Ask Nar Shaddaa Long Shadows

[Nor'baal Desilijic]

Location: Palace of Durr the Hutt, Nar Shaddaa

Nor'baal had not stepped foot in the Palace of his predecessor since the day after the news of Durr's assassination broke. Much has changed since then. With the Hutts estate left unclaimed, owing to his lack of offspring, Nor'baal had sent men in to seize it, not for want of property, but simply because he could. Like many things had been in the early days of Nor'baals rule, the seizure was about power and the projection of it.

To be here again was eerie.

Standing in Durr's empty throne room, Nor'baal looked around as he saw the trappings of his own house now standing wear Durr's once had. He sneered - out with the old, in with the new.

The Supreme Leader of the Hutt Clans had come alone into the Palace throne room, his yacht idling outside in the courtyard, his usual detachment of guards aboard. He wanted nobody to be here but him, for Nor'baal - moving under his power - had business to attend to, reclaiming Durrs treasuries, his information vaults and more besides - for himself.

Moving deeper into the throne room, he flipped the ancient power level and activated the lights to see what would be revealed.

@Eccles

 

[Preef Callo]

As an old gunslinger travelling between worlds where he had once left a stash of credits, Preef had often been disappointed. In the two decades that he'd been gone many of them had been found by accident or indeed even raided by those that tried to erase the Zaa Fenn from the history databanks of the Outer Rim.

He had been able to reach Nar Shaddaa, the Smuggler's Moon where he was born and which he once ruled with an army of battle droids during the worst time of the outbreak. But a lot had changed. The Hutt Clan ruled it again, with Nor'baal as its Supreme Mogul, and whenever Preef heard people talk about the Crymorah leadership they mentioned names the old rodian only recognized as having been 'outside talent'. Probably bought in and rose the ranks just like Marissa and he did once upon a time. Preef appreciated the hustle.

Theme​

The old palace of the long dead Hutt had provided a shelter to the presumed-dead rodian. Here he spread out his sleeping bag, heated his rations for consumption and had more restful a sleep than he seemed capable in one of the many hotels the smuggler's moon was rich. Getting recognized wasn't something he was prepared for..

He had just finished eating one of his rations, kicked off his boots and spread out across his sleeping back when he heard the yacht dock. Quickly he put his boots back on and rolled up his sleeping back, hiding it out of sight alongside his aged green frame. His peacemaker in his hand, Preef watched how the powerful Hutt moved into the throne room and flipped the switch to activate the lights.

He hesitated. Once he had been the most powerful sentient being in the Five Syndicates. He remembered Nor'baal the Hutt and the many ranks he had stood below him in the galactic underworld. Yet now Preef was presumed long dead, while the Hutt thrived and stood at the lonely height at the top of the criminal foodchain. Was it too big a risk? Or should the rodian -as he always had- stand Unshaken.

He stepped into the light, his signature peacemaker firmly in his hand but not aimed at the Hutt. "Kaa Dauau Nor'baal, Bimahau Kasii dee Yih Lanka an masii see tah danko." he began in a little rusty Huttese, "Dobra um wa yicei mabee coo boyeke mee catabola peee wa mewizaee."

He made sure the Hutt could see his blaster, which he held in a non-threatening manner. "Jot mi wamma che fa cay mah gusha peee wa quickdraw"

@Nor'baal

 

[Nor'baal Desilijic]

He nearly jumped out of his (exceptionally thick) skin.

ASSASSIN!

The Hutts' eyes flared and his heart pounded. After all these years one of his enemies had finally caught him alone. But who? Who could possibly have known he was coming here, with next to no notice, no time to plan for his regicide?

Well, they certainly won't take him without a fight. Nor'baal may be backed into a corner, but his survival instincts were as sharp as ever. With a speed that came as a shock even to him, he turned to face his potential assailant, his belly puffed out as he rose to his full, not inconsiderable, height.

Yet, no figgt came.

Instead the stranger….asked for employment?

There had certainly been many over the years who'd made bizzare pitches for his favour. But this took the champion position.

