The Town of Protection

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Centurio
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The Town of Protection

Post by Archangel »

[OoC: OoC Thread]

Arelim Seron stood stock-still in the deserts of Tatooine. Before him lay the vastnesses of the sands that were called the Dune Sea. He slowly raised his rifle, taking careful aim on his target. It was at least five hundred meters away. He sighted the target, and pin-pointed his aim with a laser. The scope gave a magnification of roughly twenty times, and the laser was targeted on the subject's head.

With relative ease, he pulled the trigger. The target dropped like a stone.

Strapping his rifle back onto his back, Arelim muttered, "The fool should have kept running..."

He turned back to the establishment formerly behind him. It was a large building, with several speeders parked out front. There didn't appear to be anything else in the area, but Arelim knew better. This place was a haven for the galaxy's scum ... and he kept people like bounty hunters away.

The "scum" consisted mostly of criminals running from the authorities, but also of people wrongly accused - these he preferred. It had a shuttle area hidden with a blanket, covered in sand. Many homes were made of "doors" covered by sands in the ground, and a few in the nearby cliffs. The building was a mix between the tavern and the town hall. It was also Arelim's house, which helped make it have the appearance of a private estate.

He walked up to the door and entered, only to be greeted by a bar brawl. He sighed and pulled his blaster from its holster. Pointing into the air, he fired.

The fighting immediately stopped and the patrons fell sheepishly into their original places around the tables and bars.

Arelim glanced upward. "Look at that ... I just blasted a hole in my ceiling to shut you fools up." Those closest to him tried to put on an innocent look. Arelim looked back at the patrons, his loathing evident on his face. "You know the rules. Those who fight, take flight." He smiled, completely absent of joy. "In less ... creative words, those who start fights get no protection here." His smile dissipated as he looked around, then spoke again. "So who started it?"

Many didn't remember, but most desperately tried to pawn it off as the guy next to him. Some of the crowd was slightly more honorable than the rest, and Arelim had spent enough time there to know exactly which would tell the truth. He walked right up to the culprit.

The man, a rapist, tried, like the others, to put on an innocent face. "Look, Cap'n, it weren't me! It was ... uh ... Joe!"

Arelim looked at the man in question, who wore a business suit and hadn't participated in any fighting in the first place. Joe had come here for protection from Vorga the Hutt, as he'd once been his accountant, but had slipped a little money out of Vorga's pay. Joe raised his eyebrow at the first man, then returned to his drink.

Arelim smiled at the criminal. "I doubt it." He reached out quickly and grabbed the man's collar.

The man tried a more pleasing tone. "No no, please, no! It'll never happen again, promise! Please, no! Don't do it, Cap'n!" His begging continued as Arelim dragged him towards the door, but everyone else had already returned to their drinks and food, having virtually forgotten the incident.

Arelim threw the man bodily from the building, and he landed heavily on the dirt, face-down. Arelim spoke loud enough for everyone to hear. "You, Nanik Mul, bounty of ten thousand credits, are henceforth banned from the town of Protection, under pain of death."

The man tried to crawl back to grovel at Arelim's feet, but the infamous DL-6H was pointed at his head. "I guess I better say that in terms you can understand ... Get out, you snivelling pile of womp droppings, and come back when you have a death wish!"

The man gulped visibly, and stood up. He started towards his home, but Arelim shot the ground in front of him. "Did I tell you to get your things? Begone!" He swallowed again, and turned in the general direction of Mos Eisley. He ran as fast as he could.

Arelim turned to find the "citizens" of the town staring at him. "What are you people staring at!? Get back to your drinks!"

They, too, moved as quickly as possible as they scurried back to their various tables and barstools.

Arelim sat down at a booth in the corner and waved to the bartender. He quickly brought a Corellian whiskey over. Arelim nodded at him and he went back to the bar.

Arelim thoughts strayed as he drank the normally intoxicating liquid. After leaving Lidrad for the last time, several prosperous "white collar criminals" approached him with the proposition of the town of Protection. Arelim agreed, but only because the Knights of Piracy wouldn't have him back after his actions against the Empire and the Hutts.

They bought some construction droids which quickly built in the "houses" for the "clients", and, within a week, it was completed. Within two months, over one hundred criminals - not clients - had come to the town and built similar homes in the sands behind Arelim's house. Arelim, with money from those who offered the deal, had built a bar within the main hall of his home, and moved all his things to the upper floor rooms.

