YEAR ONE: The Bigger Plan

[Kal Gast]

​

Ku'zac District, Nar Shaddaa, Hutt Space, Outer Rim
03:02 Galactic Standard Time

Today...Today is the day that years of projection and contemplation has come to its conclusion. All those years ago I made a promise, a promise that no child would ever have to fear and relive the pain and suffering that I went through. That is why I'm here, on the moon that never sleeps. Criminals and gangsters, they have no respect for the misfortunes of others, they're weak and look to gain an inkling of control over those even weaker than themselves. Instead of building up their communities they seek to tear them down and bind them within their control, through the use of spice and extortion--citizens have faced true fear.

Criminals, they don't fear a normal man, nor a Jedi. They have no respect for anything that represents authority or prosperity. That is why I must stand against the little laws that are in place, to dawn this helmet and armor, to instill a symbol of fear within their eyes. I must become bigger than life, a hushed myth in the night, an urban legend that causes thugs to think twice. All these yearss and today is the day that this mission begins, Anooba will be released on the scum of Nar Shaddaa.

I was perched upon a small balcony that overlooked the main street of the Ku'zac District, a run of the mill red-light district. Full of vagrants pimping out various alien populations. My helmet scanned through the crowds of people huddling about and glancing towards the slaves that lined the entrances of the various bars and clubs. Looking for any petty crime, something that would allow me to sweep in and showcase to everyone my brand of justice.

That was when my helmet's communicator buzzed with the sound of the local NSPD, "Two-Four...report of possible gang activity building up on the east side of the district. Twi'lek called in complaining that she's afraid violence is going to break out."

"East Side?" Another voice intterupted across their communication systems, "Dryze Syndicate runs that area...pays for half of our salaries...not gonna happen. Tell her, we're all tied up...we'll get to it when we can."

I flicked the communication off, I had heard all I needed to hear. With a subtle twist, I shot my hook towards the the skyscraper above, I knew the first ones to feel that wrath of the Smuggler's Knight--The Dryze.

tag: [member="Cassius Droma"]

 

[Cassius Droma]

Despite Nar Shaddaa being one of Cassius Droma’s least favorite places in the galaxy, he always seemed to find himself for some reason for another. Whether it was recovering a stolen or smuggled artifact, tracking down certain contacts, or even nowadays, for more secretive purposes, it all came back to the Smuggler’s Moon. As the Jedi Knight wove his way through the crowd of various humanoid alien species, listening to them all chitter loudly in their respective languages, he again lamented on having to come here.

It was necessary, however – with the Silver Jedi’s bubble ever-expanding, certain elements in Hutt Space had begun to put up barriers in order to stop them. Nixor, Lannik… they’d foiled attempt after attempt to dissuade them from interfering with their criminal enterprises. Through his investigations, Cassius had begun to piece together that perhaps it wasn’t a number of different criminal organizations that were sabotaging them, but a singular presence pulling the strings. One would think it would be the Hutt Cartel, vying for power once again, but Cassius had another theory.

That’s why he was here, in one of his least favorite places. From information he gained during an operation on Lannik, he was able to trace an illegal mining operation to the Dryze Syndicate. To go with his theory, however, he wanted to know who was funding the Dryze. His main target was their leader in this sector, a Rodian named Skree who had been named specifically during the Lannik operation.

He passed through the bazaar, ignoring the various shouts from vendors. A black rain slicker helped conceal him for the most part, with a hood that obscured his face from casual on-lookers. Coming to a hold near a local establishment run by the Dryze, he could already hear angered voices inside. Slipping in, he was greeted by the sight of a large nightclub, and could see two large groups of people in what looked like a shouting stand-off. Blasters were in holsters, trigger fingers itchy, and the heartbeats of everyone in the room was steadily escalating.

Whether this was something Cassius needed to interfere with, or perhaps a perfect distraction to infiltrate, he wasn’t entirely sure just yet.

