Sapphire

Sapphire thought it over for a moment, then tossed back a shot of rum before chuckling. "You're probably signing that poor bounty hunter's death warrant, and we'd be putting a target on our backs, but I can't begrudge you a chance to make that Sith's life miserable." Besides, she mused privately, it was possible their new benefactors might protect them from any kickback by said Sith Master. Not directly, but perhaps he'd be less likely to be interested in tracking them down if they were valuable to his Order. It would end up in a mess either way, she supposed. Emerald wasn't going to let this go, and frankly, Sapphire didn't really want her to. Quietus had made fools of all of them, and that wasn't something they'd every forget. --- Tarvil shook his head, his suave smile still firmly on his face despite Ajani's icyness. "I'll have someone meet you at 0900 tomorrow at Skid's place. You know it? You can make the transfer then." He slid her a credit chit with 20% of the bounty on it. "You'll get the rest on delivery tomorrow. As for the future...keep your eyes on the Holonet. I wouldn't be surprised if you saw something. In the meantime, my bosses have your number."

"Kid," Kalen replied, "I'm sure we'll get along just swimmingly." His careful eyes hadn't missed a thing, but her actions only increased her genuineness. It seemed like she really was who she appeared to be. It was the Gems' good fortune--and Ammi's--that they had found her before one of the Hutts had snatched her up. There was no reason this partnership would be anything but mutually beneficial for all parties. He poured himself another cup of sake, then raised it to her. "Here's to patience, and to becoming a star." *** "As if," Sapphire was saying. "No, I'm not going to go all Ruby on him just yet." She ignored Ruby's attempted protestation. "I wanna take over his business first. Get his men to work directly for me. They're the only ones who know the Glory like I do. I want to ruin him, and make him beg." An evil glint shot through her deep blue eyes. "If we do it right, he might even kill himself. Nice and neat." They were beginning to hash out a plan when Tarvil interrupted. Sapphire raised an eyebrow. "Oh?" Tarvil handed them the flyer the bounty hunter had brandished. "A bounty hunter just arrived. Seems Dorjoola had a bounty out for one of these. Don't know what the Hutt-slime was thinking, but he might be an excellent gladiator for the ring." The Gems glanced over the flyer. Sapphire had never heard of this particular species, but the holo was impressive. "Thirteen thousand?" Tarvil nodded. She glanced at Ruby. "What do you think? Got a place for him?" Ruby nodded, and Sapphire handed the paper back to Tarvil. "Alright, we'll collect. Get someone to bring the Greenback to the fighting ring. Have him sign an indenture. Once his fights earn 500,000 credits, he can go free or sign a voluntary contract." The Gems had nothing particular against slavery, but they knew it was better to leave options open if they could, and nothing shut down options like slavery. A glance at Emerald and Sapphire spoke again. "And tell this bounty hunter that we may have use of his or her services in the future." She could tell an idea was sparkling in Emerald's mind, and she was interested to hear what it was. Tarvil nodded and turned to go. Sapphire cleared her throat, and he turned back and set down the rum and glasses, before leaving again. *** Tarvil headed back to Ajani and passed on the message. "I guess you'll be hearing from them."

"The permits are easy," Sapphire replied, waving a hand dismissively from the other side of the room, where she had taken a seat. "The hard part would be lining you up a gig." "She's right," Kalen said. "Unfortunately, everyone seems to have the same idea right now. You wouldn't believe how many bands are lining up to do charity concerts for Coruscant." He pulled up some info on his datapad, all business now. "Although...I might be able to get you in the Band-AID charity extravaganza being held in a few weeks. A bunch of bands are all playing, and it's gonna be a big deal. You won't be a headliner, but it wouldn't be bad at all for publicity and getting your name out more." Sapphire rose. "We'll leave you to work out the details," she said airily. Then her tone grew serious. "There's just one more thing, Miss Wolfstar. Your background check came up with a lot of blanks. What is it about your family history that you're trying to hide?"

The mutable droid paused for a moment, then agreed and left. Sapphire couldn't help but feel relieved. At least they had made the most out of this. What was done was done, and she hoped for the best. Her datapad beeped, signalling that it had received something. She checked it, and saw a new program had been downloaded--a present from Kain, she assumed. Opening it up, she glanced through the code. It was unlike anything she had seen before, but something about it nagged a memory in her mind. She shut it down. She'd play with it later. It wasn't enough to cause her system any harm. She put her datapad away and looked at Emerald. "Well, that's that," she said, shrugging. "Looks like the galaxy just got a whole lot bigger for the Blood Gems." Turning, she headed back towards the transport depot, checking her chrono as she did so. It was early afternoon. Perfect. They still had plenty to do today, and hopefully hiring the band manager and taking over Jalos' garage would be much more enjoyable endeavors. She linked arms with Emerald. "I need to fly. Let's go get the Glory."

Sapphire's first instinct was to keep her mouth shut, which was novel in of itself. But then she tossed her hair back. Kriff it. "Just wondering when the other shoe will drop," she drawled. "Everyone knows Sith can be trusted less than the criminals we work with on a daily basis." She knew Emerald was probably grimacing at her bluntness, but she ignored her fellow pirate. "And I notice that this has turned from an opportunity to 'you'll agree or the Dark Lord will hunt you down'. Very pirate-like. I commend you." I'm not super eager to allow that kind of man to put a leash on us. Sapphire was torn. She really did have a bad feeling in her gut about this whole mess, but on the other hand, Emerald really wanted this. And she couldn't deny her friend. And really, while it wasn't the best option, it was the safest, and it would provide her more chances in the future to build her empire. "But I see that we have no choice, and that you're going to do it anyway. So I suppose that serving the Sith is our only option." I just wish we had been able to enjoy our freedom for a bit longer before having to put our necks in the noose again. I hate being subordinate. But I'd rather be subordinate than dead. She finally glanced at Emerald. "We have an accord," she told Kain.