He had enforced rules the second the first criminal walked in the door. Most criminals that came here were murderers, rapists, thieves, and other general scum that didn't think they could survive a fight with large-time bounty hunters. What they probably didn't realize was that, not only did Arelim have a bounty on his own head, but none of them had bounties large enough to give the large-time bounty hunters enough for the time and effort it would take to travel to Tatooine just to kill them.

He hated the life, but at least he got to take out his pent-up anger on bounty hunters.
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Post by Jagtai »

(OOC: Let me know if you want me change anything)

The desert sand swirled about it, as the light freighter sat down, about half a mile from Protection. It came to a halt on top of a stone formation flanked by several smaller cliffs, where it would be relatively safe from the ravages of the sandstorms.

The front end of a ramp detached from the bottom of the freighter, and moved down until it hit the ground. A Zabrak wearing a black combat suit walked down the ramp. He wore two Kylan-3 heavy blaster pistols, and carried a blaster carbine on his back.

He retrieved a modified speeder bike from the cargo area, and then punched in a code, closing the ramp. He walked over the speeder bike, punched in a code, and jumped onto it.

Ten minutes later, he parked the speeder bike in front of the local tavern, and entered the building. He ignored the frightened looks as he found an empty booth - most criminals from Tatooine knew him by reputation, even if he hadn't retrieved any bounties in the last few years. Putting his carbine on the table, he sat back and allowed himself to relax a bit.

Jag'Tai Vroenik had heard of the town of Protection through an old contact. Eager for adventure, he had decided to visit Protection. If all went well, he might earn some money working as a deputy. If all else failed, he'd earn a few thousand credits bringing in bounties. He smiled. It was a win-win situation.
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Post by Archangel »

Arelim watched the Zabrak enter with some consternation; why Jag'Tai Vroenik would come to the Town of Protection he did not know. In any case, he resolved to discern this reasoning; he stood and walked towards the Zabrak, nodding his head in respectful greeting. "I'm Arelim Seron, owner of this establishment. How might I assist you ... ?"

Of course he could have addressed the bounty hunter by name, but if the other wanted to use an alias or some similar alter ego or persona, he had the right to do so. Naturally, Arelim had no control over any of his "patrons" revealing the Iridonian's identity, but he alone might at least give the man the benefit of the doubt.
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Post by Jagtai »

Jag'Tai studied Seron for a moment. He had heard of this man. He had also heard of the bounty on his head. He smiled.

"I don't quite know, Mr. Seron. I heard of this unique place, and thought I might pay a visit." He pushed the carbine a bit further away, to indicate that he had no hostile intentions, and added: "After all, one never knows if the mayor might need a helping hand."

He motioned for Arelim to sit down, as he said: "The name is Jagol. Jagol Vronk."

Jag'Tai had used the alias Jagol Vronk before. Vronk was known as a smalltime smuggler, who had fallen out of favor with Gadulla the Hutt, and forced to flee Tatooine. Jag'Tai had paid many credits for that alias, with the blessing of Gadulla, his former employer.
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Post by Archangel »

Arelim smiled; he was not exactly unknown either. He sat down with a second nod of respect to the Zabrak - "Jagol". He figured it was only a matter of time before someone in the town, unaware of the situation, revealed his true identity, but it would not bother Arelim in the least. The only person Arelim did not want out of his town was himself, and there were bigger fish to fry than his own head. "Well," Arelim replied, "I must admit that some of these people are becoming a bit of a handful ... especially the ones who really don't need to be here. The murderers and whatnot. All that to say, I could probably use you, if only as a rough-looking face to scare the 'citizens' into submission. Unless a bounty hunter's miracle happens and word gets out about this place." Arelim chuckled lightheartedly. If Jag'Tai Vroenik - aka, Jagol Vronk - had wanted to shoot him, he would have done it already. Now, he could relax.
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Post by Jagtai »

Jag'Tai nodded, a smile lurking in his golden eyes.

"Excellent. And I wouldn't worry too much about bounty hunters - most likely not worth the trouble."

Jag'Tai knew that the statement was a bit of an oxymoron - after all, he had found it worth the trouble, even if the bounties were not his primary concern. He leaned backwards, still keeping the carbine within reach, and smiled to Seron.

