Wings of Liberty - Promise Makers

[Ner Giza]

Fondor, Tepani Sector, The Colonies​

She was not a great fan of orbital shipyards; the last one she had visited ‘employed’ Wookies as slave labor to manufacture their fleets. Being mindful that this was no Sith instillation and the factories here were mostly automated being run by droids she went over the arguments in her mind for this cartel, no that was not right… guild of merchants she believed they had named themselves. It amounted to basically the same thing but it did speak to a certain sense of arrogance that she hoped to exploit to the benefit of the Alliance. She didn’t know if this was some growing trend in the manufacturing world or what, this move toward some grande techno union, but she did know that as long as people stood together they were stronger.

That didn’t work so well in their favor for who could possibly stand against the empire? She had only to look at recent events to know that what she had always believed to be impossible was growing more possible everyday. The whole galaxy had been watching too and even the Sith had admitted they were weakening long enough to end their family feud and reunited. How long something like that would last before they devoured one another was anyone’s guess but it was a likelihood she planned to exploit to the fullest. If nothing else she could always point at the debacle that had gone down at the Kuat Shipyards to further paint a dark image of what backing the wrong faction would mean. In no way would siding with the Alliance threaten the autonomy of Fondor.

Waiting for her partner for this mission at the spaceport she quieted her mind over a hot steaming bowl of mynock stew at a sidewalk cafe. At least she didn’t have to bargain her way into this meeting. Everything had been prearranged and the leaders of the prevailing trade guilds were all set to meet the Alliance representatives this afternoon. All she and her partner would have to do was sell it. In the meantime she would rest and settle her hunger pains until they arrived. She had never worked with Harken Grant before and was eager to get the meet and greet out of the way so they could nail down this resource for the Alliance.

@Ecclessey @Raydo

 

[Harkam Gant]

As the crowded civilian transport shuttle was preparing to dock when Harkam suddenly got suspicious he had a tail. There was a human that was looking his way too much for his liking. It could be just the recent attacks making him paranoid, but that wasn't without reason. He had hated having to leave Naboo in a hurry just when their camp was beginning to flourish. He loved the peacefulness of a planet undisturbed by the Empire. It was truly one of the few places one could deny to live by Imperial law and still enjoy a quiet day of fishing on the nearby river. All that evaporated as snow before the sun and Harkam was pushed back into the thick of the war with the rebel council sending him and Ner'giza as operatives to broker a deal in order to built a bigger fleet. It would endanger even more hidden bases like Naboo if Imperial spies got hold of him and the Twi'lek lieutenant today..

Confirming for himself that his R-5 blaster pistol was ready for a quick-draw if needed, Harkam tried to keep the suspicious human in his peripheral vision as the other passengers of the shuttle began to disembark. Harkam waited and watched until he was the last one onboard, his eyes fixed on the back of the other man's head. Finally, he, too, disembarked by walking down the steep ramp into the spaceport. His suspicion had been paranoia and nothing more, but the young rebel silently praised his own keen senses nonetheless. They would save his life someday, he was sure.

It took him only two minutes to arrive at the sidewalk cafe, where he ordered a cup of yoghurt made from the blue-ish milk of the bantha before turning to the Twi'lek. "We ready, Lefty?" he asked, referring to her rank in the Galactic Alliance with "Lefty" in case Imperial sympathizers were listening.

@Kayenta Moenkopi

 

[Ner Giza]

The Twi’lek was not shy about tending to her food getting quite near the bottom of the bowl by the time the latest transport arrived at the dock. From her vantage point she had a good view of most travelers coming and going so when her man stepped into view she spied him immediately. She tipped her head up a bit in an slight nod in his general direction but continued to finish her meal; she was a strong proponent of eating whenever she got the chance out of habit more than anything though she certainly had never endured starvation. That didn’t keep it from being something to be avoided!

Sopping up the last bit of broth from the stew with a bit of mycelium flat bread as he came over and placed an order of his own, she rose to toss her disposable bowl in the trash bin eating up the last bite along the way. ”Mhmm”, she murmured around the last bite of flatbread before swallowing, ”I am now.” Moving to face the man who easily towered over her by half a foot, she said, ”The office complex is not too far from here, should take us long to hoof it so we can wait till you are done with that if you like.” She eyed the blue stuff wondering what it was and if the man had trouble with his teeth to get something that looked as though you didn’t have to chew much.