Great. The bloody Sith admiral was already angry with them. Sapphire clenched her jaw as she glanced at the datapad. A pop-up in the bottom corner warned her that the datapad was being hacked, and since it hadn't happened until they had gotten near Kain, she knew that meant he had to have a slicer droid with him somewhere nearby. She scanned the crowd, but it could have been any of them. Mostly, though, Sapphire was so over this. They had made a legitimate request, and now here this being was telling them that they had already pissed him off, and risked pissing his master off too. Well, that was just great. What a joy these guys are going to be to work with, she thought sarcastically. One move they don't like and zap! We're all dead or slaves. She also didn't like how what had started as an offer had now become a join-us-or-die ultimatum. Sell out to the Sith, or the Dark Lord would come after them. Emerald spoke up, and Sapphire grimaced inwardly, though she kept her face a pale, cold mask of haughty indifference. Her fellow pirate didn't seem to care that they were selling their freedom for a few new toys. Even if this worked out in the short term, Sapphire couldn't help feeling that in the long term, there would be a price to pay. And she didn't want that price to be their lives. No reward is worth that. But Emerald wouldn't have that. She wanted this deal. She would give up almost anything to get it, and Sapphire knew it. No, the Gems were about to become Sith pawns, and the only way Sapphire would get out of it was to leave. The thought stopped her. Leave the Gems? Leave Emerald and Ruby? Give up everything they had worked so hard to achieve and start over? What would she do, become their rival? Sapphire knew she could do it. She'd be successful, too. But did she value her freedom more than her best friends? This time, the grimace reached her face. She reached out and subtly grabbed Emerald's hand, silently begging her friend--her sister--not to do anything rash.

The Gems quickly received a response, which told Sapphire that their contact was indeed on-world. That saved time. Kain said they'd meet in a square that was half a world away, however. It made some measure of sense, but it was a little annoying since Sapphire hadn't had time to pick up the Glory yet. In the end, they took public transport. Dressed in a non-descript black jumpsuit that nevertheless showed her figure to good advantage, Sapphire spent the ride on her datapad, doing some research on Kain and hacking into some public cameras to do some surveillance on the square. She had more luck with the latter. Kain seemed to be someone who flew under the radar. There wasn't even direct evidence that he was a Sith himself. She would have to do a deeper search. 45 minutes later, they were there. It looked like rain. A strong breeze was blowing under a dark sky pregnant with rain clouds. Glancing at the sky as they came out of the transport ship, Sapphire pulled a hooded cloak out of her bag and threw it on. It also covered her twin blasters riding at her hips, which she thought was a decent idea. Glancing around the square, her eyes landed on a figure that matched the description Kain had given them. Hoping it wasn't another hologram, she pointed her chin at him. "Alright," she told Emerald. "There he is."

As the astromech rolled out, Sapphire wrinkled her nose in disgust. It was just bad manners not to come yourself. She understood the desire to remain anonymous, but that was just being rude. This man--Kain--started speaking, putting forth a clearly carefully-considered offer. There was a lot included within it. But as soon as he stated that he represented the Sith, Sapphire’s curiosity soured. She wanted nothing to do with the Sith. Last time Emerald had talked them into trying to cut a deal with them, things had gone south fast and had ended with Ruby trapped in the ductwork of a Star Destroyer while Sapphire evaded fire in her ship and Emerald was interrogated by a Sith Master. Besides that, she just hated Force users in general. It was born out of a sense of injustice. Why were some people born with access to this mysterious energy field and immediately granted prestige, power, and wealth without even working for it? It was completely unfair to the rest of the population. Jedi were high and mighty about their power, which Sapphire loathed, and Sith were unpredictable and untrustworthy. She minded them less--after all, if she had power, she’d be using it to get what she wanted to, and she understood that that was the main difference between the Sith and the Jedi. But something about that power seemed like it tended to drive them towards madness. If she was being honest with herself, she was intimidated by them. But Sapphire made it a habit of not being honest with herself. She turned her focus back to the presentation. “Imagine what the Gems could accomplish with an Interdictor cruiser, or perhaps even a full Star Destroyer. Or both." Uh oh, Sapphire thought. She knew right away what Emerald would be thinking. The other woman would be practically drooling over that last bit. The droid finished transmitting and the hologram of Kain disappeared. Wordlessly, Sapphire crossed the room and picked up the restraining bolt and droid caller. After fitting it to the astromech in a shower of sparks, she pocketed the caller and finally turned to Emerald. “Let’s go to Fizzy’s,” she suggested. They had a lot to talk about.

