Coruscant Tales: Seven-Eleven....Seven-Eleven! (Competition)

[Sanis Prent]

(OOC: This will be mine and Sasseeri's entry in the writing contest)

(The dice came to a stop, and the throng of people that had gathered around the craps table to watch cheered loudly as Sanis Prent once again raked the field clean of chips. For five straight passes, Sanis hadn't even had a Come Out roll yet. Roll after roll, it was seven...eleven...seven...seven...eleven The mass of people around the table began to pack in tighter, the naysayers who were losing money blamed Sanis of cheating under their breaths, while the ever-increasing number of people who placed their chips on Sanis in hopes that he wouldn't crap out were time and again elated by his success. One middle-aged Devaronian handed Sanis a free martini, and slurredly cheered him on, saying "Daddy needs a new pair of shoes!" A rather-attractive Twi'Lek brushed her lekku up against Sanis' arm, and asked if she could blow on his dice for luck. Sanis smiled, poured back the contents of his Martini...taking another equally-gorgeous young woman by the arm. Sanis turned to the Twi'Lek.)

Sorry baby...I've got all the luck in the world right now.

(Sanis held the dice in front of Daleethria's face. She smiled sheepishly, and gave a timid little puff. Sanis laughed, squeezed her a little with his free arm, and sent the dice once more down the table...

...SEVEN!

The table once again buzzed with cheers. Sanis Prent was practically rolling this evening. If he kept this up...he could win a million credits.)

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis gulped another martini down lazily, setting the glass back down on the serving girl’s tray. She smiled, winked at him, and strutted off. The activity of the table had become solely determinant on Mr. Prent. He held the momentum and the flow of the game. Sanis smiled….this is why he played craps above all other casino games. He glanced around the table, looking at the multitude of faces cheering him on as he stayed on his winning streak. By now, nearly everybody at the table was playing their chips on Sanis, betting on him making the come out, or even better…hitting a seven or eleven once more. Pretty-faced women in fancy sequined dresses winked at Sanis, blowing him kisses across the craps table. Older men in business suits cheered Sanis on in a braying tone…hoping the lucky young man would make them even more credits. As Sanis looked from left to right at the crowd around the table, he appreciated the game of craps for what it was. Sure, he could play sabbacc, chance, poker, roulette, or one of the holographic gambling machines. Whichever he chose, he would have roughly the same odds to win (and they were always on the house.). However, the game of craps was much more than a game. It was a social affair. Powerful businessmen, beautiful women, and enough connections to ensure that even if you came away from the table broke, you at least picked up another name and a HoloNet address. In Sanis’ profession, credits were best, but connections were not far behind. A man that could secure both was the biggest winner in the house, and Sanis was pulling off both with style. Two rolls ago, a man handed him his business card, and said to come by his landspeeder lot. Because of the money Sanis had helped the man earn at the table, he would sell Sanis any speeder he wanted for 30 percent off. Sanis chuckled to himself. He didn’t need a speeder at the moment, but that was beside the point. It only mattered that he might need a speeder at some point down the road. Thus, as Sanis played the game, he also played the art of the schmooze…getting to know influential people, and winning intangibles that were just as valuable as credits.

Now, Sanis was ready to up the ante just a bit. He already had half a million’s take on the table, and he was ready to pull a very gutsy gamble. Raising his hand and shouting to the pit man, Sanis brought the busy murmurings of the other gambles to a halt.)

I’d like to double on my come-out bet!

(The table grew silent for a few seconds. Sanis was about to roll the dice for one million credits. Whispers began to course through the group as they realized how insanely risky Sanis’ move was. Nobody wanted to even consider doing the same in Sanis’ shoes, but plenty were more than willing to wager their own smaller shares in Sanis’ success. One largish Bothan slurred drunkenly, as he slapped a handful of chips onto Sanis’ bid.)

Drunk Bothan: Yyeaahh….yeh gooh an win me s’more, Captain Lucky!

(The loud cheers immediately after the Bothan’s speech echoed the inebriated alien’s sentiment precisely. Nobody wanted to even think about gambling that highly, but everybody loved to see a winner, and nobody could argue with Sanis’ past successes with the dice. From every direction, chips were moved onto Sanis’ bid line. The lion’s share of the money on the table was riding on Sanis’ come out roll. Only a paltry few credits were bet on anything else. The crowd was hypnotized by Sanis’ success…and wanted the man with the golden dice to keep up his impressive streak. Sanis smiled at everyone around the table, and scooped up the two die. He shook them lightly in his hand, and brought them once again up to Daleethria’s lips. She smiled at him, and puffed on the dice just as she had done before. Her smile widening, Sanis gripped the dice fully in his hand, shaking slightly as he tossed the dice down the table. The talking stopped as everybody’s eyes followed the dice as they tumbled down the blue felt of the table. Time seemed to slow as everyone stopped breathing for just a moment. Could Sanis win yet again? Could he walk away with one million credits.

The dice came to a stop, each die showing the face with one dot on top.

Sanis had rolled a two. He closed his eyes and tightened his arm around Daleethria. Nobody said a single word at the table, except for the pit man, as he raked every single chip from Sanis’ pool into the house take.)

Craps!

[Data Transfer]

<font color="green" size="2" face="Arial">39:07:03:21:50:38#CRC.1.IPC#TBC.HU#TSR.SR
Message queued for Sasseeri Reeouurra...

Message transfer initiated....

Message download complete.

<font color="#cccccc">Urgent message to S.R.

Casino TBC has guest with 1,000,000 credits lost in craps game. Please advise immediately as to further dealings with this individual.
Individual in question has been identified as S. Prent (PC). As advised upon previous notification re: Mr Prent, this message is sent upon identification of person in question.

HU
TBC</font>

Message ended.

Store?_Y/N</font>

[Sanis Prent]

(The bystanders and well-wishers all left...without a care in the world other than they lost a little money on Sanis. Nobody even gave a second thought as to how utterly catastrophic the loss was to the "brash and lucky" young man. Sanis just stood there for a second, almost in shock at losing that much money. Daleethria courteously moved him over to a table to sit down. Slowly, the entire situation began to sink in, and Sanis looked at Daleethria.)

I'm so screwed. Oh frelling krasst, I'm so incredibly screwed.

(Sanis looked at Daleethria, hoping she had some great idea to bail him out. More than likely, she didn't. Quickly, Sanis began to tabulate in his head how much money he had to afford this loss. Considering equipment purchases, maintenance, dock fees, freighter payments, apartment fees, speeder payments, insurance, utilities, groceries, and two-dozen other mundane costs...he was doing marginally better than breaking even, with the amount of jobs he was doing. So, add a mind-blowing one million credit deficit to the mix, and...)

Oh damn it to hell, I'm so frelling screwed!

(Sanis began to look left and right, hoping that his reaction wasn't going to draw any adverse attention. If the owners of the casino knew that Sanis didn't have enough to cover his losses...well...it wouldn't be a slap on the wrist kind of affair. Sanis wasn't a moron, and he knew that people who ran casino's weren't exactly the moral foundations of a community. They were more than likely mob bosses with a slightly-respectable legitimate business empire. And if a small fish like Sanis couldn't front the cash for his losses, he would pray for them to simply have him taken to prison. More likely than not, Sanis' handsome face would end up on a milk carton.

Sanis quickly ordered a bourbon on the rocks, so he could calm his nerves down and think of a way out of this. Daleethria objected in her own way, informing Sanis that he didn't have the money. Sanis laughed weakly at her thought. Well, what was 5 credits added onto one million?

As the drink came to the table, Sanis leaned over, whispering in Dalee's ear.)

Dalee...do you think you could control a chance cube with the Force? We're gonna need to save our tails really quick on this one...

(Daleethria hesitated, but nodded slightly. Sanis looked around, and began to plot his next move)

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

Zakath came bursting into her office just as she finished the last report. All this administrative stuff could be so kriffing boring - and she'd stayed on a few extra hours, as well, just to get at least the top half of her list done.