@Ecclessey

 

[Harkam Gant]

Harkam shrugged, "I can eat and walk." He always loved to get some Bantha yoghurt when he had the chance. He used to have his own processor for it, but he had to leave it behind on Naboo when they evacuated the planet. His new home was on Jedha and there...well, there's no Bantha's on that side of the galaxy. Fonder was civilized and so it had yoghurt, thank the Force.

"By the way-" the much taller human said with sideway's glance to the Twi'lek lieutenant as they made their way through the somewhat crowded corridors of the station, "-thanks for defusing that thing with Tulo-" he knew she would get the drift he was talking about the boxing match he lost, '-on you know." the planet of Endor, but he wasn't about to go mentioning all the locations of GA bases out here in the open. You never knew who was listening... Harkam's eyes scanned the crowd but without much avail.. nobody looked like an Imperial spy, regardless of the fact he had no idea what a spy looked like in the first place.

Truth be told, he was way out of his debt when it came to talking fleet-building contracts, too, but he figured he was there because he was familiar with the ships the alliance already owned and having very different kind of ships was detrimental to the effectiveness of a strike force. His best guess was that Commander Ion just needed someone that could protect Ner'Giza's back and ship her out of there if they ran into any trouble. Yeaaah, that must be it.. Harkam shoved the last of his yoghurt into his mouth and threw the empty cup in the nearest trash bin. "Love that stuff."

@Kayenta Moenkopi

 

[Ner Giza]

She smiled when he said he could walk and eat then pivoted on her feet to head out toward the office complex. While their pace was a bit leisurely they still managed to make good time through the busy corridors of the station. Still wondering what the blue stuff was, she eyes his food as discreetly as possible while they walked along.

Nera was a bit surprised when he brought up the boxing match in the hangar from a while back. It caused her to grin wide remembering and she waved her hand dismissively in the air between them. ”Ah it was not such a big deal as all that, Harkam. I am sure Tulo would have backed down on his own eventually and I just stuck my nose in to give him a ratier of kriff.”

She had nearly forgotten about her remark to the Weequay but it got her to thinking that maybe it was Harkam’s teeth after all. He had gotten clocked pretty good that afternoon. She couldn’t account for the texture of his food any other way as her own preferences ran toward the carnivorous and was a bit zealous about her dental care. Her eyes trailed after the spent container as it cut an arc out of the air toward the trash bin. ”What was that anyway? Did the medics put you on a special diet? I do hope you didn’t lose a tooth that day.”

The two would continue to converse a while until Nera realized she was a bit lost. Stopping at an intersection she fidgeted around in her vest pocket for a snack. Being dressed a bit more casually today than she would have if going into a combat zone, she was still armed with her quickdraw blaster and a grenade or so stashed away discreetly within the pockets of her cargo pants.

The Twi’lek was a woman who preferred to dress in earth tones, mostly shades of brown, keeping to the warmer hues for special occasions. And so it was that her sleeveless blouse was of tan while the short cape that covered all was a warm chocolate cream. The draping garment, which concealed the blaster tucked at the small of her back, fluttered slightly as she pulled out the wafers. There was some sort of creamy paste wedged between the two and had recently become her new road snack of choice. ”I think I missed a turn somewhere”, she commented before biting at the edge of the crackers in thought.

@Ecclessey

 

[Harkam Gant]

Harkam laughed and shook his head when Ner'giza asked if he was a diet, "Nothing wrong with my teeth, I just love yoghurt." he said, smiling at the Twi'lek beauty that had apparently robbed herself from the wondrous world of yoghurt simply because she was ignorant of its great flavor. That she was beautiful didn't go unnoticed, especially when she began patting herself down looking for a snack. It made Harkam a bit self-conscious that he wore a tan-colored pants, a blue shirt and a black jacket that comfortably hit the R-5 blaster pistol in his shoulder holster. It wasn't the most appealing outfit even if she did show some interest in him. He figured a Twi'lek rarely got with a human out of their free will, seeing the abuse they took from humans in the Core worlds.

Blasted from his train of throught, Harkam's head perked up above the crowd and he quickly found out the Lieutenant hadn't missed a turn at all. "No, I think it's right there." He hadn't said it or he took Ner's hand and lead her throw the suddenly thickening crowds. This seems to be the business part of the spaceport and it was filled with representatives of companies and worlds waiting for their ten minutes to pitch. Harkam and Ner'giza could only be noticed here by their attire not being made from the most expensive Coreworld silk, yet when they approached the droid at the door and said their names they were allowed entry nonetheless.

