A Job for Criminals

[Drav]

Nar Shaddaa - The Crazy Womp Rat​

The shuttle has stopped, and all doors opened. The crowd exited. Drav had a hard time squeezing through all the people trying to get on board. Once he was off he took a few steps forward and surveyed the environment. He only had been at this part of Nar Shaddaa once, two years ago. And it was for the same reason as this time.

With the palm of his hand he checked his sidearm. It was still there, of course. One never knew when he would get in a gunfight on the smugglers' moon. It was a five minute walk to his destination, which gave him some time to contemplate. He considered the last few days the worst of his life so far. Loosing both of his partners, and sitting alone in the apartment they shared for years, made him aware how dependent he became of them lately.
He tried to apply for a few contracts since, to take his mind off the whole situation. He soon had to realize nobody wanted to hire him. It turns out letting a freighter full of tibanna gas get stolen, which was not even true, destroyed his reputation completly. Even on a world like Nar Shaddaa, Drav thought it would take much more.

This was the reason he was here now. He decided to take matters in his own hand. If nobody would hire him, he would make them hire him. His destination was the Crazy Womp Rat, a cantina in the more prestigious sector of the moon. Prestigious meaning the scum here were worse than anywhere else.
It was already evening, yet no one would have noticed unless they looked up to the sky. Everything was illuminated, as always, by bright yellow street lights, and colorful neons that advertised different establishments in the area. He could feel a cold breeze getting through his jacket. He did not have any armor on, only his casual cloths.

He arrived at his destination. Even outside he could hear people yelling. After taking a big breath, Drav stepped inside. It was just as he expected. The bar in the middle was flocked with many kind of lifeforms. Two female twi'leks were tending the bar, and at first glance it seemed they were having a very hard time keeping up. All booths and tables were occupied. Fortunately Drav was not here to have fun. He had a mission.
Even among the big crowd it was easy to spot what he was looking for. A tall, almost gigantic, dark furred Wookie was standing at the side of one of the booths. Gargar, Drav recalled. The Duros begin making his way towards the Wookie.

He was only a few steps away when Gargar finally noticed him. Drav could hear a deep growl.
"Long time no see!" Drav looked up at the Wookie, his right hand on his CMBP, his left in his pocket.
"Here to see your boss."
Without saying anything Gargar opened the curtain of the booth and signaled Drav with his head to get in.
A rounded table was behind the curtain, with cushioned seating around it. On the right of Drav a male Weequay was sitting, looking at a female twi'lek dancing on a pole on top of the table. He quickly glanced at the Duros, then turned his attention back to the dancer.
"I knew you would come." He took a sip from the glass in front of him. "Please, take a seat!" He gestured at the empty space in front of him. While Drav was sitting down, he saw the Weequay grab the hand of the dancer, and pulled her down to sit next to him. Finally he was looking at the Duros.
"You're wise as always, Baku." Drav made sure that the other could hear the sarcasm in his voice. They had a history.
"No need for flattery!" Baku let a little smile show on his face. "So nobody would give you any work, huh?"
"A temporary setback. They just need to be reminded what I'm capable of." Drav's face stayed serious. He did not find the situation close to as funny as Baku did.

The Weequay leaned closer, and looked Drav right in the eye. "What is your offer?"
Right to business. Do I look this separate?
"A discount on my services. I'm sure you did not quit arms smuggling in the last few weeks. You give me an escort contract, and I give you a generous discount on my fees. A win-win situation if I've ever seen one."
Drav showed a confident smile. He knew money was the greatest motivation for anything that the smuggler did. Baku studied his face for a few moments longer, then leaned back and finished his drink. He extended the empty glass towards Drav.
"Tell you what. You bring me an other drink while I think about this generous offer. Something strong, preferably! Then we'll talk."
Drav decided to play along. He really needed a contract. He took the glass and exited the booth. The bar was full on all sides, and the bartenders were under constant bombardment of orders. Drav found an empty spot for himself, and began to wait for his turn.

