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swtorpadawan · 3 months

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Chaos is a Ladder

Author’s Notes: The following story takes place on Hutta during Act III of the Class stories. I name-drop a lot of minor NPCs from the game, so I hope you’re into that sort of thing. Content warnings for references to off-camera extreme violence.

“Chaos isn't a pit. Chaos is a ladder. Many who try to climb it fail and never get to try again. The fall breaks them.” - Petyr Baelish, aka 'Littlefinger', HBO’s Game of Thrones, season 3, episode 6, "The Climb"

Loyalty on Hutta is a complicated thing. The woman who called herself Linh noted to herself in a detached moment of clarity, drawing her consciousness away from the nearby stench of death and the distant sounds of fighting.

Nominally, of course, everything on Hutta was controlled by the Hutts. Any attempts to wrest control of their adopted home world away from the Cartel over the centuries – either by the native Evocii or by the various rival crime lords and organizations that thrived on the nearby ‘Smuggler’s Moon’ of Nar Shaddaa – had been ruthlessly crushed.

But in practice, the Hutt Cartel ruled Hutta solely through fear.

And it was an effective and even a pragmatic fear, one that allowed a relatively small number of Hutts to each rule over their own private fiefdom, with the backing of countless guards, servants and slaves, aided by any number of semi-independent mercenaries and bounty hunters, and supported by a culture that ensured that however much Hutts might quarrel, fight and rage against each other, they always seemed to band together the moment the status quo of their world was challenged; even if one Hutt did fall, another would simply take their place or absorb their territory, with predictable consequences.

But it was still a control built on the foundation of fear nonetheless. Meaning that any loyalty anyone showed to the Hutts was an illusion, and that illusion was virtually everywhere.

Based on her own training and experiences, Linh had always suspected that the moment peoples’ fear of the Hutts was eclipsed by their fear of something else, those illusions would be dispelled, and those people would turn.

And that suspicion was now being confirmed as people were now turning on Suudaa Nem'ro, more popularly known as Nem’ro the Hutt, leader of the Nem’ro Clan and lord of the industrial town of Jiguuna.

It had all started less than an hour ago.

The unnamed Houk had shown up suddenly at the entrance of Nem’ro’s Palace, calling out the Hutt and bellowing a series of extraordinarily graphic and imaginative threats against Nem’ro’s person.

This had initially been little cause for concern to Linh and most of the other occupants of the palace at the time, who initially took this development for a rather convoluted suicide attempt. This Houk was clearly insane and was looking for a way to die.

Then Nem’ro’s guards had converged to intercept the intruder… and they had been the ones who started dying.

The amused indifference of the populace had turned to concern and then to fear.

Then the fear had turned to panic.

As the Houk made his way through the palace, killing anyone in his path in a merciless onslaught, everything had descended into chaos. Every second the Houk had spent viciously cleaving his way through defenders with his vibro-blade was a second where resistance seemed to melt away.

The panic had turned to rioting, as everyone’s immediate goals had shifted.

It wasn’t just the Houk’s doing, of course. Had all the guards, servants, hangers-on and guests in Nem’ro’s palace bravely united to stand against the assailant, they surely would have taken him down eventually.

Surely. Linh thought to herself in reassurance, even though she was not completely certain at all.

Many of the occupants of Nem’ro’s palace were perfectly willing enough to feign bravery when the odds were overwhelmingly in their favor and there was a chance for personal gain. But they were quick to turn and flee the moment that equation was in doubt.

No. This crisis was the result of people on Hutta fearing something else more than they feared a Hutt. The instant that happened, all bets were off. Tomorrow, or a year from now, a new equilibrium would inevitably reemerge, with some other Hutt in charge.

No one cared about that now.

The majority of these people simply wanted to survive today.

Far worse than these sheep were the many individuals in the palace and throughout Jiguuna who had instinctively started taking advantage of the chaos. Many saw the opportunity to finish old scores with a rival at a moment when they figured they could get away with it. One or two were petty enough to simply took the chance to mug some of the wealthier patrons of the lord of Jiguuna. A few even risked looting the treasures of the Hutt’s palace.

Fools. Linh thought to herself. She didn’t know how many of these opportunists had made it out of the palace, but she had to assume it wasn’t many. No amount of credits (or personal satisfaction) were worth your life.

Not when everything is falling into anarchy. Linh thought to herself.

She heard fighting – or rioting – in the distance. She counted herself lucky.

For her own part, by the time the intruder had stormed through the palace cantina, where Linh usually spent her days, she had wisely made herself scarce, slipping out into the streets of Jiguuna in the confusion as she gripped her hold-out blaster.

Linh was an observer. By training and inclination. Now she finally had a moment to reflect on what she had observed during her final moments in the palace. Most of it seemed irrelevant. Who was running. Who was fighting. Why was dying.

One thing she was certain of was that Nem’ro’s luck had finally run out.

At what seemed to have been the penultimate moment, only one of Nem’ro’s remaining lieutenants, Carnus, seemed willing to take up the challenge posed by his fellow Houk. The two had come to blows in the cantina, even while Nem’ro could be heard bellowing down the passageway in a panic for more of his guards to come to his side to defend his bulk, and offering outrageous rewards to whomever could end the threat to his life.

When even Carnus had fallen beneath the newcomer’s rampage, the writing on the wall had become clear: Nem’ro the Hutt was doomed. No one else would be willing to die for the Hutt. It was simply a matter of survival now, and who could run the fastest.

If the Lord of Jiguuna wasn’t already dead, he would be soon.

Still outside, cocooned in her moment of clarity, Linh realized that it was a fall that had been a long time coming. Things had seemed to be slowly deteriorating in Jiguuna for nearly two years.

It started with Karrels Javis. She decided.

He had been Nem’ro’s most capable and reliable lieutenant before he’d been killed. He was certainly capable of violence, but Javis had understood that violence was a tool and not philosophical approach to everyday life. He’d been pragmatic and reasonable, usually taking pains to avoid putting decisions to his boss when the Hutt’s temper was acting up.

Officially, Javis had met his end by an assassination team sent by Nem’ro’s rival, Voontara Fa'athra.

(Linh knew better than to believe that story.)

Nem’ro’s reprisals against Fa'athra’s supporters had been unprecedented even by Hutt levels. Armed with a data file retrieved from Voontara Fa'athra’s palace by the so-called ‘Red Blade’, there had been a bloodbath in Jiguuna with dozens of Fa'athra’s supposed sympathizers in the town purged on Nem’ro’s orders.

Still. Linh thought to herself. Despite his cold-bloodedness, the Blade she’d briefly met, that supposed pirate – with his cool, emerald eyes and chiseled jawline – had been capable. Very capable. He was just the sort of person I could have used to get off Hutta, now.

Unfortunately, he was far from here, on some job or another that she couldn’t even imagine.

It had taken weeks for the city to calm down.

Even after the dust had settled from the purges, and even after the victory celebrations Nem’ro had held when Fa’athra had fled Hutta in apparent defeat, there was a sullen air to the place. As if whatever little vitality Jiguuna could have claimed before had been sapped, and things were continuing purely on momentum.

Illustrating her point in fact, just a few weeks ago, Nem’ro had come down with a rare flesh-eating disease, placing the Hutt’s life – and his sizable bulk – in jeopardy. This development had led to considerable tension among the Hutt’s various lieutenants and supporters, as everyone jockeyed for position should Nem’ro ‘tragically’ pass away. There had been a number of killings, discreetly passed off as ‘isolated incidents’ by Nem’ro’s security, and Linh was fully convinced that there’d have been an outbreak of open infighting throughout the organization if it had lasted any longer.

Fortunately for what still counted for the status quo in Jiguuna – and for Nem’ro, personally – a Republic doctor had arrived one day at the palace before that came to pass, having heard of the Hutt’s plight. Linh had noted he’d been on ‘watch list’ for her true employer, as the man had previously worked for the Balmorran Resistance and had more recently been working with some upstart Jedi Knight running around the galaxy. This doctor apparently had enough pull to get an appointment with the Hutt, and within a few days, Nem’ro was on the road to recovery.

Even with Nem’ro cured, however, things had never quite gotten back to normal in Jiguuna. There was too much bad blood by then. Too much pressure on Nem’ro’s organization to produce refined fuel to cover his trade agreements with the Sith Empire. Too much lost inertia. Too many people with too many ‘what if’ thoughts.