"Shall we discuss payment and duties, then?"
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Post by Archangel »

Arelim smiled thinly. "Well, payment's going to be slim, if you can stand it. I get payed pretty decently, but splitting it is going to cut it down rather drastically, you understand. Regardless, I figure we would split it 60-40, in my favor, naturally. Duties would be keeping the peace on a general level. If you want to know to what extent, it's really quite simple: kill or run off bounty hunters, whichever is faster; exile anyone who disrupts the peace, including minor bar fights and domestic violence (not that any of these morons has a spouse, but one might someday, so it's worth mentioning). If you ever forget, any one of these scumbags can explain my rules to you. And if you're not enforcing these rules, they apply to you, too,," he explained. He could have warned against collecting a bounty on any of the "citizens", but he figured he'd let the Zabrak get a sense of confidence about his alias, just in case the time came to kill him.

[OoC: Sorry I took so long; I sort of didn't notice your post until recently.]
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Post by Jagtai »

Jag'Tai nodded.

"Sounds good. But I need a place to stay; any suggestions?"

He smiled. He was well aware that Arelim knew who he was - Jag'Tai was too well known on Tatooine to hide for long - but the fact that Arelim seemed relaxed around him told Jag'Tai that he didn't have to fear betrayal - from that side, at least.

"And do I need a badge, or do you just announce that I am the new deputy?"
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Post by Archangel »

A place to stay; the thought had occurred to Arelim, and he was desperately trying to figure out an answer. He could not trust a renowned bounty hunter to stay in his own home. "There is a recently vacated home," he said slowly, deliberately, "It even still has furniture in it. It's not far from here, Jezzik can show you the way. As for your position, it will become apparent to this scum as time goes on. There's not much effort in the task, anyway."

Arelim motioned to Jezzik, a thin Jin, from one of the Zchtek worlds of the Mid Rim. Reptilian, dark green skin, short-snouted, with an extremely thin body, Jezzik's large purple eyes betrayed a skill of observation atypical among even his own species, not to mention his oddly exceptional hearing, which was uncommon to any species. This led to his profession of mercenary spy, which got him on the wrong side of half the governments in the Galaxy. He moved to Protection as soon as he heard about it and began working as a snitch and observer for Arelim. He bowed to the Zabrak. "If you'll follow me, sir," he said, his voice thin and nasally.
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Post by Jagtai »

Jag'Tai rose, bid Arelim farewell, and followed Jezzik.

He had recognized the Jin almost immediately. Even though Jag'Tai hadn't been very active since the founding of Draconis Inc., he had kept up with the bounties posted, and noted who had collected the bounties. Jezzik had a large price on his head.

He smiled. He could easily knock out the Jin and take him to the Scream, and then go collect the bounty. But he wasn't inclined to. Jag'Tai felt...happy. He had always gone after criminals, and the Jin wasn't a true criminal in his eyes. So the thought left his mind, almost as soon as it had entered it.

Jezzik led him to a small house on the outskirts of the town, and handed him the keycard. "Will there be anything else?" Jag'Tai shook his head, and watched the Jin turn and leave. With a smile, he unlocked the door and entered, the carbine in his hand. The house was empty as expected.

After going through the house and discarding what he didn't want, he locked the door, and settled in a chair. Soon, a soft snoring could be heard from within...
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Post by Archangel »

Jezzik returned soon after taking the bounty hunter away, and Arelim spoke to him in hushed tones, nonchalant. "If anyone disappears, let me know immediately - and keep an eye on 'Jagol'. We never know when things might get ugly," he told the other, who nodded. It would be a simple endeavor for the talented Jin. Arelim was not taking any chances.

He left the cantina and looked skyward; sometimes, it let him blow off steam, and recently, his "citizens" had been a bit of a handful. Suddenly, a daunting solution appeared before his very eyes: a decent enemy had a way of uniting people. Arelim returned to the cantina; the owner of the ship and construction system would probably be asking questions soon, and he had thinking to do before then.
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Post by EchoesIE »

Zaren thought the place a little better than first suspected, it wasn't the pinnacle of galactic luxury, but it was very livable. Zaren had always been a larger than normal Zabrak, hovering just about 6'5 and 300 pounds. Always a sucker for a black suit with casual grey pinstripes, he was also fond of large cigars hanging from his right lip.

Zaren immediately noticed that this 'cantina' was built more like a house, and there was a small group of members in the front room. Zaren noticed them notice him, took a long draw on his thick cigar, exhaled in a cloud of smoke and advanced upon the crowd.