 

[Nor'baal]

Nar Shaddaa - The Crazy Womp Rat

Nar Shaddaa was, and always had been, a complete and total dump. Ners revelled in it, it was a place in which scum like he collected together, fermented and pooled like so much filth. He was dressed simply, an MCV vest on over a plain black suit, a long trench coat over the top and a bowler like hat atop his head. He had a knife in his boot, and a pair of DL-15p Pistols on his hips. Gently, he blew out a cloud of stim smoke from his cigar, and made his way through the crowd - for tonight, he was aiming to cause less of a commotion that usual.

”The Womp Rat, I need in.’’ he said to a hard headed Houk Enforcer, one of his old contacts from his days back on the Moons.

”No can do mate, place is rammed.’’ came the direct reply.

”Why ain’t you there then mate, normally your scene?’’ Ners asked, a smile playing across his face.

”I’m out of that game now, much easier to just get paid to shoot when I’m told than play politics.’’ came the reply.

The Houk had been a Majordomo for one of the Hutt Crime Barons, years back when Ners had been starting out. Ners was aware the man's fortunes had changed, as if that wasn’t clear from his current posting already. He isn’t going to be of much use, Ners decided, his hand twitching near his right pistol - hesitation giving him pause.

”Your badge?’’ he asked, his intention plain. Give it to me.

Anger flashed across the Houks face, but one look at the positioning of Ners’ hand in relation to his gun saw it fade away. With a sigh, the Houk handed him his ID badge, a pass to access the club via the security doors. ”Make yourself scarce.” Ners instructed, as the Houk promptly did just that.

Placing the badge on his lapel, Ners checked his datapad, his current assignment coming up on the screen. ”Today's not your night buddy.’’ he said, looking at the picture of the dark furred Wookiee on his device. He had been called a few days back, some local thugs wanting to off one of their rivals main muscle - a Wookiee whose name Ners simply couldn’t be bothered to pronounce.

Walking into the Bar, and flashing his ID, he cast his eyes around - spotting a Duros sat at the bar, and paying him no heed, before spying the Wookiee, the target of his evening.
”Well this will be fun.’’ he mumbled to himself, removing his ID badge, and chucking his hat on the floor. One of the dancers standing closer to him noticed the movement, and turned.

”Sh….” the loud music cut out the tail end of the word ”...frakking Ners Ordo!’’ she shouted, her words drained out by the beat. Ners simply raised his hand to his lips, and made a hushing gesture before walking over to the Wookiee. Regrettably, his clients wanted this done, and they wanted everyone to see.

 

[Jinan B]

The Rat was truly packed that night, with the mass of bodies pushing against each other exceeding anything Braedon might have expected before he had entered the cantina. It was for the best though, he supposed: the patrons would be far less likely to notice a lone man sitting with his back against the wall if they struggled to spot him in the first place. Such a booth was where the Thysian had laid himself that evening, his hood drawn over his eyes and his hand around a drink that looked far more alcoholic than it truly was.

The former Jedi was not here to enjoy himself, of course. Instead, his senses were discreetly trained on one other being in particular: the dark furred wookiee in his own booth not 10 meters away from him. Braedon could not confess to know what the creature had done, only that a regular employee had dumped the bounty on his lap not two days ago, along with a warning that he'd better snatch it quickly before the opportunity passed.

Gods; how he hated it all.

Less than a decade had passed since he was a member of the Jedi Order itself, and yet so much had changed since that time. Now he was no better than any of the other 2-bit mercenaries that infested Nar Shaddaa; he couldn't even dare to use his lightsaber anymore for fear of the reprisal that would surely come.

Still, no matter how low he had fallen, Braedon still held onto his 2 most important traits: discipline, and patience. He would not try to strike at his target in such a crowded and guarded area, not least because the attempt would surely be suicide, but he would still be the one who was paid at the end of the day. A target like this was always vulnerable sooner or later, and all he had to do was wait for that moment while everyone else scrambled over each other trying to be the first mouse to the cheese.

His moment would come, and until it came he would sit, and drink, and wait.

At least, that was the plan. A plan that, like most would, did not survive first contact with Ners Ordo. One moment the Thrysian was as confident as he could've been. The next, something about the whole situation suddenly felt... Wrong, like a variable in the equation of his target's death had suddenly swung around on its head. The next moment he spotted the man through the press of bodies, making his way directly towards his mark. Was he going to attack? No, surely no one would be foolish enough to kill someone here of all places? The Rat was well known for how it dealt with crimes against its patrons, the very reason why it was so popular a place.