He squinted, cautiously nodding as he encouraged the Rodian to make himself known. <Cohai, haku nai kachu gee Jee bai mo uba wa lumpa? Wonkee tee gee mah lohba banrobakeu uba che bmahh?>

 

[Preef Callo]

The Hutt turned to face him in a speed which was quite impressive for a giant slug. The old rodian merely bowed a curtsy, "Mee lohba noa-a banieie bankop la gee neu mah keepuna jot juju winbe"

To demonstrate what he meant, Preef holstered his peacemaker and then drew it in what was once his signature speed, but this time he didn't mean to shoot at Nor'baal, rather he held his blaster in such a way that the Hutt's keen eyes would be able to read the writing on the barrel. "che Dobra Preef Callo"

The rodian holstered his peacemaker again and stepped forward to give the Hutt the chance to see his aged features and recognize the younger gunslinger. They had met while Preef was in his prime and while the Hutt may not have noticeable aged.. the rodian definitely had. "Wahca lorda dee Crymorah Benbepoka, Bankobasiohba dee Zaa Fenn Pheca Woceuea an bu setmika tee stafa cowetka du bu Doptkee Monba" All things of the past, ofcourse, both the old rodian and the Hutt would know it, but leaving it unsaid seemed somehow wrong as well.

@Nor'baal

 

[Nor'baal Desilijic]

Callo?

Nor'baal was dumbfounded. The perfidious Rodian, the Huttkiller was dead - no? Yet, as he studied the man's face, it became apparent that it was him. There was no denying it, his visage, his scent, it could be none other than he.

And boy-oh-boy did he have a lot to answer for.

<Hee uba gee nan bata?> he asked. Would the Rodian seek to make their way back to Cyrmorrah Space, securing the command of the Zaa Fenn once more? Was that why the creature was here, toadying for his favour?

Of course, Covax had recently secured his position atop the Zaa Fenn and the Cymorrah to boot. Hardly a challenge since the collapse of the family and the subsequent death or exile of its leaders. These days the man occupied his time in the northern reaches of the galaxy; rumour had it he worked in Corporate Sector space these days.

Yet, there where other rumours that distressed him. For a family that had relied on the Zaa Fenn for the lions-share of its power, a family long since collapsed, Covax seemed to make moves far beyond his means. Perhaps Preef was the man's benefactor, seeking to undo the Hutts in favour of his pawn - Covax?

The Hutt would play the fool to find out. <Zaa Fenn doth nobata cuee. Tee bu bo uba panbipa ree koumuaee. Masii cay wa yae ney, Covax, ateema.> he sneered <Jee nah yauma uba paknee ata bata haku uba cahba, whao da doth mee gai wata, rin Preef. Nobata. Bu Yih, hocan bu can see paupe dee Fenn an Cymorrah, doth bu kotky dee danko biw, an fa doth mah gai bai gahkesa da matka bu kanu.>

<Kenog vehpobaa bu Lanka dah tytung wuona, bu Beh, bu Pantahlea, dooo bu Konbouaheon gee woy bargon cay tee kouocea, an Jee bitmaph douacanh dee Benbepoka gee woy becei- see tee twa wanka mee, fet tin taonkobaiebeke peee la doth. Uba an Jee gee wa cahla sayey, Jee canta, bai neu bu heee see nem, bu ahban see kaa, jeejee gee panwa an bankobaaneu, sobahesa chakee tee umena see roy, nobata? Hee toupee mi, rin Preef, haku dayan Jee mo uba bai gahkesa mee quickdraw doth jaieh ree mah kouocea, an tee mah pateessa?>

 

[Preef Callo]

The rodian shook his head, "Heai jansee peai dotkot bo coo cahuodaha bu Zaa Fenn peekasa, fa naua tanee chateua" though he did not deny that Covax never did earn it in the traditional Crymorah way. The rodian remembered that he had choked on his Corellian whiskey when the scuttlebut of his ascension had first reached him in a cantina on Takodana. An independent contractor ruling the Crymorah Syndicate? Only if he had deeper pockets and more underworld influence than even Preef had ever had. No one like that had existed. Then again, hadn't the Spicelord offered him a similar deal that he had refused? Had the Sith made a move now that the only one who could've stood in his way had been removed by his Sith Empress?

Preef pondered over how many steps he had been behind these conniving and scheming Sith as the Hutt relayed even more info to him that seemed to support his line of thought - his conviction.

