The games were still at least a half hour away from opening, but that did nothing to dull the thunderous roar of the crowd. Part of that might have been the stadium's design, amplifying the sounds of the crowd. Part of it might have been the pre-game events such as the dog and the dancing Kowakian monkey-lizard. Part of it might have been the opening ceremony that was about to begin.
But if there was one thing that Addipos was sure of, it was that they weren't cheering for him really. He'd been around long enough, and interacted with the other species enough to know that they didn't really care about Hutt politicking enough to really get worked up over a new Grand Lord, unless said said Lord happened to be exceptionally bad, in which case the reaction was still anything but acclaim.
No, they viewed the Hutts as arrogant bothers, who occasionally hosted events to their own opulence such as these games, which were entertaining. At the end of the day it was still all about bread and circuses. The people didn't care as long as both were provided, and things weren't too horrible. And of course there was always that reminded on the Hutts' northern border that things could be worse.
Sure the Hutts were nasty, slave holding, criminals. But they also weren't insane Force-user's led by an Empress who'd taken a blowtorch of Force energies to what had been the center of galactic civilization for uncounted millenia, ordered an entire sector burned to glass, and then slaughtered their own people for no reason.
In point of fact, for the most part people were left alone in Hutt Space, unless they happened to do something monumentally stupid, and that also counted for a lot. On platforms just lower than the one Addipos was one with his contingent of guards, were delegations from the various vassal worlds in Cartel Space. Toydaria, Chalacta, Kamino, Lannik, and so many others that had been bought (in some cases again) during the era of great expansion. None had many reasons to love the Hutts, in and of themselves, but all had a vested interested in remaining a part of the Cartel. It might not have been the best power, but it'd successfully thwarted a Sith invasion.
How many other powers still standing could say that?
And as if on cue a Deluge-class battlecruiser, the Warcaller, flew low over the top of the stadium with its massive contingent of starfighters flying in formation with it. Some had argued that the Scylla should have been present, but Addipos would rather it remain in the less heavily trafficked reaches of the Cartel. A monster that had already terrified many, and a monster that he'd rather have his enemies guessing as to where exactly it was. The Deluge would suffice, the massive ship was the largest being produced at Rothana. A testament to the continued strength of the Cartel, and the renewed building efforts that had consumed the past years of Addipos' life. Soon there would be further discussion with the Kajidics, Vassals, and various Champios of the Cartel about increasing the output of such starships and much more as the Cartel returned to a proper war footing. Already the borders were being reinforced in the wake of Naboo, the Cartel couldn't exactly let various riffraff come and go as they pleased in these times.
Production warships, already going round the clock, would reach a fever pitch with the only ceiling being the number of available slips for construction. Factories producing war materials would kick into overdrive, and major military exercises held. Addipos wouldn't make the same mistake he and the other Hutt Lords had made in engaging the Bothans. There they'd rushed in, flush with success and profit, they'd allowed their hubris to lead them to near ruin.
Not this time, this time they'd be ready.
And when they were ready...they'd wait. Sooner or later something was going to give, it didn't take a genius to see that. And when it did, Addipos would ensure that the Hutts were ready to exploit it to the best of their ability.
But for now, for now there was entertainment.
With the press of a button, the repuslor platform Addipos was on lowered towards the bottom of the arena. There in the middle, between all the individual floating arenas, was a curious sight indeed. An a very thick concrete slab there was what appeared to be a Mandalorian in a transparent cylinder in a bowl shaped inlay. Above the cylinder was a very large vat, and all around it was an invisible forcefield. The forcefield was there to keep the gaseous byproduct from what was in the vat from killing everyone else in the stadium.
The Mandalorian armor should have been familiar to any who'd followed the Cartel's negotiations with a particular engineering firm. The man who'd worn the armor to that was already dead, killed by Mjolla from what Addipos had gathered, in secret after an attempt to get him to turn on his corporate backer failed. Though killed far from the public eye, that wasn't going to prevent the Cartel from trying to use to their advantage. So they'd dressed up some poor fool who was near the dead man's height and build. Who was it? Addipos didn't actually know, or much care. They were probably somebody who'd pissed off the Cartel, and been taken alive as a bounty, and scheduled to be killed anyway.
Whoever it was, they weren't restrained, and well aware that something very bad was about to happen. They beat on the side of the cylinder, and were no doubt screaming. But nothing could be heard outside.
As Addipos' platform slowly came closer, and closer to the big red button that would set everything into motion, the man in the tube became more frantic.
Slowly (it wasn't as if the old Hutt did anything fast), Addipos moved. The method of execution wasn't dissimilar from ones carried out in the past. In particular, "Kossak" the younger who'd been liquidated via acid transfusion, and the remaining goo put on display.
In this instance, there would be a bit more fire, and toxic byproduct.
With the push of a button the vat of chlorine trifluoride dumped out.
Almost immediately Addipos backed away, and his platform started to rise again. The interior of the cylinder immediately burst into flames. If the man was very lucky he'd have died instantly. If he wasn't...well he'd probably be dead now anyway. As the compound further ignited on contact with the cylinder itself, and the ground, it started to eat away at it all, releasing toxic gases which were thankfully kept in by the forcefield. A bit of water had been introduced as well to ensure the reaction of hydrolysis which had produced hydrofluoric and hydrochloric acid steam. That in turn meant that there wasn't much of a chance that anything was going to be left.
The fire would burn, and the reaction would probably continue until it ate through the concrete block. What was left of the "Mandalorian" and his armor would be given as gifts to all the higher ups who'd attended, whilst whatever remained of the helmet would be sent to the Imperium. They certainly had no love for the KES organization, and less for Mandalorians.
As Addipos platform returned to its place towards the top of the pyramid the Hutt bellowed out, his voice amplified by microphone "Let the games begin!"
The crowd erupted into cheers, that would have drown out the previous raucous. The Hutt didn't bother with a long winded speech. No one wanted to hear from him, they wanted to watch the gladiators. Heck Addipos wanted to watch the gladiators, it was one of his preferred past times, and the winners here would proceed to his own stadium on Nal Hutta.
Further below the spectators would spectate, and bets would be placed. The facility was well patrolled by Cartel grunts, and R.A.D droids to ensure nobody got any funny ideas. The Battlecruiser almost directly overhead should have also helped to dissuade that notion. If anyone tried, and somehow succeeded to do anything, Addipos had left instructions behind that would see his plans accelerated, and in the hands of Petar and Backes. They'd know what needed to be done, and regardless of what happened (assuming anything did) the same group would be blamed. This was a ceremony for entertainment, and money making.
And probably the last time such a ceremony would be held before the galaxy was plunged into total war.
Ember vs Seth Lankost
Tamsen Sercome vs Eidolon
ValekTanXannoh vs Carbon
Foxxy Amidala vs Ellis Milian
OOC: This thread is open to anyone who wants to be a part of the crowd, or place bets on the fights ongoing. I will put links to the fight threads in there when they're up as well. No funny business or I drop an army, and a Star Destroyer on your head. Remember that this is the heart of Hutt Space.
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