Barely Legal Friends

[Mauda]

DEAD Transport Dock Alpha​

​

A light breeze blew under my feet. My cloak moved with the wind and I felt that excitement within me grow. I stood, hands clasped behind my back, observing as crates of weaponry were loaded into a pair of freighters. There was a quiet bustle of voices and movement, the common rabble moving in and out of the various buildings that littered the Dock. I looked around to see hissing Trandoshans, clad in power armour and brandishing their own DEAD weapons. I felt proud, I felt accomplished. But there was still so much more work ahead, and many new faces to speak with.

The recent Alliance with Causstik Rahn had provided DEAD with its own Army. This broadened our horizons to well beyond simple Drugs Pedalling and Black Market activity. We now had a tangible presence in the Galaxy, and we were going to make a lot more money from it. Almost within the same week as our Alliance had been solidified, we were contracted by Saako Exploration & Shipping to provide military assistance in their efforts to colonise a new world. Wiping out an inferior native species was nothing but a stepping stone in my somewhat ambitious plan. But if Palpatine could do it, so could I.

This colonisation effort of course came with planning, and I was due to meet the CEO's private banker, [member="Hego Tonith"] to discuss our industrial presence on the new world.This venture would of course be mutually beneficial, with DEAD's expansion at the forefront of my mind.

My train of thought was interrupted when I heard several Trandoshan voices and the Gate Alarm kick off a disturbing choir behind me. I turned to see the Gate opening and Hego quite confidently walking in. A relief that he hadn't been shot by the trigger-happy lizards on the catwalk. I walked towards the Gate at a pace that had us meet halfway to the Junction and the Gate. As we approached eachother, I extended my charcoal right hand and allowed Hego to introduce himself.

 

[Hego Tonith]

Tonith sat in his shuttle thinking. His head was filled with numbers, statistics, figures, etc. How would be leverage this new assignment to the fullest? How would he make lots of money? Moreover, was his new boss going to be intelligent? All questions worth asking.

Tonith was a private banker from one of the finest Muun families. He was very smart, mind you, but it's not what you know, it's who you know. His skill at planetary economics would be of use to the arms dealing consortium he was to do business with. His associate, Lady Ela Saako, had introduced him to this Orex Mauda, a famed arms dealer and force sensitive. He was to assist him with business dealings.

The shuttle then docked. Tonith exited, to be greeted with a hand shake from his new associate. He reciprocated.

"Hello Mister Mauda. I am Hego Tonith," he would say, in that quintessential nasal Muun register.

 

[Hego Tonith]

[member="Orex Mauda"]

 

[Mauda]

I clasped the Muun's hand and applied a fairly firm grip.

"Ah so you're already familiar with me. Good, small talk bears no productivity. Let us skip the formalities and discuss business"

I turned and walked back toward the Junction, where the freighters were still being loaded.

"So, Hego, as I'm sure you're aware, DEAD is providing a military presence on the new world, alongside a mutually beneficial business venture. Our presence will be permanent with the construction of both arms and battle droid factories. The droids will of course be free for Saako's use, perhaps to maintain a security detail across the colony. But that's for her to decide, and myself to make money from".

We approached the edge of the Junction, a balcony that overlooked the landing pads and warehouses. I turned to face Hego, and as I spoke, the two light-freighters had been fully loaded and were now taking off.

"All of this has me making an awful lot of money. Now, you're the banker. What do you wish to gain from a prolonged relationship?"

[member="Hego Tonith"]

 

[Hego Tonith]

"All of what you said is correct, mister Mauda. One thing you have omitted is that Ela Saako intends to create a colonization corporation named Amandras Corporation of which, if I accept the role in your organization, DEAD shall be a shareholder. The army will be a mix of DEAD troops, local militias and battle droids."

Pause

"What do I want from this prolonged relationship? A very large salary of course. I can provide connections and I can provide my services in exchange for whatever needs done, though I request to be treated as a contractor and an associate, being employed in my own business while running the faction's finances and trade."

[member="Orex Mauda"]

 

[Mauda]

"And a very large salary you will have. If your position of Grand Dynamo proves productive, and our contract with Saako Exploration is completed, DEAD will be expanding very rapidly. You will be very important to our machine and our ambitions. It goes without saying that you will not be part of the common rabble."

I turned to face the now empty launch pads

"Just to stoke the fires of your employment, I should tell you that DEAD, while a very present Black Market and supplier to many criminals, is simply a cog within a machine that provides me with the resources necessary to go much further. We, will be going much further, I can assure you."

