Jedi Insurgency 157

After eliminating Cad Bane, Corvus decided to forgo his plan of buying a speeder, and directly assumed control of the alien's ship. Thankfully, as a famed Bounty Hunter, Bane had the coordinates to Jabba's palace in his navicompiter. Taking flight, he set off for his destination. 

It was a shame he had to eliminate such a high level target, but Bane was a resourceful man. Capable of feats much grander than any ordinary person could achieve, Corvus wouldn't feel at ease leaving him alive. This was the guy who had the balls to hold the entire Senate hostage, and broke out of the Republic's largest supermax prison. Given his skills for setting up elaborate plans, there was a chance that if Bane lived, Corvus would come to regret it. Furthermore, the sudden ambush had left a sour taste in Corvus’s mouth. 

Although he recruited Prince Xizor, Boba Fett, and Hondo Ohnaka-villains one and all-he had something binding them to him. 

Xizor, as a power-hungry, literal reptilian trillionaire shipping mogul, Corvus possessed the one thing money couldn't buy. The Falleen was promised immortality, and the leading role in one of the foremost criminal organizations in the galaxy. Betrayal was likely, but at the same time, Corvus had demonstrated his mysticism by strangling Xizor from lightyears away. The prince had reciprocated by saving a dozen Jedi, and sharing critical information necessary for the war front. 

Boba-as a Mandalorian-was bound by honor after giving his word. The teen boy currently hated all Jedi to no end, but ultimately, he was humiliated without a warrior's death. Boba knew he would be stronger, and more experienced when he grew older, which is why he swallowed this humiliation, and agreed to duel Corvus five years later.

Hondo was greedy for money, and fame. The man seemed to feed off of those two things. Although he never said a word, when Corvus said the enticing phrase: ‘Pirate King’ Hondo's eyes would ever so slightly widen, and his longing was like a wave in the Force. Although he acted the fool, Hondo was by no means a buffoon. 

There were even decent odds that he might double cross him, as was his nature. Which is why, using the Workshop parts, Corvus had built droid parts, and had Tech assemble them before leaving Naboo. Now, a group of droids served as Hondo's ‘honor guard.’ Which while acting as protectors, also served to keep the pirate in line. Corvus was willing to be relatively hands off in managing Hondo, as he knew how capable the Weequay was. That didn't mean he was so stupid as to leave 120 million credits in the pirate’s hands without any oversight! 

These three men, each with their own shades of grey, men who were willing to get their hands dirty, were useful to Corvus’s plans. Bane, unfortunately, had no weaknesses to exploit, and was a mercenary through and through. One who had worked at Darth Sidious’ behest numerous times. Such a willing henchman for the Sith was an enemy unworthy of recruitment. Although he greatly admired, and respected Cad Bane from a fan's perspective, as a man trying to win against the Galactic Empire, he wouldn't allow such thoughts to get in the way of his goal. 

Speaking of goals, he had just come into view of Jabba's palace. Ordinarily, he would have approached invisibly on a speeder, and then snuck in through the sewers, or waited for the doors to open for a resupply. However, Bane, as a semi-frequent guest, much like the older Boba Fett, had the proper IFF codes to bypass the aerial defenses nearby, and dock directly inside the hangar! Why go through the sewers, and risk running into those creepy spider-brain robots, when he could have direct access to the throne room? 

Passing through a large ovoid, he piloted the ship into a massive hangar. The area somewhat reminded Corvus of the car collections that the super rich had, except for space ships instead. Taking a quick glance to see if anything caught his eye amongst these luxury cruisers, there were a few cool ships, like a YT-2400, the same model as the famed Outrider that Dash Rendar piloted. However, thanks to Tech's work, the Millennium Falcon was better than anything he could spot. However, the collection on display was worth at least a few hundred million credits, and most of the ships could be converted into military or smuggling vehicles with some minor work…without a second thought, Corvus sent a message through the holonet to Xizor. 

[Prepare a fleet of transports to procure these vessels, and deliver them to Eriadu.] -R

Seconds later, Xizor responded. 

[If I am not mistaken, this is one of the Hutt's hangars. I am pleased you take our cooperation seriously.] -X

Corvus smirked to himself, he could practically feel Xizor’s greed all the way from Coruscant. 

[Of course, all of my promises are to be kept.] -R 

[The ships are on the way. Expect an arrival within 1-2 SGD Time (Standard Galactic Time)] -X

Closing the application, Corvus was in a good mood, it felt good to boss around one of the top 10 richest lifeforms. Petty pride aside, this action served to help remind Xizor of his place, and showed him he was valued. Some subordinates, when ignored for too long, begin to slack, or even harbor ideas of rebellion. By showing the reptilian that Corvus required his services, this would give Xizor a false sense of control. Relationships with scoundrels such as Xizor required such maneuvering. When one isn't motivated by loyalty, profit, or honor, they require a delicate touch. 

Pleased with the brief chat, he then turned his attention to the corpse of Cad Bane that had been left near the ramp to the ship's exit. A medical kit was strewn on the floor, and the scene had been set as if the famed Bounty Hunter was desperately trying to patch himself up. And if one were to check the flightlog, they would discover that it had been flown into this hangar via autopilot. The purpose of this very public, gruesome death, was to enhance the image of his other persona: Oni. 

Before he had departed the cantina, Corvus had edited out any parts in the establishments security footage that appeared like Jedi trickery, and then uploaded the firefight to the Holonet. He assumed the footage had gone viral by now, and Oni's fame would be burgeoning. This was another reason why he had finished Bane off, and brought him to Jabba's palace, to confirm the kill! 