Without much fluff or introduction, Zaren stated simply in his deep voice, "Whose in charge around here, And where might I find this character?"

Typically this would warrent a barrage of questioning from normal folks, but, Zaren was already intimidating enough he thought, and was rarely asked who he was. Zaren hoped this was one of the cases.

OOC: Your turn Arch =)
"When you come to a fork in the road, take it." - Yogi Berra
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Post by Archangel »

Several of the patrons gulped, but none answered. Then again, they did not have to. Arelim glanced up from the bar. "That'd be me," he stated matter-of-factly, as if he had no clue what sort of man he was addressing. "How can I help you?"

He quickly gauged the firepower and abilities of of the man; his natural assumption was that there were more outside. Whoever this guy was, he was well-funded. It might be better to negotiate before resorting to more drastic measures...
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Post by EchoesIE »

Zaren sized up the man who answered him, he determined if this guy was for real, or just some drunk looking for a joke. Zaren had seen an infinite number of drunks around, and could differentiate between a drunk, high or normal man almost instantly. And while this fellow had more than likely had some sort of drink as of late, he wasn't drunk. Zaren nodded, stepped forward to meet the man, but kept his hands to himself.

Zaren leaned towards the man, and whispered quickly, “Can we get to somewhere a bit more private?” Not knowing what the mans reaction would be, Zaren took a step back, took a long draw on his cigar before holding his hands on front of him, showing that he wanted no danger. He waited eagerly for the response.
"When you come to a fork in the road, take it." - Yogi Berra
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Post by Archangel »

[OOC: I'll assume you meant that I'm not drunk. ;)]

Arelim's mouth curled upwards at one side in a thin smile. He jerked his head toward the stairs. "Come with me," he said softly. He led the man over to the stairs and then up them, into his living space. They were greeted first with his office, where most patrons could find him when he was not in the bar or on patrol. "What is it you want to talk about?" he asked.

The Zabrak looked a bit too menacing for the administrator's tastes. It put him a bit on edge, so that when he leaned against the front of his desk, he placed his hands not on the desk's surface, but on his belt, close enough to his blaster to make good use of it in an emergency.
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Post by EchoesIE »

OOC: Perhaps a bit of a misunderstanding Arch, Zaren is alone...the group I referred to when I walked in was just a bunch of NPC's that I assume hang around the cantina. Just letting ya know ;)

IC:
"You may or not recognize the name." Zaren started, "if you don't, thats ok, because shortly you will learn to love it. I am the head of CSCO, a rather shady group, but I figured I'd fit right in here with you." Zaren smirked, looked about this new room. He took the last long drag on his cigar before pulling it out of his mouth and held the butt in his hands for a second, he looked at the man quizically, silently asking him where a trash was.

"I came here to Tatooine from a place that doesn't matter. What does matter is that," Zaren hesitated, "I could use, your, uhm, services. I'm sure that we could work out a fruitful deal for the both of us if you allow me to explain." Zaren smirked again, then looked at the man, asking both for the trash, and a place to sit and discuss a possible partnership.
"When you come to a fork in the road, take it." - Yogi Berra
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Post by Archangel »

[OOC: Ah, well, I guess we're even. But it's too late for me to edit. I just assumed you wouldn't come alone. Being mortal, and all. Plus, you never introduced yourself, so I can't recognize a name I haven't heard. Unless you meant "CSCO".]

Arelim held up his hand as if to catch something thrown to him; understanding the gesture, the Zabrak tossed his cigar butt, hardly moving to do so. Arelim caught it and dropped it in a temporary bin at the side of his desk. Arelim also understood the intent to sit; he moved around the desk and sat in his own chair, motioning for the Zabrak to sit across from him. "Why don't you take a seat," he said, not really asking. "I'm Arelim Seron," he introduced himself, not extending a hand or making any other traditional greeting.