Emerald’s sudden antsyness brought the evening to an end. It was just as well, Sapphire thought as they slid gracefully into their speeder and headed home. It had been a good party, but she was tired, and there was much to do. They had a band manager to hire, a garage boss to utterly ruin, and she still needed to check out that comlink. She glanced at the vehicle’s chronometer as they pulled up to their apartment. 0330 local time. She rolled her shoulders tiredly. “I’m gonna get some sleep,” she told the other two as they headed inside. “Let’s talk in the morning, okay?” Once in her bedroom, she stripped out of the dress she was wearing and headed right to bed. *** The next morning found Sapphire sitting next to a half-drunk pot of caf. She yawned, then shook herself as Emerald emerged and plopped down next to her. “Here,” she said, pushing a clean mug towards her fellow pirate. Emerald said nothing, opting to wait until her cup was nearly empty before even acknowledging the presence of her compatriot. When she finally did, it appeared as though it was with utmost effort, squinting her big green eyes in the effort to block out the ambient light filtering through the windows. “I think I drank too much last night. Never doing THAT again.” Sapphire couldn’t help a chuckle. “You always say that.” And it was true, too. But learning from one’s mistakes was so overrated--except when it came to earning credits. The two pirates were quiet for the next 45 minutes, drinking caf and trying to recover as the sun slowly rose on the Vertical City. Finally, Sapphire sighed. “Well, we’ve got a lot to do today. Where do you want to start?” Emerald jerked her head in the direction of the bedrooms. “I’ll send Ruby in to check on Tarvil and oversee the transition of assets once she wakes up. Later today I’ll see about getting Miss Amethyst a manager that we can actually trust. What else did you have on the docket?” The red-head nodded. “Two things--I’ve got to pick up the Glory today. Jalos has already slimed it enough.” She looked Emerald in the eye. “I’m done with him, Em. I mean it. I wanna cut him out of everything. Get his men to work directly for me. We’ve got power now, and I’m planning to use it.” “Up to you,” the blonde shrugged. “We have garages upon garages now, just pull the rug out from under him and absorb his assets. Done.” Squinting sideways and eyeing Sapphire suspiciously, she continued, “What was the other thing?” “Last night one of the serving droids got hacked.” She pulled out her comlink. “He came up to me, bumped me, fingered my comlink, then walked off. I didn’t feel like dealing with it at the time, but I assume whoever hacked the droid was trying to get our attention.” The comlink was blinking, the green light indicating that there was a message stored on the device. “I believe they left us a message. Care to hear what they had to say?” She connected the comlink to her datapad and set it on the table so that the message would show on the screen. I understand Nar Shaddaa is under new management. May I be among the first to extend my hand in congratulations at liberating the planet from the oversized gangster fleshbags, I assume it was no easy feat for someone of your outfit. But...you are still a small fish in a large ocean. If you wish to grow instead of being eaten by a larger fish, perhaps you would care to listen to my proposal. I see a brighter, even more profitable future for the Blood Gems. Do you? If you wish to discuss these possibilities, please come to the following address within twenty four hours of the time stamp on the read receipt. Only bring those who are capable of making decisions for your group as a whole. <> Emerald let out a low whistle. “Shassa,” the Mistryl curse slipped from her lips. “Well, if anything, I’d go meet the schutta just to find out how he hacked into our stuff. What do you think? Some kind of trap by the Hutt families?” Sapphire pursed her lips. “It probably is a trap of some sort. The encryption is excellent, though.” She wrinkled her brow. “Off the top of my head, I’d have to say it looks like someone hacked the entire comm network; otherwise, he’d have had a hell of a time hacking my personal comlink. An average hacker could do it with enough time and resources, but the timing indicated in the message seems to indicate he did it fairly quickly. As far as I know, there isn’t a hacker of that caliber on the moon--besides me, of course.” Her professional side was intrigued, although she was wary. There were very few parties in operation around the galaxy that would be able to find and hire a hacker like that. She rose and crossed the room to her computer. “I’ll start running a program to see if we can trace the source of the message.” She plugged the comlink into a data terminal. “Well, I’m intrigued,” came Emerald’s voice as she downed the rest of her caf and stood. “It doesn’t sound like a typical ambush to me, and if Ruby doesn’t come along, she can always monitor us from here. I’m game if you are.” Following Sapphire’s footsteps across the room, Emerald laid a hand on the back of the red-head’s chair and leaned down to see what would come of her search. A few minutes later, the program had sorted through all the possible variations. Sapphire had limited the search to this side of the Smuggler’s Moon, and had it start from the area where the attached address was located. With those variables taken care of, the program was quick to offer a solution. “Hmm,” she mused, “looks like it originated from a public holonet connection over in the Jahrea’s Watch neighborhood. Probably means our friend is staying in a hotel or hostel of some sort. Which means he’s not a local. There were a lot of new faces in that neighborhood last night; they’re having that festival that they always have this time of year. He did a good job hiding himself. But it does point to the fact that he’s probably still on-world.” She skimmed down. “The address itself is a real place. Just an abandoned warehouse.” “Sounds spooky,” Emerald said, straightening. “Dare we call?” There was a glint in Sapphire’s eye as she nodded. “Let’s go see what he wants.” By the time they had awakened Ruby and informed her as to the developments, shoving a cup of caf into her hand so that she could at least understand her role in the play at hand, the sun had risen fully. It seemed strange to pursue such a meeting in the daylight hours, but then, the smog over Nar Shaddaa meant that daylight was never really light. Clad in their combat gear, armed to the teeth, Emerald and Sapphire departed the Gems’ apartment for the address in the comm. When they arrived, Sapphire could immediately see that she had been correct. The building was an old warehouse or hangar of sorts, abandoned, its doors hanging from the hinges, its sides covered in rust and old flyers. Emerald’s hand rested none too subtly on the butt of her blaster as they walked toward the door, pausing to let their eyes adjust to the lighting change as the interior was utterly dark. “You called?” Emerald yelled into the darkness.

The young woman seemed ready to sign immediately, though she ignored the offered earrings. Sapphire shrugged and put them back in her clutch. Most women would have jumped at a precious gift like that. This woman was a strange one. The droids read the contract too, and they were more fastidious. Sapphire was willing to negotiate a bit. After some discussion with 4L-T0, she agreed to defer their traveling and production expenses and give them a 17% royalties for merchandise, but stuck to her guns when it came to the droid's other points. She was curious as the droid was absolutely adamant about the insurance expenses--though, from the woman's entrance, she wondered if stunts like that were common for the band. Regardless, it made sense to keep their investment in good health, so Sapphire agreed to his proposal. By the time they were finished negotiating, Ammi had already come up with some alternative names. Sapphire turned her attention back on her as she suggested Beryl or Kyber. "Beryl won't sell," Emerald interjected. "It sounds like an old lady or a drug-addled prostitute. Huh, funny, Sapph, both of those things describe you." Sapphire gave her an outraged look. "Hey! I am not drug-addled!" Becoming serious again, she glanced back at Ammi. "She's right about the name though. And kyber isn't a gem, it's a crystal. Anyway, there'll be time to decide. For now, let's get this contract signed, and you can retire for the night. We'll send a copy of the contract to you tomorrow, and start interviewing for managers. You can be involved in that as much as you wish, though we'll obviously have the final say." In fact, that was probably going to go for pretty much everything from now on. The Gems would rely on the manager to keep them informed about what was going on with the band, and they'd have intermediaries doing the actual running of the company that would produce her album. Suddenly, Sapphire felt strong muscular arms encircle her waist. "There you are," came Chris Hemsevans' unique accent. "Didn't you promise that I could buy you one more drink?" Sapphire looked back and winked at him. "Just taking care of some business. I think I'll have to let you buy me that drink another time--perhaps when it's not my alcohol you'd be buying for me." She glanced over at Ammi. "But here is a young woman who I'm sure would like to chat with you. This is Ammi Wolfstar. Ammi, I believe you know Chris Hemsevans." She shooed them away. "Go have fun. Party's still going."

