Holiday on Nar Shadaa

[Aaron Corinth]

Mack had decided that she had worked far harder than she had wanted to for the past few months. It was coming up on a year being with the company, The Exchange. She sighed as the ship dropped out of lightspeed. She was in one of the Exchange's battered YT-1300s she had nicknamed "The Rust Bucket" rather than her roomy frigate which she had taken to use as of late. A smile crossed her lips as she thought of the extravagant captain's quarters on the ship. It had taken her many jobs and hours at the Deadalous having their cover company modify her ship and bring up to what she would have called suitable. She was hoping to catch up with the few friends she had made when she had left Nar Shadaa many years ago from her bounty hunting days and she silently prayed there was nobody still on the planet after her.

The landing and clearance through the spaceport had gone flawlessly, no thanks to the secondary transponder relaying counterfeit civilian tags rather than the ship's true identity. She stepped out on to the street, the acrid air bit at her lungs as she consistently scanned the area keeping a hand rested on her blaster. She made her way following the old routes she knew to the bar in which the bounty hunters used to meet. She passed through the door with a whoosh and the entire bar went silent as she made her way towards the barkeeper. Noise started to pick back up again as they realized nothing exciting was going to happen, at least for now. "Is she in," she asked the barkeeper, who only nodded towards a door in the back left corner.

She reached the door without incident and it too wooshed open to admit her deeper into the area. She stepped into the private area and felt the blaster at the small of her back and raised her hands, "You move, you die girl. You came to the wrong bar this time....haha, put your damn hands down. You should have seen the fear on your face," the familiar voice of her old friend reached her ears.

She smiled before replying, "If that's the way you greet your friends, I am quite glad I left," she chuckled embracing the woman with a kiss to each cheek, "It is so good to see you my dear. How is business these days?"

The smile dropped from her face as she spoke, "Well, if you can call it business, pretty well terrible. The cartel has all but taken most of our contracts and I don't have any good bounty hunters with me anymore since you left. Are you sure you don't want to come back? Oh...of course I know you don't want to, I have received your little messages every now and then about how great this new company you are with is. I think I'll join the cartel soon, I don't know what else to do."

Mack looked into the woman's eyes. "There will always be a place for you in our company. But, I came out here for a vacation, not as part of the company. I do miss my ship though," she said winking to the other woman, "Where can we go to get away on this scum filled world, at least for a little while."

"Well, if you have the credits, Calrissian Hall is the best place on Nar Shadaa to go, especially if you want to get away," the woman replied.

"Excellent, it was so good to see you again, dear, you are welcome to come with me if you would like," she added offering a half smile attempting to goad her into it.

"I have things to take care of here, go, have fun, just don't let the Cartel take you out," she responded with a certain seriousness in her voice.

She nodded and hugged the woman one more time before heading back out into the bar area. She headed straight through the bar and back to the street. She followed the directions the woman had given her on how to get to the Casino/Hotel and she followed them to a T. She arrived in front of the well lit skyscraper sporting the name "Calrissian Hall" and she headed for the doors. She stepped inside and was taken aback by the sheer amount of noise, smoke, and lights inside the building.

Her eyes adjusted to the light and she scanned the interior carefully noting the presence of security cameras, guards, turrets, and motion detectors. She shook her head and figured the cartel had used quite a bit of money to make the hotel this nice and secure to act as a base and fund their criminal enterprise. A certain bit of envy flared up in her as she spotted a sign pointing towards a high-roller's area. She figured she would fit in, in that group as the majority of the general gamblers appeared to be aliens or miserable looking lot. She rounded the corner and spotted a table she would quite enjoy getting in to.

She stepped into the roped off area getting several looks as her black leather and cloth seemed to stick out amongst the dresses and tuxedos ringing the tables. She stepped up to the Pazaak table and the dealer gave her a hard look before speaking, "Million credit minimum mam."

She said nothing as she sat down on the stool and pulled her card containing her credits and handed it to the man. "You can take five million from there please," she replied sweetly looking at the amazed look on the dealer's face.

If it had been anywhere else the comment would have probably gotten the dealer killed, but she figured it was her vacation and the last thing she needed was to be arrested by the cartel. A short while later, after several dealer changes and deck changes, Mack was on an absolute roll. She was up over 10 million credits from her starting credits and was seemingly unstoppable. She let out a cheer as she racked in another win, doubling her money. Sitting at 20 million credits, she slid only a million onto the board as her bet. She could feel the tense eyes on her from all around and even from at least one of the people at the table. She could only guess the cartel was getting a bit upset about losing their credits. She smiled at a waiter who approached the table. "Would you get me a triple whiskey please," she said and tossed the man a thousand credit chip before returning to the game.