It was truly incredible how fast the inhabitants of this planet came running for help if they thoughts they could get it for free. Disputes to settle, protection services paid, the odd outbreak of violence here and there - usually inter-species problems - to break down... just because they all wanted a bite of the peace-cake she was offering them.

What fools they were... to sell their souls so easily for a bit of peace.

The work wasn't getting any easier - and she shouldn't even be here. As Administrator of the Arkanis Sector Headquarters, she was responsible for that sector - not for the mindless squabblings of minor shopkeepers on Coruscant. But she lacked the resources, so far, and she had to work with what she could scrape together out of her other dealings. That, unfortunately, also meant that she had to overlook a huge amount of the traffic in and out of the Arkanis Sector. So here she was, day in and day out sitting tied to this chair, just to keep the credits flowing in.

If she could only find someone she could trust to oversee the Coruscant side of things! Her status within the Sector rangers was precarious at most, and she didn't want to see that teetering from the edge just because she couldn't find the right person to deal with all this.

Zakath? Competent - but alltogether far too independent. He'd most likely try to take a few credits here, and a few credits there, and she'd end up with nothing once it arrived out there. No - Zakath was better placed right under her nose, where he couldn't possibly so much as pick his nose without being observed by someone.

Olorin and Onslaught might be good at their jobs - and Olorin at a few other things as well - but she had no hopes that they were who she was looking for.

Yet that eliminated already three of her most trusted employees.

So who else was there?

It was at that instant in her cogitations that Zakath burst in bearing a message cylinder which he set down in the center of her desktop.

"What's thjis?"

He was a little out of breath as he answered, and she made a mental note to have someone give him a work-out in the gym. It wouldn't do to have a PA who got out of breath after running around the offices only.

"That just came in from one of the Casinos up on the 16th level. The name caught my eye, and I thought I'd bring it to your attention."

He hesitated, looking at his boss with a wary eye.

"We are still interested in this Mr. Prent, aren't we?"

Sasseeri's grin that had been only slight before, now turned into a jubilant little laugh.

"Oh yes! Yes jindeed, Zakath! We arrre stjill jinterrrested in Sanjis Prrrent jindeed! And thjis tjime - we have hjim!"

She shot out of her seat and was past him and out of her office before he had time to think about what she'd said.

Rather laconically, Jole Zakath followed his boss out of her office, picking up her coat and handbag she'd forgotten in her exited state from the expensive hat-stand, and closed the door behind him with a firm click.

[Sanis Prent]

(Chance was one of the oldest and crudest form of placing wagers on games. By rolling a six-sided dice and calling the side it rolled on, a player could win a modest amount of money. It held little of the same bravado as Craps or even Sabbacc, but Chance's simplicity opened it up to virtually any gambler who was interested.

Sanis and Daleethria pulled up respective seats, and each wagered the same base amount of 100 credits on the same side of the dice. It was a simple enough setup. As the other players wagered various amounts on their chosen side of the die, Sanis looked at Daleethria. She blinked at him and nodded knowingly. Sanis knew she was a little hesitant about using her abilities in gambling, but when he told her how ruthlessly the house odds were stacked against the player, she decided it was appropriate to even the odds out.

As the table operator shook the dice in the tumbler, Daleethria reached out with the Force...sensing its form. As the dealer threw the dice out of the tumbler, Dalee subtly moved her hand that was underneath the table. Using the Force, she manipulated the cube's tumble and trajectory, until came to a stop, on the number two.)

Dealer: We've got two winners on the number two, for 100 credits apiece!

(As the chips were passed to Sanis and Daleethria, they continued to the next subsequent roll, wagering slightly higher amounts, and not suprisingly, winning. Slowly, they began to amass a respectable amount of money, losing every once and a while intentionally, as to keep up the realism. As several minutes passed, Sanis and Daleethria's chip stack grew larger.)

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

It was raining heavily outside when Sasseeri's luxury speeder dropped her and Zakath off outside the Blue Cocoon. Gallantly, Zakath got out first, waved one of the service droids over who came rushing with a personal weather shield, as Zakath held the door open for her to climb out of the vehicle.

She reached out and patted his cheek, pleased with him, then pulled back her hand when she touched his rain-soaked hair. Her claw-polish wasn't particularly water-resistant, and she didn't want to ruin her appearance in any way.

Under the relative safety of the weather shield the droid extended over her head, she reached the entrance of the rather shabby casino without getting her shoes overly splattered.

The Rodian "Security" officer who stood at the door got wide eyes as he saw who was hiding under the shield.

"Miss Reeouurra, welcome to the-- I mean, welcome to your--"

She cut him off before he could say anything else. She particuarly disliked the green snouty Rodians of all the scum living on this planet. If it hadn't been for an old Ranger who had a special liking for Rodians and who had asked her rather pointedly to help him out, she wouldn't have accepted any in her organisation.

For now, she swept past him in the general direction of the manager's office. To where the security holocams were. If she was to meet Sanis in this kind of location, she'd better check out first what exactly he was doing. And the manager would be the best person to get all the details from that she needed in this case.

A debt of a million credits wasn't something to joke about - even if it meant possible triumph over Sanis.


20 minutes later, after her first anger was over, and the security guards stationed outside the office had brought some replacement chairs to sit upon and taken away the ones she had slammed to bits on the walls and the rest of the office, Sasseeri stood grim-faced over the screens monitoring the casino interior. All camns were currently directed only at one position, and on all cams, the unmistakable presence of Daleethria hovering next to Sanis was visible.

Which was the source of her little outbreak.

Sasseeri swore again, loudly, and the human manager who was still cowering in a position of shock behind his desk, flinched.

She didn't much care for him either at the moment. Right now, she'd have to figure out another way of getting at Sanis without that woman watching him like a guardian nekk dog.

Well, she would just have to play this one with a different set of rules...

Smoothing her glittery and extremely low cut dress, she put on her best smile, and walked out into the busy casino.

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis rubbed his temples as he stared at the increasingly large stack of chips in front of him. It was the same with Daleethria. They had been playing chance for 20 minutes solid, and between the two of them, Sanis estimated they had about 60,000. It was impressive, but it was still relatively small-potatoes. If they wanted to truly get back in the saddle, they'd have to graduate up to more lucrative games, such as Sabacc, or maybe even back to the Craps table. But for now, it was okay to slowly build up a pool of chips. They'd need a little money to play with later.

As the dealer began to call bets in for the next roll, Sanis stood from the table, his head hurting slightly. Daleethria placed a hand on his arm, and looked at him inquisitively. Sanis smiled slightly.)

Dalee, I gotta take some time away from the table and get my bearings. Keep playing, I'll be back in a few minutes.

(Daleethria smiled slightly, mimicking Sanis' comforting grin. Sanis' smile widened slightly, as he squeezed her hand before leaving the table. Okay, so the headache was only half the story. The other half was, he was getting antsy. You don't just drop a million creds in a casino and go about your business. No, by now...it should've spread like the smell of rotting meat to vultures. Sanis knew, somebody would eventually come to talk about this little financial malady...and they would more than likely ask about payment. And even with the sixty thousand they'd recovered at the Chance table.....it was a drop in the one-million bucket.

Sanis gulped nervously. Damn, he needed a drink like nothing else. As he stepped over to the Casino bar, Sanis' eyes darted left and right, looking for large, heavy-browed fellas wearing black suits...the stereotypical enforcer types, who would love to ask Sanis where the hell all the money was.