Arelim relaxed for a moment, but spoke again before the Zabrak could begin. "So, the CSCO, huh? Yeah, that means nothing to me. Shady or otherwise, this town has been out of the loop for a while now, and that means I don't have a single clue who you are, or what you could possibly want with the citizens of Protection," he said clearly. He knew he was taking a risk by challenging the large Zabrak in such a way, but he was a no-nonsense kind of guy, and he wanted to make that exceedingly clear. Regardless, he expected the same from a man like the one before him. "So, if you could begin with your name and what exactly you want from me, I would appreciate it."
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Post by EchoesIE »

Zaren chuckled as only a man of his stature could, a deep roar that could be taken as a warcry in the wrong circumstances. Zaren seized the seat, twisted it slightly and fell down onto the cushioned base. Without hesitation he began:

"Ah, yes, my name. Name's are important these days no? Always have been I suppose." Zaren paused for a second, reached deep inside of the pin striped suit, smiled at the man across from him, trying to assure him all would be safe. Out of the pocket came a little red box, Zaren quickly pulled back the tab, revealing a half dozen of the finest cigars he could get his greedy, grabbing, giant hands on. He took a second in choosing one, then offered the box to his counterpart.

"Only the best cigars, after having the best, its hard to go for the cheap stuff. The names Zaren Creyton, Mister Creyton to you if you don't mind Mister Seron. " Zaren was a business man to the last, and he thought he was a fine one at that, "and thats all you need to know at this moment. Upon arriving at a location not far from your little civilization hub here, I realized that my project was going to take longer than expected. So, I'll cut the extra talk and say this. I need you, your citizens, and your other various supplies to help me build my little endeavor. Wages can be worked out, but, does this sort of thing interest you? Of course, you will be under my power while working for me."
"When you come to a fork in the road, take it." - Yogi Berra
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Post by Archangel »

Arelim smiled and waved off the offer of a cigar. In the vices Arelim embraced, smoking was not among them. "Well," he replied, taking a moment to consider the proposition, "I admit that it's appealing. These people could use a little work to discipline them, and I would not mind getting rid of the responsibility of keeping them in line for a while. But you must understand, I am not the type to do menial work which droids or clones would be better suited for. If you want to take these people as your workers, feel free to do so, paying them what you would pay your own - but as soon as your pretty structure is finished, they come back here and you don't bother us anymore."

He paused, letting the counter-proposal sink in a bit, then continued, "Mister Creyton, this city is not intended to be a spaceport, like Mos Eisley or Mos Espa, nor is it intended to be a link to civilization for the rural-dwellers, like Anchorhead. This city is intended purely as a haven for those who do not wish to be found. To that end, if you mean to be found, I would ask that you take your business elsewhere." He smiled falsely. "Is there a problem with that, Mister Creyton?"
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Post by EchoesIE »

"So basically, you're running a joint where you, your mates are hiding from the law?" Zaren ran a giant hand around his front horns, they were always kept as shiny as possible, something he took great pride in.

"Here's the deal, I run a not so straight up group of guys too. However, the law will more than likely come across these parts looking for supposed criminals that run around for the CSCO. Of course, none of these people will be here. However, your people don't have any place to run more than likely..." Zaren let his sentence trail off.
"When you come to a fork in the road, take it." - Yogi Berra
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Post by Archangel »

Arelim nodded. "You see, 'hiding from the law' is such an unpleasant turn of phrase, if you know what I mean. I prefer to consider it sanctioned safety. Which I provide for a hefty sum. Now, if this city is found out, then my employers will no doubt be very upset, but they'll just find someplace new. I, on the other hand, will be out of a job and will have to resort to more petty trades, if you will, to earn my keep. Not to mention that my citizens here will be either dead or imprisoned. So, if you don't mind, I would much prefer it if you would simply avoid this section of Tatooine. There's plenty of other open space for ... whatever it is you're building." His false smile stayed put, and he lifted his chin, almost patronizingly, toward the Zabrak. He was surprised at himself; some part of him obviously wanted to show this arrogant alien who was in charge.
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Post by EchoesIE »

OOC: Sorry for the delay, Arch...doggon thing called 'Real life' keeps getting in the way :P.

IC:
Zaren nodded at the man, then slid across the table a tiny piece of yellow paper, on it was his com number. It wasn't a number to his exact com, that would be suicide, but the number was still valid and would go through his hundreds of coders, organizers, scramblers and other various instruments before landing on his desk.

"I'll give you a call in a bit, just to make sure we get this thing cleared up. As for now, I need to go talk to my, associates, about our potential deal. I'll let you know a sap."

