Governor's Gambit - Star Wars SI into Imperial Governor

(((OOC, not my best omake but an Imperial Spy would definitely overthink the conversation. Watch Las fail upwards!)))

The young lady in red and white sighed. She had been hoping to get more out of the Moff. She had expected bad pick up lines, expected him to boast about his sector's military strength, but he chose to discuss taxation policy. Even if he was not attracted to her, he should have been more willing to talk to her about something less benign. After all, everyone should knew who she was. As much as she sometimes hated the fact that her heterochromia gave her away in field work, it was undoubtedly useful in being noticed. She had expected asking for favors, asking for a date, maybe asking to be left alone, but he had done none of those. He was completely nonplussed and wanted to discuss economics. Pulling up the dossier on the Moff, she noticed that he intended to focus almost to an absurd amount on economics, and generally let other people handle the other aspects of his sector. Though the presence of non-humans in nearly all corners of his administration was alarming, his focus on economics did bear fruit.

She then realized something. He was talking to well known Imperial intelligence agent about economics. What was he trying to tell her about? Granted, she generally did not care much about the administrative aspects of her work but perhaps that was a mistake. Pulling up a spreadsheet, she began to cross check the reports with the treasury reports. She frowned. While she had expected some discrepancies, she had not expected to find them that quickly. She was not a forensic accountant, so if this was what a cursory review did, perhaps she should bring this up the chain. A week later, she was in formal military dress kneeling before his Imperial majesty.

"Your highness, I am concerned with some of our accounting numbers. A moff brought it to my attention, and I believe he is correct to be concerned. As such, I would reque -" Palpatine raised is hand. She stopped talking.

"You are a faithful servant. You have earned enough trust that if you believe something should be looked into, it should be looked into. What specifically do you require of me?" Palpatine requested.

"My lord, clearly the man is an economic savant. He has somehow governed a backwater of a planet into a productive one and his sector appears to be undergoing the same transformation. Given his esteemed rank and loyalty, I thought it would be best if you order him to do an audit for the benefit of the Empire," she explained.

"Granted. You are dismissed," the Emperor ordered.

Three weeks later, in the Moff's office...

"What do you mean I am doing an audit of the entire Empire!" Las yelled.

"The order comes from the Emperor himself. Apparently you impressed someone on your last trip to Imperial Center." Zyx commented.

"Is there any way to get out of this?" Las aswked.

"Sorry bro. The orders came from the Emperor himself. Sometimes the reward for good work is more work," Zyx replied.

"But I wanted to take a vacation..." Las whined.

Omake: Tales from the Skull Market

POV: Tak Gwut
RIII: Guardian
Certifications: Negotiator IV, Infiltrator II, Adviser III
Head of Administration of the Mynock Pailers, a RII: Alliance Mercenary Company,
Vio's Indoor Skull Market, Edin system, Highreach, Edinspire, 2ABY

Tak gave a stretch as she entered the indoor market. Cargo lifters and speeder trucks lined the floor in a roughly organized manner. Some makeshift stalls lie on trailers dragged behind the former two. Spots near the entrance and the center were fiercely competed and bid for. Some cargo containers were even stacked on top of each other until they reached the ceiling.

"Reminds you of when we were two chumps wandering around a Guild-A-Gear, doesn't it?"

It certainly brings back memories. Only instead of a calm, almost sterile atmosphere, there was a fevered and humid anticipation as hawkers shouted their offers to all who could potentially hear. Of course they were always a few squads of RIV mercenaries on hand to prevent things from getting out of hand. Petty thieves looking to get lucky were in for a rude surprise. Most didn't bother to look up at the surveillance droids watching the area.

"Let's keep our eyes on the prize Garik. We have to find some upgrades for the Pailers, not gawk at every stall in this Skull Market."