"Ban Marissa Hesse, dotkot nobata Crymorah Benbepoka che mi. Jee gee nobata chalanh bai paknee ata kae see fa bata." In fact, despite his galactic fame, Marissa Hesse had been the crimelord of the Zaa Fenn Crime Family. Not Preef and not Gareth. Marissa had been smarter than all of them. She secured secrets, funds and rackets and disappeared into the shadows when the heat got too much. If she ever stepped into the spotlight again she'd find her trusted enforcer -her vanguard- at her side in an instant, but they both know that she is smarter than that.

Still, the Hutt presumed much and asked only few questions. He didn't care in the story of how the rodian had survived the Sith Empress' ambush, not even the reason for it, or how he had successfully made everyone believe he had died to ensure the survival of his syndicate. So the answer the rodian provided was simple and to the point: "lumpa an jaha"

Preef had killed multiple Hutts, some who seemed even bigger than Nor'baal, and he had live-broadcasted most of their executions. If the galaxy found out that the legendary gunslinger -the Huttkiller- returned after the Five Syndicates fractured only to support not his own syndicate, but the Hutt Clans? If it was the only thing he could do to undermine those that had destroyed what had remained of his family, then the eyebrows it would raise was enough of a revenge for him. "Che lumpa an jaha Jee hatkocanh woy gahke uba nem cot bu roy Jee gee jot."

@Nor'baal

 

[Nor'baal Desilijic]

Truth be told, the Hutt was dumbfounded that Preef Callo, the Huttkiller, had somehow wormed his way into his company. Yet, there where innumerable ways in which Nor'baal could use this turn of events to his advantage. Preefs skill with a blaster was legendary, and to have such a being at his side when the chips where down could not be underestimated.

His enemies gathered pace about him, and Nor'baal needed all the guns and goons he could get his slimy little hands on.

<Uba lwaa gee bu ree yuna see bacdop.> Nor'baal responded, a grin forming on his face. Extraordinarily wealthy in his own right, the Hutts fortunes had only climbed since becoming Supreme Mogul, and he boasted a panoply of Palaces and lodgings across Hutt Space and beyond. At a word, he could ensure the finest (second to his own, of course) rooms could be made available for his new enforcer.

<Uba lwaa doth cay mah wuona doi wata dah doptkee, Preef.> he instructed, a haughty self-superior tone entering his voice now that his nerves had recovered from the shock of finding an armed gunslinger in a place he thought had been empty.

<Jee kankanla bai kosoyan mee tah bunko bai joday, an gahkesa da pee bagn bahpola Durr gee doth kouwahe, an twa hhayaha kosoyan mee nei, twa mogke yahabonka.> he began, moving to the top end of the Throne Room and busying himself fussing around the Throne itself.

He knew there where riches in this Palace, for Durr had been an avaricious Hutt, hoarding his wealth here - unlike Nor'baal who had ensured his was more diversly spread - as he turtled himself away from the virus of his own making. Perhaps his new enforcer would help satiate Nor'baals lust for gold and valuables, in their search across the Hutts 'new' Palace?

 

[Preef Callo]

The Hutt was easily swayed. Not that Preef could blame him, ofcourse, because he was once the fastest gunslinger in the Outer Rim, after all. A whole generation of aspiring gunslingers had grown up watching the HoloNet-westerns about the rodian. Flicks like 'The Good, The Bad and the Rodian' had earned Preef galaxy-wide recognition. Having a legendary gunslinger of his reputation being your mere bodyguard.. kriff, Preef almost regretted it.

He was too old to start robbing homesteads, though. The comforts of the Hutts was something he could enjoy safely. No one dared touch the Hutts, not before Preef and not after. Only.. well, Nor'baal. He had used the rodian's crusade against Durr for his own benefit and look at where it got him. Perhaps the ancient slug really was smarter than Marissa Hesse.

"Mee yahabola," Preef said as he followed the Hutt to the dias, "an bidwata, peee bo killee." He referred to Durr's death, which the rodian had planned and executed. Although he had, to inflate the reputation of his underlings, allowed one of the future traitors to deal the killing blow. A mistake, perhaps, but it was a testament to his own reputation that even his successors owed everything to him.

The Zaa Fenn had used Durr's palace on Nar Shaddaa as their base of power when they ruled the moon and deployed their droid army to combat the spread of the AMS virus. Marissa and the other ringleaders had focused their efforts on their Coruscant holdings, though, and Preef had soon been forced to disappear after the Sith ambush on Eriadu. No one of significant rank had remained to delve further in Durr's secrets inside the palace and thus.. no one had.