Zaren took one long drag of his cigar before nodding his silent thanks to Seron. Zaren spun around in his chair as quickly as someone of his size could, and exited the room the way he entered. He was feeling the urge to make this man agree with him the hard way and under Zaren's own terms. But that, might be a bit more tricky than he had hoped it would be.
"When you come to a fork in the road, take it." - Yogi Berra
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Post by Archangel »

Arelim commed Jezzik, the Jin spy, and said, "Jezzik, would you mind awakening Mr. Jagol Vronk, with my sincerest apologies, and inform him that I would like to speak with him?" The Jezzik replied in the affirmative and Arelim cut the link.

Arelim pulled out a datapad while he waited and reviewed the conversation; it was handy to have a data recorder in his desk for situations like this. To the best that Arelim understood, the CSCO was a criminal organization and this Zabrak - Zaren Creyton - wanted to build a pretty little palace in the cliff. Arelim wondered vaguely why the criminal did not just take over Jabba's Palace, but he passed the question off - it was not his concern. His concern was maintaining a peaceful, out-of-the-way location for his clients, and a criminal palace on the overhanging cliff would hardly keep things that way.

He also understood the criminal mind - if they did not get what they wanted, they would kill for it. And he was not ready to die, not yet. He activated his comm unit again. "Joe," he said, addressing the former accountant of Vorga the Hutt, "Assemble the defenses. Things might get ugly over the next few days."

Joe Williams was, besides an accountant, an excellent strategist when the mood took him. He also had some expertise in areas of mechanics and droids, so when it came time to set up automated defenses for Protection, Arelim called upon him. Those defenses consisted of four turrets on the top edges of Arelim's home and six anti-personnel turrets buried in the sand - scattered throughout the "houses". They would be easy to destroy, but they would distract potential enemies and, if lucky, take a few out before lives were lost in the next line of defense.
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Post by Jagtai »

Jag'Tai woke from his nap at the sound of someone knocking on the door. He grabbed his carbine, stalked to the door, and opened it, the carbine aimed on the creature who had awakened him.

When he realized who it was, he lowered the carbine.

"Jezzik. What do you want?"

"Arelim wants a word with you."

Jag'Tai yawned, straightened his outfit, and nodded.

"Lead the way."

They soon reached the cantina, and Jezzik led Jag'Tai upstairs to Arelim's office. Jag'Tai knocked on the door...
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Post by Archangel »

Arelim called out, "Come in." When Jag'Tai entered, he smiled at him. "Jagol," he said, "I have just had a conversation with one Zaren Creyton. He seems to be in charge of a rather large criminal organization, and they want to set up a base in the nearby cliffs, or so I presume. I admit, it would be a good location for such a base. Regardless, I am not keen to allow such an attraction of visitors near Protection... but I expect that I will have little choice in these negotiations. You know how criminals can be. I just wanted you to be aware of the situation, and to be on your toes should things become ... hazardous."

He did not really expect a response from the bounty hunter, but he thought it prudent to wait for one anyway. Mentally, Arelim was barely present. In the case of an attack from this Creyton character, Arelim wanted to be ready with an escape plan - more important than the location were the lives of those paying him ... and, of course, their money. Unfortunately, there was very little near the town - that had been the whole point.
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Post by Jagtai »

Jag'Tai studied Arelim for a moment before replying.

"Not a problem. I'm always on my toes." He paused for a moment. "This Creyton...do you want me to look into his past?"

Jag'Tai had already formed an escape plan, should things turn ugly. The Scream was hidden close by - if necessary, he could call it to him. He thought about telling Arelim for a moment, but decided against it. He didn't trust the man enough to do so - yet.
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Post by Archangel »

Arelim, still in thought, paused a moment before glancing at Jag'Tai. "Hmm? His past? Well, it's certainly worth looking into, I suppose. Just so we know of what he might have up his sleeve."
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Post by Jagtai »

Jag'Tai nodded.

"Alright, I'll see what I can find. I'll be out of town for a few hours, maybe a day." He nodded to Arelim, turned, and left.

He swung by his house to pick up some items. He mounted his speeder, and rushed out of town in a cloud of dust.

He took a large detour to loose anyone shadowing him, before finally turning towards the place where he had left the Scream. After making sure that he had not been followed, he punched in the code and walked up the ramp, closing it behind him.

He settled in the cockpit and checked the systems. Finally, he ran a search for Zaren Creyton. It came up with little. Officially, Zaren was a small-time business man. There were rumors of him being involved in criminal activities, but they were unsubstantiated.

Then he pulled out his best card: he turned on the holoscreen and entered a frequency. Moments later, a huge Hutt appeared in front of him.