It had been a powder keg. And the attacking Houk had lit the wick.

Now she was outside the palace, and the only person on Hutta who knew that her real name wasn’t Linh and that she wasn’t just a small-time private fence with a pretty face working out of Nem’ro’s cantina was lying dead at her feet.

Lycus Mattle had (officially) been a freelance hired gun in Jiguuna, occasionally taking jobs with Nem’ro’s gang. An older mercenary, he was respected enough that the local ruffians usually gave him a wide berth. He usually made a place for himself just outside the palace at the bazaar, should anyone seek to hire him.

He had also been, like Linh, an operative of Imperial Intelligence, and a subject of the Sith Empire.

And now he was dead, with multiple blaster wounds having caught him in the chest.

Linh also spotted a trio of slain Rodians lying nearby. She recalled them having visited the palace earlier that day, planning some scheme or another. Apparently when they had fled the carnage, they had decided that their best bet was to kill the lone, human gunman, take his weapons, and then to decide what to do next to get away from the carnage.

Lycus Mattle may have been old for being a supposed merc. (Truth, he was older still for being a field operative of Imperial Intelligence.) But he had taken all three of his attackers with him.

Linh found herself taking some small satisfaction from that fact. Over these last two years, the older agent had become a partner to her; part mentor, part confidante and part protector should anyone on Hutta ever give her too much trouble. She was glad he’d given better than he got.

But that didn’t change the reality that her only real ally – and her best chance of getting off Hutta alive – was now gone. Linh knew how to use her holdout blaster, and she’d received basic self-defense training. But she had no illusions as to how long she’d last in a deteriorating hellhole like Jiguuna, much less if she ran into that Houk.

She processed all of that as her fingertips gently lowered Lycus’ eyelids.

“You were a good partner, Lycus.” She whispered to herself, unexpectedly finding herself wiping a tear from her eye. “The best.”

‘Lycus’ hadn’t been his real name, of course, any more than ‘Linh’ had been hers. But in the two years she’d been on Hutta, it had been the only name she’d ever known him by. She didn’t know his real name and it was unlikely she ever would. ‘Lycus’ would have to do.

Now he was rotting in a trench on Hutta, and she didn’t even have the time to bury him properly.

Fortunately for her, she didn’t need Lycus to be alive to help her out of this predicament.

Linh looked around the plaza again to make sure the coast was clear.

She needn’t have worried about being observed. The whole area seemed completely abandoned. People had either fled for cover or had decided now was as good a time as any to engage in violence elsewhere in the town. Nem’ro may have been a ruthless crime lord, but as had been the case in the palace, his authority had also been the only thing holding some people back.

And that was gone now. She continued to hear the sounds of unrest in the distance. People were dying. But she didn’t have time to think about that.

Residing in the palace as she normally did, Linh could have been searched by Nem’ro’s security at any time. (Indeed, more than one visitor to the palace had found themselves wearing a slave collar for carrying around unauthorized contraband.) So it made sense for Lycus to keep their ‘sensitive equipment’.

Taking a deep breath, Linh carefully detached Lycus’ weapons harness and utility belt from his body and reached into his vest. A moment later, now holding his pass-key, Linh inserted it into her deceased partner’s holo-transmitter.

By itself, the equipment was mundane. Only a thorough inspection by a skilled engineer would have uncovered any anomalies in its manufacture.

Linh took off her necklace from inside her blouse and carefully snapped the pendant in two. She then held the now-exposed circuits against the power cell compartment of the holo-transmitter until they seamlessly slid into place, completing the circuit. After a few moments diode on the advice turned red.

Excellent. Linh smiled. The direct line was secure and would be all but untraceable.

“This is Infiltrator Ninety-nine.” Linh’s voice had changed, but she kept her voice low as she spoke into the transmitter. “Requesting immediate extraction. Confirmation Code Delta-Beta-Nine-Four. Please respond.”

With that, she exhaled. It was the first time in years that she’d used her own voice. An Imperial voice. It felt liberating, really.

A moment later, the holo display started to flicker.

She had expected a junior Watcher to pick up her communications signal at headquarters in Kaas City. Or perhaps – if the Watchers were hard-pressed with the war effort at the moment – a Minder or at least a Fixer. Following protocol, they would direct an Intelligence Asset Recovery Team to her aid, and get her off this cesspit of a world.

Instead, she saw only a rotating Imperial Insignia appear in the holo display, as an automated voice spoke.

“Attention all personnel: By the order of the Dark Council, Imperial Intelligence has been dissolved. Any and all ongoing operations are hereby terminated. You are ordered to immediately report to Dromund Kaas for reassignment to the Imperial Military. Long live the Emperor.”

The holo-display went dead.

Linh’s jaw dropped in shock.

No. she silently whispered to herself. Impossible. It couldn’t be true.

She attempted to toggle the call button again for a few futile moments.

Nothing.

Her free hand the nearby tent pole for support. If she hadn’t been crouched down, she’d probably have fallen over.

The implications of this announcement were staggering.

The Sith Empire was over a thousand years old. And Imperial Intelligence had been a part of it since the beginning, cleaning up the messes of the Sith and the Imperial military.

Oh, there had been purges of the service throughout that history. Usually due to some perceived operational failure or another. Occasionally a Minister of Intelligence would be “retired” and the powers that be would insist on “changes in personnel” to make way for the new regime.

But for the Empire to dissolve the service now at the peak of its war with the Galactic Republic…

Madness. She thought to herself. Without Imperial Intelligence, there would be chaos. Not just for the Empire, but with respect to her immediate situation.

Linh needed assistance just safely getting off Hutta, much less getting back to Dromund Kaas.

She’d been Informer-99 for the last three years. She had hoped to be promoted to ‘Minder’ someday, perhaps eventually serve as a station chief on some planet with a more enjoyable climate. (After spending so long on Hutta, Alderaan sounded positively divine.)

All her career goals were gone now. Dead as Lycus.

Dead as Imperial Intelligence. She thought to herself.

She felt her breathing start to become more rapid as she continued to process.

And what sort of future could she expect if she even made it back to the Imperial capital?

A career in the Imperial Military would be a dead end for her, and a waste of her talents. At best, she’d be stranded in some subordinate clerical position in the Ministry of Logistics, running statistical reports and fetching caff for her superiors.

At worse, she’d be pressed into an auxiliary combat battalion where all her intelligence would be wasted, and she’d be killed off in some useless battle or another.

No. She stopped herself. At worse, I’ll be indentured directly to one of the Sith.

She shivered at the thought, remembering all the stories she’d heard at the academy.

Nothing could be worse than that.

Linh felt her grip on the comm device tighten further.

The Empire had abandoned her. It was no longer home.

She felt a sense of panic start to grow. And then the anger of the injustice of it all.

No. She stopped herself again. That was what her instructors at the academy had trained her not to do.

Unlike Sith, operatives did not have the luxury of giving into their anger. Angry agents made mistakes, as did agents in a state of despair.

If she was to survive, she had to think clearly. She had to remain calm.

She had to remember her training.

After a moment, she felt her breathing relax and her brain started to work again.

First things first. Linh decided to herself, following her training.

Dealing with the immediate situation had to be her priority.

She dropped the holo-communicator on the ground and rose to her feet. Pulling out her holdout blaster, she pointed it at the discarded device.

Then she fired twice.

In a flash, the only physical evidence connecting her to Imperial Intelligence on Hutta had been destroyed in a smoking wreck.

Linh exhaled a breath she didn’t know she’d been keeping.

It feels cathartic. She allowed herself a grim smirk.

Next order of business.

I can’t stay on Hutta. Linh concluded. She’d seen enough conflict among the Hutts to know that sooner or later, and probably sooner, the Cartel would move in to fill the gap left by Nem’ro’s sudden ‘absence’. Once that happened, anyone still around who had even been in the palace at the time of the attack would either be shot on sight or they’d find themselves indentured and sent to the gas mines.

The Hutts did not take betrayal well. By their logic, every resident of Jiguuna should have sacrificed themselves to save Nem’ro. To show clemency to Nem’ro’s surviving supporters would only encourage dissent and disloyalty in other Hutt courts and territories.

She had to get away from the Houk, the Hutt Cartel and the Empire. If she were lucky, she and Lycus would be presumed dead in the paperwork. If not, she’d be a wanted renegade.