In this ‘wild west’ type of galaxy, when a famous mercenary or hunter is slain, often times the killer becomes a legend in their own right. By using this recent fame, Corvus planned on potentially using it as an in. Once he traveled to Nar Shaddaa, this new identity would be excellent for forming connections, and possibly ruining Palpatine’s plans. If Bane could be hired by that ‘mysterious cloaked figure’ why couldn't Corvus? And it just so happened that all of Bane’s contacts were saved to his ship, meaning Corvus could theoretically call Palpatine at any time now~. 

As the ship made its final approach, and landed, Corvus opened the hatch, turned invisible, and then departed the ship. 

Coming across a pale skinned, long-lobed alien, he recognized the Twi'lek as Bin Fortuna, Jabba's number one henchman, and majordomo. This was the guy who ran the day to day in the palace, and presented who saw the boss, or who was turned away. Being able to survive for so long under Jabba, he was perhaps the second most capable kiss-ass in the galaxy, second only to Mas Amedda. Perhaps it was something about lekku that made them naturally submissive? Regardless, the pale man was flanked by a pair of pig-like, green brutes who wielded axes. Immune to most low-calibur blasterfire, they were Gamorreans. 

Fortuna appearing here wasn't too surprising, as Cad Bane was a big deal. In fact, his presence suited Corvus’ plans well. 

Waving his hand, he cast [Mind Trick] on the unsuspecting Twi’lek. 

‘Something doesn't feel right. Inspect the interior of the ship. Should the truth be sensationalist, you simply must return to your quarters, lock your room, ignore all outside calls, and share this information with all of your associates!’ 

“Mr. Bane should have departed by now…you two, inform him of our invitation. Do so quickly, and report to me immediately about his answer.” Fortuna demanded of the two Gamorreans. 

With a pig-like snort, the two aliens took only a few steps up the ramp, before they began to excitedly squeal. 

Knowing what was soon to follow, Corvus didn’t stick around. Instead, he consulted his map. Among the many places in the palace, he was most interested in the throne room, but that didn’t mean he couldn't take a peek around the armory, vault, droid room, or data center, right? All places he would happily pilfer, but first, he had a slug to kill. 

The plan was simple. Go to the throne room, and stealthily execute Jabba the Hutt. Poison was out of the question, as Hutt's were naturally immune to 99% of most toxins. However, he happened to have an unnatural amount of salt taken from the cantina. 

Then, before a panic began to set in, he would lockdown the facility, and take out the trash. Once all of the worst offenders had been taken care of, he would bring Boba Fett inside, and have him work with Bin Fortuna to take over Jabba's criminal empire. Although Fortuna was scum, he was the one most familiar with Jabba's enterprises. Eliminating him immediately would be incredibly narrow minded, whereas with him still alive, Jabba's death could be concealed long enough for Corvus to make his move on Nar'Shadaa. 

Plan complete, Corvus used his map feature, then skulked his way through dimly lit corridors, and past dozens of patrols. Not only Gamorreans, but countless droids, and mercenaries walked these halls. There were probably over a thousand armed personnel between the hangar and the throne room, and maybe even a thousand more stationed around the palace. Running an InterGalactic crime syndicate, this was probably the tip of the iceberg compared to the total number of men that the Hutt's could mobilize. 

It almost came as a surprise how few there were, in the grand scheme of things. When a Legion of men was made up of one million troops, this security seemed a bit lacking. In the Legends timeline, Jabba even became the overall leader of his clan, it really made Corvus wonder how big his operations were on other planets, or if most of his assets were tied elsewhere. Shaking his head, he almost took another careless step forward, when the Force screamed a warning at him. 

Halting in place, he Paused to assess the situation, and found that there wasn't a single soul in sight. Furthermore, he hadn't sensed any invisible lifeform nearby. Was it, perhaps, a cloaked droid ready to kill? Considering personal cloaking devices had existed for millenia, it would be no wonder that an ancient, ruthless clan like the Hutts deployed countermeasures. 

Not being able to see anything amiss, he Un-Paused, and withdrew his step. The second he did, the warning considerably diminished. Narrowing his eyes, he moved his foot back and forth over the tile, and determined it was rigged. In fact, this entire corridor led to the door that was the only access point-from this side of the palace-to the throne room! Even now, he could hear the deep booming voice of Jabba coming from the other side! In fact…it seemed like he was in a conference call with other Hutts, because he hears voices distinct from Jabba's! 

Corvus suspected that the entire hallway going forward was booby trapped. Most likely, it was an alarm, an explosive, or worst case scenario, a gravity/energy prison like what held Obi-Wan immobile whilst captured by Dooku in Episode II. Assuming it was the last option, that would not be a pleasant experience. 

Fortunately, he wasn't a saber monkey who solved all his problems by charging headfirst into danger. 

Casting [Shadow Hop] he appeared in the air a little more than halfway to the door. Using it again in quick succession, he bypassed the entryway, and emerged directly inside the throne room. 

Inside, he saw Jabba, and several blue holoprojected images. If he wasn't mistaken, these were the leaders of the Hutt Cartel crime family! 

Although they spoke in Huttese, fortunately, his System had one excellent feature. 

Subtitles! 

Listening-more like reading-to what they had to say, Corvus was suddenly surprised when a new member joined the council…but what was most surprising, was when all the other Hutts-these prideful, egotistical shits-seemed to bow down to him?! 

“Greetings, Don Beldorion.”