9.010 - Package Delivered

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

Sasseeri thumped her forehead down on her desk. The slick, expensive lacquered wood was cool against her skin, and for a moment she considered remaining in that position for the rest of forever. Why was she surrounded by idiots and sycophants?

An entire shipment of spice from the Hutts was lost to an Imperial interdictor, as well as the freighter and crew. The managers of the casino on Carshoulis Prime had gotten arrested for being forrrda and dominant to females in public (ridiculous charges but then, this was the Pride they were talking about). She'd just had to fire a secretary for recording private conversations. And on top of all that, Taataani was still sending messages, hinting at making nice and trying to feel her out for business deals. She'd ignored the last three.

Sasseeri moaned softly against the desk, her breath fogging up the striped wood. There was a quiet knock at the door, and then Tock opened it. He cleared his throat uncomfortably. "Adjerban is here, with the latest bounty. You had asked for this one to be delivered personally to you."

Her ears flicked, and she sat up slowly, eying the big grey skinned Twi'lek. His voice was a deep rumble; it was a shame that he didn't talk more often. Of course, he also hated being used for doorman duties, but hiring a new secretary was difficult and she was putting it off. Plus there weren't a great deal of applicants, what with the risk of disappearing if you did your job incompetently. Plus - her mind was like a sajoi, scurrying to and fro. Sasseeri flicked her hair back and squared her shoulders.

"Yes, of courrrse, show hjim jin at once." Hopefully this would be just the distraction she needed.

[Adjerban the Interloper]

Prent, it turned out, was my kind of guy. In another situation we might have been buddies. Sure, we would have had a falling out after chasing the same tail, but we probably would have gotten plastered on cheap booze and made up. That was our breed. That or I would have cheated him at cards and he would have tried to shoot me or something. That happens sometimes. I made if fairly clear that I didn't take any special pleasure in this, and that it was way outside my normal duties, but Sasseeri, ya know? Prent knew, probably better than I did. I did not delve into that relationship, and neither did he.

Hell, I even gave him a smoke.

Part of me felt a little smidgen bad for turning him over to Sassy Pants, but I really like my throat the way it is. When I walked through the door, I felt the same mixed feelings that I always did. One part distaste, one part distrust, and two parts lust. Many negative things could be said about Sasseeri Reeouurra: her looks were not on that list. Her body seemed to accumulate fat on very select, desirable places, and everywhere else was smooth and lean.

"Package for you, Miss Reeouura." I gave Prent a gentle shove through the door.

[Sanis Prent]

I was still beaten up and in stun cuffs, but I'd had my smoke, my chance to simmer down, and a chance to reflect. I'd had a good life, right? Maybe not the best, all told. I hadn't made it big yet, but I'd done my thing for most of it, and probably gotten away with more shit than most.

I don't know what I expected behind the door. Nobody really told me who the macher was at Black Sun who was throwing down a mint for my hide. I'd be the first one to admit I've probably pissed off more people than I realize, so I spent a bit of time trying to tease out the mystery in my head.

So when I first caught a glimpse of my captor, I was thrown a bit for a loss.

"Oh."

And then it hit me. I had kind of blown off a high paying gig and left it by the wayside for my little run at being a damn hero, hadn't I?

"Ohhhh..."

A grimace.

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

Sasseeri was almost smiling when the door opened, and then a bedraggled male was pushed in with Adjerban just behind him. She looked at him, and then at the her pointy eared employee, and then back again.

"Who the fuck jis thjis?"

[Adjerban the Interloper]

My ears dropped a little. I was confused. What the hell? My eyes narrowed a touch, but the look on her face meant she wasn't playing sabaac.

"Sanis Prent." I said, and hoped a lightbulb would go on.

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

Sanjis Prrrent. The name meant nothing to her. Sasseeri shoved her chair back and stalked over to the man, putting a finger under his chin and forcing his head up. Maybe... was jit Cloud Cjity? Frrrell jits been a long tjime.

"He smells bad and needs a hajirrrcut. But jI suppose jI rrrememberrr hjim now." She slapped his cheek lightly. "You werrre gojing to do somethjing forrr me, werrren't you, Prrrent."

[Sanis Prent]

At first I was pissed off that she didn't know who I was. I'm Sanis Fucking Prent! Everybody should know who I am! Baby, I rocked you!

Then, I quickly hoped she wouldn't remember. Yes ma'am, I'm Sanis Prent, of the Ithorian Itinerant Missionary Society. Have you accepted the Ithorian Nature Spirit as your Lord and Savior? We have pamphlets and cookies. Completely harmless ma'am!

Then I was mad again. Smell bad? Haircut?? I ignored her question for a moment, and tried to check my vapors as discretely as possible, which probably didn't help my case.

[Adjerban the Interloper]

Oh thank the Force she remembered. I watched her dress down Prent when the lights went on.

No shit you don't smell good Sanis. You've been bagged by a Cizerack and then shipped. You stink faintly of body odor and a cigarette. As for a haircut, I'm not one to talk. I had a long, black mane and some of the ladies liked it. It was a pain in the ass, but I took good care of it.

I waited. Sassy hated being interrupted when she was humiliating someone.

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

She was much shorter than Prent, but being short had never stopped her from staring down her nose at others. "Seventy thousand credjits. Half was up frrront, as well as the forrrged paperrrs and trrransponderrr we had to arrrrrange forrr you, that you neverrr pjicked up. jI may forrrget a face but jI neverrr forrrget a brrroken contrrract. jIn addjitjion to what jI just had to pay to brrrjing you jin, you owe me qujite a bjit of money, Mjisterrr Prrrent."