But first, she had to get off Hutta.

She had identified the problem. Now she needed to find a solution.

What are my assets? She continued following the steps of her training.

She regarded her holdout blaster.

Honestly, it had been no more than a deterrent in the Palace. Virtually anyone on Hutta would have outgunned her in a shootout, and if she did run into that Houk, it would count for nothing.

She had a few credits on her, but if people were already fleeing to the spaceport in a panic, she doubted those would be enough to get her anywhere.

Nothing drove up inflation like a life-or-death situation.

Thinking to herself, she dug through her hidden pockets and pulled out a thin piece of plastic. Carefully unpeeling a label, she regarding the revealed card.

Her backup identity. Not her identity as ‘Linh’, small-time criminal on Hutta. Nor her ‘real name’ she’d been born with in the Empire. But a new one entirely.

Jheeg – the local Arcona fixer who Intelligence had once worked with – had been killed after several security failures involving that business with the agent impersonating the Red Blade. (Linh had privately suspected that Lycus himself had done the job on Jheeg, though she could never prove it and she knew better than to ask.) Jheeg had once provided her and Lycus with backup cover identities if they ever needed to suddenly flee the planet. (Lycus had insisted on the precaution; he never really talked about what he’d done for Imperial Intelligence before this assignment, but it was now clear to her that he had been jaded by his career and was aware of the possibility of a situation such as this arising.)

The identity was still valid; or at least it’d be valid enough in a pinch. It wouldn’t have fooled a review by Imperial Intelligence, she was sure. But if Intelligence no longer existed, it just might fool the Empire.

Regardless, she could build a new life for herself.

But all that would have to start with getting off Hutta.

Her training kicked in again:

Who are my allies?

Rex Geer might have been persuaded to help her. He’d bought her a drink or two at the cantina, and she’d considered taking things further to cement a potentially valuable contact. But Nem’ro’s top street lieutenant – who had led the defense against Fa’athra’s incursion during their conflict – had been one of those killed during the unrest from Nem’ro’s illness a few weeks past.

Stabbed in the back in a back-alley. Linh recalled to herself, with regret. Like as not, his own men had killed him just for the prospect of a promotion.

Oren Ward would have been another potential ally. The bounty hunter had fostered a ‘school-boy crush’ on her, Linh knew. But he and Burnok had departed Hutta months ago for greener pastures after Oren had recovered from his carbonite imprisonment at Fa’athra’s palace.

She tried to think of another protector-type who might still be alive and willing to help her. She came up empty.

It doesn’t look good. Linh admitted to herself, as she tried to reconsider the situation.

In truth, obtaining the services of a ‘hero gunman’ to defend her was a secondary concern, even if having such a champion would have been reassuring. By now, she was convinced that the Houk could have torn through anyone she could think of if he spotted her, possibly even a Sith or a Jedi.

What she really needed was someone with the credits and the connections to get her through the spaceport and off-planet. If it was already locked down by the Cartel’s people, she’d need someone with Nem’ro’s security codes to get off-planet.

She smiled grimly to herself as a stroke of inspiration came to her mind.

Fortunately, Linh had realized that she knew of just the right person who could provide both.

Surprisingly, getting back into the palace had been a simple affair. Evidently, nearly everyone still capable of walking had already fled by now.

Linh knew she was taking a huge risk just coming back here, but she saw no other options. If her quarry was still alive, they’d be inside. As she made her way through the cantina, she tried not to pay any mind to the corpses she was stepping over. She’d known many of these people for the past two years, and while she personally found most of them unpleasant, she also knew that looking at their dead faces now could easily plunge her into a pit of despair.

None of that would help her.

She made her way down the corridor, holdout blaster drawn and at the ready.

Remember your training. Linh reminded herself for what felt like the tenth time. She was no true field operative. She’d known from the start at the Academy that she never be a Cipher agent. But she knew how to navigate a dangerous building. Certainly, one that she’d lived at for two years.

She carefully snuck past the receiving chamber to the throne room. She could hear sounds from within that didn’t sound remotely human or sentient, for that matter. Not ‘fighting’ sounds exactly, but…

No. she continued on. I won’t think about that.

As she finally approached her destination, hoping against hope that her target was still inside, she nearly tripped over some wreckage on the floor. Looking down, she recognized it as the remains of P8-47, the astromech droid that frequently acted as one of Nem’ro’s messengers.

The droid had been sweet to her on occasion, and she’d once considered recruiting him as a source. She’d discarded the idea, however; he’d been frightfully loyal to Nem’ro.

Pity. Linh steeled herself from the discovery as she continued down the hall into the next chamber, peeking around the corner.

Two Twi’leks were standing within, with the larger male gripping the younger female’s wrist violently.

“The credits, girl!” Toth'lazhen hissed, slapping the beleaguered woman across the cheek as she cried out.

One of Nem’ro’s senior lieutenants, Toth'lazhen had risen to pre-eminence after the death of Karrels Javis. His reputation for brutality had endeared himself to the Hutt.

Linh had been carefully studying Toth'lazhen for some time now as part of her duties to Imperial Intelligence. The Twi’lek lieutenant normally spoke in the perfect Huttese of his boss.

The fact that he was now speaking his native Twi'leki was telling. If nothing else, based on that fact alone, she’d know that Nem’ro was finished.

Linh had always assessed him as something of a fool and a brute. Today, she was seeing evidence to support that opinion.

Unfortunately, his present victim was the one she’d been seeking.

Juda was a young but highly intelligent green-skinned Twi’lek, unusually amiable for a resident of Nem’ro’s palace. For the past two years or so, she’d served as Nem’ro’s paymaster, taking over when his old accountant, an old human cyborg named Yalt, had made the mistake of going over to Fa’athra’s side.

(She did not want to think about the price Yalt had paid for that mistake. Juda had proven more reliable.)

Today, Linh had decided that Juda was her best chance of getting off Hutta.

Apparently, Toth'lazhen had decided the same thing.

“Please.” Juda cried out, struggling against his grasp. “Let me go! I’m just trying to get out of here.”

Toth'lazhen slapped the girl again as she cried out. Linh noted a bruise forming beneath Juda’s eye.

“You can run once I have Nem’ro’s money.” He snarled.

Part of Linh’s mind, trained for ruthless pragmatism, related to Toth'lazhen’s position. He was self-interested individually willing to do whatever it took to get off Hutta alive.

The same applies to me. Linh admitted.

On the other hand, he had turned his back to the doorway. And something about the way he was abusing Juda did not sit well with the suddenly unemployed Imperial operative.

His mistake.

Linh scowled, as the major domo raised his hand to strike the weeping girl again. Any thought of negotiating with Toth'lazhen had fled her mind.

The holdout blaster – set for silent mode – was relatively low-power. But she was less than five meters from the attacking Twi’lek, with more than enough time to put three rounds through his back.

If Toth'lazhen tried to scream out in pain, that scream was cutoff with the second round. The third was only for certainty’s sake.

Juda blinked in surprise as her attacker fell dead to the floor, looking up at her erstwhile rescuer.

The two women’s eyes met. Much to Linh’s surprise, as she gazed into the Twi’lek’s violet irises, she felt herself gulp.

Was it the adrenaline? The fact that Toth'lazhen was the first person she’d ever killed with her own hand? The look of gratitude in Juda’s pretty, violet eyes?

“Thank you.” The young Twi’lek whispered, falling back into her desk chair in relief. She held herself gingerly, slowly rocking back and forth.

Linh silently nodded, swallowing and lowering her blaster. Her throat felt dry. Whatever guilt she felt for killing the Twi’lek was being suppressed by the adrenaline still pumping through her veins.

“Toth'lazhen would have killed me.” Juda said quietly continued, swallowing. “Or worse, he would have sold me off to slavers. Before he even got off planet. The moment he had as much of Nem’ro’s money as he could get his hands on. When he didn’t need me anymore. That’s why I didn’t give into him.”

She looked away, sniffing.

“I’d have been a loose end.”

Loose end. Linh thought to herself. She herself was now a loose end to the Empire, her years of training and service amounting to nothing. She was on her way down; she had to find a way up. Who better to…

Out of the corner of her consciousness, she spotted Juda eyeballing the still-drawn blaster.

Jarred back to the present, Linh put away her weapon, calmly.