Seeing no such threat, Sanis sat at the bar...ordering a Alderaan Iced Tea. As the bartender mixed the multitude of liquors together for Sanis' concoction, Sanis began to think of the up and coming game plan. First, keep raking the Chance table. That was no biggie. He figured Dalee and himself could sit another 10 minutes at the table, and pull 100 grand. That was just about all the luck he was willing to push off the small-time game. Next...Sabacc? Hmm, that was a good question. Sanis knew that the stakes were higher in Sabacc...but what about the odds? The game, a nice cross between poker and blackjack, was renound for its brutal odds. Not to mention, Sanis didn't think Dalee could manipulate the odds in such a game. Okay...so Sabacc was too much to gamble. Back to Craps? Sanis didn't know about going back to the table; to ground zero. People would definitely remember the guy who dropped a million just an hour ago. But then again, with Dalee helping control the flow, he could very well breeze back in with 100k, and completely cut his losses, maybe as quick as fifteen minutes. From there...who knows? Maybe Sanis could even wind out leaving the Blue Coccoon on top of things. With Dalee's help, and the way things were going, it was a definite possibility.

As Sanis got his drink, he stirred the light brown liquid with his straw, and taking another careful glance around...took a drink. Heh...no bruisers around. He was gonna make it!)

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

The place was obviously doing fairly well. Not that she hadn't expected it - the recent lull in the neverending war between the Empire and the New Republic had brought a new wave of immigrants eager to find a living on Coruscant, and there were always enough desperates out there looking for an even faster way to get rich. And that inevitably made them end up in these kinds of establishments.

The table she was walking towards was the Chance one, but when she got near enough to scan the players for Sanis' familiar face, she couldn't see him.

Daleethria was there, however.

That got Sasseeri's attention immediately. "Dalee" was here, but he was not? He had been there a moment ago - so where was he now? The refresher?

Her eyes swept the immediate surroundings, and she thought she saw a familiar figure standing over by the bar. Walking towards it, and keeping out of the sight of Daleethria, Sasseeri was sure that it had to be Sanis.

Yes... yes, it was. Perfect.

With his back turned to her, he never saw her coming. This was simply too good an opportunity to let go by without taking full advantage of it.

She stepped up behind him, slid a hand around his waist, and when he turned in surprise to see who it was, she seized the moment and kissed him rather stormily.

[Sanis Prent]

(An interesting tidbit of knowledge, inserting a foreign object into a mouth full of drink tends to impede the action of swallowing. The object can be something innoccuous, such as a cracker or perhaps a grape...or conversely, somebody's amorously-roaming tongue.

Sanis' eyes widened, as his Alderaan Iced Tea partly dribbled down his chin and onto his shirt, and the rest being lapped in by Sasseeri's greedy tongue as she kissed him. As the initial paralyzing shock wore off, Sanis gripped Sasseeri's shoulders as he quickly separated himself from her. Not one to give in so easily, Sasseeri playfully nibbled at Sanis' lower lip as he withdrew, causing it to bleed slightly. Sanis' eyes widened a bit, as he took a cocktail napkin and dabbled at first his wet shirt, then at his lower lip. He looked at the felinoid woman, and began to realize that he wished that a thug squad was sent instead. Quickly, Sanis began to wonder if the powerful Miss Reeouurra also had her influence spread into this establishment.

It chilled Sanis' blood to think about it. He didn't like owing money to anybody, much less anybodies who had violent tendencies, and especially not anybodies named Sasseeri Reeouurra. With the agenda that woman had scheming inside her head, there's no telling what kind of Hell Sanis would have to take for this.

Sanis began to hope and pray that Sasseeri was simply another person out enjoying the nightlife at the casino...and not the fear-inspiring owner of the place.

With his best suprised grin, Sanis casually put an arm around Sasseeri's shoulder, and hoped that this gamble would work.)

How are you doing, Sasseeri! Well, I never expected to see you here gambling tonight as well! Wow, small world, it seems. So, how's your luck at the tables, huh?

(Sanis kept smiling as he took another drink. Oh please oh please work! Even if the meeting was innocent, Sanis needed to blow off his distinguished colleague and get back to the tables and help Daleethria out. Either way, Sasseeri was out to cramp Sanis' style this evening, and he wasn't cool with that one bit.)

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

Licking the sweet taste of his drink, and his blood, off her lips, she grinned as she stood before him. The surprise in his eyes translated itself to shock, then to fear - and she knew what was going on in his mind now.

He had to be hoping that she had nothing to do with this place. In which case, he'd return to his seat, and his woman, and keep on playing as if nothing had hapened, then slink out with her at a moment he thought now one would be watching.

Yes, she'd seen it so many times before with so many other people. They had all kept their hopes up until the last minute, then she had watched as each of them had broken down in a little sobbing heap of misery, pleading with her to have mercy with their 20 younglings, or children, or whatever.

To see it all now written so plainly on Sanis' face, however, provided her with some extra entertainment. So she just grinned toothily and took out her nicteen cigara, placed it in its jewel-outlined holder, and started smoking, blowing blue smoke into his face as he made a mad scramble at appearing innocent.

She did have to admit, he was a fairly good actor.

Sasseeri didn't quite know exactly what she hoped she could achieve. That day, back in her office, when he had come to ask her for help, and played her for all it was worth just so he could get his little favour... that day still called for revenge. Her private kind of revenge, but still revenge.

So let him squirm now for all he wants, let him try - then turn on him and make it clear he has no chance to get out of this.

Sasseeri kept on grinning with a smile that could have made a Bothan proud, and listened as Sanis tried to sound casual. Once he was done, she pounced on him like a beast on its prey.

"Small worrrls jindeed, Sanjis. What luck that you decjided to rrrun out of luck yourrrself jin one of my own establjishments. Orrr maybe no luck, eh?"

She winked at him, theatrically.

"Maybe you thought 'Sasseerrrrji won't mjind', eh? Maybe you thought jI would let you get away wjith jit, just because jits you?"

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis' blood turned to ice. Oh Frell! She knew! Licking his lips nervously, Sanis' eyes looked around for a split second as his mind raced. Oh no, she totally had him pegged from the beginning! Sanis felt ill. He owed almost one million credits to Sasseeri Reeouurra...one million credits he couldn't pay. With a debt like that...Sanis hoped rather fervently she would want to be paid in credits.

The blue nicteen smoke only broke Sanis' concentration, as he squinted his eyes. He had to think of something quick, or she would eat him alive.

Smiling, and running his fingers through Sasseeri's hair, Sanis laughs as casually as he possibly can.)

Oh...yeah, that. Well, hehe....you know I'm just getting started, hehe. I mean, what's a few credits here and there, heh?

(A bead of sweat became visible on Sanis' forehead. It would be the holy miracle of all time if Sasseeri left it at that, but Sanis was out of options. He'd finally gone and done it, and he was now looking simply to escape relatively intact. Trying to rectify the situation, Sanis got the attention of the bartender.)

Barkeep...could you get the lady something to drink?

(The barkeep went about his business, and Sanis turned back to Sasseeri, smiling...although decidedly less than before. He couldn't believe things were going so badly.)

[Jole Zakath]

With apparent disinterest and a bored expression on his face, Jole watched his boss' progress with Prent on the monitor he stood at. She wasn't giving the poor guy a moment's rest, was she?

He almost pitied Prent. The smooth attitude the guy had might be infuriating, but he still didn't wish his boss onto anyone's tail.

I mean, when it's only about money, it's bad enough, but she's after his body as well... sheeesh! Wouldn't want to be him, not if I loved my life!

The thought of money started him on another road entirely, however. The boss might have come here for nobler reasons than to chase some tail, but that didn't mean that everyone here had to forget about the main business.

And it did come in rather handy that the manager was cowering in a trembling heap behind his desk after that 20-minute-long shout-fest Sasseeri had just performed for them. This was a genuine opportunity, and he, Jole Zakath, was going to take it. Time to make himself a bit of extra money on the side.

Not that this wasn't in Sasseeri's best interest; extra money made him happy, and a happy employee meant a happy Sasseeri. At least most of the time. At least until she'd find out just how happy he'd made himself. But then again, he'd just have to see that she'd never find out about his little side-line business.

Jole walked over to the desk, and bent over the table to look at the frightened man hiding underneath it.

"You think you're gonna get out of there soon? I don't particularly like talking to furniture."

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

She silently went on smiling and blowing blue smoke into his face, languidly stretching under his embrace.