Skull Market was a term for the network selling goods seized from pirates in Guild space. A network that had only grown and become regulated with the Zann Consortium's failed push into the sector. Quality of these used goods were often questionable, but the markups were low in exchange. Plenty of low ranking independent merchants try to get their start stocking up at forfeiture sales hosted by the Guild and sector law enforcement, then attempting to turn a profit selling it off piece by piece at the Skull Market. It was seen as a proving ground by the Guild merchant community.

Protection and regulation of the Skull Market is taken very seriously by the Guild. The concerningly paramilitary nature of some of these pirates meant the equipment seized could be heavily restricted. Only those with the proper permits and licenses could open a stall at one and submit themselves to inspections at any time. The Guild paid well for high ranking mercenaries to patrol and monitor Skull Market locations. These measures prevented most illegal practices, although a few brave criminals still tried their luck on occasion.

"Yeah I guess you're right. Don't want to let that monkey swindle us more than he already did at his cantina."

Garik was still fuming with the Skull Market's manager. The Andrennian had played him like a drum by making her partner pay to introduce him to the Market's owner. Only to take his Credits in one hand and hold out another to introduce himself. It was only a few Credits, more of a prank really, but it still stung Garik's ego.

The Cantina owner had predicted the Skull Market's rise and had prepared accordingly. He purchased and renovated a warehouse owned by a defunct smuggling ring in Edinspire to set up an indoor market. When the Guild started looking for a place to set up shop on Highreach, he showed up before they made a public announcement. Now Skull Market Traders rent out his stall spaces to peddle their wares while the Guild pays him for the privilege of using the land.

"Alright enough staring at the big picture, let's go find some upgrades for the Pailers."

Their SKZ Sporting Blasters were alright for low rank jobs around Minda-4. However the Pailers had begun to look into contracts offworld ever since the contract for Dewbacks ended. If they wanted to be taken seriously with the likes of Mandalorians roaming around, upgrading their equipment is a requirement. Speaking of taking things seriously.

"Garik stop making googly eyes at that row of boarding armor. We are looking for more equipment, but we are not made of Credits. Besides the Hurt Wagon is geared for transport over combat, even with the three fighters we have."

With the nature of piracy primarily being a problem in the void, a lot of the gear on sale was for space combat. Guilders looking to grab an onboard amenities unit or a Plasma Cut Boarding Device had a decent chance of coming across a used model. They wouldn't find anything truly restricted like a shift coffer in a Skull Market. However it was obvious where the pirates spent most of their time. Starship weapons were a bit rarer and more heavily regulated by the Guild. Merchants selling them tended to be housed in a dedicated building with a constant guard detail, but a high enough rank could give one access to that stock.

Unfortunately the lack of carrier space on the Pailers' main ship limited their area of operation by how long their fighter pilots can stay in their cockpits. Most mercenaries weren't keen on sleeping and doing their daily business in a starfighter for days on end. As a result the Pailers could only take contracts a system or two away from their base on Minda-4 unless it was long term or well paying enough to justify spending the Credits for out of house transportation.

"Alright, alright. Let's head over to the ground vehicle section to see if we can get a more impressive ride for the Pailers than a cargo speeder."

That isn't to say the Skull Market catered exclusively to spacers. Most crews had at least something if an opportunity for a Dirtside Raid ever presented itself. Plenty of merchants bought up a lot of one type of good to consolidate and build up a reputation as the local "insert good here" merchant of their Skull Market. The dirtside selection may be sparser than the space selection, but suppliers still managed to accumulate a decent stock.

"Looks like a lot of Starhawks this season. A bit outdated, but still usable and ubiquitous enough that people still produce spares for them. Could give the Pailers some added mobility."

Their primary options for small patrols were either the Arrows or their blurrgs. A stable of speeder bikes could allow them to respond to alarms and minor threats much quicker. Might have to organize bike lessons to keep anyone from crashing their Starhawk on their first patrol. Riding an animal and riding a speeder bike were two different things.

"Aw don't tell me you are thinking of adding side-cars. How are we supposed to intimidate our enemies scrunched up in a lame side-car?"