Sapphire kept a straight face as Emerald made their offer. The Blood Gems knew talent when they saw it--and with talent came credits. Lots and lots of credits. While Emerald sold the girl and her two droids on the idea, Sapphire had pulled out her datapad and was busy setting up accounts and familiarizing herself with the galactic music entertainment industry. She also ran a query into band names; this one would need a new, flashier moniker that reflected their new ownership while still keeping ties to their old fanbase. Finally, she pulled up a standard contract, based on one used when a band signed to a record label. Once that was finished, she raised her deep blue eyes to see the girl speechless, tears of joy glistening in her eyes. Sapphire smiled broadly. Got her. "Have room for a Sapphire on your team?" the woman--whom Sapphire had discovered was named Ammi--asked with a smile. Sapphire raised her chin. "I'm afraid not. One Sapphire is about all these other two can handle." She flashed a smile at Emerald and Ruby, then approached Ammi, holding out the contract. "If you'll sign here, we'll make it official." She handed Ammi a stylus. "I'll put in some calls tomorrow about hiring you a manager. For now, take the week off. I'm sure that signing bonus will cover your expenses for a few days while we set things up for you. I think since you've already been doing some touring, we'll have you start with recording a new single. You'll go on tour to promote yourself for a few months, then it's back to the studio for you. We'll need to get your album out quickly." Ammi would find nothing out of ordinary in the contract. It was strict, but then, that was the nature of a recording contract. It stated that the band's royalties would be 15%, which was generous for a small time start up like the Galaxy GlobeTrotters, based on the wholesale price of the album, with a 15% packaging and promotion charge. There was a list of a variety of touring and promotion costs that would be considered recoupable. The manager the Gems hired would receive 20% of the royalties. For the first album, the contract stated the GlobeTrotters could receive an advance against royalties if they chose. "One more thing," Sapphire added. "I think you'll need a name change. I'm thinking you'll be: Corusca and the GalaxyTrotters." She reached into her purse and pulled out a pair of teardrop corusca gem earrings, set in silver. "What do you think?Corusca?" she asked, clearly ready to hand the girl the earrings if she chose to accept the name and sign the deal.

The band that was playing was actually quite good, thought Sapphire had never heard of them. The strange part, though, was that Emerald and Ruby both seemed to know nothing about them. The idea that someone was crashing their party was not a welcome one, but the three pirates traded glances, and Emerald spoke for all of them when she called the stage manager up. Sapphire pursed her lips. If they were going to interrogate a singer, she was going to need a drink. While the manager and Tarvil headed off to find the girl, Sapphire rose and headed over to the bar. As she reached it, though, a serving droid bumped into her and made a grab for her comlink--quite a display, since her dress had no pockets and her comlink was hidden in the neckline of her dress. If it had been an organic, Sapphire would have probably blasted it right then and there, but the fact that it was a droid made her eyebrows go up. It's mission complete, the droid went back to serving drinks. The pirate turned thoughtfully to the bar. She recognized the effects of a malicious bit of programming when she saw it. That meant that a hacker had jacked into the droid's system to plant it. She was sure that it wasn't just some weird pervert trying to electronically feel her up--though the thought did cross her mind. No, this was more targeted, more specific. She got the feeling that when she checked her comlink, much would be revealed. But now was not the time. The party would be over in a few hours; the messenger could wait until dawn. Grabbing her drink, she headed back and rejoined the other Blood Gems just as Tarvil came up with the Galaxy GlobeTrotters. It would be interesting to see what they had to say for themselves. Sapphire took a seat, lounging back in it, letting Emerald take the lead. *** As the woman continued to chatter, Tarvil merely nodded, not answering any of her questions directly. "Yes, they employ only the best...yes, the event is going very well...yes, they are quite popular..." He was gracious and charming, but he clearly meant business as he escorted the woman up to the Gems. "The leader of the band that just played, as you requested," he said as he pushed her gently forward, taking up a protective stance a bit behind Ammi and to the right, his hand still resting gently on his blaster. There were several other security personelle nearby in case they were needed.