When the barkeep finally reached over and handed her her drink with an ingratiating smile, she took it without acknowledging him in any way - no reason to favour him with anything; he was, after all, just doing what he was being paid for.

Taking a sip from the terribly sweet concoction, she turned her eyes back on Sanis. Then the grin she had held for so long turned into an icy smile.

"So what shall we do abou thjis, Sanjis? How do you want to pay me back what you owe me?"

Of course she had her own ideas how exactly he could pay her back, but she wanted to hear him say it. Aloud.

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis' heart began to pound. She started to talk about the money. The money he didn't have...oh no! What was he gonna do? He couldn't say he didn't have the money...because he would basically be throwing himself to her whims, and she would find the best way to make him pay. Sanis could imagine just what that would entail. She'd probably have him work at her residence as a "pool boy"...running around wearing nothing but a pair of gold bikini briefs as he cleaned the water, and attended to other matters...

...Sanis winced, thinking about it. And that was if he was lucky. No, he couldn't say he didn't have the money. On second thought, he couldn't say he had it, either. She would obviously want to see it, and when it couldn't be produced...she would be furious at his lie.

Sanis licked his lips nervously. Sasseeri's smile widened. She was obviously enjoying watching him squirm, like a fish on a hook. Okay, so maybe she had him cornered. It didn't mean he was beaten. Sanis still had a chance...he just had to do something unorthodox.

Sanis had to tell the truth.

Smiling nervously, Sanis attempted to put his hands on her shoulders, but thought twice about it, dropping the ingraciating demeanor. Breathing out deeply, Sanis looked at Sasseeri with a serious face. Time to bite the bullett.)

Sasseeri, I've got one hundred grand.

[Jole Zakath]

This was a very bad day for Hnder Ueat. What had started as a fairly lucrative day - frell, not every day did someone loose a million credits in this place! - had turned sour quickly when the Reeouurra woman had stormed in.

Of course, he had requested her aid in this, especially since she'd been so adamant at getting her hands on this Prent person. But he'd never expected that she'd actually turn up in person, and cause such a ruckuss.

This had been his first time of meeting her in person, and it had been more than unpleasant. He had never in his entire life met anyone like her before - no one so agressive, so loud, so foul-mouthed; and he had met a lot of bad characters in his life. All those qualities combined in one female had been more than he could stomach - he simply hid, while she let her anger at something he had not been able to really understand out on his furniture. She had shouted a lot, in a high-pitched shrill way, that had driven an almighty fear into his heart and made him shudder with horror at this terrible woman shredding his office.

No, the day was definately not going well...

And what did this man, this henchman of hers want now? Talk? He didn't trust he guy - he was as slimy as they came.

Yet he slowly got up from behind the desk, and stared back at the man the Reeeouurra woman had briefly introduced as Jole Zakath, her assistant.

"W-will this d-do?"

Try as he might, he still couldn't bring his voice under control, and he silently cursed himself for it.

Zakath grinned unwholesomely at him.

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

Yes... yes, indeed - she had not expected anything else. At least he did not think he could lie to her. That was one point in his favour.

Sasseeri's grin broadened even more.

She knew what was going on in his head now - she had not made any effort in hiding her ambitions and wishes. He knew very well what she would most likely ask of him. It was entirely possible he was already picturing himself as her bedroom decoration.

Which was why she had no intention of making him that - at least not yet. No... she had something much better in store for the independent Mr Prent, a particular kind of punishment only someone with her level of deviousness could come up with.

But she still wanted him to speak his biggest fears out aloud. She wanted to hear him give in, suggest even for himself that he would make himself available for whatever it was she wished of him.

And for that, she would keep him dangling for another while on the hook he had bitten into.

"Well, jisn't thjis a shame? What can we do now, eh? What do you thjink jI should do wjith you, eh, Sanjis?"

She chuckled in a wicked little way.

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis was utterly defeated. He had no way to launch any counter offer, had no way to con his way out, and had nowhere to run. Sasseeri called all the shots, and they both knew it. Sanis could feel her sea-blue eyes staring at him with some sort of perverse intent. She definitely wasn't planning on settling affairs with the authorization of a credit chit. No, she had something else in mind...and she wanted Sanis to say it.

Dammit, this wasn't fair. Not only was he at her whims, but he also had to bust down his ego to do it. Double whammy, and a mean one at that. Sanis had to look away from her face, to keep those eyes from burning away every last bit of resistance he could come up with. Who knew...with enough time, he could think of something. Hell, she did ask...

...carefully but with enough force to get her intentions across, Sasseeri reached to Sanis' cheek with a clawed hand, and turned his head back so he could look at her. Her sharp claws pressed with a painful twinge against his skin. Okay, so she wasn't going to let him stall. Sanis looked into her narrowing eyes.

This absolutely sucked. But he didn't see a way out of it.)

I...uh, guess I could do some favors for you, if you need them.

(Sanis bit on his lower lip. She was gonna take the little bit of leeway and run with it. That much was certain. But Sanis wasn't going out without a fight. Right now...he wouldn't mind simply being a pool boy, as he was sure that Sasseeri had much more dire things cooked up in her mind.)

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

She watched his face intently as he tried to bring first his thoughts, then his tongue to speak out what he felt had to be his own damnation. And as she watched him in such turmoil, something shifted within her.

Yes, it was fun to make him suffer. Wasn't it? Of course it was - she had been looking forward to this moment, or one similar to it, for as long as she had known him, known about him. She had spent an enormous amount of time and effort figuring out just how she would get him to be in such a situation, and had felt triumph when he had played into her hand like this.

Conflicting thoughts raced through her mind - the same ones that had held her back that day in her office, the same ones that made her give in to his wishes, the same ones that made her believe that he really intended to be with her.

Then she gained control over herself again. Whatever was going on, whatever doubts and scruples as to her own intentions she might have, she wouldn't let herself loose control now.

She was in control over this situation, and she would be the one who would keep control in her hands.

When Sanis tried to evade her eyes, she roughly yanked his head around again by the chin, yet not as roughly as she would usually have been.

Looking back into his eyes thereafter, she hoped he did not see any sign of the temporary doubt that had filled her mind a moment ago.

Then he said it. He said it, and her triumph over him was nearly complete.

This was the beginning of the end of Sanis Prent, the independent Sanis. And the end of the beginning of what she planned for him. Now it was time to turn her plans into reality.

No. Not yet. Not here. Not with that impossible woman nearby, waiting, hovering like a pest at his elbow if she got a chance.

"jI thjink, my dearrrest Sanjis, we should discuss the terrrms of ourrr new rrrelatjionshjip wjith one anotherrr jin a somewhat morrre prrrjivate place."

Grabbing his arm with one hand, her claws holding him in an iron grip, nails digging even through his clothing into his skin, she jammed the glass with the vile brew back onto the bar top, and then shoved Sanis ahead of her into the direction of the manager's office.

People pushed themselves out of the way of her and her unwilling companion, and Sasseeri was reminded of a triumph procession. All that was missing was the bows and cheers from all directions and fluttering flower petals overhead. It was as if all had come, as if all had made way to see this triumph of hers.

Yet the cold smile she turned at him as he looked over his shoulder at her, was hiding a gnawing feeling of regret.

[Jole Zakath]

Quite frankly, the guy was a coward. He'd hidden his twitching face under the desktop the moment Sasseeri had opened her mouth. He didn't deserve anything else than what he would get.

But the guy wasn't just a coward. As Jole had found out when looking through the files they had on him, Ueat had something of a speckled past of embezzling money. And someone with a history like that, had to be trying to milk Sasseeri's business a little for his private funds as well.

Jole felt quite hopeful. He'd simply "take over" those funds from the creep, and no one would ever be any wiser.
As for how... well, he'd just have to improvise. Putting on his friendliest smile, he looked at the still slightly shaking guy.

"Miss Reeouurra has asked me to come along this time to talk to you about your accounts. Would you mind if I checked..?"