Returning my gaze to Hego, I concluded the meeting;

"Welcome to the Decentralised Equipment and Arms Dispersal. This is the beginning of a very lucrative relationship for both of us and I hope you persist in aiding our endeavours, Grand Dynamo Hego."

Once again, my burnt hand outstretched, accompanied by a smile that flexed exposed muscle and burnt face flesh.

[member="Hego Tonith"]

 

[Hego Tonith]

[member="Orex Mauda"]

"Thank you, mister Mauda. We shall then begin planning things. Can you explain to me our current operations?"

 

[Mauda]

"I don't intend to keep you from your responsibilities for much longer so I'll keep this brief. Those freighters that just took off were carrying full cargo of our debut weaponry, specifically the CSA - 04. A new sidearm we intend to spread to the masses of Coruscant. But also beyond. There are plenty of criminal organisations on this planet, and the only reason we haven't been caught yet is because they are given ownership of the stock we provide them. We are lost to a proxy chain. We have much more of those on the way and many more designs currently undergoing manufacturing within several factories throughout the lower levels. Factories that don't belong to us, but do our work nonetheless. These designs will soon be circulating, and I will need you to communicate with certain companies and persuade them to sell our stock. One such that I have had my eyes on is the Point Nadir Black Market. Speak with them and discuss a consistent trade deal."

"Beyond that, DEAD is continuing to expand. Our other priority operation is the colonisation of the new world, something we both will be discussing in much further detail at a later date. That is all. Anything further you wish to ask?"

[member="Hego Tonith"]

 

[Hego Tonith]

[member="Orex Mauda"]

"Since we are arms dealers, we will be needing connections, and lots of them. I intend to aggressively persuade Lady Ela Saako into giving us a monopoly on equipping the army of whatever administrative unit she's dreamed up. That should get us a large customer. At least in the Outer Rim. Further than that, Lady Saako has connections in the Sith bureaucracy who might need scores of private goons with lots of weapons."

Pause

"Moreover, we will be needing supply chains. I don't trust mainstream suppliers since none will ferry illegal weapons. I don't trust Lady Saako either because she can knife us whenever she wants. We will need to form our own shipping line, either a company, or a network of smugglers.?

 

[Mauda]

"Of course as you can see, DEAD handles it's cargo. But certainly not to a large scale. The warehouses down there contain two Armoured Transports each. They can only circulate a somewhat short range across Coruscant. The freighters, two of them, are inter-planetary, but there isn't enough of them and they normally only deliver to the other cells. SO yes, I agree."

A pause to think. Things were certainly getting.. advanced.

"Smugglers are untrustworthy and costly. A chain of delivery boys and and I can say with confidence atleast one will divert. A company, subsidiary of DEAD would make sense. We'll need to invest heavily into Transport Docks and new Freighters. Hm. Our expenditure is already quite high. Causstik Rahn, a pirate lord of Hutt Space is the subject of a lot of resource diversion. He supplies us with an Army and Flagship and in return, we finance his escapades throughout the Galaxy. Before setting up another company. We're going to need more money."

[member="Hego Tonith"]

 

[Hego Tonith]

[member="Orex Mauda"]

"And that's where I come in. You see, Lady Saako tends to be quite pliable when it comes to her associates. If we can set up industrial facilities on Amandras III and produce good quality weaponry, thus assuring an income for the planetary administration, she will more than likely be pliable to allowing us to set up a shipping depot on the planet and possibly on Dromund Kaas. Our primary customers in that region will be Sith Lords who need armed goons and their name off the Sith Imperial Clients Registry. That should make us lots of money."

Pause

"We could found a shipplng line with what we have now. One location on Coruscant, two freighters, and some arms that need moving around. Once we get into business with the the Sith Empire, I'm sure Ela Saako and the First Consul will be more than pliable in allowing us passage through Sith space."

 

[Mauda]

I stood, thinking. The Sith. I hated them as much as the Jedi. Both almost as useless as eachother. But business was needed and money was crucial so there was no need to allow my convictions to sway my decision making.

"Perfect. These freighters will do, alongside anything else we may have access to in the future. I will leave you with establishing the trade route, in the meantime I will have DEAD gear towards its projects on Amandras and Kessel. A position on Dromund Kaas is certainly a good idea, one I'm willing to invest in. If all goes to plan, expect a .. significant salary."

[member="Hego Tonith"]

 

[Hego Tonith]

[member="Orex Mauda"]

"Believe me, mister Mauda. It will."

(OOC: AND. SCENE!)