Braedon couldn't take the risk, however, not in his current situation. His hands moved to settle on his weapons, right hand on his blade pommel and left on his blaster, as he rose from his seat and began to push through the crowds in the hopes of heading off the potential assassin. Already though, it seemed that the masses were too thick for him to reach the Mandalorian in time.

@Nor'baal @Drav @Kallus

 

[Kallus]

Zogg was having a good night so far, The Crazy Womp Rat was filled to the brim, for the most part the crowd was loud and boisterous and so was he. He'd come in the past few nights hoping to talk or wrestle his way onto a new crew, specifically one with no ties to either the Jedi or the Empire. But that had quickly taken a back seat to simply enjoying life's little pleasures, namely booze, gambling and fighting. On the first day he'd been a little irked that he'd been asked to leave his shield and blaster with the bouncer, but even in a place like this no one is comfortable with a two meter being that was armed to the teeth. Those two items sat beside the door, in easy eye sight, just like they had the previous nights. At least by now he had proven to be 'harmless' enough that they let him keep his hammer and knife...... just in case.

He let out a rolling laugh as he slammed a Weequay's arm down onto the bar top, while scooping up his winnings with his only free hand. The lower two were each holding a mug of ale, not his first of the night and definitely not his last if suckers kept taking him up on his arm wrestling bets. Honestly, he had only started doing it simply for the joy of using his muscles, the credits were just a bonus that paid for more drinks. After taking a swig in salute to his bested opponent, Zogg looked around for any new challengers and his wattle deflated a little as no one new stepped up to try and best him. Head spinning slightly from the drinks he stood up to full height to try and see over the crowd, scanning for someone, anyone interesting.

"Ah. now there is a prize" He rumbled as his eyes locked onto a Wookiee with dark fur standing by a curtained booth, he'd heard it's name before..... Garjah or something like that. Everyone knows Wookiees are strong, and this one looked ready to get physical at the drop of a hat, the best kind of mood for a night like tonight. Nodding to himself he finished off his mugs and caught a bartender's attention for a refill on both. It was while he waited that he saw the tall Duros exit the curtained booth and walk over to the bar, as it was the only open space was near Zogg so he took the opportunity upon himself. "You know that wookiee, don't you?" He boomed "Happen to know if he's any good at arm wrestling? Kriff, I'd even go for a brawl right about now."

Waiting for a response Zogg sees a man enter the bar wearing a badge much like the guy's outside.... Perhaps they had swapped shifts. A quick glance to the man's left told the Besalisk that his gear was still where he'd left it. Turning back to find his mugs refilled Zogg scoops them up in his lower hands, smiles at the Duros and begins making his way to the Wookiee, one arm raised. "HEY GARGLE!"​

 

[Drav]

"I can't say I know him, but I know that he's an enforcer and bodyguard for a reason. I wouldn't mess with him." Before Drav could have even finished his last sentence the Besalisk was already on his way towards Gargar, with one mug each in two of his hands.

Drav waved at the bartender before she was to attend to other customers, and ordered two of the more expansive shots, and while he waited turned back around and examined what was happening.
The Wookie had just noticed the four armed alien approaching him, and only those who were familiar with the species would note the disgust on his face. He took a step towards Zogg, extended his left hand, stopping him and pushed him away just hard enough so that Zogg would have to catch his footing not to fall over. Gargar followed this up by showing off his fangs, indicating his uninterest.

Drav picked up the two shot glasses and began his way back to the booth. As he passed by the Besalisk, he said to him "Good luck with that." Drav was soon in the company of Baku again. He sat down a glass in front of Baku, the other one in front of himself.
"What is happening out there?" asked the Weequay, nervously examining Drav's face.
"Just a drunk Besalisk trying to wrestle with your pet." said Drav with a bit of uninterest in his voice.
"Well I hope security is ready to scoop his remains off the floor." Baku's mouth turned into a wide grim. His right arm was around the shoulders of the twi'lek dancer while he leaned forward, picked up the the glass in front of him, and lifted it up into the air. "To all the scum in the Galaxy!"
"I'll drink to that." Drav slightly raised his glass as well, then sat it down after finishing off its content.
"So did you have enough time to consider my offer?"
Baku leaned back on the seating, looking at Drav with still a smiley on his face. "Yeah, well... It's not happening!" He moved his left hand from the table to rest it on his leg. Drav was surprised. This was a great deal for Baku. He also leaned back, playing with the glass on the table with his left hand, while also moving his right to his leg. Then to rest it on his blaster.