He took out a datapad from his overcoat, and entered a few numbers, indicating he was waiting for a data transfer from the main database.
Ashen-faced, Ueat complied, his hand shaking so hard it took him three attempts to get into the database himself. Seconds later, as the man slumped over in his chair, Jole's datapad started spilling data.

He read through it, not really looking for any hard evidence, but the guy was even lousier at hiding his tracks than at hiding his fear. Jole slowly lost the grin that had been standing on his face a moment before, and let his forehead be pulled into a frown.

"This is ... but what do I see there? What is this??? The numbers don't match!"

There was a groan coming from the chair that contained Ueat's slumped form. Jole took that as a sign that he was getting somewhere. He inserted a healthy dose of anger into his voice.

"What have you been doing, fool? If I show this to Miss Reeouurra, she will have you put on your dinner menu - as the appetizer, not a guest! How in kriffing space did you think you could get away with this????"

He went over to the chair where the manager was sitting, and shook him out of the stupor he seemed to be in. The face Ueat turned up towards Jole showed pure panic.

"I-I-i-i..."

"SHUTUP! You better start thinking of ways to tell her, or to find a planet far away enough her anger can't reach you, worm!"

The "worm" finally seemed to have found his voice again at that.

"Wha-what sh-should I d-d-do now?"

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis winced as Sasseeri's claws dug slightly into his arm. So it was settled. Without reprieve or possibility of parole, Sasseeri was ready to carry out sentence, and began forcing Sanis along, to a "morrre prrrjivate place".

Sanis' face was grim. Nothing could really be done now, except the inevitable. Maybe if he could somehow keep this all low-key, nobody would have to find out...especially not Dalee. Hey, maybe nothing would happen...

...Sanis had a hard time being that optimistic. One only had to look as far as the claw marks on Sanis' wrist to know that Sasseeri was going to get exactly what she wanted out of this. What exactly that was, Sanis' imagination couldn't think up. Although, as Sanis felt her warm breath exhaling against his neck, he could tell that it more than likely would be heated.

Suddenly, Sanis' paranoid side began to take liberties with the situation. What if Sasseeri decided to really get intense with him? He wasn't born yesterday, and he knew she was a lot stronger than her small frame suggested. Okay, now it was a question of if Sanis would come out of his predicament in one piece, much less if he would be okay with Dalee. A string of mental images popped through Sanis' mind, of him being clawed, knocked around, and absolutely toyed with for an indefinite amount of time.

The concept of being a living chew toy scared the hell outta Sanis, to be honest. He'd be the first to congratulate Sasseeri on being incredibly attractive and all that, but...DAMN! The girl came on soo strong! It was overwhelming.)

[Jole Zakath]

Malice entered his grin as he looked down on the shaking manager. He had him where he wanted him, and it would only take a little push into the right direction.

But that would be too easy. No, the guy deserved to get a little more of this kind of medicine. Jole acted like he hadn't heard the guy's frantic question.

"Did you ever wonder what would happen if Miss Reeouurra would find out about this? Do you have any idea what she would do to stinking bantha-fodder like you? She wouldn't even consider you worthy for a meal! Nooooo... have you ever heard what she likes to do to people who betray her trust? Eh? Have you?"

Psychological warfare was much more fun than direct threats. Jole could almost see the things Ueat was picturing in his mind now... horrible things. Nasty little horrors. Blood flowing freely. Sasseeri's maniac laughter in the background.

Jole decided to leave it at that. He didn't want the guy to suffer a stroke.

"There is a way out of this, maybe. Consider it doing you a favour. Consider it an act of kindness."

He could see the hope leap into the panicked man's eyes, as he stared up into his new "benefactor's" eyes. Time to crush his little soul.

"Let's say you just transfer all the funds you took for yourself into an account I give you, and I'll sort of overlook this little error of yours? I'll come by from time to time, to check on your progress. Then we--"

He was again leaning on the console that monitored the interior of the casino. And the monitor that had previously shown the view of Sasseeri and Sanis now showed nothing but an empty pair of chairs. Panicked, he checked the other monitors, but couldn't find any sight of his boss and her victim anywhere. Frack!

At that moment, he could hear Sasseeri's voice outside, and it chilled him to the bone.

A glance back at Ueat showed that the guy had an idea of what Jole had just proposed to him. But he needed him to agree. And before Sasseeri opened that door.

In a quiet voice, he spoke to him again.

"We can tell her right now. Or you can agree to my terms."

The fear entered Ueat's eyes again. He looked from the impedning doom behind the door, and back to Jole. Then something shifted in his eyes, something gave way. His decision was made.

"I-i-i a-agree."

The door opened.

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

Walking along the corridor into the direction of the Manager's office, her fingers wrapped tightly around Sanis' arm, her thoughts alternately switched between admiring the muscles she could feel right now underneath her touch, and what the next hour or so would bring her.

Things were progressing rather well according to her four-step plan to make Sanis hers. She was about to achieve step 2. Financial dependence had been the first, and it had come almost simultaneously with this one. Which meant she was only two steps away from her ultimate goal, and once step 2 was final, the next two would follow soon.

It was all going much better than she had expected.

He was flexing his arm muscles again, clenching and unclenching his fist. The subtle move beneath her fingers let her attention wander again back to admiring his body. Just to think that soon they would ... A pleasant warm feeling ran through her at that thought. She almost relinquished her grasp on his arm to brush her fingers up his arm and over his back.

But then they had reached the office, and a humid corridor wasn't the ideal place to bring some of her fantasies to life.

Aloud, she said more to herself than to Sanis,

"Therrre we arrre, sweethearrrt. Let's get this overrr and done wjith strrrajightaway - we wouldn't want to keep dearrr Daleethrrrjia out therrre wajitjing too long."

She thumbed a button on the wall, and the door began to open.

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis continued being forced along down the corridor. His eyes looked from left to right, looking for somebody who might be able to get him out of this situation. However, Sanis knew better than that. Sasseeri called the shots here. Everybody who was anybody was either paid or intimidated or both by Miss Reeouurra. She was the HKIC; Head Kitty In Charge, and she reveled in that.

Sanis slowly noticed that he was approaching a door at the end of the hall. Sasseeri's hand tightened around his arm. This must be the place, huh. In the face of inevitability, Sanis had to ask himself...was this really as bad as he imagined? Okay, a beautiful and extremely attractive woman wanted to sleep with him. She was rich, and extremely powerful, and knew how to take charge. What was Sanis worried about?

Sanis turned back to look at Sasseeri, and she returned him a laviscously-toothy smile. Oh yeah. That. The fact that she was a little too direct with her intentions. Sanis was not used to being sized up like a piece of meat. Sure, he'd been guilty as charged of the same offense, but it was different when the roles were reversed. Not to mention that she was just a little bit...uh...helluva lot of a bit wild, and had a bit to much strength and stamina for her own good. Sanis hadn't had to deal with women who could throw him around before. He was used to the standard play, the good-looking girls who prissed around and flaunted what they had. It seemed that almost overnight, his fortunes with ladies had changed. He seemed to be in the middle of a tug of war between a Force user, an assassin, and now one of the most influential people in the galaxy. Even if Sanis had any preferences, it almost seemed irrelevant to all parties involved. Sanis had been fought over before...but never fought over before. This had the prospect of being potentially bad for his health...

...especially with this one. Sanis knew that look in Sasseeri's eyes. The gears in that girl's head were turning, and she all but told Sanis that he was simply along for the ride, and it wasn't open for discussion. Well, after wondering what the hell the problem was, Sanis was back to square one. The problem was, Sasseeri was about to have her way with him, and there wasn't a damn bit of choice Sanis had in the matter.

Looking around, Sanis suddenly wished that Dalee was around. She was probably still absorbed in playing chance. Damn, that only afforded a few options:

A- Sanis could run. That wasn't gonna work. Even if Sasseeri's security couldn't get him, Sasseeri could easily do it herself. Her speed and strength were already well ahead of his, and it would be the shortest run-down in history.