 

[Cassanova]

"Make that two. Her's is on me," Admittedly Jack had been the one sitting opposite mack losing so profusely throughout the night. Then again, losing wasn't a big problem for Tamblyn. "Luck seems to be on your side tonight..." Jack trailed off as he antied up for the next round. "Ten thousand.

It was pretty pedestrian bet by the high-roller table standards, but Jack wasn't in a rush. He had spent the better part of the day boring himself with interest rates, loan repayments, and debt collection - in Jack's defense, debt collection was a more interesting and... messy part of his job, resulting in a change of suit. Sporting a classy black three-piece suit over a crimson shirt, top two buttons left undone, Jack appeared all the refined gentlemen as one could expect anywhere in the galaxy. Although the tattoo that edged up his torso and neck alluded to a darker, more physical past. A past that Jack had escaped with his life and intellect surely intact.

"So what brings you to the famous Calrissian Hall?"

 

[Aaron Corinth]

She was somewhat surprised when a man sitting across from her offered the drink on his tab. The credit chip was returned as the waiter scurried away apparently scared by something. She had followed the bet of the others at the table to keep a steady flow of cash saved up but high enough it didn't appear as such. Mack was focused on her cards and those being laid out on the table when the man spoke again. "Well, we will say, I am on holiday from my employer. I was sent with credits and instructions to have a good time. As for why I'm here particularly, a friend told me this was the best place in town," she replied smiling slyly to the sharply dressed gentleman.

She spotted the tattoos just inside the collar of his shirt creeping up his neck. It was apparent this man wasn't all he appeared to be. She glanced at her cards throwing them in and saying, "I'm out."

Her attention drifted back to the man across the table. "So, how about yourself, what are you doing in the casino? Oh, and thank you for the drink by the way," she said smiling once again to the man.

 

[Cassanova]

"Holiday, eh? God I wish my boss'd give me one of those..." Jack took his drink from the waiter who seemed nervous and jittery in his presence. "Well your friend isn't wrong. Calrissian hall has the finest gambling tables within 10 parsecs. And the best booze too, I find." Jack lifted his drink in a salute to Mak before taking another sip.

Jack sat forward and collected his winnings suddenly as everyone else followed Mack's queue and folded their cards. Shrugging dismissively, Jack pulled the 80,000 credit pot towards him and stacked his chips with the blinding speed of a lifelong gambler. In truth thats all Jack had ever done is gamble. Money, lives, favours, his life. Admittedly Jack was damn good as his success seemed to know no limits - unlike the spines of those people sitting at the table with him. "Are you skirts," Jack paused, looked to mack and raised an apologetic hand, "No offense - Are you skirts going to actually play the game, or just throw your money at the table hoping it might magically levitate back to you?" Jack scowled at the spineless competitors at the table: Three of whom instantly gathered their chips and left in a fearful flurry.

Throwing his hands up in exhasperation, Jack cursed under his breath, "See what I mean? Come here to gamble, but won't actually play. You seem to be the only one here who actually is interested in playing the damn game." Jack smiled as he sipped on his drink again, eyeing off Mack curiously. "So, how about yourself, what are you doing in the casino? Oh, and thank you for the drink by the way"

"Oh me? I live upstairs. You could say this is my office, of sorts. Well... one of many," Jack dismissively waved off her thanks, "Don't worry. I'll buy your drinks for the night if you give me a challenge at this damn game."

With a final, cheeky smile. The reason three people left the table, the reason the bartender was nervous became clear. His name carried weight far beyond Cartel borders. The Chiss Ascendancy held him in the highest esteem, the Queen of the Hapes Consortium held a ball in his honour, the Mandalorian Clans jumped when he clapped his hands, and even the Sith Lords of the Imperium held a deep-seated respect for the Corellian thug-turned business mogul.

"Name's Jack Tamblyn."

 

[Aaron Corinth]

The waiter had arrived with their drinks and she grabbed the glass sipping the drink as if testing it. It was an excellent aged whiskey with great flavor. She smiled at the man as she swallowed another drink. She watched carefully as the man spoke of the other spineless players and they instantly left the table leaving it to Mack and the mysterious man across from her. She shook her head. "My you have a way with people," she said with a smile.

"Ah you live here, interesting...I plan on at the very least staying the night. I have heard accommodations are excellent. I tend to believe it if the rooms match what I see here," she said glancing around before adding, "and of course, free drinks, you've got me all night."

The man mentioned his name and an unrecognizable wave of understanding passed over her. She had heard of the man before and he was certainly not one to cross. From the rumors, he practically ran the shadier deals of the Cartel and of late had been gaining more and more prominence. A smile reached her face once again as the respect for the man mounted. "Well, you should have told me I was dealing with such a celebrity," she said raising an eyebrow before speaking again, "and as I'm sure you already know, my nickname is Mack, short for Mackenzie."