"Why not?"

@Nor'baal @Jinan B @Kallus

 

[Nor'baal]

Slowly he continued to make his way across the room, his eyes set on the Wookiee - the target of his ire. Keeping his weapons stowed, the Bounty Hunter was somewhat alarmed to hear someone bellowing at the Wookiee, who reacted with a loud roar. Someone's trying to screw us, the Hunter thought to himself. Erring on the side of caution, and not one to willingly approach and enraged creature that could rip the arms of a man before he even had chance to scream - Ners altered his course, moving to take a seat at the Bar instead of approach the Wookiee.

The Mandalorian Contractor decided, rather than intercede directly, he would merely observe the goings on of the room before him - and act when it was more expedient to do so. Perching on a bar stool, he ordered the cheapest on tap drink, and dutifully ignored it was it was placed in front of him. Positioning himself so he could see his target, and intervene with relative ease, Ners remained silent.

 

[Jinan B]

Slowly, Braedon negotiated through the mingling crowds between himself and the man that he needed to stop. The fact that he was simply moving far too slowly did little to deter him. Even if the stranger reached the wookiee before the thrysian could reach him, the stranger might still be too slow to deal a killing blow. Even if he wasn't, there would surely have to be something else that could be done about the situation. The man was desperate sure, but he was also hopeful and confident. No other 2-bit mercenary was going to deny him his prize tonight.

But then the former Jedi heard a voice calling to the wookiee above all the commotion. He glanced briefly to see a second concern heading directly towards his target, yet unlike the first there seemed to be no truly hostile intent behind his approach. He took moment to refocus on the human stranger and realized that he had pulled an abrupt about-turn to head towards the bar instead of their shared mark. It seemed the overly overt besalisk had bought the Thrysian some time, and that was more than good enough for him.

So he too altered his course and made his own way towards the bar itself, sitting right by his supposed rival. His hood was drawn far over his head, so in all likelihood Ners wouldn't be able to make out much more than the species (and armament) of this new arrival.

"Water," said the man to the swiftly appearing bartender. Is the mandelorian were paying attention, it would be clear enough that something was off about the thrysian. After all, who went to a cantina to drink water? He decided to make the guessing easy enough for the man, and turned to face and speak to him.

"So who hired you then?" He would say in a nonchalant, almost bored tone. The man remembered his own contractor’s words about the probable competition, but even then he was curious to find out exactly who else wanted the wookiee dead. Who knew, perhaps he'd even find out what it was that the poor sod had done.

@Kallus @Nor'baal @Drav

 

[Kallus]

Zogg wasn't ready for the Wookiee to push him like that, after all they were there just to have a good time right? He stumbled backwards trying to catch his balance lest he fall, sloshing the ale in the mugs over the rim and onto his hands. Moving the drinks to his upper hands he licks the ale off of his lower ones, and notices Gargar baring his fangs. This only made him smile with his broad mouth, exposing his own large teeth in the process, after all who wants to go into anything angry? He winks at the Wookiee as takes a long pull from the mug in his left hand, hoping that everything would at least get the larger being to cheer up a little. A good old fashioned competition was one thing, murder was another.

As the Duros passed by Zogg chuckled deep in his throat, making his wattle noticeably vibrate and his belly bounce. "Luck? Who in all the stars needs luck, kid? I am only kidding." He laughed a little more even though by now the Duros was in the booth and behind the curtain, and most likely not listening "Thanks kid."

Emptying the mug in his left hand he sets it down on the closest table, getting strange looks from the patrons seated there but not much more. They only smiled as they saw Gargar getting more and more agitated, let him deal with the drunk, it'd be less of a problem for them that way. Ever oblivious to this Zogg takes a short half step forward, thrusting the last mug forward toward the Wookiee. "Come on big guy, I'm your friend. Well we havn't spoken before, true, but I'd like to be your friend. Why dont we drink on it? And then we can see who is stronger!" With one arm forward and the other spread wide, both his lower ones were held low, clenched into fists.