B- Sanis could call for help. Yeah, and give Sasseeri an excuse to use a gag on him. From there, who knew what would happen. Bad ideas, man.

C- Yeah...C.

Sanis grimaced slightly as they got to the door.)

Sasseeri, uh, hope you don't mind...but I really gotta go pee.

(The way she seemed to laugh made Sanis have the sinking feeling she had seen right through that. Slapping a hand on his butt, she corralled him onwards, towards the door. Well dammit, that was out. No more options. Time to go in, and take what was coming. Dalee would understand, wouldn't she? Sanis looked at the door with a bit of foreboding. Who knew what was behind it? Probably Sasseeri's own little funhouse. Knowing her, she probably had something special set up for just this kind of occasion.

Breathing deeply, Sanis waited as Sasseeri opened the door...waiting for whatever was his fate on the other side. All in all...Sanis wouldn't be gambling again for a long long time after this.)

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

As she pushed him forward through the door, she watched his face. Whatever he had expected to be confronted with, this wasn't it. It was very much what Sasseeri had hoped for, however.

The office was as dark and badly furnished as before. Zakath was standing by the monitors, while the cowardly manager was still slumped in his chair. He looked decidedly more alive now that he had been when she had left, however.

Another look at Zakath proved that all was going as planned. He had that look on his face again that she so well knew; that guilty flicker in his eyes, the twitching nostrils he couldn't control - yes, it was going as planned.

But she had to make sure, before she could proceed with the matter of Sanis' "punishment". With an almost indifferent tone of voice, she turned to Ueat.

"Mjisterrr Ueat, jif you would be so kjind as to leave us alone forrr an hourrr orrr so? jI am surrre you have some worrrk to do somewherrre... maybe yourrr accounts?"

The panicked terror she saw in his eyes, the almost death-like paleness that seemed to come over him, was enough confirmation. Yes, everything was going as planned.

Her assistant seemed to take her request to Ueat as a sign that he also should leave, for he straightened up and made to go after the trembling and hunched-over manager, but she cut him off before he could get out of reach.

"Not you, Jole - you'rrre stayjing herrre. Let's see if we can't fjind somethjing forrr you to do, eh?"

He froze in mid-step, then went back to the monitor console, shrugging. Sasseeri, meanwhile, walked over to the chair Ueat had vacated, and sat down, then motioned Sanis to sit opposite her. For a moment, as she stood there looking at him, she wondered if she shouldn't just ask him to undress for her right on the spot, but then again... she'd have to be a little more patient.

Not yet... not just yet. Just a little longer...

Sanis sat down.

And Sasseeri made no move to explain what she had in mind. Instead, she just sat there watching him, as his nervosity grew. She could already smell it, overlaying the stench of nervous terror the manager had seemed to ooze with before he left.

[Sanis Prent]

(This was it? Sanis had expected something a little more...well...kinky. Looked like a normal office, complete with tacky decor. No sign of beds, poles, chains, or anything that would belie Miss Reeouurra's carnal motives. One of her assistants was even here. Wait a second...what the hell was going on here??

Sanis did as he was told and sat down, waiting for whatever Sasseeri had in store for him. She sat, and looked at him. Sanis waited expectantly, tapping his foot slightly. She wasn't saying anything. She wasn't doing anything. She was just...staring.

Sanis tried to occupy his attention elsewhere, taking feigned interest in a paperweight on the desk. But eventually, he returned his eyes to Sasseeri, who was still staring at him.

Sanis chuckled somewhat nervously, running a hand through his hair. Okay...what was going on here???

He tried to pass time by drumming his fingers on the armrests of the chair. He wanted to know what the deal was, and why he was here. Now, Sasseeri was giving him the silent treatment. Was she just trying to flip him out, or maybe just make him squirm. Sanis couldn't figure her out. One second, he's about to have his clothes torn off, and the next, Sasseeri wants to have a staring contest.

This was getting really old. Sanis twiddled his thumbs, hoping that whatever was happening, it would be cleared up soon. The waiting was almost as bad as the alternative.)

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

Sasseeri watched him grow more and more nervous under the penetrating stare of her eyes. She revelled in it, the smell of his nervosity filling her sensitive nose, warming her blood to a new level of intensity. It took all the restraint she could muster to keep herself sitting calmly in this chair now, and not just grab a hold of him and rip his clothes off and push him over and--- no, better not think of that now.

It took her a little while to get over this most recent attack of her senses over her mind, then she finally leaned back and casually asked him,

"Now that we have prrrjivacy, we can talk betterrr. As you can see - therrre jis nothjing unprrrofessjional about thjis 'punjishment' you earrrned yourrrself. jIndeed, jI have somethjing much djifferrrent jin mjind forrr you than you mjight have come to expect."

She paused for a second, to lean forward in an almost conspirational manner, and looked straight into his eyes.

"Am jI corrrrrect jin assumjing that you arrre wjilljing to do anythjing forrr me to pay off thjis debt of yourrrs?"

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis bit down on his lip slightly as she beckoned him to answer her obviously-loaded question. Dammit, she was every bit as shrewd as a Jawa Junkmaster, and with more clout than a Hutt crime syndicate.

She had obviously led him to believe that within the proverbial "anything", she wasn't insinuating sex or any form of domination a la libido. So she had led him to believe...

Licking his dry lips, Sanis reached to the desk, pouring a some water into a glass from a nearby pitcher. He took a sip, wetting his mouth and throat, as he thought about the ramifications of his answer. If it wasn't sex...and it still might be...then what? Money? She knew he didn't have it? A job? Well...that was a possiblity. Something else?

As much as Sanis wanted to, he just couldn't gauge Sasseeri Reeouurra. She was spinning a web around him faster than he could untangle the one she had already put around him. Well hell, it was a yes or no question...50/50 chance. Sanis might as well take a sporting stab at it.)

Yeah, you can say that, Sasseeri. I don't like to keep tabs going, and no offense...but you're the last person I'd want to stay "in the red" with.

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

He'd said what she had wanted to hear, but yet -it was not enough. Not entirely enough. There was something more she required of him, before she would acceede to letting him know what she had in store for him, and that something was important.

Her eyes focused on his, and she stared at him with an intensity that seemed to burn all dishonesty out of his mind - if such was what he still possessed right now.

"Let me rrrephrrrase that, Sanjis: jIf jI werrre to tell you to go out and hunt down a grrroup of thjives, you would do that. jIf jI werrre to tell you to steal jin my name, you would do that. jIf jI werrre to tell you to kjill a bejing, whetherrr jin cold blood or forrr a rrreason you know, you would do that. jIs that what you would do to stay "jin the rrred" wjith me?"

She didn't give him time to reply, but instead cut him off with a shake of her hand and got up from her seat. Briskly, she walked over to where Jole Zakath was standing, and took his arm. Then she led her somewhat amused and lightly bewildered assistant over to stand before Sanis.

"And jif jI told yout to take out yourrr gun and shoot thjis man herrre and now, would you do jit?"

Zakath's smug grin dropped slightly. Sasseeri took pleasure in that. Let him stew for a second in his own petty fears - stew like Sanis has before. He'll get over it before Sanis has made up his mind.

Her eyes alternately switched from the face of Sanis to that of Zakath, waiting.

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis' eyes widened at the realization of Sasseeri's motives. It wasn't what he had in mind at all. Not by a long shot. Sanis had thought she would use this little opportunity as an excuse for a little fun, but she was coming at it from a business perspective. All in all, it made Sanis laugh a little. He was...relieved.)

So, you mean to tell me that you want me to work for you? Is that it?

(It still wasn't a top-notch deal. There were reasons Sanis didn't work for people. Reasons such as growing dependent and such. It wasn't gonna be much of a deal at all if Sanis couldn't work his way out of Sasseeri's back pocket. There had to be some kind of applying restriction. Sanis acknowledged that he owed Sasseeri...owed her a lot. That was why he was even considering what she was saying. But...there had to be a middle road. Sanis wasn't gonna simply hop on the payroll forever. Sasseeri wouldn't get that lucky.)

