This Ain't No Place For No Hero

[Arage Bao]

Convenience was the word of Law in most operations throughout the Galaxy, a schematic was conveniently located in a certain place, the gun someone was gunning (ha) for was conveniently misplaced and relocated to an easy-accessible place or perhaps a ship, which was conveniently transported to the shipyards orbiting the planet of Hypori.

This time the convenience laid in a simple administration mistake, or so it would seem, men of note had decided that the ship was due to some maintenance and so it had happened that the Blue Krait found itself placed in the drydocks. Sometimes… it was good to be acquainted with the Viceroy of Hypori and this was one of those days.

A man in a familiar set of armor http://starwarsrp.net/topic/22882-taozin-beskargam/ walked out of the transporter that had brought him to the Hangar of the Krait, with him were the Viceroy of Hypori, [member="Darth Janus"] and [member="Matsu Xiangu"]… his… apprentice returned again by his side.

It was clear to all that [member="Isley Verd"] had returned to check up on his ship, and the Viceroy himself had decided to provide the secret Dreadlord with a service by presiding the tour of the Krait.

‘ Yes, Viceroy. The ship truly looks like its in pristine shape, I knew I could put my trust in you and your fine shipyards. ‘

The man with the iconic helmet said through the external speakers of the armor, underneath he wore a body glove, also certifying him as the true Verd of the Galaxy. The only thing missing was his beloved wife(s) , but they sadly weren’t able to attend to this meeting.

 

[Caulder Dune]

[member="Jared Ovmar"] | [member="Matsu Xiangu"]

It was a well known fact that Isley Verd was presently wanted for a number of crimes against the Confederacy- Or rather, the Systems Authority. He was responsible for the civil war, the power vacuum, and a great deal of other misfortunes within this government and its reformed counterpart. There was a reason he was being purged from the record books and his Templar holdouts being systematically destroyed.

But far be it for Tyrin to inform Jared of this fact. If the man wanted to play dress up and LARP as Isley Verd, he was more than welcome to. Tyrin was not going to stop him. Instead, Tyrin busied himself fiddling with the large gauntlet on his right hand. His prize from looting Verd's residence with a bunch of Ovmar's friends. The Umbaran Viceroy had called ahead to his officials on the shipyard, informing them that a man dressed like Verd would be present, but was not the wanted criminal.

Because Ovmar being arrested was not conducive to what they wanted to do here.

Accompanying them was a woman Tyrin had never seen nor heard of. Another of Ovmar's innumerable acquaintances. He thought very little of it.

"Only the finest treatment has been afforded for your vessel, your grace." Tyrin replied, not looking up as he scratched at one of the talons attached to the fingertips of the gauntlet. Heavy thing. It would take some getting used to, but that was fine with him.

 

[Matsu Xiangu]

[SIZE=9pt] There had been many, many times that Matsu had thought about committing violence against her old Master but in the end the urge always dissipated, replaced by the affection the insufferable Sith had managed to get out of her. But she was having a very hard time not killing him now, avoiding looking at him in Verd’s old things. She had a very uncomplicated past with the old Systems Authority member: he’d been her Master for a short time first, and he’d stifled her beyond comprehension.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt] It was uncomplicated because if she saw him again she’d kill him.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt] But regardless, she trailed on the side opposite of Ovmar from where another of his acquaintances walked. She had a better idea of Janus than it appeared the Lord had of her if only because of Ovmar's connections, but that was fine. She preferred to keep her capabilities up her sleeve until it was time to unveil them – surprise was one of her weapons of choice.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt] Besides, it played perfectly in to the role of attaché she played now, quiet and unassuming as she glided next to the two men. She had none of the prizes both carried, mostly because she wanted nothing that had belonged to Verd (though she was clearly more than willing to see everything he’d ever held close tossed around the Galaxy to whoever might use it). Her lightsaber was hidden in the folds of her robes along with a pair of armor-piercing knives she’d won in a game of cards. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt] She stayed quiet, eyes roving over the shipyard as if protecting ‘Verd’ from potential threat. As. if.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt][member="Jared Ovmar"] | [member="Darth Janus"][/SIZE]​

 

[Arage Bao]

For a single defining moment there was utter and complete silence in the direct vicinity of the three Sith Lords, as if the Winds of Time themselves decided to hold their breath to await the fury, reprisal or vengeance of the original owner of the armor, sword and ship they were walking on right now.