“I’m not Toth'lazhen.” She offered reassuringly, glancing down at the dead lieutenant. “If you can help me get off planet, maybe I can help you, too.”

Juda nodded, glancing over at a satchel on her desk.

“I can do that. I was right about to run for it myself when Toth found me.”

Linh tried processing the young woman’s reaction. With the immediate threat removed, her practical intelligence seemed to shine though. She found it refreshing. Inspiring, even.

“You don’t have anyone else here on Hutta?” Linh asked.

That question seemed to strike a nerve. The Twi’lek flinched, closing her eyes in pain as her body rocked back and forth again.

“My mother… passed away a couple of months ago.” Juda’s lip trembled. “Nem’ro didn’t even give me the day off to go to her funeral.”

Linh recalled that she hadn’t seen a family member in years. She had no way of knowing if her parents or brothers were even still alive by now. Nevertheless, she felt a wellspring of sympathy bubbling within her for the young Twi’lek.

“I’m sorry.” She murmured awkwardly. She quickly decided to change the subject. “So. You had a plan to get out? Or just sneak past the Houk?”

Juda took a breath as she gathered herself, gazing down at Toth'lazhen’s corpse absent-mindedly.

“There’s an underground tunnel.” She explained. “It runs along the old gas pipes beneath the town. The entrance is hidden behind the bar in the corner.”

Juda pointed. Linh recalled there was hardly a room in the palace that didn’t have its own bar.

“It comes out west of the palace, near the spaceport. Nem’ro never thought he’d need a way out of his own palace, but Karrels knew he might.”

The Twi’lek smirked.

“He had me budget the construction as ‘palace defenses’. Poor guy just never had the chance to make it out when his time came.”

Linh smiled appreciatively.

“So. That tunnel gets us to the port. Any ideas about what happens next?”

Juda returned the smile, clearly emboldened by the praise. The attractive Twi’lek had drawn plenty of looks since she’d started working at the palace. It was a good bet that up until today, few had been foolish enough to make a move on Nem’ro’s paymaster, especially not after what happened to his previous accountant.

Neither of us work here anymore. Linh thought to herself.

“I know Mekks, the communications officer at the spaceport.” Juda assured her. “He knows how the Cartel operates, and how to make it look like someone shot their way out of there without getting anyone killed… in return for a sizable bribe, of course.”

“Of course.” Linh found herself smiling sincerely for the first time in what felt like days. Fear and bribery were the only things that turned the gears on Hutta. “Then we just need to find a ride off-world.”

Juda’s smile widened, as she reached in and pulled a datapad out of her satchel. Linh could see a stack of pads along with credit sticks and a few strips of flimsi. Clearly, the Twi’lek had been preparing for this trip well.

“Nem’ro took possession of a small freighter last week.” Juda informed her. “Some smuggler who ditched his cargo from the Imperials.”

She bit her lip as she looked down at the records.

“I still have the access codes. And the license. By the time anyone checks, it’ll be legally ours.”

Linh let out an impressed whistle. This was more than she could have hoped for.

“Sounds like a plan.” The former Imperial operative felt everything start to fall into place. She smiled again to Juda but found the Twi’lek’s smile had suddenly grown cautious.

“And after that?” Juda asked, uncertainly.

Linh paused, remembering her earlier considerations concerning her own future. Assess potential resources. Her instructors had taught her.

To Nem’ro, Juda had been a competent, unambitious underling who always did what she was told.

To Toth'lazhen, Juda had been nothing but a source of quick credits, to be used and disposed of.

But to Linh, she could be much more.

“You know.” She began. “Between my connections, your financial skills, and Nem’ro’s credits… I think we have enough to start our own ‘consulting’ business. Look around the galaxy. Lots of people are going to need ‘special assistance’ setting up new operations for themselves with all this fallout. Conflict brings chaos. We’ve both seen that here today. But it also brings opportunity to people who know how to seize it.”

Even as she spoke, Linh felt herself gaining confidence in this plan of action. She’d need time to work out the details of course, but at least now she had a direction. Later, they could take on some hired muscle for security. Linh knew what to look for in a dependable mercenary so that she and Juda could avoid emergencies like this one in the future.

Linh finally extended an open hand towards the Twi’lek.

“Partners?” she asked.

Juda chewed her lip for a minute, regarding Linh and the offered hand.

The Twi’lek suddenly grasped Linh by the shoulders fiercely and leaned in. Juda’s lips met those of the former Informer of Imperial Intelligence, kissing her passionately. Linh felt her entire body go rigid with shock at the gesture.

It had been more than a year since she’d taken actual comfort in the touch of another, and Juda was certainly attractive. A warm feeling started to grow in the pit of her stomach.

She felt her lips and then her hands start to respond on impulse, surrendering herself to the sensation.

Juda suddenly pulled away as the stricken Imperial tried to regain her breath.

“For luck.” She offered by way of explanation, giving Linh a dazzling smile. She finally took Linh’s hand, giving it a friendly shake.

“Partners.” She declared.

Linh could only catch herself against the desk as she regained her footing and blink.

Definitely more than just a source of quick credits. She confirmed to herself.

Juda, meanwhile, had ducked behind the bar with her satchel over her shoulder. Pushing a crate and a rug out of the way, the woman opened the hidden trap door down to the tunnel, then looked back over at Linh.

“Come on.” The Twi’lek smiled. “That Houk might come poking around any minute.”

Linh swallowed and moved to comply.

As she followed Juda through the trap door and down into the escape tunnel, she felt confident she was taking the first step towards her future.

Time to climb the ladder.

THE END?

Author’s Notes: There are any number of corrupt and even ‘evil’ powers within the SWTOR story. As much as we might loathe them, it’s fascinating for me to think that if any of them suddenly weren’t there, the vacuum would make room for something even worse.

Those of you who have played the Bounty Hunter class story too many times will know from the Companion cut-scene dialogue that Skadge killed Nem’ro the Hutt off-screen, a revenge killing for an earlier betrayal that landed Skadge on Belsavis in the first place. The idea of Skadge successfully rampaging his way through Nem’ro’s palace, where we spend so much time as an Imperial Agent / Bounty Hunter at the start of the story, was fascinating to me. (How many of the NPC’s we interacted with earlier actually survived???) Skadge is probably my least favorite character in SWTOR, but the idea of him being the star boogey-man of a grisly horror film, slaughtering dozens of people, that concept intrigues me.

Each class has an NPC on their starting planet that provides a mission directing the player-character to the trainer on-planet. Linh is the NPC on Hutta that directs Imperial Agents to the on-planet trainer, Lycus Mattle. With the many changes in the game over the years, those missions are largely redundant, worth only a smidgen of XP. But some of those cutscene interactions were memorable to me, including Linh’s. I decided I had to do something with her at some point.

This story was the result.

Juda is another fun character from the Bounty Hunter story. She’s Nem’ro’s paymaster on Hutta, and later unwittingly engages in some minor skullduggery during the Great Hunt. Fortunately, my own bounty hunter, Xadya, chose not to hold her indiscretions against her. (Mako would not have approved if Xadya had taken Juda out!)

As always, I love the idea that our characters leave a deep mark on the places they visit, for good and for ill. Gahraath Vaiken, my Cipher Nine in the Halcyon Legacy, was rather vicious when he started out as an Imperial Agent on Hutta, a bit too eager to demonstrate his own ruthlessness. He’d eventually mellow a good deal, but at the time, Linh was both physically attracted to him while simultaneously left with the impression of a cold-blooded killer who would easily dispose of her if it suited his mission.

(Which he absolutely was. But like I said, he’s softened a good bit by the end of the class story.)

Virtually every name I dropped within this story is an actual NPC from the missions on Hutta. (And some of you may also have picked up on an appearance by a certain unnamed mustached field medic companion from another of the class stories. 🤓)

The ‘Informers’ title is, in fact, a specific canon designation within the old Imperial Intelligence organization, much like Ciphers, Watchers, Minders and Fixers. They aren’t mentioned in the game itself; they do come up in The Old Republic: Fatal Alliance novel where Ula Vii is presented as an example. Something we don’t talk about enough is the impact the dissolution of Imperial Intelligence would have on the Empire and the greater galaxy, especially at the peak of the war. You’re literally talking about hundreds or thousands of agents and operatives either completely cutoff from the Empire without recourse or suddenly pressed into the service of the Sith or to an Imperial Military that treats them like cannon-fodder. (Remember how Cipher Nine was treated on Corellia?) The fallout from that sudden absence would be profound for the Empire, as well. Imperial Intelligence literally existed for centuries, and nature abhors a vacuum.