Unaware of what was occurring backstage, Sapphire sat merely enjoying the music, the drinks, and the company. The band she had hired was playing some of her favorite tunes--Borleian Rhapsody was an absolute classic, and who didn't like Don't Cease Trustin' or Carry On My Wayward Selonian--and they were frankly pretty good. Certainly their lead singer could really sing, and he was extremely easy on the eyes. Sapphire had heard that his hair wasn't just dyed all those colors, but that he actually was a Firrerreo, which made him rare and therefore immediately more interesting. It was part of the reason she had hired them. That, and the fact that they had recently won a large battle of the bands competition. But frankly, the most important thing to Sapphire was that their guests were having a good time, and judging by the cheers and the number of people dancing, it looked like that was certainly happening. A waiter set down a drink in front of her. "Compliments of that man over there," he said. Sapphire was about to protest--after all, they had made it very clear there was to be none of that sort of power play tonight by any guests--but then she caught sight of the man. It was that sleemo Jalos. She eyed the drink, a shot of something that was on fire, then poured it down her throat. Rising, she made her way over to the garage boss. "Hey there baby," he crooned. "You're looking mighty fine tonight." She gave him an icy blue stare. "You'd better be here with news about the Glory." "Ooh, chilly tonight, are we? Maybe we oughta do something to get your blood moving." "My ship, you hutt-spawn." Jalos laughed. "Wait 'til you see her. She's spotless. Me and my boys have been putting in extra time and extra effort, all for you, darlin'." Sapphire sized the man up. He was pitiful, really, but her pity was overwhelmed by scorn. Normally she didn't mind paying him to do the job right, even if it meant a night of him slobbering all over her, but to have him show up now, in her moment of triumph, to a party he hadn't been invited to, made her blood boil. By morning, she'd own his garage, she decided. She'd get all his men to work directly for her, and cut him out of the picture completely. She loathed that he had even a little bit of power over her, and now it was time to end that. He had stepped close to her, his hand slipping up the slit of her dress to cup the inside of her thigh, his lecherous eyes resting boldy on the edges of the plunging neckline of the dress she was wearing. She grabbed his chin and pulled his eyes up to meet hers, then gave him a wide, cold, predatory smile. "I'll be by to pick it up tomorrow," she said. "Now get out of here." A snap of her fingers, and security immediately rushed up to escort Jalos off the premises. Sapphire ran a hand through her long red curls, then headed back to the table. "The Glory is done," was all she said in reply to Emerald's questioning look, knowing her friend understood. The pirate pulled out a small datapad from her clutch and left herself a reminder to take over the scum's garage later. That would be fun. Even the thought of it erased the black spot Jalos' unwelcome interruption had placed on her evening. The band had finished playing, and the stage crew was busy setting up the next performance. Sapphire smiled at Emerald, knowing it was her fellow pirate's time to show off what she had arranged for the evening, then turned her attention to the stage. ___ Meanwhile, backstage, the manager glanced at his datapad. "Why didn't anyone tell me? Forget it, just get out there now! We need 8 standard minutes to finish set up, so you can play whatever you like until then, and then you gotta play the opening number for the act. Rylin told you about that one, I'm sure, so you're all set for that, right? Right. Okay, get out there now! We're already thirty seconds behind!" He bustled off, leaving any of the GlobeTrotters' other questions unanswered.

The best food, the best drinks, and the best entertainment Nar Shaddaa could offer were all on display at the Gems’ banquet. It was a combination celebration and power play. Sapphire had always loved those kinds for the added interest the politics brought to the evening; she blamed her Hapan upbringing. But this was by far the best one she had ever attended, for it was her coronation celebration. She had spent the evening cavorting, making her rounds through the crowd, ensuring her presence was known. She spoke to everyone she could, judging where loyalties lay and who could be roped into doing business with them. It was a fantastic chance to network. Of course, it wasn’t all work. She had disappeared for half an hour with Chris Hemsevans, the Coruscanti actor who had happened to be on location shooting a new holofilm in his wildly successful series of superhero/martial arts films. And afterwards she had been seen dancing with Beishliggit Cusandberatch, the infamous crime boss of the Duros Sector on Nar Shaddaa. As it got later, however, she ended up at the table with her fellow Gems, relaxing and drinking and eating some decadent thing made of chocolate that was completely over the top. She was amused by Emerald’s clear preference for Tarvil, but besides having given her friend a wink as she sat down comfortably in his lap, Sapphire made no comment. The conversation suddenly turned away from trivialities and onto a more serious topic. The three Gems had talked it over a lot this past week. While Ruby staying and managing things here made the most logical sense, Sapphire always hated splitting up the team. “Just means you’ll probably see more of all three of us,” she commented. “I doubt Em and I will be gone for extended periods of time with Ruby still here. Someone has to make sure she doesn’t blow up the entire moon.” As if summoned, an explosion rent the air. But it was just the start of the fireworks announcing that the show was about to start. Sapphire chuckled. “As if we needed further proof of Ruby’s proclivity for pyrotechnics…” She watched the fireworks with appreciation, knowing the Chiss had had a direct hand in planning it--whereas the stage show that followed was all Emerald’s work. The three pirates had been tight-lipped about their parts of the festivities, and the surprise was as much for each other as for their guests. Sapphire couldn’t wait to see what the other two had up their sleeves.

Sapphire kept a straight face as Dorjoola slithered away, followed by his cronies. Once they were gone, she and Ruby headed over to where Emerald and Tarvil were standing next to the medical droid and the Tank's body. Emerald was beaten badly, but was standing on her own, so Sapphire knew it looked worse than it was. She smiled at her friend, then turned to the droid. "Did you give him the new drug?" she asked it. "Affirmative. When he awakes, he will have no memory from the past ten years of his life." "Good," she replied, slipping the new I.D.s she had made for the Trandoshan into his pockets. One of Tarvil's men would dump him on some random world far outside Hutt Space, and that would be the end of him. Sapphire had toyed with simply killing him, but in the end, they had agreed that they didn't want to risk any heat coming on Emerald, even if she was sure they could get her off on a plea of self-defense. It was just tidier this way. Taking out her weapon, she blasted the med droid, shattering it's processors and turning it into scrap. That was the last of the loose ends, save for Tarvil. The three pirates turned on the man. "Now Tarvil, here's where you come in. We will turn over running of Dorjoola's empire to you, in exchange for your fealty to us. We have little interest in the day-to-day workings of his empire, and you know all about it already. But we will be watching, and we'll expect regular shipments, credits, and access to everything. After all, it is ours." "Ladies," he grinned, "that sounds mighty fine. You have yourselves an agreement." *** The next two weeks was spent mostly cleaning up the business. Dorjoola's death had been faked, and he had slithered in shame off to some filthy Outer Rim world where he could hide in the ashes of his former glory--made even ashier when he discovered that all the money he had gambled on the fight had been with bookies that had all been fakes that Sapphire had set up, making all of his losses end up as a bonus in the Blood Gems' bank accounts. Tarvil had taken over the running of the empire, and he was smart enough to not betray the Gems, which made him quite a decent manager. And the Gems--they were the Pirate Queens of Nar Shaddaa. They had access now to almost unlimited resources. Anything they wanted could be theirs. And for Sapphire, that meant that all her fondest dreams had come true. She had everything she wanted in life, and more.