The moment came, went and in its stead was simple… disappointment? Perhaps just a little bit, the feeling pulsed through the Force and I couldn’t help but blink at this foreign emotion, then I shook my head and looked next to me where Ardik was walking, fiddling with his new toy.

Part of me wished to tell him how… cheesy the design looked, as if all Black Iron Tyrants ala Zambrano had decided to form up and craft a gauntlet that represented everything their repressed childhoods stood for, yet this comment died in my mouth as I considered the origins of the artifact and the armor I was wearing myself right this moment.

Nay… better keep my mouth shut, at least for now. Merrill, Di and me were already working on something far more interesting; something which would make Ardik grind his teeth and sweep his hair a lot. Can’t wait for that.

What happened next… well I didn’t really want to describe it. But for posterity and accuracy reasons I shall do it, I looked to my other side, noticing Matsu. The Helmet of my Armor… noticed something else as an automatic recording device was activated and my HUD centered itself around her… eh… *coughs* you know.

I immediately forced my head back to look in front of me.

Verd and his sneaky toys, Savan would have loved this.

‘Eh… so… Ardik. Will there be any problems with transferring the ship?’

[member="Matsu Xiangu"] | [member="Darth Janus"]​

 

[Caulder Dune]

[member="Jared Ovmar"] | [member="Matsu Xiangu"]

Tyrin was more than aware that the gauntlet currently covering his hand looked more at home on Sauron's nightstand than anywhere near him. The reason Tyrin was wearing the gauntlet was not to be fashionable, obviously. If Ovmar knew of any more stylish and setting friendly handwear that would allow him to utilize Tutaminis and blast people with Dark Side energy, Tyrin was more than open to suggestions. For now, though the Gauntlet of Hadwhatever would remain where it was. Even if it had been tainted by the touch and craftsmanship of Mandalorian scum.

"Of course not. I have already filled out the necessary paperwork. Everyone else will consider the ship to have been destroyed."

As far as the bureaucracies and official records would be concerned, Viceroyality of Hypori had seized the ship during the initial outbreaks of the Confederate Civil War, seeing as it was an asset of the man who started that whole escapade. They had then scrapped the ship and sold all the parts to unidentified Levantine junkers to help pay for the founding of Saint Palpatine Secondary School. It was all a very neat affair, if a bold faced lie. There were worse people running around Abrion, though. Fudged documents on strange vessels no one else wanted were the least of their worries.

"I also took the liberty of replacing the crew with droids." Tyrin explained. "There were some of the Dread Guard on board. Nasty fanatics. It took some time to convince them to leave."

Thankfully, they had already passed the viewport when the corpse of a Dread Guard that had been vented into space floated on by.

 

[Matsu Xiangu]

[SIZE=9pt] Matsu knew her old Master well enough to pick up on the quick succession of surprise, interest, and amusement when he glanced at her and quickly away and she liked none of them. She was more than willing to let his indiscretions go when he wasn’t playing at being a weak-spined Mandalorian, but with the armor on she felt a curl of revulsion even if she didn’t know exactly what had just crossed his mind when he spared her a look. She didn’t speak up so as not to break character, but her sea-glass smooth voice looped towards Ovmar past the thick armor (and thick skull) in to his head. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]Eyes front, or I might have to hurt you. Wouldn’t exactly be out of character.[/SIZE]​