No wonder Marr had to establish Sith Intelligence a few years later. Their entire system would have been in a perpetual state of collapse without it.

I tweaked the layout of the palace a little bit for narrative reasons. It’s significantly larger here, which makes sense given how many people seem to live there.

The Informer-Ninety-Nine moniker is an Easter Egg reference to “Get Smart”. (A show waaaay before my time. I’m old, but not that old.) It just tickled me, so I tossed that in.

The ‘For luck’ kiss is an obvious homage to the scene from Episode IV: A New Hope. (Don’t worry – Juda and Linh aren’t related. 😉 ) Further, Juda’s line about a smuggler’s freighter was a Han Solo & Jabba reference.

Tagging @oolathurman , as they once mentioned she loved the character of Juda.

Also tagging!

@a-master-procrastinator @anchanted-one @distressed-gizka @eorzeashan @justiceforc3po @kemendin @magicallulu7 @nikkeisimmer @sadiebwrites @the-cloudwatcher @the-raven-of-highever @tishinada @zabrakghoul @swtorhub

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shynmighty · 1 year

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Hope you’re in the mood for some Widow Spider, because Kiddo sure was!

She started with a conversation about the Empire. Karrels asked “What’s it like dealing with the Empire?” and Kiddo immediately goes “TROUBLE!”

Me: The Empire is trouble? You WORK for the Empire. Kiddo: I’m doing a lie. Me: You want to lie about the people you work for? Kiddo: Yeah! They’re not watchin’. Widow Spider is a liar! Widow Spider is SNEAKY!

“I’m doing lies all over the place!” Kiddo announced as we left the palace.

She made good on that announcement about twenty seconds later when she FARTED ON MY LAP.

Me: DID YOU JUST FART ON ME?! Kiddo: No? Me: I FELT IT! I FELT A FART! Kiddo: [Giggles] ...Sorry.

I mean, it’s no big deal, I just birthed her. Fed her. Spent Cartel Coins on her...

And while we’re on the topic of Cartel Coins... Kiddo decided Widow Spider needed a cool outfit. So that’s a thing that happened.

Kiddo liked Jarael’s armor, dyed light purple and gray. Very stylish!

Back at Nem’ro’s palace, we met Kaliyo.

“She’s nasty. And funny.” was Kiddo’s assessment.

#swtor #Star Wars The Old Republic #SWTOR OC #swtor imperial agent #Widow Spider the Imperial Agent

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depizan · 5 months

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Writer ask prime number selection: 17, 19, 23, 29, 41!

I don’t even want to know how many months ago this is from. First a few weeks got away from me, and then I started working on it and discovered one of the questions is really hard, and now it’s been months. Egad.

17. What highly specific AU do you want to read or write even though you might be the only person to appreciate it?

I’d say I don’t really do AUs, but my entire fic series is basically an AU for the game. What I don’t really do is AUs of my own stuff. One version of events is quite enough to keep straight. (Or two versions, if we’re counting the game stories.) Perhaps my fics are already the highly specific AU in question.

19. If you wrote a spin-off of [insert fic], what would it involve?

I have occasionally done ficlets from the point of view of side characters, mostly based off of random prompts or prompt events (I think?), which could be seen as spin-offs. (The ficlet about Netula Pahn, or the one where Kaliyo and Nem’ro discuss the clearly not-actually-the-Red-Blade.) And that’s probably the most likely kind of spin-offs I’ll write: what did side character from fic or game story think of the events of [story] or [bit of game canon as it actually happened in my canon]? Or revisit side characters later to see how things ended up working out for them. Or make canon that Vrei is trying to take over Zarva’s organization (leaving the Hutt as a figurehead leader). And, given that Zarva’s not real bright and Vrei is both competent and a half-way decent boss, at least by Nar Shaddaa standards, plenty of people in Zarva’s organization would also prefer she ran things.

23. What’s a trope, AU, or concept you’ve never written, but would like to?

I would love to write a proper caper/heist story, but I’m not sure if I’m clever enough to pull it off. You’ve got to have a clever plan, everything that goes wrong with the clever plan, the new plan(s) or improvisations to make up for all that goes wrong…

Perhaps I’ll get the proper formula worked out one day. And then I might write nothing but capers!

29. What songs would be (or are) on a playlist for [insert fic]? Explain your choices if you want!

I’ve pondered this for a very, very long time. I fear I’m just not the playlist sort.

But a mutual did once make playlists for my characters!

Jezari

Kyrian

Savler

44. If you take/write prompts: do you prefer dialogue or scenario/narrative prompts?

I do write prompts at times. I’ve even tried to participate in prompt related writing events, though my writing speed makes that not work out all that well. Thinking back to my experiments with prompts, I think I prefer scenario/narrative prompts, though I’ve definitely written for both. (I like the clever quote prompts Whumptober uses, but I don’t think I ended up using any of them the year I tried to do it. You know, the ones that sound like titles: “You Break It, You Buy It,” “On a Need to Know Basis,” “Pick Your Poison,” etc.)

#writer asks #@brightephemera

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chocobothis · 11 months

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Rewatching the Bounty Hunter’s storyline in SWTOR and I forgot how annoyed I am with Nem’ro. Calling a Bounty Hunter “Little Girl” is a dangerous game.

#swtor rewatch

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shabre-legacy · 1 year

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The Hunt Begins Chapter Four

The next morning dawned as smelly and awful as the previous one. She wasn’t sure how anyone survived living in this town. There were parts of the planet that she’d seen coming in that indicated that this had once been a nice place, there might even be some of those places left, but it was not Jiguna. She dragged herself out of bed and stretched. Mornings were rough. She always wanted to stay in bed a few more minutes, but ingrained habits rarely allowed that. Lare had always insisted she needed to watch the sun on whatever planet they were on, and if there wasn’t a sunrise to be seen, at least you were up early enough that you could have. Something about remembering your connection to your people and yourself or something. She clung to what few bits of Mirialan culture that she remembered from her family and what Lare had taught her. It wasn’t much and never felt complete, never like it was where she belonged. Then again, she’d never really spent time on Mirial or in any of the enclaves or neighborhoods on planets she’d been to, so maybe that was the problem. Perhaps it wasn’t meant to be her home. Only time would tell.

She sighed and moved over to Mako, gently shaking the girl’s shoulder. “Hey, time to get up. We got a long, hard day ahead.”

Mako was far more efficient than she’d predicted. She’d pegged the girl as a ‘laze in bed and take forever to get up’ type. But by the time Nat strapped on her armor and got her weapons tucked away, Mako was already up, ready and had a datapad with factory schematics waiting for her.

The rest of the day was spent arguing with the kriffing Hutt and taking a couple side jobs for extra credits. Neither she nor Mako knew if entry into the Hunt came with passes off-planet. If it didn’t, they’d need shuttle passes and those were easier to steal if they got up to Nar Shaddaa. Either way they’d need off-planet and they’d need ammunition and rations. If Mako planned to tag along, Nat would need to make sure the girl got some armor.

The accountant was every bit as pathetic and terrified as she’d thought he’d be. Another chance to lie to the Hutt and screw him over while still technically making sure the job was done. She sent the man running and trudged back through the sludge.

Every moment on Hutta sucked. This planet was the worst. Maybe it’d been alright before the Hutts showed up, but now it was a mess.

Seeing Mako try to blackmail her into keeping her on was...adorable. That was the only word for it. It was just down right cute. Maybe it was just nice to have someone actually doing what she expected them to do after Nemro’s little stunt. But she’d expected it. Mako would use her skills to get some info and use the info to get what she wanted. That was how the game was played, so she played along. She’d need to give her some lessons when they had the chance.

Having Mako was not just sentimental, the girl was useful. She could handle a blaster, not particularly well, but capable and already knew where their quarry was heading. The fight was easy. How the Hutt had ever thought that he was the better hunter, Nat didn’t know, but it was going to come back and bite him. After the Great Hunt, she’d come back and she’d kill him.

