his voice a bit, but it was much more human than in their previous correspondence. "We have to take precautions what with the sensitivity of our operations."

 

"Cut to the chase," Fett said. "What's this about?"

 

Seraph appraised him for a moment. "Very well. The Shadow's Gambit may by all appearances be owned and operated by a corporation, but its profits are going to the coffers of the Sith Empire through a man named Raynuk Montar, alias Darth Quietus. I suspect you already know this and you're here in an attempt to find a link to him so that you can collect on the enormous bounty on his head."

 

ShadowFett stared silently at him from behind his buy'ce.

 

"I was initially interested in finding Quietus -- who I can assure you is quite alive despite any reports to the contrary -- but now all I care about is the Gambit itself. Simply put, I want to cut off the revenue stream to the Sith," Seraph continued. "I will give you everything I have on Quietus, including what I believe to be a lead on tracking him down, in exchange for your assistance in completing my goals here."

[Mirdala Ad'Goran]

“And how do you plan to go about ‘cutting off the revenue stream to the Sith’?” Mirdala asked incredulously as she crossed her arms and inclined her head.

 

"The Gambit must be removed from play," Seraph said. "Crippling or destroying her is the only certain way to do that." He tilted his head slightly. "Don't worry, we're not going to murder her patrons. There will be ample chance for them to disembark."

 

Mirdala looked toward Kandor for a moment before addressing their host. “It would no doubt get Quietus’s attention,” she admitted. “But taking down the Sith’s cred bantha won’t be easy. What help do you want from us, specifically?”

 

While Seraph’s plan might bring their target to battlefield she and Kandor had some degree of shaping, there was something about the ship’s destruction being on the table that hinted at a potential for recklessness the two of them would have to weigh against the benefits of joining him. “And what do you get out of depriving the Sith of their cash flow?”