Sasseeri narrowed her blue eyes. "jI can't decjide jif jI want you to worrrk jit off, orrr jif you should just be kjilled for yourrr jinsolence. Any jideas, Prrrent?"

[Sanis Prent]

"Work sounds great!" was out of my mouth faster than light speed, as I put on a genial smile.

Hey, I'll do all sorts of things like swallowing my pride and working for nothing to avoid certain death.

"Got any clerical openings? Something with low danger, good benefits?"

About all I had to fight back with at this point was a sense of humor.

[Adjerban the Interloper]

Sanis you moron. Clerical work for Sassy was fraught with danger. The further you could be away from her, the more legal the work was, the better off you were. Which is why I sort of liked my job. The pay was tolerable, catching cheats was both challenging and interesting, and Sassy didn't live in her casino. Thankfully for me.

"Heh."

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

She raised an eyebrow at his flippant answer, and turned her back on him, crossing to her desk. She needed to look at whatever sort of file Black Sun had on him, to refresh her memory. "jI do need a new secrrretarrry," she said. "But you look morrre ljike a pjilot than a competent typjist."

Sasseeri sat back at her desk, tapping a few commands into her console that was cleverly worked into the design. Prent, Sanis. "Hmmm."

Blue eyes flicked back up to him. "jI'm surrre you wouldn't rrrun strrrajight back to the Alljiance the fjirrrst chance you got, rrrrjight?" Sass smirked. "Not that they can prrrotect you. Perrrhaps you gave them my money, and bought yourrr place on... Rrrrogue Squadrrron?"

[Sanis Prent]

Her intel was correct, but I resented the insinuations that she used to fill in between. I didn't buy anything to get into Rogue Squadron. That was my own skill at work. And I didn't give them a damn cred, that's for sure. I invested that money in an honest way, by losing it to whores, gambling debt, and bar tabs.

"Sasseeri, Sasseeri, Sasseeri. Is the money really that important? I mean, yes, you're right there might be a little bit of a shortfall, but my stock's only been rising since then. You picked me up as three star talent, and I've come back to you as a five star name brand."

The cuffs were kind of keeping me from laying on the swagger that I needed, but I worked in my element. Really, whatever just kept me from being murdered and put in a few suitcases would do. I'd sort the other details out as I went along.

[Adjerban the Interloper]

I gave Sanis's arm a jerk, and the stun cuffs popped him good.

"Ow! Fuck!"

I don't usually kick a guy when he's down, but I was getting bored, and something had to be done.

"Five Star talent in boot-licking, maybe. Really Prent? Rouge Squadron? You must be damn good in bed. You punch lefty or righty? Maybe a bit of the left-right combo?"

So bored.

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

Sasseeri didn't much care about his pain, or his banter. She leaned back in her five hundred credit bantha leather office chair and steepled her slim fingers against her lips. "jIt happens that jI have busjiness jin the Carshoulis Clusterrr. And that the trrrade embarrrgo jis stjill jin effect arrround Calan, whjich means that rrrunnjing the blockade jis stjill fajirrrly prrrofjitable."

She paused, tapping her fingers lightly against her mouth and mulling it over in her head. If he got captured or killed running the blockade, too, all the better. Though she was beginning to remember their previous meeting at Cumulus. If he was cleaned up... Her train of thought derailed into the gutter.

Clearing her throat, Sasseeri said, "You wjill accompany me to Carrrshouljis Prrrjime. And afterrr that... we wjill see what you can do to pay off yourrr debt."

[Sanis Prent]

I gave Adjerban a long look and and a smirk.

"Yeah, I might be a schmuck who's seen better days, but I've run down the Empire where they live, and got them by the short hairs. Can't bullshit your way out of a Star Destroyer bombardment."

Back to Sasseeri and her words, I gave a little grimace at the thought. Of course we'd be going back to the Cluster. Makes sense really. Whenever I'm broke, destitute, and desperate, it just seems to suck people in like a singularity.

"Running a branch out of Prime, now? Not bad, not bad."

Of course this time I had other enemies on Prime beyond Sasseeri, although if what Saa said was in any way true, hopefully they would be in no position to make my life worse than it was right now, which was pretty much in a dumpster.

"There is just one small, tiny, almost insignificant problem..."

[Adjerban the Interloper]

Fuck. I hate "Carrrshouljis". I'd been dragged there once, and I was OK with going, having never been previously. I was wary, of course. Only someone insane would be unwary with a bunch of Cizerack running around. They always were thinking about eating or fucking a thing. Sometimes both. It only took one trip to decide I never wanted to go back, and the two previous "opportunities" I'd managed to disappear for a few days. Sassy wasn't happy about it, but there wasn't anything she could have done in a sane amount of time to find me.

"Oh yeah?" I asked sarcastically.

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

"jI am not jinterrrested jin morrre prrroblems, Mjisterrr Prrrent!" Sasseeri's voice cracked like a whip. "Perrrhaps a blasterrr bolt to the back of yourrr head wjill make thjis prrroblem of yourrrs even morrre jinsjignjifjicant?!"

[Sanis Prent]

"Fine, fine, fine."

I backed off, again waving my cuffed hands in front of me. Yeah, thin ice alright.

"...it's just that my ship, uh, kind of, maybe, uh, exploded. A little."

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

She shook her head exasperatedly. "jI was not plannjing on lettjing you use yourrr own shjip anyway." Obviously her initial assessment of the man, so long ago, had been based merely on looks.

"Take hjim away, Adjerrrban," Sasseeri said. "Get hjim cleaned up, and tell Tock to keep an eye on hjim."