Garik does have a point. Appearances have a quality all on their own. Plus adding a side-car would decrease the speed somewhat, but it would still be a step far above blurrg speed. However the trade off of being able to bring more bodies and firepower to a situation should more than make up for it. Now how to phrase it to her partner?

"If they think we are weak because of a side car, they'll regret it when we attach repeating blasters or mortars to them."

The temptation of bringing squad level firepower to bear seemed to mollify Garik long enough to consider the option. Sure they were not expecting to lay siege to another base anytime soon, but being able to disorient or disperse a crowd with smoke or stun gas was always helpful. Especially if they were taking contracts outside of Minda in systems where public security is less stable. After consenting to at least trying it out, the two made their way to the infantry gear section of the Market for the meat of their purchases.

"Alright we both agree stun grenades for the individual Pailers' kit and the mortars are a must. We want a way to take care of groups and they are the easiest to get licenses for. Better armor would be nice to have, but lower priority at the moment. The last major item on our list is blasters. Quantity matters more than quality given pirates aren't exactly known for standardization. As long as it is within the budget and better than the sporting blasters we are currently using."

Blasters were something that was always in great supply in the Skull Market. Dozens of the same type of blaster markedly less so. Garik cracked a joke about making every Pailer a gunslingers by giving them each a C-10. All Tak could think of was having just brought their rifle marksmanship to above rookie standards, only to go back and have to drill them all to use heavy blaster pistols. She admits she took more time than necessary admiring a bryar rifle. Long enough for Garik to comment using collector's items as a standard weapon would give their logistics a heart attack.

Eventually they settled on purchasing a merchant's entire stock of three dozen GLX Firelances. The Republic design was popular with bounty hunters and pirates alike for the strong stun setting it came with. Both of them agreed the lower body count the Pailers left behind after a contract, the better. This loadout would encourage them to take more security contracts than wiping out pirate bases. Settling on a theme would also encourage similar contracts in the future. All the old crew back at base had experience with that from the Dewbacks contract, so the necessary skills were already in the company. Seems like the Pailers were going to be known for security utilizing outdated tech. Not the worst thing to be known for out in the Rim in her opinion.

They had to hire a dozen more recruits so they could have a garrison at their base when a contract took them offworld. Even had to promote a new lieutenant, an Anomid named Tear, to hold down the fort. Tak would have to disperse the new recruits amongst the old blood so they could pick up their tricks. However the fact they even have a veteran/rookie divide shows the Pailers are no longer the fresh faces they started out as. Hopefully Garik and her can take the company even further up the ranks.

——

POV: Mwork, Aqualish Head of Security for Vio's (legal) commercial empire, apartment courtyard not far from Vio's Indoor Skull Market, Edin system, Highreach, Edinspire, 2ABY

"Mwork, got eyes on those cases of Savareen brandy? Supplier is starting to get antsy."

Mwork gave a sweep the area from his Corona Limited. He was almost tempted to stay in his kudana leather seat and let the droids handle it. Almost because he was aching for some proper action. Vio forbade him from any shockboxing matches until the Market was fully established. Tasks like these were the only way he could stretch his feet and fists.

Someone had hit a merchant in Vio's Skull Market. Naturally this was an insult to Vio's protection and demanded a response. His boss assured the merchant that he would be sending "his best men" to retrieve the goods. While the merchant probably thought that meant Guild mercenaries, he contacted Mwork to get the job done quietly while trying to persuade the merchant to keep their mouth shut. No need to have a record of Vio's new business getting hit so early in its operation.

"I am at where the locator is. Unless the thieves knew ahead of time where it was hidden, they shouldn't have been able to remove it in such a short time. Heading in now."

As Mwork got out of his new-to-him landspeeder and adjusted his suit while double checking the coordinates. The supplier's locator pointed him to an apartment a few blocks from the Skull Market. It was actually part of his old gang's turf for a bit back in the day. Course it was cleaner and more well kept than back then. He didn't even have to step over any broken glass or trash.