Finally letting go of her hand as they entered the rather luxuries building, Harkam took a modest step back and allowed the lieutenant to take the lead. "This is where you shine, Lefty-" his eyes registered the security officers, protocol droids and the obvious route to the meeting room that was their destination. "I'll have your back."

@Kayenta Moenkopi

 

[Ner Giza]

Ner’Giza frowned as she mouthed the word, yoghurt. ”If it is all that good I’m sorry I didn’t ask for a bite”, she commented as he drew her through the bustling crowd toward their destination. She idly wondered if the wafers would be good dipped in the stuff, not totally convinced that anything you didn’t have to chew could be that great. Fortunately his sense of direction seemed to be spot on; she was still undecided about his eating habits.

Once he had released her hand, she smirked at him lightly and shook her head not at all used to being led like a child. At any rate it didn’t seem like something to make a fuss over. The protocol droid passed them on through to the interior of the complex readily enough and as she passed through the doors she refrained from whistling at the opulence of the interior. She squinted across the reception area to what looked to be glass elevators rising up and down along an immense shaft. ”I wonder how many levels there are on this station anyway”, she pondered aloud. It didn’t seem the trade guild spared any expense on presenting the face of success.

Not at all put out by the cut of her attire, the only thought that came to mind when she noticed how the business men and women were dressed was that there didn’t appear to be a working stiff among them. She supposed that very few common folk could afford to buy brand new ships and those who did wouldn’t bother coming to the headquarters but purchase through some sort of subsidiary location or even on the black market.

Harken’s words drew her focus and she turned to give him a lopsided grin, ”You mean this is where you throw me under the spacedock?” It would be fine. She had negotiated with Gungan; well she had been under house arrest and Aurel had saved her backside that time. Ah, she had talked assassins and thieves into allying with the rebels and lived to never speak of it again. Surely she could convince these businessmen to… risk their profits by going against the Empire? Yeah, this was gonna go well.

Heaving a sigh as though to pull up her resolve, she cast her gaze wistfully to the glass elevators and instead headed along the path that was marked out for the flood of visitors to follow. Maybe once the deal was concluded they would get to tour the showroom where the new ships were on display.

”You’d think a service droid would be working the crowd passing out food or something”, she said to her partner before nearly running into another protocol droid. The droid stepped back a couple wavering steps, its arms swinging out to maintain its balance as it said in a bit of a rush, ”Oh excuse me madame, how clumsy of me. If you would follow me? Your meeting is this way.”

Nera recovered well enough and said, ”That’s quite alright, thank you”, widening her eyes silently at Harken once the droid’s back was turned. Soon enough, however, they had made it to the conference room without further incident and were ushered inside. For all its trappings of finery it was every bit as intimidating as the sewers of Anoat City. A quick head count revealed eight men and women seated upon the other side of a huge table shaped in a semi-circle. Either end of the table curved inward leaving an open space in the middle for them to stand. The lack of seats for Harken and herself made it seem all the more like a tribunal than a negotiation.

Well it was time to play act at being a business woman, she thought, and stepped forward to greet the assembled head of the guild. ”Thank you for meeting with us today. My name is Nera and this is Harkam. Are there any objections if I get straight to the point?”, she said as she let her gaze wander over their faces seeking to capture their attention immediately.

There was but a slight nod from the man seated at the center of the table directly opposite their position. There were no placards stating the name of the occupants seated there but she knew the sight of a man used to wielding power when she saw one. Even in a room full of business moguls this one had an air of self importance that seemed to place everyone in the room beneath him. It would be to him she made her sale’s pitch instinctively knowing that if she could sell it to him then the others would fall in line. He waved a bored hand in the air without so much as raising his eyes from the data pad he was examining.

”Power”, she said projecting her voice in such a way as to gain everyone’s full attention, even the man who apparently ran the show. He put down his data pad and arched a bushy yet well groomed eyebrow in her direction. ”You gotta ask yourself how willing you are to let it slip through your fingers. The Empire, despite unification, is shrinking and the outer rim is edging its way closer and closer to your world and that means lawlessness; piracy. You make quality ships that are wanted throughout the galaxy, no one can deny that but there is the issue. How will you get those ships to your customers reliably without falling prey to pirates? Just what is your acceptable margin of loss before you begin to experience hard times, before your world becomes just another overrun struggling planet trying to fend off the gundark at the door? And it is there, and while the Empire pulls in on itself, consigning you to that ever widening sacrifice zone, who will be there to keep your trade lines open so you can continue to prosper and grow? War does make for good business but only if you can deliver. We seek to subcontract our protection services for…”, but the man cut her off in mid sentence.