For a moment, the arena fell completely silent, the cheers dying on the crowd's lips as they realized what had happened. The referee suddenly jumped in the arena. "We need a medical droid, quick!" Squid-Head came to his senses first. "Okay, everybody out! Let's go! Everyone out of here! Fight's over, people! Everybody out, c'mon!" The crowd began to disperse, hurried along by Dorjoola's security teams. A med droid was on the scene now, hovering over the Tank, giving him injections, trying to revive him. Dorjoola was furious. "What the kriff just happened?" "What do you mean what happened!?" Sapphire retorted. "You could have killed her!" "Do you realize how many credits you just cost me? I'm gonna make you pay! We had a deal!" "Excuse me," the droid interrupted. "The fighter is dead. Revival attempts have been unsuccessful." There was a stunned pause. "She killed him." "Wait, are you sure?" Syddro countered. "There's nothing I can do. I've got to call the Hutt Families." Dorjoola blanched. "No! Listen to me. You work for me. Let's just keep this quiet. Don't call the Families." "There were hundreds of witnesses," the droid countered. "And there is a dead body. Protocol insists that the Families be notified." "You worthless piece of tin! The Families didn't sanction this fight. I could be on the hook for millions in liability. This isn't worth it." He started to slither away. "Not so fast, Dorjoola," Sapphire said quietly. "I think we know a way this can all go away." It was time to make their offer.

Things were going okay, until suddenly Emerald took some nasty hits. Sapphire grimaced from the sidelines. She knew Em was going to have to get beaten up, and have to make it look good, but this was ridiculous. How many did she think she needed to take before it was good enough and she could just give in? Something didn't seem right. She caught her fellow pirate's intense green gaze, and it was clouded and hazy. A jolt of alarm went through her and she spun, turning on Syddro. "What did you do?" she cried. "Nothing," the Quarren replied a little too smugly. "Nothing!? Look at her!" "Just making sure you keep your end of the bargain. A little insurance." Sapphire's face went pale. "You didn't," she breathed. "How could you drug her? Ruby, get the med droid." "No need," Syddro said, "she'll be out soon." "You don't get it, do you?" Sapphire retorted, her tone desperate. "Emerald isn't like other fighters! She doesn't play games. She fights to survive; it's her training. It takes all of her control when she fights. By drugging her, you just made her more dangerous! You've taken the safety off the blaster!" There was no reaction from the Quarren. "Look Syddro, if you want to keep the Tank fighting for years to come, you have to end this now!" "And lose the fight? You must be joking. Never," the Quarren replied. "The Tank can still take her." Sapphire's face fell. Come on, Emerald...

"Just making us richer," came Sapphire's voice from the main hall. The red-head strode in, looking pleased with herself, but both the other pirates knew her well enough to see that something was eating at her. "Bets are pouring in for your fight today, Em. Syddro and Dorjoola are being careful, using a variety of different bookies from all over the sector. All of whom have terribly lax computer security, I'm sad to report." She grinned. "When this thing goes down, we'll have a nice little additional income to celebrate with." She glanced at the Chiss. "You got the bottle ready, Ruby? Alright then...it's time." She hesitated, and then did something she rarely did. She walked over and gave Emerald a quick hug. "Good luck." *** The three pirates arrived at the fighting ring right on time. "Alright, Em, make it look good, but not too good, okay? Don't make it go past the second round." They parted, Ruby and Emerald to the warm-up area, and Sapphire to Dorjoola. "Ah, there you are. Are you ready?" Dorjoola couldn't keep the obnoxious gloating grin from his face. Sapphire crossed her arms grumpily. "Let's just get this over with." *** "LAAAADIESS AND GENTLEBEINGS!!! I BRRING YOU, A FIGHT FOR THE AGES! IN ONE CORNER, I give you THE CONTENDER, a Hapan fighter here to show us what she's got. LET'S HEAR IT FOR...EMERALD!" The roar of the crowd was like a krayt dragon eager for a feast of bantha meat. "AND IN THE OTHER CORNER, your LOCAL CHAMPION, the DEALER OF DEATH, the THIEF OF A THOUSAND VIRGINITIES, the ONE, the ONLY, THE TANK!!!" There was the clanging of a bell, and the fight began.

Sapphire shook her head. "No, I'm not giving up. We can think of a way out of this." The trio was silent as they made their way back to their safehouse, taking an extremely circuitous route and backtracking several times to ensure they couldn't be followed. The entire way, Sapphire was thinking. There had to be a way out of this. When they got back to the apartment, she hopped out and headed inside. But she didn't sit down. Instead, she began to pace--back and forth and back and forth. She was frustrated, but she didn't let it get to her. There is a way... She continued to pace for the next twenty minutes, speaking to neither of the others. And suddenly, like a stroke of lightning, she had it. "Ruby! Emerald!" she called out, her voice a little hoarse. "Succinylcholine!" She crossed over to the kitchenette and grabbed herself a glass of water. "Dorjoola is not going to risk trusting us to keep our word. It makes sense that he'll try to drug you, Em, to make sure the Tank wins." She sucked down some water, then held up the glass. "My guess is he'll put it in your water. But two can play that game. What if we snag the drugged one, you pretend you're drugged, and then..." Over the next few minutes, she laid out the entire plan. It would take some acting on both her part and Emerald's, and Ruby would have to be the one to make sure she got Emerald a clean bottle of water. And of course, it all assumed that Dorjoola was going to rig the rigged fight. But this was Nar Shaddaa, and he was a Hutt. There were some things that were almost predictable in the underworld. Sapphire figured it was a safe bet. Another idea struck her. "And a little hacking magic will get us an even bigger payoff in the end."

