Diplomatic Entanglements 3 - "Deal" Estate

*The hunt for Bota continues as our heroes… lease office space? Rusty gets hungry for some snacks, Jowkazza points out some very “serious” safety concerns, and Droo reveals with certainty that this new medical facility is the prison the team spent some quality time in. Blaine lands a sweet deal on the vacant office space which gets even better when Jimmy simply steals the deposit back. Finally the team heads off to the bar for a drink with their new technician pal, but Katira’s disdain for the unexpected presence of Cantle “Gold Pants” Spiros puts the conversation on hold for just a little bit longer.*

## **Previously**

*The hunt for Bota Zi began in earnest, but without any official support from the New Republic. Looking to secure funds for a large bounty, the team called in payment on their debt from the Praji with a mixture of Jowkazza’s presence, Blaine’s smooth talking, Katira’s overconfidence, and an unrequested assist from the force that left the thief too angry to think straight. 100,000cr in hand, they sped off to the office building formerly occupied by Governor Parnot to look for some useful clues. Private Investigator Hansom notes that the room has been swept clean, but that the team may be able to find something of value if they can access the security feed of the building. As Droo leads the distraction of an unexpected technician by getting a tour of the area, Tek manages to sneak off to a security server and gain the necessary access by guessing the security code from the clue laid about Parnot’s vacant office.*

*With their first useful lead in hand, are the heroes closing in on Bota or will they simply discover themselves over their heads in the next steps of Parnot’s devious plans?*

## **Recap**

### **Familiarity Breeds Contempt**

Still touring the area under the guidance of Ameral Breed, Droo has a strong sense that she has been in this place before. In hopes of having assurances when resolving her suspicion, she tries to find a place to concentrate before reaching to the force. Sensing the need to divert attention from Droo, Katira wanders ahead while talking with Ameral, asking what the facility itself might be capable of. Ameral is more than happy to respond, explaining the medical and research value of the equipment, which leads Katira to believe that the place may have been used by the Eriadu Authority in their efforts to refine their alternative fuel source.

Ameral answers, but he does not lose sight of Droo as he does so. Thankfully, the ever resourceful Rusty seizes his chance to take center stage with a well timed distraction.

> "*Hey, uh… thanks for the tour and all, but… do you got any snacks?*"
> ― Rusty
>
>

As Ameral tries to explain to the insistent Aqualish that food is never allowed on the research floors he is distracted sufficiently, allowing Droo to work her space magic. Through the force she gets a sense that the area is far too reinforced for its perceived use as a research facility. Moving into one of the storage rooms off the main hall, she is drawn to a corner of the room where, after moving a few boxes aside, she discovers an eyebolt affixed to the ground. The perfect fixture to restrain someone that you didn’t want leaving.

When Droo communicates to the group that they are touring the very prison they spent time in, Katira tries (and fails) to obtain a spanner wrench from their guide. From the entrance to the area, the turbolift announces its arrival as the Zeltron argues. She turns to find cover as the powerful presence of Jowkazza emerges, his translator droid talking away on the pitfalls of attempting to start a business on Coruscant before establishing a foothold on some other inner rim planet. Jowkazza growls for the droid to stop talking as he walks slowly toward the massive tank that dominates the area.

A series of growls and low rumbles emit from Jowkazza as he looks on, his droid fanny pack chattering in translation that the tank is filled with hundreds of thousands of credits worth of bacta, but the displays don’t appear to be showing medical data associated with recovery, but incremental growth data of medical scans obtained by precision medical tools.

### **"Deal" Estate**

A second ring from the turbolift draws the groups attention as a portly security guard meanders in. Gesturing to Ameral, he insists that the technician return to his regular duties and stop wasting his time providing tours to guests that are obviously not interested in renting. Droo astutely asks why nobody in the tower seems to know anything about the goings on, and the guard comments that the purpose of the entire building is to hide what happens inside. None of the tenants talk to each other (if they ever see one another), the list of residents is not presented anywhere, and no reports on operations are required or looked into so long as payment is provided on time. The only seemingly valuable piece of information that the guard lets drop is a comment that if the group is actually interested in the area, they must have some dealings in the Corporate Sector.