 

[Cassanova]

"Celebrity?" Jack laughed. "I've been called many things, Miss Corinth - a celebrity is not one of them," A cheeky smile escaped Jack's steely gambling visage as he revealed how much information makes it to his ears in this place. "Nonetheless, I appreciate the gesture."

Jack, after taking a quick look at his pile of chips, and a slightly longer look at Mack's, pushed in a healthy pile, "Raise to a hundred grand." A quick sip of whiskey had Jack looking around for a moment. A subtle gesture to a relatively small man with a quite fierce looking tatoo up the right side of his face up to his shaved head saw him join Jack at his side, leaning in to hear Jack's instructions. What was said wasn't so much a concern, but the man nodded and briskly walked away, darting through an employees only door.

"So, your boss gave you credits and told you to have a good time, eh?" Jack nodded, quickly scanning Mack's chip pile again. "And of the twenty or so million sitting infront of you, I think about five you came with based on what my friend told me." Jack leaned back in his chair, confident as ever. "I didn't realise Bounty Hunting earned you such a generous boss. Holiday and five million?"

Jack chuckled, "As the old Corellian saying goes, you are wearing the road well," Jack smiled as the translation lost some of its emphasis from the ancient language of Olys Corellisi. "So are you still in the business?"

 

[Aaron Corinth]

"Well, I don't remember mentioning my last name, Mr. Tamblyn, which only confirms you know who I am," she said with a wink before speaking again, "and sitting a table with someone with as much money as you have and the power you have I would call that celebrity status. I bet I couldn't name ten people who didn't know who you are."

Almost as soon as Jack moved his chips, she followed calling his bet. However, before finishing, she grasped another hundred thousand saying, "Well, I'll raise you my dear."

"And that is correct, you are good at what you do, Jack. And I joined a much more lucrative business, but I take the occasional job every now and then. I would say my other ventures tend to be the more profitable ones," she said raising an eyebrow as he threw in the saying.

"I have done quite well for myself," she finished as the swallowed the rest of the whiskey waving for another to be delivered.

The man intrigued her each time he spoke. The ease at which he manipulated the people around him and the fear that everyone who had come in contact with him seemed to have brought a wide smile to her face. "I see you have quite a few assets at your disposal. So tell me, how many drinks to I have to have before I get a tour of this establishment courtesy of Jack Tamblyn, or hell, at least a dance. I know I passed something more interesting than this table as I came in and I think I've won enough at least for one night's stay here," she added, her smile remaining in place as she pulled in the pot which had flopped to her winning once again.

 

[Cassanova]

Jack smiled. It seemed someone knew the name of the game. The sociopolitical preening that tended to happen at the high roller's table of Calrissian Hall. He enjoyed the banter, it was a welcome change of pace from the monotony of mindless conversation about the weather, or how the local twi'lek security chief's daughter was caught in bed with a wookiee earlier that week. Despite the obvious profit of having that information, or better yet pictures, as Jack did - it was utter trollop and Jack was sick of it. Mack, however, seemed to understand that the banter was a cover, and he genuinely believed that they understood each other. Both playing the game for the benefit of those around them. Jack enjoyed the game almost as much as the afterparty.

"Your bet, Mister Tamblyn," the dealer politely broke through Jack's train of thought.
"What's the pot, Len?" Jack seemed to know the names of everyone in this place. Probably because he did.
"Five hundred, seventy three thousand, sir."
"I raise an additional four hundred, twenty seven thousand," Jack shrugged. "One million, four hundred, twenty-seven thousand, actually."
"You wish to raise the pot to two million, sir?"

Jack simply smiled. The game was on.

Another sip of whiskey, "Yup."

 

[Aaron Corinth]

The man made her giggle as he raised the bet once again. "Do you want me to take all your money," she asked smiling.

She looked him deep in the eyes before putting the appropriate chips in a stack and pushing it into the pot. Even, if she lost she was well above what her starting amount was and she was enjoying toying with Jack. She took a small sip of the next whiskey glass that had come her way as Jack had done. It seemed the man was more than his reputation. She had expected a cold unfriendly man that did not socialize very well and the man had seemed very much the opposite from the time they had spent at the table.

She looked down to her hand finding it would be next to impossible to beat. She waited for the next round of betting and slid another stack of chips into the pot. "You want to play, I raise One million," she said simply.

The absolutely shocked look on the dealer's face met only a grin from Mack as he seemed unsure of what to do next. It appeared the bets were beginning to draw wary eyes from other parts of the casino. She caught the eye of a security guard here or there, nervously fidgiting with their hands and coats or the odd man or woman staring incredulously. She turned back to the table, swallowing another mouthful of the acrid alcohol before her eyes fell back on Jack who was next up to bet.