"Mo hatkocanh uba taa mi wa Bankobasiohba baa chaca?" Preef had referred to his status within the Five Syndicates before he had become the Syndicate Boss of the Crymorah. It was an idle threat, but Preef know that at least the Hutts respected the ways things were done in their respective syndicates and the galactic underworld. It was important that the Hutt knew that Preef hadn't forgotten.


@Nor'baal

 

[Nor'baal Desilijic]

His inheritance? Nor'baals eyes narrowed. The scum-bag is trying to claim the contents of my palace for himself! the Hutt was furious, not that he allowed it to show - of course. Self-preservation was the better part of valour after all, why couldn't he pay the gunslinger a modest sum of treasure, from a trove Nor'baal himself had not earned - if it kept him loyal, that was a good thing - no?

He smiled at the Rodian, a disturbingly over-the-top gesture as he pointed down the hall <Wonkee see pacmhanaduee, haku bmala see Yih nah uyat twa bankobasiohba du bu pahapke koneaha? Catke cohka uba.> he stated, inviting the Rodian to go in front down the dark corridor, whilst Nor'baal assumed the leaders place in the rear of their little formation.

All the better for watching for any ambushes! Nor'baal justified his cowardice to himself.

<Toupee mi hee, uba chespo bolla paupe lhonbau sie, an du mee wahatka-oba bu Cymorrah, peee jeejee gee setpika, gee kaai docahha mee. Doi haku Jee naa mee, tee ata ne emmaag tee bonplea cay bu gainlei, fa banpop lova num bai doth, tee- banmhalabanle.> he set the scene for his question, where the Hutt would seek to prize some of the Rodians knowledge as to the workings of his rivals from him.

<Kava gee la dokanu hee stafa? La lova num bai gee phabeka chakee twa basadi besnewa, da kiuke doth gahke.> he asked, keen to see if one of the rival Hutt Clans was bankrolling his new foes.

 

[Preef Callo]

Satisfied by the Hutt's answer, the old gunslinger went ahead into the dark corridor. He was alert, sure, but what could hurt him down here other than a powerful Sith Lord? Heh, Preef had found no equal in anyone who had not possessed that strange form of magic back then and he doubted he would find one now. Overconfidence had been one of his traits before his untimely retirement.

"There's always folks willing to pay-" the rodian made a throwaway gesture, "-as you know." Preef hadn't been completely oblivious to the outside world and knew that Nor'baal had played several sides to get to where he was today, Supreme Mogul. Unbeknownst to the Hutt, he probably worked at a time for the same people that ran the Crymorah Syndicate now. Not many outsiders invested heavily in the criminal underworld without wanting their name to be plastered all over the place in neon lettering. Could be the Sith Empire, who Preef knew to be always scheming even before they ambushed him, or could be someone like the Spicelord.. which turned out to be the Sith Empire, too.

It definitely wasn't Aska and her friend. Preef remembered how despite delivering the killing blow to Durr, she had been by far the least accomplished Legend during their assault. They couldn't have suddenly amassed a fortune that was able to outbribe Marissa and the other ringleaders. "You said the new boss keeps office in the Corporate Sector, right? Just like Donatade?" Could be that whoever lead the Crymorah was simply a puppet for the Crimson Dawn. They usually had deep pockets, definitely the political clout to pull off a meteoric rise.

Hmm, Preef stopped and turned towards the Hutt. "She still kicking by the way? I always seen her as the smartest of the bosses," maybe even smarter than Marissa? For a while Preef had worked as an enforcer for the Crimson Dawn and even did a job or two directly for Vivienne. "Maybe she figured Five Syndicates was too many, but she could rule Two?"


@Nor'baal

 

[Nor'baal Desilijic]

As the pair continued into the bowels of the palace, Nor'baal listened to what Preef was suggesting. Crimson Dawn? he scowled as he slithered down the corridor. Those treacherous weasels had always considered themselves 'other' to the existing power structure! For as long as he had lived, the Hutts had been cautious about doing business with them - his people had long lives and memories.

With their historical connections to the dark forces, Crimson Dawn could not be ruled out of contention as Cymorrahs new sponsor.

For centuries the Dawn had been tied to the Sith Order and their ilk. Nor'baal had been raised not to trust them (indeed, Nor'baal had been raised not to trust anyone), so Preefs suggestions hit home. The Hutt saw plots and conspiracy everywhere and always harboured suspicions that the Empire was more duplicitous than people gave it credit for.