That determination only grew with every slimy word he spoke. By the time she was done speaking with Grataa and was heading out to the spaceport, she’d decided on how she was going to kill Nem’ro

“I’m going to shoot him in that gut of his 3 times, that way everything hurts when I use grenades stuffed down that fat mouth of his to kill him and then I’ll trap his closest Hutt buddies in his palace and make them clean up the mess.”

“Wow, you’re pretty ruthless when you’re angry. Remind me not to get on your bad side.”

Nat laughed and bumped her shoulder into the smaller girl. “Don’t worry, that’s nothing compared to what we’re gonna do to Blood when we catch him.”

That got a small smile, maybe a sniffle or two, but a bit of a smile from Mako as they left the quiet hall and joined the other people boarding the shuttle off planet. They’d finally made it.

It was a shame she wouldn’t be able to get drinks with the Mandalorian she’d found in Faath’raas palace and his buddy. The Mando was kinda cute, she had a weakness for the armor, and the lifestyle was damn good for them. His buddy seemed like he could have spun enough stories to keep Mako entertained for a few hours. But there wasn’t time to lose. Maybe she’d run into them again, after all, this hunt was sponsored by the Mandos, it seemed reasonable to think she’d run into more. If she did, she thought to herself, she’d make sure to spare some time for those drinks.

As the shuttle took off, she couldn’t help the thrill of excitement. Greater challenges awaited her. Revenge was on her schedule, but there was plenty of time to get there. She was looking forward to seeing what targets she got and who she got to fight next.

Dromund Kaas Chapter One

The shuttle docked briefly on Nar Shaddaa. It was only supposed to be a few minutes to load passengers before heading off to one of the Imperial space stations where she’d take a different ship. It was a few minutes connected to the holonet and the passengers were allowed off to stretch their legs briefly before the much longer trip. Natamai decided that she’d take advantage of the empty shuttle and holonet connection to send a message while Mako got them food. She was trying not to bring up anything that might remind the poor girl of Braden, unless it was to promise her vengeance. It had only been a day, the wounds were still very raw. The fact that she was headed into the biggest hunt of her life with no support team remained however. It wasn’t like she needed a support team. She was perfectly capable of winning the hunt by herself if necessary. She didn’t need anyone else to do her job. But some help would be beneficial, particularly for monitoring and handling other hunters who might interfere and for keeping watch for Blood. There was also the fact that little Mako didn’t seem to own any armor and she’d never yet met a slicer who was actually good in a fight. Maybe she’d be different, but Nat didn’t want to take the risk, extra hands could help keep her safe. She still had some contacts that she could call on, people who were like family, her old mentors, the kids she’d trained with. She was sure one or two of them would have the time to come help. After all, when it came to bounty hunting, the Great Hunt was the most exciting opportunity to come along.

Mako was back pretty quickly, the station they were docked at having plenty of stands nearby and after filling her in on what she’d been doing while the crew loaded the other passengers. They were off again.

Small shuttles like this were the worst. Honestly, Nat couldn’t wait until she was able to get her hands on her own ship. She’d thought about stealing one a few times, but hadn’t found a good opportunity yet. The trip would take 2 days. 2 days in cramped quarters, shared narrow bunks, bad food in small portions. Her ship, when she got it, would have bigger bunks. She’d have her own room with her own bed, room to stretch and train, a weapons case that she didn’t have to carry with her constantly, and a galley where she could keep the better rations. It wasn’t like rations were good, but some were better then others and with bigger portions, better for bounty hunters. They burned through too much food on hunts or even just maintaining their skills for the small shuttle portions to be anywhere near enough.

Reaching Viaken Spacedock was a relief. A chance to get out of the crowded shuttle and get a little space. Of course it came with the negative factor of being solidly in Imperial Space. Natamai had carefully avoided entering imperial territory since she’d escaped from it. She’d been thinking about this all the way here. There was no official record of her name. Only a number and a name assigned when she was first sold. As long as she avoided Sith and didn’t mention anything about her past, she could likely get by just fine. The current armor she was wearing had high neck seals that would hide the scars on her neck as well. No reason for anyone to suspect her. Plus, she wasn’t a child anymore, she could fight now. She could kill. There was no reason to worry and if something happened, she’d be capable of dealing with it. Everything would be fine.

Mako noticed her nerves as they disembarked. “You ok boss?”

She smiled at the girl. “I’m fine Mako, just not a fan of Imperial Space and all their rules.”

Her comm beeped at her as she connected back to the holonet. She pulled Mako aside and answered it. On the comm was her friend Jasuri Nin. A Cathar bounty hunter she’d trained with back when she still hunted with her mentors. The woman barely greeted Nat. “I’m on Viaken. We need to talk. I’ve got bad news. Where are you?”

Nat stared at the Comm, she’d just been trying to see if Jasuri had been interested in running around with her for a bit, not looking for more bad news. But it was best to hear it now, get everything sorted out. “Just docked on Viaken myself. I’ll meet you in the Cantina, bringing a friend.” Jasuri nodded and hung up and Nat started towards the center ring of the spacedock with Mako at her side.

“Hey boss, who are we meeting?”

She smiled at the small note of hesitancy in her voice. She wouldn’t be replacing Mako anytime soon, if nothing else, she owed it to Braden; but Mako seemed smart enough not to be entirely convinced by words. It was a good trait, but it meant she wouldn’t entirely believe Nat wouldn’t leave her behind until Nat proved otherwise.

“That was Jasuri. We trained together as teens and had the same mentors. I’ll have to tell you stories about them sometime. She’s a fantastic tracker and great at ambushes and traps. Never been my thing, I prefer a straight fight, seems fairer to me, but she’s real good at what she does.”

Mako nodded and made a passing observation about a group of imperial civilians in their ridiculous fashion as they hit the stairs into the cantina. People were scattered around, sitting neatly in the chairs, drinking and placing the glasses on the tables properly. It was the most boring Cantina she’d ever been in. Yet another reason the Empire was the worst. At least the low number of people and their orderly behavior made it easy to spot Jasuri in a corner booth as far from others as possible.

It had to be uncomfortable for her, a Cathar in imperial space.The women shook hands and settled back as the Natamai could see the guards eying Jasuri and keeping an eye on her and Mako as they approached. The Cathar was tall and lanky, but strong. You could see that in the way she wore her armor as though it weighed nothing. Her thick fur was mostly a very dark brown with a few dark grey spots and light grey stripes across her face and across the top of her head where she had a single ponytail of tawny hair stretching down to her shoulders and ending in about a dozen separate strands, each beaded at the ends. It all worked to make her red eyes shine more prominently.

She moved over to Jasuri and slid into the booth, Mako sliding in next to her, and waved over the serving droid. She could see Jasuri’s gaze gliding over the slicer. She should have expected that. Jasuri always did seem to go for the smart, pretty ones. She had to smile a bit at that, Jasuri never changed. “Hey Suri, This is Mako, slicer, genius, helping me with the hunt I’m on. Mako, this is Jasuri.” The droid glided over and took their order. They sat quietly until the droid brought their drinks and left again.

Jasuri drained whatever swill she’d ordered in one long swig and pushed the mug aside leaning forward on her elbows and staring at both of them. “So, somebody killed Braden. I can’t believe that. Daala always spoke so well of him. I’m assuming Mako here is his kid. You mentioned you were bringing her along.”

Nat sighed. She had told Jasuri that. She’d let her family know what was going on. For her, that meant Jasuri, her mentors, her younger twin Leikael and her adopted brother who’d gone off to join the Mandalorians. “That’d be accurate. Seems like we got on the bad side of some Mando, Tarro Blood. He took down Braden and Jory. Mako only got out by not being there. He thinks it’s going to knock me out of the hunt.”

“Tarro Blood, huh? So that’s the reason then.” “Reason for what?” There was something in Jasuri’s voice, something bitter and angry and deeply sad.

The pain in Jasuri’s eyes only made her more nervous as the hunter swallowed her own emotions. “Acoma, Daala, Lare, they’re all dead. Mandalorians killed them. Almost killed me too.”

Natamai feels the air leave the station as she stares. Dead? All three of them? They couldn’t be? She stares in shock for a few seconds before she remembers to breath. With a shuddering gasp, she closes her eyes. She had expected this, sort of. Bounty hunting did not lend itself to a long lifespan. But this? “Blood was involved? What happened?”