Alright...what do you got in mind? I'm willing to work for you, yeah. But gimme a trial basis here. I owe you a million credits, not my life. I say putting me on the payroll for 2 months is payment enough.

(Sanis took a sip of water)

And if I find out I'm gonna be your "pool boy"...I'll be more than a little disappointed, Sasseeri.

(Sanis took a look of the guy she had told him to kill. He knew it was in jest...at least he thought it was in jest.)

And, as for that...lets just say, you wouldn't want me to stain the carpet in here.

(Safe enough, at least. Not a yes...not a no. Sanis wasn't about to leap into this just yet.)

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

Calculating the possibilities, she watched Zakath coldly for a second before turning back to Sanis. Her voice held not even the faintest trace of humour in it when she addressed him again.

"Neverrr mjind the carrrpet. We can always get jit rrreplaced."

She gave it a minute to let that sink in, while she watched Jole's face take up an expression of sheer terror. Wide-eyed, he stared at her, his mouth hanging open.

Sanis seemed not much better, and she used his puzzlement to drive the stake a little deeper into her assistant's puny heart.

"What - you thought jI wouldn't fjind out how you've been cheatjing me? jI am not bljind - and farrr frrrom stupjid, Jole."

She put a hand into her pocket, and drew out a small datachip - and threw it onto the table in front of his eyes. With trembling hands, Zakath inserted the datachip into his own datapad, and seconds later, he heard the conversation he had just had with the cowardly manager being replayed.

"jI have been watchjing yourrr movements forrr a long tjime now, Jole. Therrre jis notjing that escapes my eye, Jole, nothjing."

She turned away from him and back to Sanis, and added in an emotionless voice to him,

"You may shoot hjim now. jI am done."

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis was no longer willing to gamble on whether or not Sasseeri was kidding. She seemed pretty damn serious about the whole affair. Sanis' eyes looked up at hers, and she flashed a look at him as if to say "What the Hell are you waiting for."

Well, if this wasn't a daisy, Sanis didn't know what was.

What was the usual market price on a human life these days? Oh, about 200,000...500,000 if they were worth a damn, right?

Something about the situation of things made Sanis want to haggle now...but that ship had sailed. Sasseeri was shrewd, and she was definitely getting her money's worth on this one.

Sanis stood, popping his 3-shot derringer blaster from its wrist holster. He palmed the weapon, leveling it off at the man Sasseeri wanted dead. For a few seconds, Sanis scrutinized him. He knew the poor bastard was pulling money from Sasseeri, and he didn't envy his position at all. Now, he was at the bad end of business, it seemed. Sanis guessed he could at least be nice about it and put it through his heart, and kill him quickly. No sense adding pain and suffering for the guy. After all, Sasseeri didn't ask for pain and suffering. Those usually were extra.

What a craptastic turn of events. Sanis was about to kill somebody...for free.)

Hey man, sorry bout this.

(Sanis placed his finger on the trigger)

[Jole Zakath]

What??????

He was too shocked to shout it out aloud. Shocked and terrified. What the hell.... how had she found out? How could she have known? Why? How...? what...?

Panicked, he heard her tell Prent to shoot him. She surely coulnd't be serious about this, could she? But the look in her eyes didn't show any compassion, or pity. No, she was actually serious.

He was going to die. Oh Gods, he was going to DIE! There was nothing he could do, Prent wouldn't have any other choice than to do what she asked him to do.

It was almost funny, the way the man apologized for having to do this. Jole felt like laughing out aloud, it all seemed so completely unreal.

Everything slowed down suddenly. All he could see was the barrel of the blaster being turned towards him. Prent's finger on the trigger. Prent's finger slowly pulling on it...

Oh gods, how can she do this to me? I am going to die... I'm going to die... I'm going to die...

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

She grinned. He was doing just what she wanted him to do. Perfect. She hadn't been one hundred percent sure about his reaction, but it seemed he had no qualms to do what he was told.

That was proof enough.

She watched his finger pull back on the trigger of Sanis' blaster, and smelled the sweat of fear that emanated from Jole cloying the air. Ah yes - a smell like that could be so pleasant at times.

The second Sanis pulled back the trigger, Sasseeri's hand grabbed the barrel and pushed it over to the left. The barrel was warm as the @#%$ was activated, but not enough to cause her any pain.

The shot went wide, charring a patch of wall instead, behind Jole. And her assistant's shoulders sagged with relief.

She turned back to Sanis.

"Thank you - that wjill do njicely. You have convjinced me that you arrre jindeed able to perrrforrrm as you arrre told."

Walking back over behind the desk, she pushed the still sweating Jole out of the way and sat down in her chair there. She took out her hand-bag and searched for her datapad, taking care to let the mini blaster fall out onto the desk at the same time. It came to lie underneath the bag, hidden from the eyes of both Sanis and Jole.

When this was done, she finally grabbed the datapad, and pulled it towards her over the desk, dragging the blaster along with it underneath, until it fell into her lap, unobserved.

She looked up from the datapad, after bringing up the image of her niece on it, and looked back at Sanis.

"What jI wjill ask you to do forrr me, jis two thjings. Fjirrrstly, jI wjish to make you my agent forrr the Corrruscant base of operrratjions. Thjis means you arrre rrresponsjible for the dealjings wjith ourrr operrratjives and ourrr customerrrs herrre, and you wjill delegate suppljies and busjiness out to the Arrrkanjis sectorrr headquarrrterrrs."

She looked at him. This was due to come to him as a bit of a shock. His reaction would be interesting.

[Sanis Prent]

(Sanis' mouth hung open, and he stammered for a good smartass reply, but all he got was...)

...m-me?

(Sanis pointed to himself. She wanted him, not to go to work as a hired goon, not to take somebody out...she wanted him to sit around in an office in a dapper, button-down little urbanite's pipe dream. She wanted him to actually WORK for her.

It was unsettling, to say the least. Sanis Prent, outlaw, no allegiances, no anything...becoming the Sector Ranger's posterboy. Nevermind the possibilities of taking the fall for whatever Sasseeri might want to cook up, it was just plain weird. Punching a timecard, wearing a suit, and even shaving daily. These were things alien to Sanis. How the Hell did Sasseeri expect him to become the next Lando Calrissian.)

Um, Sasseeri...don't take this the wrong way, but have you lost your ever-loving mind?

(Sanis smiled, pointing at himself more emphatically)

I mean, c'mon...its me we're talking about. I'm not one of your permanent-press tweed-slacks cubicle rats. I'm pretty sure I've never even used a copier before.

(Sanis' grin faded)

You're serious, aren't you?

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

The grin on her face broadened. This was going exactly the way she thought it might - even down to the cheesy excuses.

To be quite honest with herself, she had some doubts as to the wisdom of her own decision, but this was a necessary step in her plan, and as such... it was inevitable. Besides, there were several other factors involved in this matter to ensure that Sanis would perform his new duties admirably. And most likely, he was the ideal Ops leader, seeing that he already knew most people in the business, and knew this planet well enough. It could not have worked out any better, she thought.

So she smiled at him and said,

"Yes, Sanjis, jI am jindeed serrrjious. But don't thjink jI don't know yourrr shorrrt-comjings - jI have found the perrrfect assjistant forrr you to help you thrrrough all the compljicated tjimes. You know my njiece, Saarrreeaa?"

The expression on his face turned slightly sour. Funny, the way that girl seemed to have the ability to make a whole lot of men dislike her. It wasn't at all like ordinary Cizerack. Certainly she herself had never had any problems attracting the males. Thn again, maybe it was just something to do with the fact that most of these were human, and that was something Saa had only rarely had any contact with before.