"Aw how precious. This looks like baby's first larceny."

As Mwork leaned into the courtyard he found a gaggle of youths. The youngest looked no more than 17, the cusp of adulthood. Unfortunately they were standing around the cases of brandy he was sent to find. Their excited shouting was about their "big score" sealed their fate as the thieves he was looking for. Poor fools hadn't even set up a lookout to watch for any retribution. You don't hit the biggest game in town then stop running after ten minutes.

Reminded him of the time he hotwired his first speeder for the Rancor Maws and they let him bring it home after redoing the registration. Thing ran like a gungan with its legs broken and everyone laughed when he showed up in it, but that didn't matter because it was his. Guess after almost every gang was wiped out in the Purges, Highreach's next generation of criminals didn't have anyone to show them the ropes.

"You three, stick to the background unless someone flashes a blaster. I will handle these kids myself."

The shiny black and blue droids brought a hand to their saucer heads. With a flourish of their capes that Mwork knew was excessive, the security droids holstered their blasters and retreated to the shadows. No idea where they learned that given all they did was follow him on his rounds. He was still getting used to working alongside droids, but working closely with the Guild gave them options for the more… high performance models seized from criminals. The boss even had some fancy trade permit he had been approved for mounted on his office wall, said it showed off his growing influence.

Vio's operations were getting big enough that more manpower was needed to prevent wandering eyestalks and appendages. Unfortunately most of the reliable organic muscle market on Highreach had been cornered by the Guild. Most toughs Mwork knew found it easier to get good work with a Guild certificate, even if reporting after every job was a hassle. Despite staying on friendly terms with the Guild, the boss wanted the core of his network loyal to him and not report to some multi-sector spanning institution every little thing they did. So until the boss could train up more meat from the ground up, servos would be handling a lot of the lifting. Either way, it was showtime.

"Good evening everyone! You appear to have the brandy my boss sent me to find! If you just hand it over nice and easy, I promise to only leave some facial bruising to show what happens to wandering appendages."

The laughters and snickers stopped as Mwork strutted up and made his announcement. His words bounced around the kids' empty skulls while their eyes tracked him with confused wariness. That wariness turned into youthful cockiness as the snickers returned with a vengeance. Their eyes betrayed their lack of education in street smarts.

"And what are you going to do about old man? Swing that fancy cane at us? Why don't you beat it before you throw out your back."

Now that was just uncalled for. He was just in his late thirties! His abs were only beginning to devolve into a gut from a lack of fighting! Frakking kids don't know how to respect their elders. Not showing deference to someone well dressed and calm in a potentially violent environment was a good way to wind up face down in a gutter during the Dark Years. Well Mwork tried it the easy way, but if they were going to ease his guilt by mocking him, hard way it was.

"Guys I think my words gave old man a senior moment. Let's pack up the stuff annnn-oof!"

These idiots were so busy laughing at their bad humor they stopped watching him. Made it easy to walk up and throw his cane the air. Eyes drew upward by the sudden movement as he gave Loudmouth a haymaker to that mouth. If they had been watching him, he never would have gone for something so telegraphed. Loudmouth wobbled for a moment before crumpling into a heap as the cane ended its flight.

Snickers responded to his friend's fall by pulling out a shiv. Bad move. He swung wide which allowed Mwork to seize his arm and pull him off balance. A liver shot and he is doubling over in agony. The shiv clatters across the ground and out of anyone's reach. Not that it would have done much to the armored vest he had under his suit. Lucky it wasn't a blaster or Snickers would have ate a bolt from the droids.

Chuckles looks at his mates on the ground before meekly raising his hands. Kid should have thought of that before rejecting his offer. Mwork winds up a bolo punch sends the kid flying in a way that would have brought cheers in the ring. The kids where left on the ground quiet or squirming and no fourth opponent emerging from the shadows. The calm signaled the fight's end as Mwork picked his cane back up. All in all a bit of a disappointment. He didn't even have to activate his shockmitts.