“Ambush on Nasaue. They just finished a job, I was in the area. I was supposed to meet them there for a visit. I arrived minutes after. If it hadn’t been for the security holos, I wouldn’t have known what happened. Some man named Blood and a few other mandalorians came in, checked the room, Blood left and the others set the ambush. Grenades and mines and everything. They never stood a chance. I’ve had 2 attempts to kill me just getting here.”

Nat nods “Savri?”

Jasuri shrugs. “He’s fine as far as I know, but he hasn’t answered either. His mandalorian status might protect him from them. But depending on how bad this guy wants to cripple you, it might not.”

Nat reaches up to rub her temples. “Ok, ok. We’ll warn him to be on guard. I have to go to the mandalorian enclave anyways so I’ll reach out when I get there if he hasn’t contacted us. See if his clan knows his status.” Mako was staring at the two of them, a little confused, but mostly sympathetic. Nat feels the need to explain and that itself is irritating. “Acoma, Daala and Lare are… were bounty hunters. They taught us and Savri everything we know about hunting. Lare taught me about being Mirialan, at least a little bit. We’re family, the six of us. Or… We were family… I guess… Now”

“I’m so sorry. That’s just awful…”

There seems to be more Mako wants to say, however the serving droid interrupts their conversation, delivering their meals. Natamai takes a moment to breathe through her grief. She can scream later when she kills something. For now, Imperial space is dangerous. “So I was already taking Blood’s head. I guess that’s three more reasons for it.” Jasuri nods and the look in Mako’s eyes is pure steel. “Jasuri, did you think about my offer?”

The grin on the Cathar’s face is dangerous. “I did and I’m in.”

Nat nods and looks over to Mako. “Jasuri will be joining us.” The slicer nods and pulls out a datapad. “We only have the two tickets, but other then that, there shouldn’t need to be too much adjustment.” She begins tapping away.

“I have my own ticket to Dromund Kaas. Let’s kill some shit.” Natamai nods to Jasuri’s statement and the three women dive into their meals, quickly finishing them off and leaving the station cantina.

It doesn’t take long before they manage to get aboard their next shuttle and settle in for the trip. It’s too long, too crowded. Natamai hates it. She gets a bit snappy as the hours pass. Eventually Mako and Jasuri step out to leave her alone on the small double bunk she managed to secure. She takes advantage of the moment to send out more messages, responding to Leikael and another to Savri in hopes that he’d respond.

Eventually though Jasuri made her way back and crawled into the bunk, sitting next to Natamai. “Mako found herself some guy to flirt with for a bit. They’re dancing. I gave her a panic button and backed off.”

“Good. She could use a fun distraction.” Nat leans against the woman who was nearly another sister. “I miss them.”

“Me too”

“Blood will pay for this. He isn’t going to get away with it.”

“I’ll help. How’s Flip?”

Natamai chuckles at the old nickname. “Still hates being called that. Got her ship stolen and is chasing the criminal. Got her first bounty too.”

She grins as she pulls up the notice. Jasuri whistles, “Rogun the Butcher? That’s a pretty decent price for her first galactic bounty. She knows to be careful?”

Nat nods. “I told her. I’m proud honestly. Good for her.”

Jasuri nods and leans against Nat’s shoulder. “Worried about being in Imp Space?”

Natamai knows the unspoken question ‘Are you worried about being caught? “Not really, I’ve changed so much since last time. Tats, name, my face even looks different. It’s not like I was ever important enough to get loaded into some genetic scanner database. It’ll be fine. If it’s not… We have blasters.”

A large grin spread over Jasuri’s face, made all the more dangerous by her sharp fangs. “We do have very powerful, very expensive blasters.”

She wraps an arm around Nat and they sink down a bit. “It’s good to see you again. It’s gonna be good hunting with someone I trust.”

Nat nods with a yawn as Jasuri stretches her legs. “About that Mako. She single?”

#swtor #my writing #natamai shabre #Jasuri Nin

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tiredassmage · 1 year

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Y’know, I know Hutta gets some shit as far as being a starting planet for the Aesthetic and that’s a completely valid judging point, but I’ve also realized playing through it yet again (let’s not talk about how many agents I’ve done Hutta on and also my several attempts at Bounty Hunter before Len stuck) between the class quests and a few side quests I always find myself doing (I kinda wanna do the rest, see if they add anything to this thought), Hutta is a really good exploration of a character’s motivations for me.

Thoughts on my favorite two under the cut - for spoilers, I suppose, if you haven’t done them and because one of them potentially involves violent actions made in front of a child, depending on your choices - which I mention to pose questions about why a PC might make the choice they do.

The two I always do - first primarily out of their proximity to story quest locations and then continuously as quests I just genuinely enjoyed - are the Czerka representative (”the Black Death”) and Gina’s situation with her husband and son. In short, they always strike me as a peek into what my character thinks of the Empire’s status quo - the Czerka representative tests their views on aliens [generalizing for categorical purposes; it can be directly about the Evocii, if the character ends the consideration with it there, or do they think of it as a broader context issue within the Empire?] and will they accept bribes. You can ask the Twi’lek merchant if he’d like this ‘Black Death’ murdered, and he says that’s bad for business, but leaves it up to you. Does your PC take that as a job and either accept the representative’s bribe to leave him alone, or drop Nem’ro’s name for the LS intimidate option? Or do they say ‘up yours’ to the bribe and kill the representative? Do they merely prefer to resolve problems with their blaster or is it because they genuinely find the representative’s hunting repulsive? Do they feel any sympathy for the Evocii or is it merely business?

Gina’s situation asks how does the PC - a non-Force user - view the status quo of the Sith? Does a Bounty Hunter focus on the job they were assigned at any cost, or do they have lines they won’t cross because the son is present when you confront the father? Do they care about how things are run in the Empire? How does an agent view the relationship between Imperial military or citizenry and Sith? Do they run into a similar moral debate between duty to the Empire and personal values?

Adding in consideration for their choices in their class story, I’ve just found myself fascinated that Hutta has given me, usually, a pretty clear picture of my character’s motivations with just this little sliver of missions. They can, in theory, establish a whole boatload of information about the character’s thoughts and relationship with the Empire or even just backstory, if their choices may be motivated by their previous history.

For example, with Tyr (I am snapping him like a glowstick, after all, you knew this was coming), when I first played him I made these decisions based on his personal values. I haven’t really returned to them until today I’m doing a second run through (for Galactic Seasons and ‘I miss him’ related reasons) and I realized I’ve since sort of tied them to his backstory and expanded on my understanding of his motivations. For him as an agent, its before he takes on the Cipher status, and it’s one of the few decisions I can count in memory that he made based on his own agency. Sure, his actions on Hutta probably help solidify his presence as the Red Blade, but Keeper’s not giving him an itemized list for how to think and behave - they need agents that can do that on their own in the field, first two minutes of the game. So these are his choices. He does not seek reckless cruelty as the Blade, and that’s all these people know him as, so his decisions suit his purposes both as a cover and also told me something about what he values. And I just thought that was really neat.

#and thanks for coming to my ted talk xD #swtor #hutta #ch: tyr #dot talk #idk man i just love thinking about the whys and that led me here

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wrathfulenvy · 2 years

Video

Viera Corr arrives on Hutta

Viera Corr arrives on Hutta [YOU ARE HERE]

“Hello, fellow Imperial Aliens!”

I am become the Red Blade

Meeting Nem’ro the Hutt

Darth Jadus is watching

#swtor #SWTOR video #my swtor #imperial agent #o.c: Viera Corr #viera corr playthrough

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theniveanlegacy · 3 years

Text

Nem’ro’s palace has the funniest background jokes I swear

#Wookiee #swtor #Star Wars #han solo #chewbacca #hutta

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rainofaugustsith · 3 years

Text

My SWTOR OCS

Main:

Viridana Revarre Dragoi

Darth Viridana; Viri. Canon Sith Warrior; Commander of the Eternal Alliance; Empire's Wrath (former)

Age: 40 as of 3629 BBY Height: 6'2" Sexuality: Heavily favors women; demisexual Partner: Lana Beniko (Force bonded; wife) Western Zodiac would be: Aries

Viri has her own page because it’s all about her here. Major supporting team:

Suvia Kallig

Canon Sith Inquisitor. Darth Nox. Sith Assassin; Dark Council member; Force Lore and Archives Director, Eternal Alliance

Age: 34 as of 3629 BBY Height: 5'1" Sexuality: Lesbian Partner: Jaesa Willsaam Western Zodiac would be: Leo

During the Eternal Empire’s assault on Darth Marr’s coalition, Darth Nox was captured and thrown into carbonite. She was found and thawed seven years later by Viri and her Alliance. She now works for the Eternal Alliance as the Director of Force Lore and Artifacts.