”Yes, yes, no doubt you do. I was under the impression that there was a serious offer on the table today but I can see by your appearance that I was sadly mistaken. You may go now and do not let the door panel nick you on the way out.”, the man concluded before lowering his eyes back to his data pad. The other members exchanged glances with one another before they began to discuss the double overtime during last night's shock ball tournament.

@Ecclessey

 

[Harkam Gant]

Harkam turned his head to Ner'giza, his face clearly read of confusion. What just happened? It took a moment for him to realize that their pitch had ended before it had really begun, but at the same time there wasn't a fiber in his body that wanted to leave that room just yet. And on what? Their choice of clothing? The confusion on his face, if Nera had noticed, changed suddenly to one of conviction as he stepped forward. "No," he said, focusing on the one in the center of the table and willing him to listen. "-you will hear us out-" he continued with an intensity that was unmistaken yet not hostile. "-for your lives might depend on it." Perhaps it was his innate ability in the Force that caused them to listen instead of throwing both of the bad dresser out of there in a fit of rage.

The datapads were lowered back onto the table and the words shock ball tournament weren't uttered again as all the heads started the focus on the young human rebel. "Then tell us, boy-" the most powerful member of the trade guild council seemed uninterested still, but was willing the listen, for a single moment only, and with a thick-laced tone of disrespect.

Harkam swallowed away some excess saliva. He couldn't back out now, not after he'd been so bold as to demand they listen. "You produce ships of war-" he began, searching for the words that were supposed to follow, "-so your clientele is limited to worlds than can afford brand new ships-" which was basically only those in the very Core of the galaxy, which as everyone in the room knew were Imperial worlds who would just only buy Imperial. "-or interplanetary factions like the Empire-" he trusted that they would remember Ner'giza's words on it shrinking, "-and the Mandalorians." Here he paused deliberately. "It was the latter that blew up the Kuat shipyards because it supplied ships to their enemies and with the Mandalorians united they are a people actively seeking to expand-" he paused again, making an effort to look at as many of the council members as he could in quick succession, "-making more and more enemies of worlds rich enough to buy your ships."

His heart was beating like crazy and underneath his black jacket sweat was beginning to soak the blue shirt, "But there is another option. One that will satisfy both the trader looking for a safe bet and the one looking to take some risks-" he delayed the obvious, but the keen observer could've put one and one together already. Cheap clothing but the credits to buy ships and talk big? Yeah, not many in the galaxy that could do that. The man in the middle of the table was such a keen observer, "Go into bed with the sworn enemies of the Empire? I think not."

The blow struck Harkam in his chest and he lowered his shoulders in disappointment. His monologue had been interrupted, but he didn't fight for hope if he'd give up with the second miss. "-not 'the enemies of the Empire," he didn't smile, "-but the future."

@Kayenta Moenkopi

 

[Ner Giza]

Nera shook her head after rubbing the back of her neck with her right hand. ”I believe you may be looking at this the wrong way, sir. You see, the threat of piracy is not a scare tactic being used here to add flare to a sale’s pitch”, she said while reaching into her cargo pants for a small data pad of her own. Walking around the table in a clockwise fashion, she would pause before each member of this guild and touch her data pad to theirs all the while continuing to address them.

”What you are seeing is a report on the amount of profits lost by your conglomerate due to piracy in the last quarter alone”, she said directing their attention to the data that her pre-mission intel had provided. Basically 99 had gone snooping around and assembled quite the little data package of statistics for her to exploit. ”Piracy is here, alive and well, and you are already bearing the brunt of these depredations. Now while that figure is not a crushing blow to your establishment, it is quite the hefty sum for the pirates. In short they have found ripe and profitable feeding grounds and will only increase their efforts to pick you dry. You can believe they will be bringing friends with them. This issue is only going to get worse and as my partner has explained, your traditional choices” and here she paused to capture direct eye contact with the leader, ”The Empire and the Mandalorians, well… choose a ruler while your profits go to your new overlords ladies and gentlemen because that is all they offer you now.”

