Public The Hangman’s Mercy - [Black Sun] Port Nowhere || Shadowport of the Underworld

[Scherezade deWinter]

Tags: Braze | Velzari Tharn Oz Neru Tibera Jessen | OPEN
Location: Near the fighting pits
Objective: Being unhappy
Weapons: None

---

The transition from the stink of the pit to the cooler air of the docking corridor did little to settle her pulse. The key sat in her pocket and didn't do anything other than be a key, but to Scherezade, it felt like a living thing, its faint warmth leaking through the fabric every time her stride shifted. That alone irritated her. Objects did not get to demand attention from her. Not until she let them. She totally wasn't letting them!

Her ship was waiting for her. The moment the ramp hissed open she stepped inside and sealed the noise of the arena behind her. For a breath the quiet rang in her skull. Then she made for the workbench where she had left the box.

It sat where she had shoved it earlier. Heavy. Silent. In her mind, it reeked of promise.

She set the key down beside it and rolled her shoulders. The feeling that something was about to click into place settled in her ribs, almost a pressure. She ignored it. Pressure was only useful you wanted to break things.

Her fingers closed around the lock. She brought the key forward.

It slid in.

Not fully. Not cleanly. At first contact something inside the lock shifted. A click that might have been mechanical. Or might have been something older. The temperature of the metal changed under her touch. A thin vibration pulsed along the key, up through her knuckles, into her arm.

Scherezade froze. The edges of her vision tingled.

Then it stopped.

The key held. The box held. Nothing opened. Nothing rejected her. The connection just sat there, waiting.

Waiting for what, she could not tell.

A low growl built in her chest. She yanked the key free and pocketed it before the sense of expectation in the air could grow claws.

"Butthole," she hissed at the box, as though scolding a pet that had tried to bite her.

She closed the ramp behind her and headed back toward the pit. The crowd noise grew again with every step, but the real noise was the little pulse of curiosity she refused to acknowledge.

The box was heavy in her hands now. And she was going to throw it in front of Braze's feet. If it didn't shatter from the impact, it was all his.

Sad face.

 

[Velzari Tharn]

B L A C K - S U N - S Y N D I C A T E
T H E - H A N G M A N ' S - M E R C Y​

​

A smile spread over the Underlord's face as Port Nowhere's current adjudicator joined him. Nunterc Trundiav was a scummy Sullustan who profited from selling arms and munitions to the Sith Order. It was commendable, and Velzari obliged the alien with an approving nod.

"The pleasure is mine," he said as he leaned forward, abandoning his relaxed posture for one befitting a meeting between two powerful men.

"Port Nowhere seems to be thriving under your stewardship, Elder Teth. Your dealings with the Sith have no doubt yielded an impressive flow of credits; they are known to pay handsomely for what they want, I've been told." And witnessed, though Velzari kept those details to himself... for now.

He reached for his glass and drank, flooding his palette with the fine alcohol within. The only thing that would make this unexpected rendezvous better would be a nice steak. Velzari snapped to draw the attention of a nearby waiter, though his gaze did not distract from Nes Teth. "I would be happy to hear what you have to say, Elder," he stated. The Underlord was always eager to strike deals and gather information. Both were the lifeblood of this business, and neither were in short supply aboard a vessel such as Port Nowhere.

Tags: Vigos | Nunterc Trundiav | OPEN
Nearby, probably: Braze | Scherezade deWinter | Tibera Jessen
​

 

[Nunterc Trundiav]

Velzari Tharn

The Elder settled into the chair, placing his gloved hands on the table in a thinking position. His beady black eyes never leaving the Underlord of the Black Sun. The Cantina's usual noise comprised of blaster fire, shouting and alien music seemed a distant buzz compared to the focus attention on the man's carefully chosen responses.

"Thriving, indeed, Great Underlord." He confirmed the words rolling off his tongue with a touch of pride. "Naturally as you know we aim to provide a neutral ground, a place where business such as ours can be conducted regardless of....governmental interference." He paused as the waiter, a trembling Bith hurried over and took Velzari's order with an anxious nod, scurrying away as quickly as he could. Though his expression soured soon afterward as the mention of the Sith Empire, wonderful partners to do business with but terrible at actually running a functional government.

"And you are quite correct about the Sith," the Sullustan continued once the waiter was gone. "They require constant resupply for their endless ambitions now that the Galactic Alliance is no longer around. Could be precarious for us, precisely why I requested this meeting." He leaned forward, lowering his translated voice to just a hint above a normal conversation, knowing that the Cantina would swallow the rest of the sounds from the casual observer.

"Recent turmoil within their borders could create a downward spiral to which we are unlikely to recover at least in the Sith Sectors. Vigo's want to maintain the current flow of goods into that area of space, that's doable but the risk of seizure by rogue elements or even the Sith Lords tightening their own supply chains in preparation for a major annexation of former Alliance space. That's gonna cost us in terms of transport even with befriending localized Governors and their wealthy ilk." He gestured vaguely with a small, plump hand.