The Gems rested well that night. Everything seemed to be going fine, and all three were ready to play out the rest of the con. Sapphire dreamed of sitting on a throne in a palace, ruling over the entire planet. Upon waking, she shook her head in wry amusement at her own subconsious; it was ridiculous. But she couldn't deny the allure. Getting ready, she dressed in another business outfit, although she chose a more business casual type this time, wrapping a light scarf around her neck for flair. The three headed out, Emerald and Sapphire in one speeder, with Ruby following behind just in case she was needed. And it turned out to be a good thing too. There was a welcoming party waiting for them. Sapphire's heart dropped, but she didn't let it show on her face as she got out of the speeder. "Good morning, your Huttness," she said cheerfully. "I saw that you're already advertising for our first fight." "Yes, yes Miss Prann," Dorjoola boomed. "Emerald will fight The Tank here." He motioned to a fantastically huge Trandoshan. The Trandoshan hissed and moved a step forward. "Wow," Sapphire replied. "That'll be a big fight." "Indeed," the Hutt rumbled. "Now why don't you bring in the rest of your team and we can stop this charade?" Sapphire's heart sank but her eyebrows went up. "Excuse me?" "I know you're a fraud," he said, getting angry now. "Did you think you could fool the Mighty Dorjoola?" The Tank took a few more steps forward. "Now you'll see how we deal with con people in this part of Nar Shaddaa." The Tank leapt forward. Emerald moved to intercept, but before anyone could throw a punch, Sapphire threw up her hands. "Now, now, now, there's no need for that. With your wisdom, I'm sure we can work out an agreement here without resorting to any unpleasantries." The Hutt considered for a moment. "She," he said, motioning to Emerald, "is not a fraud at least. People do wanna see that fight. So why don't you take on the Tank here? But the problem is that you're favored my dear. So I'm going to need you to lose. Take the dive. Make it look good, but lose big. I'll bet everything on the Tank, so it can't look like a fixed fight. You do that, we part ways and never see each other again."

The comm from Emerald was exactly what the pirates were waiting for. "I never doubted you for a second, Em," Sapphire returned over the comm. A few keystokes showed her the transfer had been completed. "The Gems are 100,000 credits richer. Meet you at Grindel's Cafe in fifteen." Ruby and Sapphire hadn't been idle while Emerald was wheedling the Hutt. Ruby was busy getting everything in place for the rest of the plan, including purchasing the remaining supplies. Sapphire had worked on her newest disguise, dyeing her hair black, dressing in a boring stiff suit and sharp black heels, and using makeup to change the contouring of her face in order to hide facial recognition software. Ruby would be on comms in case she needed to make a realistic call, but Sapphire didn't think it likely. After all, Dorjoola was already hooked; she simply had to close the deal. It was a short walk to Grindel's, and Emerald was there to pick her up right on time. The two made their way to a higher class establishment, and Sapphire got a table in a private room while Emerald headed off to bring the Hutt. --- Lieyhra chuckled. "You know, you're actually quite mercenary," she told Dorjoola. "It might be more interesting to work with you than the Chiss, that's for sure. But it's a no from me." "I'm not saying that the Chiss lied to you, Miss Prann," the Hutt rumbled, waving a chicken wing around in his hand as he spoke. "I'm just saying that she doesn't have the product she said she did." Lieyhra shook her head. "What are you saying?" "She's trying to steal my fighters. Which means she can't give you what you need for your show." She appraised him. "Emerald told you about all that, huh? Fine, so you know my network is looking for a new fighting show, to air primetime on Sleheyron and then into the rest of the cluster. Add pay-per-view on top of that and we have one happy bunch of shareholders. If what you're saying is true...what would you want?" He gulped down the chicken and wiped his mouth with the back of a flabby hand while Sapphire attempted not to gag. "You don't need her. She's the middleman. You need me, and my fighters." She let a smile cross her face. "I'm sorry, your Huttness. The Chiss is paying half my production costs up front." "How much do you spend on a show like this?" "500,000 credits. And that, let me assure you, gets you the best." "And the return?" Her eyes glittered brightly. "My company gets full profits from the pay-per-views. With the Chiss' fights, we'll start off small, say 10 credits a fight." He pursed his lips. "That's a quarter of what the companies here on Nar Shaddaa charge." "Well, you need to stay competitive in this business," she shrugged. "My company estimates we'll get about 500,000 views, conservative." The Hutt actually looked astonished. "That's 5 million credits. Is that per year?" She laughed lightly. "No, your Huttness, don't be ridiculous. That's per event. And we do maybe 5, 6 of those a year." "Let me get this straight," one of the Hutt's cronies piped up. "You spend 500,000 credits to make 5 million?" "It's called deficit financing," she returned coolly. "It's how the Holonet entertainment industry works." The numbers were real; Sapphire had done her homework. It might be not a bad arena for them to get into sometime for real, she mused briefly. The pay certainly was good. Dorjoola leaned forward. "I want in. All you need is product, and I have that in spades. What would you say if I covered 100% of your up front production costs?" "I have an agreement with the Chiss." "She tried to steal my fighters, but I just stole her best one. I've got her slotted for a fight already. You and I think alike. We're both interested in profits, and in playing the game." He let out a belch. "I'll get you the money as soon as you bring me the paperwork." She hesitated, but only for a moment. "Alright then," she said with a predatory smile. "I'll send the paperwork to you within the hour." --- Once the Hutt had left, Sapphire stood and headed out herself. Dorjoola had bought in faster than she had expected; he must really be desperate, she mused. Still, with caution and some good luck, this would all be wrapped up in the next day or two, and the Blood Gems would come out the victors.