[SIZE=9pt] It took them a while to walk the length of the ship, making a show of stopping to inspect this and that for the veracity of the their ‘escort’s’ statement – come to think of it Verd had always had a touch for the large and far too elaborate, perhaps in compensation for other things. However it seemed most things besides the crew were intact, their overzealous personalities replaced by the placid obedience of droids. An improvement, to be sure.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt] After what felt like miles and miles of walking (many of which were spent wondering how the other Lord accompanying them got his hair like that and gauging exactly how angry he would be if she asked for his secrets) they arrived at the bridge of the Krayt. The last time Matsu had been here, she had been a very freshly minted Acolyte, just starting out in the galaxy. To stand here again was almost surreal though this time she was less starry-eyed despite it, letting her gaze sweep over the nearly silent room filled only with the slight whirr of droids moving around. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt] Seemed like everything was in order, for now.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt][member="Jared Ovmar"] | [member="Darth Janus"][/SIZE]​

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Matsu Xiangu"] [member="Darth Janus"]

Another eternity had passed as I blinked and still… there was nothing that had happened, we were still here and nothing had exploded, there were no strange men jumping in from nowhere and attacking us, neither were there droids hacked into suicide bombing us off this ship. It seemed… that this time… things were gonna go as planned without any complications - which was entirely surprising and pretty entertaining at the same time.

I will scrub when we get home and then I will make it up to you.

Then I turned my head to Ardik and said with a sigh.

‘Well, seems we ain’t gonna get any action here. You need me to sign anything, or can I start getting my men settled?’

 

[Caulder Dune]

[member="Jared Ovmar"] | [member="Matsu Xiangu"]

Tyrin grimaced and rolled his eyes. Action? Seriously? What action was Ovmar expecting to receive here? Maybe he should have left the zealots on board for his colleague to deal with himself. No, no. That was ridiculous. Tyrin was not about to risk internal damage to the ship or to the surrounding shipyards just for the sport of massacring some DreadGuard with friends. Temporarily shutting down the ship's life support systems and ejecting the remainder of them into space had been a much more suitable course of action. Such was the fate of all zealots and Vong mutants. Whatever mess that had remained was easily rectified by the droids he had ushered in.

Clean and efficient. Just as he liked it.

"I've already had records made of this transaction. There is little need for you to sign anything." Tyrin raised an eyebrow as Ovmar mentioned getting his own men settled. "Oh? You don't want the droids?"

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Darth Janus"] [member="Matsu Xiangu"]

Fact was that these days any thread usually devolved into some meaningless combat scenario just to lengthen the duration of it, so it wasn’t entirely strange that Ovmar had been surprised this time everything went off without a hike - then again… perhaps he shouldn’t have expected any different from the bureaucratic, lawfully evil character such as Tyrin Ardik himself.

Once you oil the collective systems of bureaucracy and grease the palms just a tiny bit… everything was possible.

The men in question were just a couple of the Sith Lord’s Elite, the men who accompanied him everywhere, except to a bathroom break. That would have been weird.

‘Just a few of my guards. The droids are a pleasant surprise, Ardik, thank you.’

 

[Caulder Dune]

[member="Jared Ovmar"] | [member="Matsu Xiangu"]

"You still hire actual people to do your guarding?" Tyrin sighed. "Well, to each their own, I suppose."

People could be bribed. People took a long time to train. Droids didn't. That, and Tyrin didn't have to worry about informing any widows and relatives why muscle-head, honor guard Jimmy wasn't going to be home for High Day. And he'd have to make up a cause of death, because "used as a high-speed projectile by [member="Mikhail Shorn"]" didn't sound quite as good as "single handedly held off an entire platoon of cannibal insurgents while simultaneously rescuing the occupants of a building that served both as an animal shelter and children's hospital."

The extra mile was important. It kept dissent from spreading. But again, dissent was not a problem with droids. Not if they were properly maintained. Sure, you could spend the better part of a year brainwashing people to be mindlessly obedient... Or you could purchase a droid in, like, ten minutes. Really, it was a wonder people did any amount of fighting these days. They'd figure it out at some point.

"In any case, you're welcome. Are you going to need anything else before you depart?"