Galactic Alliance Applications; the ‘corporation’ that other operatives of the Alliance were using as they secured shipyard commerce between various manufacturers throughout the galaxy would provide just the hook to reel this gaggle of merchants in. ”On the books everything would be official, no sign that you are getting into bed with anyone.”, her features crinkled a bit in distaste over the man’s slightly vulgar implication. Then she shook her head and smiled, ”You are merely accepting the bid from a contractor for services rendered in exchange for goods that will be purchased, not confiscated or destroyed as our competitors do. You get a greater percentage of goods making it to market, and Galactic Alliance Applications”, and here she gestured to herself and Harken ”gets quality merchandise at market prices, less the fee for our services. Your trade routes will be secured, this I assure you and that is not a job that gets done while wearing a suit.”

That last little snipe was probably over the top but this kark head had gotten slightly under her skin with his air of superiority. She waited in silence as the members looked over the figures and she suspected checked out the name of her organization in the database. Such a search would indeed yield facts about a corporation that provided a wide range of services throughout the galaxy. She had to grin thanking the stars for the Alliance’s master slicer, Sonna Deli for setting up the dummy corporation.

Returning to the center near Harken she said, ”There’s your future. The question is how will you greet it?”

@Ecclessey

 

[Harkam Gant]

While the council pondered it over, Harkam looked at Ner'giza with a look of admiration. She had made some excellent points and surely they'd win them over now? It took him a lot of willpower to stand still, waiting for whenever the guildmaster decided to speak up, but when he finally did Harkam wasn't so sure if what they'd get was what they wanted.

"There's way too much risk-" he began and Harkam's heart sank, mission failure, but then a short cough came from the right and the guildmaster paused, "I disagree." a woman said to the approving nods of several other council members. "Going into bed with the Empire or the Mandalorians carries more risk and removes much of our so cherished autonomy." another round of nods followed, with more members of the council joining in. The guildmaster grimaced, "The Drasts are done, which-" again he was interupted by the woman, "-means the internal power struggles of the Sith will rage for decades. The intergalactic wars will worsen and it's best we appear to be neutral for as long as possible." Now the entire council, including the guildmaster, seemed to either disagree or accept that they held the minority vote.

Harkam had tried to hide is surprise as he watched the scene unfold, only breaking away from it for short moments to look at the Twi'lek lieutenant. This was probably the moment to seal the deal and that honor would be all hers.

@Kayenta Moenkopi

 

[Ner Giza]

Waiting was not her strong suit in the least, but she sure got a lot of practice at it despite her preferences. It made her ancy inside and Harkam’s eyes upon her made her wish to busrt out laughing, one would think it might be hard to keep a straight face and it would have been were it not for the training she received during her formative years. She had been trained to please and that meant being whatever a master wished her to be. One mask after another and each one having to be convincing upon risk of displeasing one with the power of life and death.Even so when the stubborn executive began to voice yet another series of objections she could not contain a heavy sigh of frustration.

That was when the woman spoke up and Nera realized that her words had not completely fallen upon deaf ears but penetrated the haze of prejudice to persuade instead. She knew it was time to stoke this tiny flame by the only means they seemed to understand, profits. ”The finite details of the arrangement can certainly be managed by our respective accountants with short term contracts to assure satisfaction with the current deal on both our ends. At Galactic Alliance Application we are not concerned with conquest so much as we are with cooperation. If at any time the terms of this agreement stops being satisfactory the deal is over with no repercussions to either party.”

This seemed to feed the spark of interest and as the board discussed the issue further, the other members speaking up in support of the proposal, the neigh sayer at last nodded his own head in agreement before addressing the two rebels. ”Very well then. You have a deal the contracts will be drawn up and initiated. At that time your representatives can begin making your purchases and receive the trade route assignments.”

Nera was more than glad to see the meeting come to and end so amicably. Grinning to Harkam she said, ”This is acceptable. It’s been a real pleasure doing business with you. I look forward to a long and profitable relationship.”

/thread exit

@Ecclessey

 

[Harkam Gant]

There you go, Harkam thought as he saw Ner'Giza at work. She closed the deal quite admirably and the human rebel realized that's why she's a lieutenant in commander Ion's galactic alliance. He returned her grin, both pride and admiration seeping through his eyes. "Now-" he said in a tone of voice low enough so only she could hear him, "-let's get you some yoghurt." She'd earned the treat.

Ofcourse, it would be some time before the got to leave the shipyard as someone not integral to rebel command had to make sure those contracts got in the right hands and contact information is exchanged. You know, the details. That's not a job for a lieutenant, rare as they are, so Harkam decided to stay around a bit longer than the Twi'lek. Besides, here he was sure he'd be able to eat yoghurt every day.

Hopefully she'd do a good word for him with Commander Ion.

/end thread