"Who dares to disturb Gadulla?" The Hutt said in Huttese. Jag'Tai answered in the same language.

"Hello, Gadulla. Is business well?" The Hutt smiled broadly.

"Jag'Tai. It has been too long, my boy. Business is going well. And you?" Jag'Tai nodded, also smiling.

"Also going well for me."

"So", Gadulla said, "how can old Gadulla help you?"

Jag'Tai pondered it for a moment. Asking a favor from a Hutt - especially Gadulla - always meant doing a counter-favor. Jag'Tai decided it was worth it.

"I am looking for information about a Zabrak business man called Zaren Creyton. Anything is useful."

The Hutt smiled even broader. 'Business man' in Huttese translated to 'criminal'.

"Yes, I have heard of Creyton. Are you hunting him, my boy?"

"Not yet. I just need some information."

The conversation continued for several more hours, much of it being flattery. It was the Hutt way, and Jag'Tai didn't mind. Gadulla didn't tell him much he didn't already know, but she did confirm that he was a rising power within the crime world. A dangerous person to be sure.

Finally, Jag'Tai thanked his former employer, promising to 'call' more often, and shut off the screen.

He returned to Protection after dark, and entered his house. The information was not urgent, and he figured Arelim could be told in the morning...
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Post by Archangel »

Arelim stumbled out of his bed and made for the terminal on his desk; it was beeping incessantly, probably about a new message. He groaned as he hit his shin on the chair; he pulled it back and sat in it slowly as he switched on the terminal. A new message flashed up almost instantly.

It was Freyel, an old Ryn acquaintance of Arelim's; they had worked together on occasion, especially when Arelim required information about a planet or a job for someone he did not fully trust - which encompassed most people. And it looked like Freyel was in trouble.

"Arelim," the message began, "I hope this message finds you well, wherever you are - but I need to change that, I'm afraid." Arelim stifled a laugh - as if Freyel might not know where anyone was before contacting them. "I need your help on something - something pretty big. Meet me as soon as you can at Trade Spine Station; I'll be there in four days, and I'll stay for two - after that, if you haven't arrived, I'll leave a message with the local hotel, and move on. I can't risk being anywhere for too long. I hope you understand."

Arelim shut off the terminal without another word; he was fully awake now, and he knew that Freyel was in some sort of trouble - first of all, to be asking as old a friend as Arelim for help and, second of all, to be on Trade Spine Station and faking presence elsewhere. He sent a quick message to Jag'Tai Vroenik - "Jagol Vronk" - asking him to come to Arelim's office as quickly as possible; next, he commed Jezzik: "Jezzik," he said, "I'm afraid I have to leave Protection. Try to keep things under control until I get back - and feel free to hand everything over to that Zabrak, if you like. I'll be taking everything I need and want from this place with me on the Trader's Delight." He cut off that message and sighed. The Trader's Delight was Arelim's own YT-2000 freighter, from his time in the Knights of Piracy many years earlier - with luck, it would still be untouched in its little cave in the cliffs some two klicks south of the town.

He would wait for Jag'Tai, explain the situation, and then leave - no matter what the bounty hunter decided on the matter, he only had four days to reach the Trade Spine Station, and that was three days more than Freyel needed to stay in any one place - regardless of what his messages said.
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Post by Jagtai »

Jag'Tai received the message moments after it had been sent. He read through the message. It simply said that Arelim needed to talk to him.

He gathered his weaponry, and made his way across town to the cantina. Whatever it was Arelim wanted, Jag'Tai hoped it would mean action of some kind - he was getting fed up with this place.

He found himself in the cantina ten minutes after receiving the message, and crossed the room in a flash, ignoring the looks he garnered. Moving up the stairs, he knocked on the door to Arelim's office.
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Post by Archangel »

Arelim called, "Come in," when the knock came. The Zabrak bounty hunter entered and remained standing; Arelim would have offered him a seat, but he was not seated himself. He stood at the desk, its drawers open as he flipped through the various datapads therein, searching for any he might want to keep. He smiled grimly at Jag'Tai.

"Mr. Vroenik," he said, and to avoid any unnecessary questions, continued, "I believe we can drop this charade of false identity now. I no longer care if any of the bounty-ridden scum in this town know they're being 'protected' by a bounty hunter. More to the point, I no longer care if I'm in such close proximity to a bounty hunter - I expect I'll have another bounty or two when this day is done."