Dorjoola chuckled. He waved a massive hand. “You see all those men out there?” He pointed down to the fighting arena Emerald had been scoping out earlier. “They're pieces of meat. Like nerfs raised for slaughter. But they come to my gym every night 'cause they think if they work hard enough and fight hard enough that they can make it in the big leagues. Top fighting rings, and not just here on Nar Shaddaa. We're talking galactic circuit. And energy drink contracts. And no more working day in and day out, just fighting and women and money. And that's the dream I sell them. They listen to me because I can take that dream away. Now, you, you're different. You fight like something's tryin' to get out of you. Always have.” He leaned forward. “Listen,” he said, drool leaking out of the corner of his mouth. “How much do you owe the Chiss? You can tell me, girl. I’m here to help. Whatever it is, I’ll pay it off if you come and fight for me instead. But you have to do one thing for me.” He put a heavy arm around her shoulders conspiratorially. “Bring me this reality holonet producer before you take her to the Chiss.”

Several more goons suddenly came out of nowhere and formed a tight ring around Emerald. "Please, Miss Ta'ara, don't try anything. There's no need for further violence. I'm sure we can work out an arrangement here that will be mutually beneficial. Please allow my men to escort you, and we'll have a civilized discussion." The goons escorted Emerald back the way she had come. Opening a side door, they slipped her inside. Several familiar faces were waiting for her, including Tarvil, Syddro, and, of course, the Hutt himself. "So, Emerald Ta'ara," Dorjoola boomed. "It seems your fighting skills have not degenerated. We saw you lurking around here earlier. What is a pirate like yourself doing here? And why were you talking with that Chiss who robbed me of a bucket full of credits?"

It had taken a lot of convincing for Ruby to leave behind her personal arsenal and settle with a heavily modified repeater rifle. Sapphire could hear her grumbling about it under her breath almost the entire way to Dorjoola's palace. But both pirates knew it was the right step. Sapphire resisted the urge to go over the plan again and instead focused on making sure everything was in place. This was the easy part of the job, actually. They pulled up right on time, and Ruby strode out, Sapphire staying behind as the chauffeur, a cap low over her face, her hair tucked up, and a fake Kiffar tattoo adorning her skin. She'd listen on comms the entire way. --- Ruby made her way casually into the fighting arena where she was meeting the Hutt. Dorjoola was already there, so she slipped in off to the side and acted as though she had been there for a while. "C'mon pick it up!" she called to one of the fighters who was warming up with another. "Looking lazy out there!" Doojoola's attention fell on her, and he slithered over, his majordomo in tow. She greeted him cockily. "Hey there, my slithery friend! You bring my credits?" He sized her up. "What did you say you were doing on Nar Shaddaa again, Miss Wells?" "Business," she answered casually. "And what business is that?" "Well, right now, betting against Hutts is being pretty profitable," she teased. "Am I right?" He gave her a cold smile. "I guess you are." "Is that my money?" she asked, pointing to a bag of credit chits Syddro was holding. "Yes, this would be yours." He motioned, and Syddro handed the bag to her. She opened it, glanced in, then gave a satisfied smile. "Have a good day, Miss Wells." The Hutt's tone was as icy as Sapphire had ever heard it. Ruby just gave a cocky smile and sauntered away. The Hutt and Quarren turned and disappeared into an office off the main training area. Meanwhile, Ruby meandered over to where Emerald was working with a punching bag and began talking with her. Emerald had chosen her bag well--it was right in view of a security camera. --- While Ruby and Emerald staged their conversation, Sapphire was at work monitoring the security systems. She flicked on the camera in Dorjoola's office once the Hutt disappeared into it, and listened in. There was some disgruntled talk between them, and then suddenly the Quarren caught sight of Ruby and Emerald on the security monitors. He pointed it out to Dorjoola. "Look who's still here." Dorjoola examined the scene. "Do you want me to go see what Wells is doing? Keep an eye on her?" Syddro asked. "No," Dorjoola rumbled after a moment. "Keep your eye on that one--the fighter. Something about her looks familiar. Forget about Wells." Sapphire grinned. Everything was going perfect. --- A few minutes later, Ruby came strolling back to the speeder and climbed in. "Great job," Sapphire greeted her. "They're focused on Emerald. So far, so good." They took off and started a broad meandering course that would take them all through the area. Sapphire slid over and exchanged seats with Ruby, who took over driving. She then began to flick through traffic cams and other security monitoring devices. If things went as planned, they'd be able to record Emerald being "tried out" for Dorjoola's fighting ring.

By the time Emerald made it back to the apartment, Sapphire had already finished washing the blonde hair coloring out of her hair and was toweling off her red locks. "There you are!" she exclaimed. "I was starting to worry Dorjoola had picked you up too early. Everything is ready for tomorrow. Ruby will show up around 1100 hours local time, so you need to be in the fighting area before that. Remember: you're looking for talent for my new fighting holoshow. You'll have a staged conversation with Ruby, then when Dorjoola gets suspicious, you tell him all about me and my show and what you're doing." Sapphire flashed a brilliant white smile. "And it'll be easy from there. There's one thing you can always count on with Hutts, and that's greed." The next morning was sultry hot. Sapphire was almost glad she didn't have much of a role to play today. She got to stay behind in the temperature regulated apartment and keep an eye on things through the Gems' comms. Ruby's part wouldn't be big either--today rode almost exclusively on Emerald's shoulders. But Sapphire was confident that her fellow pirate was up for the job. She gave her friend a playful shove out the door around an hour before Ruby was due to follow. "Just get him to see little credit signs dancing before his eyes, and all will be well. And remember I'm listening in, so if you need backup, just say something about those blood diamonds we picked up on Ryloth."