Perhaps they had been using one of the Syndicates to further their aims?

It was not beyond the realms of possibility after all.

The 'Spice Lord' was another potential target of the Hutt's ire. Not that he had been heard from in decades, but old powers could still make a comeback. As the pair reached the end of the corridor and met by a vast vault door, Nor'baal was in fits of paranoid concern.

Maybe Mordeth was behind it? She had always envied him - perhaps this was the moment; here was the method! There was even a motive! But no. That was far too apparent. The Jedi? Those force-addled freaks, no doubt, had been desperate for the Hutt's demise for generations. But why chose Cymorrah - why not come themselves?

Nor'baal shook his head and mumbled <Taadi. Koumi tee...> he slapped his tail on the floor. It was clear now - the Alliance!. They sought to force his hand, to make the Hutt feel he was under threat, and therefore force him to do business with the Free Worlds.

No no no. He dismissed that idea at once. Nobody in the Alliance was clever enough to conceive of such mastery. Perhaps it was the Consortium; maybe President Thorne had finally decided to be rid of Hutt Space, the final blot on his map? But why didn't they invade? Why go to the effort of going behind his back, into the shadows?

<Wa Jeedai?> he exclaimed, his mad rambling echoing around the hall. It was clear, so obvious - Emryc Thorne was secretly a Jedi Knight, with a vendetta against the Hutt Clans! That was why he was actually conspiring against Nor'baal, through the CYmorrah, in cahoots with the Crimson Dawn, and probably, no doubt, Mordeth, to assassinate him!

Nor'baal was a genius!

And here - in front of this vault, or perhaps inside it, was the wealth and treasure Nor'baal needed to stave off this attack. He salivated, his rubbed his hands together with glee, and he wriggled forward to begin working on inputting the combination he had nabbed from Durrs coffin just a few months earlier.

 

[Preef Callo]

The Hutt made a mental leap that Preef wasn't able to follow, "You think Donatade is a Jedi?" None of the Jedi that the rodian had ever met he had deemed capable of running a syndicate like Vivienne Donatade had. In fact, all Force-users (his son included) were in his experience always too impulsive, had trouble to maintain self-control and jumped to conclusions based on emotional assumptions. Preef had been part of The Collective, the council of five syndicate bosses, and he had never seen Vivienne become emotional about anything.

The Crymorah Council, where the crimelords gathered together with the syndicate boss to discuss internal politics and decide a course of action for the entire syndicate, never seemed to suggest such a thing either. Of all syndicates the Crymorah had the most history with the Sith and the Empire, having closely worked together in recent years, allied as they were in Southern Imperial Space, and many having a rich history of snithing on their behalf decades prior, too. Of all syndicates, surely the one Preef had lead would've heard rumors or had suspicions that the boss of the Crimson Dawn was a secret Jedi.

"No, Donatade is too smart to be a Force user-" Preef brushed off the Hutt's thought. "-but look at this here," he quickly stepped over to a symbol on the wall. "When we killed Durr on Nal Hutta," the rodian paused to look over to Nor'baal for a moment, unsure if it was a sore topic, "his secret escape hatch was hidden behind a similar symbol." Perhaps it was a clue? A secret door that would lead to them finding some untold massive treasure?

@Nor'baal

 

[Nor'baal Desilijic]

Nor'baal scoffed. Of course, Preef wouldn't understand! he thought - after all, the mind of the Hutt was far more advanced than that of any other species; this was common knowledge! Unless it was always possible that Preef was correct. Perhaps there was another person in the play, another factor in the equation as to who was trying to see another Syndicate rise.

He pushed the conspiracy to the back of his mind, lodged next to his favourite spiced tea recipes. They had other things to focus on now. The symbol was not one he recognised, but the Huttkiller did. If this was a secret door, Nor'baal could only imagine the wealth it could be hiding!

He rushed forwards, almost punting Preef out of the way in his haste.

I simply must have it!

Placing his pudgy little hand on the sigil, he noticed the wall gently repress, and low and behold, a door was revealed. He nearly squeaked with delight, as gently a secret door moved to one side, revealing a chamber, dark, dank, and no doubt, maybe, teeming with luxury?

"Go on then!" he slipped into basic in his excitement, shoving Preef into the dark room, just to...well, check it was safe?