 

[Tibera Jessen]

A Return To Form...
Tags: Braze

Frozen in carbonite? Well, that was certainly one way to go. She tried not to focus on the fact she could end up that way too, and instead focused on Braze's literal magic fingers. She huffed a bit as the stiffness and pain left her body. That was The Force eh? Not bad at all, she could get used to having that sort of space magic thrown at her! Better than dealing with fraking skags throwing lightning her way.

"That stuff is better than bacta! I haven't this charged up in a while!"

Tibera then stood up, slamming her fist into her palm as she smirked down to the younger man. "Stick with me tiny, I think you and me can make a good team. Though, I figure I owe ya for the healing. So let's go after your Relic first. Sounds like an easy job," Tibera said with a smirk, before putting a single wrapped hand on his shoulder.

"Much as I appreciate you doing things with me, I want you to focus on yourself. Take it from a pro, it's better to be selfish sometimes. You can't give yourself to every ugly mug that comes your way, that's a good way to end up a burn out wreck before you know it."

It was probably not going to land, Braze didn't seem like her. He wasn't selfish and focused on his own ends, he was an actual bright spot in the galaxy. She sincerely hoped he stayed that way, there weren't enough stars in the black...

Before they could get on their way, Tibera wanted to make sure she was dressed to impress. She felt incomplete without at least a pistol on her, too long relying on guns for her personal protection. The bulky brute walked over to her personal locker, and opened it up. She then produced an ID locked holster on a belt. The belt wasn't going to fit on her shockboxing attire, so she'd be concealing the blaster in her waistband for now. Better to get it past security in this blaster-free-zone.

 

[Braze]

Tags: Tibera Jessen Oz Neru Scherezade deWinter ​

It did not make sense to Braze to prioritize a relic over potential lives at stake. Lives always came first. But they were missing, and he did not even know who these people were. There were no names, no faces, not even a direction to search. No real leads at all.

So in the absence of anything useful to track, and with the only clue being that the missing individuals were somewhere aboard this den of indulgence, Braze let the frustration fade. There was nothing to argue. He conceded the point before the complaint ever reached his tongue.

"Alright." He chirped, choosing cheer instead of doubt. "My contact should be at a casino, but I have no clue which direction that might be from here. Do you know where that is?"

 

[Scherezade deWinter]

Tags: Braze | Velzari Tharn Oz Neru Tibera Jessen | OPEN
Location: Near the fighting pits
Objective: Being unhappy
Weapons: None

---

Yup, she was still pissed over that dumb key not working on that stupid box. And here she was again, back inside, where it reeked of sweat and feces and illegal activities. It was one of those rare moments in which she was actually grateful for her Blood Hound abilities, as they helped her block the stench out. It was one thing to smell it after being here for hours, but coming in directly from the fresh air made her wish she had a free hand to shut her nostrils with.

And with her abilities, she looked for Braze's blood, following it like a hound amidst the icky crowds. By the time she reached him, she'd already grown re-accustomed to the pungent stench.

"Guess what," she grumped, her voice reaching louder than the screams and shouts around them, "It wasn't a fit!"

With visible anger, she threw the box between them, towards the ground, with all of her strength. Magically, it avoided landing on anyone's foot. Unmagically, it was hard enough to create a deep crater.

 

[Braze]

Tags: Oz Neru Scherezade deWinter Tibera Jessen ​

Before Tibera and Braze could take a single step, Scherezade appeared in their path. She dropped the old box between them unceremoniously. Braze paused, eyebrows lifting, and glanced from her to the box with a curious tilt of his head. A slow, coy smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.

"Oh? I am sorry. Let me try something."

He crouched beside the weathered container and reached into one of his belts. From a narrow pocket he produced a small, irregular crystal. It was cloudy and faintly luminescent, shaped almost like a broken shard rather than a polished tool, bearing odd carvings. Braze held it near the lock. The crystal gave a soft glow that intensified with closeness, and the box gave a heavy clunk as its internal mechanism shifted. Its latch sprang open on its own, as if nudged by an unseen hand.

Inside lay several old trinkets wrapped in faded cloth. Dust clung to the folds, and age lingered on every bundle, yet Braze showed no hesitation in what he did next. He nudged the lid wider with one hand, pressed the toe of his boot to the edge of the box, and shoved it aside with casual ease. One by one he unwrapped the items and tucked each trinket into the small bags and pouches hidden throughout his belt, vest, and sleeves. Most of it looked like junk.

When he straightened, he looked Scherezade over with a thoughtful, appraising sweep of his gaze. He seemed to check for cuts, bruises, or the small signs of strain that slipped past most people.

"Thanks you're such a sweet heart~ Have you seen the casino yet? I think it is called Golden Slime or something close to it.... I am suppossed to meet my contact there. " Braze asked. His tone was light, but his somber jade green eyes shifted once more across her form, as if debating whether to offer her a touch of healing before they continued.