He pulled out two of the datapads from the file drawer and slid them into pockets inside his jacket. Dressed once again in pirate regalia, Arelim even had an old ring on his left hand to emphasize the point: he was not going to bother with Protection for one more minute. "I have," he explained to Jag'Tai, "a friend in need. As the saying goes, that's a friend, indeed - but the sooner I can help him out, the better. I have my own ship, and I'm to meet him as soon as possible... but I wanted to be sure you knew you had been released from whatever duties you had appropriated yourself here. I know I never gave you anything to do, but nothing ever came up - even with that crime lord hovering about. The point is this: you can come with me, help me out, or you can go your own path; either way, you can rest assured that you will be reimbursed for the time you've spent in this Hellhole."

He smirked. "The ball, as they say, is in your court, bounty hunter. Take your swing as you will." He rested his hand on his blaster, hanging low on his right thigh, just in case.
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Post by Jagtai »

Jag'Tai couldn't help smiling when Arelim adressed him as 'Mr. Vroenik'. He was well aware that Arelim knew his true identity.

He listened to Arelim's story. By the time Arelim finished, he had already made his decision. He was confident that he could beat Arelim in a firefight, but he had no interest in trying.

"Well...since I have nothing better to do, I'll help you out." He smirked. "The bounty on your head isn't worth my time anyway."

"I have my own ship hidden outside of town, but if you prefer I can leave it here on Tatooine for the time being." Casually, as if he didn't really care, he asked: "Where are we going anyway?"
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Post by Archangel »

Arelim smiled conspiratorially. "That's a matter for the ride in Hyperspace, if you're coming on the Trader's Delight with me - it would be a matter of the space flight prior to Hyperspace, but if you're leaving your ship here... it doesn't particularly matter to me either way, by the way. If you want to take your own ship, that's fine - while I have little doubt you could vape me here, up there is a different story altogether," he said, pointing skyward.

His smile widened, became more genuine. "So if you're coming with me, we ought to get going. In four days, my friend will leave where he is and I may not ever hear from him again." He gestured toward the door and said, "Please, if there's anything you wish to collect - anything," he said with another smirk, "then feel free to do so. I'll finish up here and wait for you."
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Post by Jagtai »

Jag'Tai nodded.

"I would prefer my own ship, then. I'll gather my gear, and meet you in orbit in an hour. The ship is the Silent Scream."

He left the cantina and returned to the house. After gathering his gear, he made his way to the Scream. This time, he didn't care if anyone saw his route, and he made it to the freighter in less than thirty minutes.

After packing up the speeder, he ckecked his inventory, then prepared the launch sequence.

An hour after he had left Arelim, he was in orbit above Tatooine...
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Post by Archangel »

Arelim spent most of that hour coordinating the efforts of Jezzik to take control of the town. He ended up getting too exasperated and pressed for time to continue in the endeavor and took the town's only speeder to his ship in the cliffs, filled with the last things he wanted to keep from that pitiful town. He smiled as he stood in the hangar built into the cliffs, looking down on the small locale that would soon be overrun with bounty hunters and criminals alike. He was glad to be rid of it; it was a burden he had not quite realized was weighing so heavily.

As he prepped the Trader's Delight for launch, he saw the Silent Scream roar into the atmosphere. At least there were no compunctions about security anymore. The Delight's engines roared to life as Arelim dropped into the pilot's seat and sent the modified YT-2000 freighter into the atmosphere. Jag'Tai was waiting for him.

"Silent Scream," he announced into the comm unit, "this is Trader's Delight. Set a course for the Duro System - we'll take it from there." That said, he did not wait for a response; he punched up the navcomputer and entered in a quick course up the Corellian Run, then across to Duro. Trade Spine Station would be a short minijump from there.

[OoC: The story of Arelim and Jag'Tai is continued in The Kuras Tetrarchy. Jag, you can send the Scream into Hyperspace before moving to the other thread, if y'like. :)]
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Post by Jagtai »

"Acknowledged, Trader's Delight."

Jag'Tai entered the destination into the nav-computer, which quickly calculated the fastest route - incidently the same as Arelim had chosen. As soon as the coordinates had been loaded, Jag'Tai pushed the lever that activated the hyperdrive. With a flash, the Scream entered hyperspace...

OOC: Okay, I'll move to the other thread now :)
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