Getting Saa to supervise Sanis (and Sanis to supervise Saa, as he would most likely try to watch her every step in order to stay on her own good side) was the best she could think of. Saa herself wasn't an expert in business, but since she had arrived, Sasseeri had been able to show her the ropes. The girl knew enough to find her way around - the only problem was keeping her concentration on the matter at hand.

And keeping her from falling under the influence of the Pride Mother's manservant. That greedy slob would suck my business dry of credits if he got only half a chance - having someone as young as Saa to oversee this end would make his earlobes itch with anticipation as he'd try to make her sign over as much business as he can. Which is why Sanis is around to keep that slimy creep away from her and my business. This way, Keerrourri Sarrtarroa won't get a stab at her.

"Thjis jis the second parrrt of ourrr barrgajin. You overrrsee Corrruscant Base - and superrrvise the trrrajinjing of my njiece. Come to thjink of jit, you superrrvjise everrry mjinute of that gjirrrl's ljife that she doesn't spend jin herrr own quarrrterrrs. jI don't carrre how you do jit, or how much jit costs - but jI don't want herrr or my busjiness to fall underrr the jinfluence of cerrrtajin people who would use my absence forrr thejir perrrsonal gajin."

More she would not say at this point. She would tell him in due time who she didn't want Saa to have any connections with, but that was for another time. Now, all he needed to do was agree. By telling him that he was essentially there to play bodyguard to her niece as well as oversee the business, she hoped that she'd appealed to his sense of chivalry. No man could ever resist getting a stab at hopefully saving the life of a beautiful young girl - even one as contrary and loud-mouthed as her niece.

[Sanis Prent]

Just keeps getting better and better...

(Sanis rubbed his hands through his hair as he let out a sigh of resignation. Not only was she serious about the job, she was also serious about him watching over that little tramp Saarrreeaa. There was something inherently awful about these arrangements...what was it? Oh yeah! The fact that Sanis had abso-freakin-lutely no chance to have a say in the matter.)

Damn, I need a drink.

(Sanis fumbled in his jacket for his flask, which he unscrewed and took two sharp nips of lukewarm bourbon. Wincing, Sanis replaced the flask, looking at Sasseeri, and trying to collect his thoughts.)

So, I'm supposed to be your go-to guy here? And watch over your niece, and protect your business from hostile takeover, etc? Am I right on that? Any other little pleasant details, or do I have the situation pretty well thought out?

(Sanis thought it all out, in the back of his mind. This shot to Hell any immediate chances of getting off Coruscant, which didn't bode well with Sanis at all. Also, Dalee was just going to LOVE his new coworker...about as much as he did. To top it off, she probably still had that walking tank following her around. No love lost there. All in all, it was the worst association of people that Sanis could think of. He'd have to keep from killing them, and keep from being killed at the same time.

Sanis just hoped that Sasseeri had her niece by the tail as much as she had gotten him. If not, these next two months were gonna be hell.)

Dammit...alright Sasseeri, where do I sign?

[Jole Zakath]

He had closed his eyes before he could watch Prent pull the trigger on him.

Surprisingly, there was something true about a person becoming quite calm and peaceful at the moment of death. There wasn't anything that could hurt him now - all the previous shock and terror, even the cold sweat and the trembling had left his body. He was totally and utterly feeling calm, resigned to meet his death.

The shot went off - he could hear it. He expected a burning sensation, pain, a chill, a slow ebbing away of life.

Instead, nothing happened.

The shot had gone off - he had definately heard it. So then why wasn't he dying now?

Jole opened his eyes, just as Sasseeri told Prent what she really planned with him. And Jole's head went spinning off into new directions instantly.

So he was safe - for now. But just because she hadn't had him shot, didn't mean he was going to get away with it. Still - it was a reason to gloat over his own good fortune. Even though he didn't particularly like being used as a test object for loyalty. Still, there wasn't much he could do right now, other than somehow get through the next few minutes without attracting any special attention. And that he could do.

So Jole stood quietly off to one side, as Sasseeri explained in detail her plans for Sanis' involvement in her business, and in the life of that little bitch of a niece of hers.

Somewhere along the way, he'd come up with a cunning plan to save his own hide - and most of his assorted credits - from taking too much damage. Just a matter of time. A few hours would suffice.

[Sasseeri Reeouurra]

Chuckling to herself at his defeat, she thumbed a button on her datapad, and a pre-written datafile came up on it. This she had kept in preparation for a long time - all it had needed was the right opportunity.

How fortunate that he had provided that opportunity himself, at a much earlier date than she had expected.

And how fortunate indeed that all the players were in just the right place for this - it was as if someone had done her a huge favour. Everything had just slotted into place, fitting into the entire scheme like magic. Sure, there were some loose ends (like that girl out there, his precious Dalee), but all in all it was nothing she couldn't somehow take care of.

"Sjign therrre. That wjill gjive you full authorrrjity overrr the Ops on thjis planet - at least what concerrrns the Arrrkanjis Ops. Once you have sjigned thjis, you arrre frrree to go untjil tomorrrrrrow morrrnjing: jI expect you to arrrrrrjive punctually - 9am wjill do."

She watched him closely as he leant forward to sign the contract by entering his ID code. A triumphant smirk stood on her face - that much she couldn't resist showing.

Of course, she thought, it won't take long until he tries to find a way out of it. Sanis isn't the type to be stuck in an office all day, and I know that as well as he does. Well, let him try... this is just the start. The wheels have just started to turn - they'll get to grinding him into the tiny pieces I need to get him where I want him to go, soon enough...

As he stood back and looked rather down-trodden and frustrated, she smiled up at him. Under the desk, her fingers gripped the mini blaster she'd dropped there just minutes ago. Slowly, she put her hand into the pocket of her tunic, then stood up.

Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw Jole standing there, composed, a little gloating at the turn events had taken.

With her free hand, she took up the datapad Sanis had pushed towards her after signing it, and put it back into her handbag. Then she slung the bag around her shoulder, and walked out from behind the desk, to join Sanis.

Jole remained standing there, not having gotten any other command from her yet. Sasseeri's free hand snaked through the crook of Sanis' arm, even as he tried to get away from it. Forcing him onward, she pushed him towards the door, before he could possibly change his mind about anything.

Halfway to the door, however, she stopped dead in her tracks, and turned around, and Sanis was forced to follow her. With a cold voice, she finally addressed Jole Zakath again.

"Oh - and as forrr you, Jole--"

Suddenly, the hand she was holding the blaster with, was out of her pocket, and aimed at Jole. She was a rather good shot, an almost inborn ability to hit any moving target accurately even at a high distance making it easy for her. So the pair of shots she fired off in rapid succession, hit him dead on in the stomach.

Her unfortunate ex-assistant fell to the ground with an unbelieving look on his face. A mix of shock, anger, and then pain as the blaster bolts finally washed over into his nervous system, up into his brain.

She didn't need to see the rest of it. Instead, she called out over her shoulder as she turned to leave,

"--Have fun dyjing."

With that last word to him, she swept Sanis along out of the room, leaving the dying man lying on the floor.

The door, apparently malfunctioning, finally closed behind the long gone pair with a loud clang echoing in the silence of the room. An occasional sob or gurgle came from the shivering figure on the ground, but that stopped, too, after a while.

[Sanis Prent]

(The matter-of-fact way that Sasseeri shot her assistant chilled him somewhat. For all her accomodating graces, Sasseeri was definitely capable of turning her mood on a dime. The thought that Sanis might be the next one under the gun was an obvious one. One thing was sure, Sasseeri Reeouurra was dangerous. Very very dangerous.

As Sanis and his new employer parted their ways, the outlaw-turned-businessman looked for Daleethria as he moved back into the casino.

Damn. Daleethria...what the Hell was Sanis gonna tell her? The fact that they weren't gonna be leaving Coruscant any time soon was one thing, but that Sanis was working for Sasseeri now...and with her niece?!? As Sanis sat down, he got his companion's attention, and slowly began to explain everything...

...the explaining would go on the entire night. Nobody was happy with the predicament, to say the least.)




<font size=20>THE END!</font>