Taran Walrez

Canon bounty hunter. Great Hunter (unaffiliated; refused to join Mandalorians)

Age: 44 as of 3629 BBY Height: 5'11" Sexuality: Lesbian Partner: Lucinda Walrez (wife) Western Zodiac would be: Aries

After her work with Darth Tormen, Taran continued working as a bounty hunter, renowned for her talent and skill. While mentoring a contestant in the Great Hunt, she and her wife, Lucinda, rescued Lana Beniko and HK-55 from an untimely demise on Altair 3. After repairing Lana’s hand, they directed her to the shadow port of Asylum. Taran has continued to be a valued ally of the Eternal Alliance. She recently retired from hunting and now lives on Odessen with her wife, who is a surgeon in the Alliance hospital. Supporting:

Jenari Ashaa

Canon Jedi Consular. Former Barsen'thor; ex-Jedi; member of the Eternal Alliance; First Assistant, Department of Force Lore and Artifacts

Age: 37 as of 3629 BBY Height: 5'10" Sexuality: Lesbian Partner: Nadia Grell (after Ossus) Western Zodiac would be: Aquarius

Jenari’s parents gave her a name that meant “Sith Victory” in Sith because they were very upset about having to turn her over to the Jedi. Jenari left the Jedi Order after the class story. She eventually ended up in Somminick Timmns’ sanctuary for Force users on Nar Shaddaa and then in the Eternal Alliance, where she works with Force artifacts and lore, expanding her knowledge and working tirelessly for peace and common ground.

Ikina Marks-Zavros

Expert slicer Height: 5'9" Age: 35 as of 3629 BBY Sexuality: Bisexual Partner: Ashara Zavros Daughter: Tomi Western Zodiac would be: Virgo

Ikina is not in the class stories. She left her home planet when the Eternal Empire attacked, eventually finding sanctuary on Nar Shaddaa. Her talents as a slicer and information broker brought her to the attention of Ashara Zavros, who hired her to help search for the missing Darth Nox. Though their search was unsuccessful, Ikina and Ashara fell in love and married. They settled on Voss, where they run a tea house in the alien enclave of Voss-Ka.

Keilla Gray

Canon Trooper. Former CO of Havoc Squad; Director, Tion Security Force

Height: 6'0" Age: 45 as of 3629 BBY Sexuality: Lesbian Partner: None Western Zodiac would be: Aries

After coordinating the evacuation of Makeb and encountering Eclipse Squad, Keilla left Havoc Squad and defected to the Tion Hegemony. She never returns to fight for the Republic, Empire or Alliance. Keilla is dedicated to keeping people safe in her new role in the Tion Security Force, but she is determined never to return to combat. Her main focus on Tion is coordinating T.H.O.R.N. and Alliance volunteers to counter the outbreaks of rakghoul plague still occurring throughout the Hegemony.

Lucinda Walrez

Chief Surgeon, Alliance Medcenter

Age: 46 as of 3629 BBY

Height: 5'6" Sexuality: Lesbian Partner: Taran Walrez (wife) Western Zodiac would be: Taurus

Lucinda is a gifted microsurgeon trained on Corellia. Her sister, Judah, works as an accountant in the Hutt Nem’ro’s palace on Hutta. Lucinda, however, avoided any contact with the underworld until Judah introduced her to a champion bounty hunter, Taran. Lucinda and Taran hit it off, and Lucinda eventually began traveling with Taran as part of her bounty hunting crew, tending to her team’s injuries. Taran and Lucinda later married. During the Eternal Empire’s reign over the galaxy, Lucinda was responsible for treating a badly injured Lana Beniko and saving her hand in microsurgery. She and Taran continued to work with the Alliance from a distance for years, until Taran was hired for a bounty hunting contract by the Alliance Commander. Lucinda and Taran decided to join the Alliance full-time when Taran retired from bounty hunting. They now live on Odessen, where Lucinda is the chief surgeon in the Alliance’s Medcenter.

Rorjhana (Ror)

Canon Jedi Knight. Hero of Tython; ex-Jedi Knight; member of the Eternal Alliance Age: 38 as of 3629 BBY Height: 5'8" Sexuality: Lesbian Partner: @vespertine-legacy ’s Zuvi Western Zodiac would be: Leo

Disillusioned, angry and disgusted with the Republic and Jedi Order, Ror unsteadily tried to fulfill her role as the "Hero of Tython" while steadily slipping away from the Order. It was only through the efforts of Satele Shan and the Barsen'thor that Ror was kept out of a prison cell on Belsavis for her proclivity for the Dark Side. Ror disappeared into Wild Space after her victory against Vitiate, and only surfaced years later, when Somminick Timmns recruited her into his Force enclave. She joined the Eternal Alliance along with Timmns and his other students, and finally feels at home. She has no plans to leave.

Jiani Jiaasjen (Jia)

Darth Imperius. Sith Assassin; Security team, Eternal Alliance

Age: 38 as of 3629 BBY Height: 5'10" Sexuality: Bisexual Partner: Darth Hexid Western Zodiac would be: Scorpio

Jia was working as a lightsaber trainer on Korriban when the Eternal Empire attacked. She and Darth Hexid helped each other survive the assault. She went on to join the Eternal Alliance, where she and Hexid work as saber and combat instructors. Jia’s entire large family was wiped out by the Eternal Empire, which has led to her having a deep hatred for Zakuul. She is an excellent teacher and also is very persuasive when negotiating.

Shatsokun Ashaa (Shasi)

Sith Inquisitor, Darth Occlus, member, Eternal Alliance Age: 33 as of 3629 BBY Height: 5'10″ Sexuality: Lesbian Partner: None Western Zodiac would be: Virgo

Shasi is the younger sister of Jenari Ashaa. After Jenari’s parents were forced to give her to the Jedi, they were upset enough to leave Republic space. They settled on Nar Shaddaa, and when Shasi was born, they gave her a Sith name that meant “Passion Victory” (they didn’t speak Sith!). When she was found to be Force sensitive they ensured she went to Sith training and not the Jedi. Shasi did not meet her sister until she joined the Eternal Alliance after Nathema. Other Fun Characters Out in the Galaxy

Amedria Bjornus

Smuggler; Republic privateer (coerced); pirate; smuggler network, Eternal Alliance

Age: 42 as of 3629 BBY Height: 5'9" Sexuality: Asexual; Aromantic Partner: None Western Zodiac would be: Sagittarius

Amedria is a valued ally of the Eternal Alliance’s underworld network.

Marlena

Canon smuggler. Republic privateer (coerced); pirate; smuggler network, Eternal Alliance Age: 41 as of 3629 BBY Height: 5'6" Sexuality: Pansexual Partner: Risha Drayen Western Zodiac would be: Scorpio

Marlena is a valued ally in the Eternal Alliance’s underworld network.

Auyrini Mercenary and smuggler Age: 42 as of 3629 BBY Height: 6′1″ Sexuality: Lesbian Partner: None Western Zodiac would be: Aquarius Auyrini is a smuggler and mercenary working in Wild Space. She is a valued ally in the Eternal Alliance’s network.

Brynn (alias)

Canon Imperial Agent; Cipher Nine

Little is known about the agent known as Cipher Nine. Her existence is an urban legend; there are no records about her in either Sith Intelligence or the SIS’s files. If her name is typed into any computer database, it instantly disappears. Those who worked at Imperial Intelligence insist that Cipher Nine was a real person who vanished without a trace after defeating the Star Cabal, but there is no way to know for certain.

#Viridana Dragoi #Suvia Kallig #Jia Jiassjen #OC: Shasotukun Ashaa #OC: Marlena #OC: Keilla Gray #OC: Brynn #OC: Jenari Ashaa #OC: Rorjhana #OC: Ikina Marks #Taran Walrez #Amedria Bjornus #OC: Lucinda Walrez #OC: Auyrini #OC: Shasi #OC: Ror #OC: Ikina Marks-Zavros

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