[member="Kal Gast"]

 

[Kal Gast]

A sea of orange soared around me as I flung myself between rooftop to rooftop. It was a strange sensation to see the moon from this perspective, these gilded towers shun as a beacon of prosperity, though in reality it served to hide and shield the city's true face. Nar Shaddaa was built on the back of the broken and the helplessness. The east side, the industrial complex, it was no different. The plumes of fire and smoke billowed out of the narrow funnels that stood a top of the sea of endless factories. They manufactured practically anything you could imagine here, basic consumer parts to heavy duty military droids.

Though this was all just a front for the many numbers of gangs and mobs that called this place home. It was a meeting ground where many of the largest criminal transactions occurred. If you had beef with another big gang, you would meet here..control of the east side was tough, but with it, you could practically control this whole district. I didn't know who these Dryze were or who their competition were, all that mattered to me was sending a message.

I perched myself upon a small walking platform that connected two factories that overlooked the dock yard--the meeting place for this transaction. There was a bazaar that lined the street and fences, with several people milling and peering at various goods, though I knew they were worried about blaster shots cracking off at any particular moment; I would do my best to prevent that from happening.

I turned my attention towards the two opposing sides, watching as a group of various humans and aliens approached a whole swarm of uniformed duros, their hands sitting close to their triggers. "Wthwaaw....." My helmet's amplifier crackled as I honed in on the conversation. "Ku'tani...Varlen Dryze sends his regards." Replied a short human man, decked out in a purple jumpsuit and a black blast vest.

"The coward couldn't come see us face to face?" Responded the lead Duros, who began to approach the messenger, "He expects us to bend the knee to his demands, and he has such little respect for me and my brothers...that he sends a kriffing bantha to give his demands."

"Well..you see..Varlen couldn't be here because...there has been complications, and a new seat has opened up on the council...He's busy attempting to fill that role." The man glanced back towards his thugs with a smirk before turning back to the Duros. "I'm afraid that spot is yours." He would reach towards his blaster, aiming the holster up and firing through it--striking Ku'tani in the chest; this was all I needed to see.

I removed a set of smoke grenades and dropped them from above, before plunging from my vantage point and onto the durasteel ground. I removed a quick set of blades tossing them directly towards two duros' striking them both in their legs, which caused them to fall and yell in pain. Though as I went to remove my staff, the sound of blaster fire crackled behind me--causing the audio input on my helmet to nearly explode and crackle, which caused my teeth to grip and my head to scream as a I let out a sharp and short grunt; I had forgotten to lower the audio input from moments earlier. My mistake was enough for a Dryze member to crash into me, wrapping his arms around my chest and slamming me into the ground. I was too sloppy.

tag: [member="Cassius Droma"]

 

[Cassius Droma]

The blaster shot tore through the Duros’ chest, and the sound itself rang out, sending all of the uninvolved parties into a frenzy. It was utter chaos – people were running into each other, even into the line of fire of the two gangs. More blasters were pulled, but before many more shots could go off, Cassius could hear a clinking sound, followed by large puffs of smoke beginning to fill the area. Smoke grenades, Cassius could only assume.

This was the time to get involved, if any.

Red blaster fire illuminated the fog as the gang members shot wildly in a nasty bid for survival. From within the cloud, a green light strummed to life – a lightsaber. This attracted some attention, but every shot aimed at the Jedi’s weapon was deflected either back at the attacker or safely into the ground. Cassius moved as smoothly as he could, starting with the Duros. Before he reached a pair of them, a couple of blades were sunk into them – thrown by a skilled practitioner.

Sensing through the smoke, Cassius could identify a humanoid man, armored and equipped with some unusual gear for a bounty hunter – if that’s even what he was. Although Cassius thought at first that this man was working for the Dryze, a Dryze henchman suddenly tackled him to the ground. So… a vested third party? Just like Cassius, perhaps?

Either way, if he was fighting both sides, then he might as well let him know of his intentions as well. Reaching out his hand, Cassius placed the man on top of the vigilante into a stasis field, forcing his arms out wide before throwing him against a nearby wall. Stepping close to the black-clad man, Cassius spun his lightsaber in wide arcs, hoping to deflect any blaster fire coming towards the two of them, and giving the vigilante enough time to recover and get back into the fight.

[member="Kal Gast"]