 

[Cassanova]

Jack laughed as he downed the last of his whiskey, waving to the bartender, pointing to the roof then raising a second finger. The bartender knew what he meant. Top shelf product. Two triple whiskeys. Having set himself to the task with efficious practicality, Jack and Mack were both quickly served 'the good stuff'.

"You call that playing?" Jack turned to Len the dealer, "Correct me if I'm wrong, Len, but I believe in order to see Miss Corinth put all her chips on the pile I have to raise to eighteen million?"

It took the dealer clearly a lot longer than it did Jack to calculate the required bet to fill the pot and push Mackenzie all in. After a few moments of awkward silence, Jack staring down the rim of his glass at Mack, Len finally replied, "Very astute, sir. A raise of eighteen million would see the kind lady forced to go all in, or to fold."

The phrases of all in and eighteen million had drawn a crowd to the table. Jack hadn't even noticed that the other players had vacated when they realised that the game was no longer about money. Those who didn't know the player would assume that some seriously good cards had been dealt. Those who knew Jack personally, of which there were very few would know that he gambled for the gamble. To see how hard the bluff could be. To feel the sting of a loss. To see the collapse of another person when they realise that they'd been had. Jack gambled for the gamble, for the game, and for himself. Not for any material gain.

Jack's eyes flashed with a flicker of rambunctious joy, "What do you say, sweetheart? Feelin' lucky?" Jack leaned forward, pushing in two large, square, blue chips, and with the dealer's help, removing two smaller golden chips from the pot. "Raise eighteen million credits."

Len turned to Mack and spoke softly, "Ma'am. Your call is seventeen million credits - all in. Will you call?"

 

[Aaron Corinth]

The next glass of whiskey to arrive was of a slightly different color. It was a bit darker signifying it had been aged even longer than what they had been drinking, which had by far gone over anything she had tried before. She took a deep drag of the amber liquid, smooth as silk, she thought as the warmth reached her stomach. The man mentioned true playing and asked the dealer about her chip count. She knew he was correct, it would be another 17 million to see her go all in. The dealer counted carefully and reported back to Jack agreeing with his count.

The crowd around the table had grown much larger as the bet had increased. She could see the happiness in his eyes as he spoke and placed the massive bet before them. She swallowed another drink of the whiskey. Perhaps it was the liquor talking but she couldn't resist. "You bet Jacky boy," she said as a smile crossed her face once again and all of her remaining chips were scooped into the pile.

The cheers of the crowd exploded around them. It would all fall on the last turn as to whether she would double her money or go home penniless and at the mercy of the man across the table. The card flopped and matched Mack's perfectly. The cards showed and as she had expected her cards had won her the massive pot. The dealer pushed the chips towards her. She pocketed the two square blue chips Jack had placed in the pot, she would not go home with less than that which equaled out to 20 million credits. The rest of the chips were simply bonus now. She smiled to the man, who appeared to not care he had just lost almost 20 million credits to her.

The dealer held off on dealing another hand as it was time for a shuffle and due to the winning streak, it would be time for a new dealer as well. The crowd, quickly growing bored of the lack of action had dispersed back to their applicable games. "So, Jack, shall I continue to take your money," she asked as she sipped the aged whiskey.

 

[Cassanova]

Jack frowned. Admittedly he had sat down at the table with five million and had just over six infront of him, so the night wasn't a total waste. He shrugged off the loss - he'd lost bigger on worse bets than the cards he had. Jack leaned back in his chair and waved his hand dismissively to the new dealer, "Cash me out."

Losing a few million credits wasn't a particularly big problem for Jack. Before he'd go to bed tonight he'd just potter about and shift around a few shares and make back twice that with the markets overnight - or he'd make it happen like that. Such was the way Tamblyn worked. Spend, save, gamble, buy, and most importantly; profit.

He stood up in his chair, dutifully buttoning his blazer over his vest and shirt, and eyed across the table to Mack, "If you'd be interested in a change of scenery, Miss Corinth, you're welcome to join me upstairs." Jack clarified, "I've got some whiskey that puts the bar to shame, and a better choice of music."

 

[Aaron Corinth]

Mack inclined her head as the man cashed out. It seemed he was leaving already. She sighed and noticed there were no other takers to bet against her. She tossed the chips she had pocketed earlier back onto the table with the other chips stacked up. "Well, I guess cash me out as well," she told the dealer.

The man stood buttoning his suit back up before speaking. She pocketed the card that the dealer had credited her chips to and stood as well. "Well, I would say that sounds quite interesting. If your whiskey beats this, then I've got to try it. As for music, excellent, I hope its something...tasteful," she said waving for him to lead the way.