"OI MWORK! WHAT YOU ROUGHING UP THOSE LADS FOR!?"

And there is Ms. Whitamayj, right on cue. Mwork glanced up at the aging Togruta hanging out her apartment window. The bat was old back when he was first initiated into the Rancor Maws gang. Always gave baked goods to the younger criminals and retaliation was swift for anyone who gave her trouble. Her screeching was background noise for the local community.

"Just teaching a lesson to some kids who thought they could steal from Vio, Ms. Whitamayj!"

"WELL THEN GIVE THEM A GOOD STOMP ON THE CROTCH FOR ME MWORK! VIO'S GOOD PEOPLE! HELPED ME GET THE PARTS SO I COULD WATCH MY STORIES!"

Good thing Vio insisted on "giving back to the community". If Vio couldn't be feared without going to prison, he figured he might was well be loved. A few cheap bits and bobs sent to the folks for free and suddenly everybody is singing his praises. The boss planned to use that goodwill to build up manpower independent of most of the Guild's influence. They'd still go to the Guild for training and licensing, but he'd have his hooks (and their loyalty) from the beginning. Yet being loved and being soft are too different things, as Mwork had just plainly demonstrated.

"Halt citizen! My sensors have detected a violent altercation has occurred! Do not attempt to flee and explain the situation at once!"

Just after dealing with one obstacle, another pops up. A 501-Z trunged into the courtyard looking to fulfill its peacekeeping programming. Of course it arrived just after things died down. Ah frak it is still staring at me. What was it that Vio told him to say if this happened?

"I was just, uh, performing a citizen's arrest and reclaiming some property for the Skull Market officer. Here's the credentials for the goods and my identification."

One good thing about working with the Guild is Vio gets a bit of leeway when it comes to violence. Leeway which is extends those under him like Mwork. As long as the violence is kept controlled and the right flimsiwork is filed afterwards, roughing up some criminals like this shouldn't draw much heat.

"Scanning…processing documentation…documentation registers as legitimate…beginning preliminary analysis of crime scene…level of force registers as within acceptable levels for Highreach's legal code…very well. Please remain here while a vehicle arrives to take these criminals to the station. Would you like your bounty payment deposited in a personal or business account?"

Well there goes keeping this quiet. Even if Vio clamps the supplier's mouth shut, a police report is going to ensure word gets out. Maybe if Mwork gives Vio the whole bounty it will soothe his anger. The chance to throw some really damaging punches was more than enough. He was getting punch-starved after spending so much time without setting foot in the ring.

——

Whenever there is a crisis, someone is going to try to profit off it. At least the Skull Market is relatively better regulated than most Black Markets in Star Wars and the legalized gunrunners are less likely to shoot you. Vio's indoor market looks a bit like an indoor market like Kirkgate Market in Leeds with the feverish and mishmash aesthetic of an Outer Rim bazaar. Only instead of selling produce, knick-knacks, and assorted jewelry, it sells blasters, raiding gear, and assorted jewelry seized from pirates. Why the guards don't even take bribes or collect "additional" fees!

Mwork's section was intended to demonstrate that despite Las bringing law and order to the Edin system, it still retains some of that "rough and tumble" charm from when it was a hive of scum and villainy. Also poor Mwork really isn't that acquainted with "high class" fashion. The closest he has ever got to fancy folk is guarding the entrance to the VIP section of a nightclub in Highreach and that one time he watched over a businessperson his gang kidnapped for ransom.

Mwork: "I am no longer a gang enforcer. I must look like a respectable security consultant for a legitimate and growing business. A look that says: there goes Mwork, a high class and respected man."

Also Mwork: Comes out of his local suit rental having purchased something like this and walks with his superfluous cane to his fancy used speeder.

Crossposted on SB and SV