As the guard reiterates that the party needs to leave, Jowkazza threatens to report the building to Coruscant Safety if they do not immediately have the nearby bacta tank inspected as required. The guard mumbles something about reporting the comment to management, but waves his arm to usher them out. As he does so, Katira stops short of the door and stares directly at the guard, attempting to recollect if he was acting as part of the security detail that held the group captive previously. Unsure, she makes mention of the landing platform at the rear of the floor in hopes that he will let slip some information, and eventually asks him point blank if they have met before, but is left uncertain in the end as the group boards the turbolift.

Arriving at the main lobby, the party is met by Blaine, alongside Jawa Jimmy and Sparky, and at the request of Blaine they are escorted to the building’s lease office where (surprise, surprise!) their escorting security guard changes hats and states that he is the leasing agent in charge. With a much cheerier temperament, Reginald Johnson offers refreshments to the party and enters into negotiations with Blaine.

Blaine uses every tool at his disposal to save his credits and get a good deal on the lease, noting support from Cal Omas and feigning support from Senator Organa as well, and Reginald sets the price of a lease at 7,000cr a month for 3 months minimum while explaining the added benefits and amenities (security lockers, free food and beverages, anonymity of ownership). The negotiations go on for a short while as Rusty proceeds to pilfer the snack bar, with Blaine eventually settling on a 6 month lease for 22,000cr.

The paperwork is signed through the grumblings of Reginald (I’ll have to take the lowered lease cost out from my salary), and Blaine distracts the guard/lease agent with a job offer on Cloud City as he hands over the 22,000cr. Reginald pockets the credits and leaves to grab a large welcome basket filled with soaps, coupons for nearby businesses, an area guide, requisite key cards, etc., but fails to notice the diminutive figure of Jawa Jimmy snatching back the credits and returning them to Blaine. Shortly thereafter, Reginald clocks out for the night and heads off to deposit the now non-existent down payment.

### **Old Friends, New Enemies**

Newly acquired key cards in hand, the party returns to the former office of Governor Parnot to have a more detailed look at the information that Tek gained access to. Jimmy instructs Sparky to pull up the security footage and play it back at, and information floods into a number of gaps in the story.

Several visits are shown between the Governor and Ameral Breed - starkly contrasting the technicians statement that he had never met Parnot - as well as a visit to the office from Lannik Rakto occurring within the last two weeks, indicating that the criminal had double crossed the team after they released him.

> "*If we find Lannik Rakto, we’re going to kill him…*"
> ― Blaine
>
>

> "*Well if you’ll remember, Blaine, I wanted to do that last time and you insisted we let him go.*"
> ― Katira
>
>

> "*Yeah but you want to kill everyone we meet, Katira.*"
> ― Blaine
>
>

Jimmy then runs a search on the facial recognition data of Ameral Breed, revealing that he is a known criminal operative on the Core Worlds. In all likelihood, he acted as an informant to Parnot, and was likely the individual that tipped the Governor off to the New Republic raid of the building and allowed his escape from arrest.

Katira rushes to the main lobby and requests that reception page Ameral for requested repairs to their bacta tank. As she offers 1,000cr for the page, the receptionist declines and states that Ameral recently left to meet someone for drinks. Katira presses the 1,000cr into the receptionist’s hands and asks where he was going to drink, but as the receptionist stammers that she isn’t sure the voice of Jowkazza’s droid can be heard translating that *they* are the people he was going to meet with.

The group then departs for the pre-arranged meeting with Ameral Breed. On the way there, Katira and Droo have a brief heart to heart where Katira briefly allows herself to be vulnerable in explaining some of her disdain for the force and requesting that Droo never use it on her again. As Droo apologizes, Katira quickly returns to her normal demeanor and states that if it does happen again she may try to kill her best friend (Droo).

### **I'm Cantle Spiros!**

The team walks into a bar that is conspicuously filled with familiar faces. Sitting alone at a table in the back is Cantle Spiros, wearing the same gaudy, skin tight gold pants and black faux leather jacket and staring into a frothy ale through his oversized glasses. As he puts the drink down on the table, a thick foam lingers on a mustache that only seems to have gotten creepier since his last encounter with the team on Denon. Ameral Breed waves to the group from the bar as they enter, and the ever zealous figure of Kenneth can be seen flitting about delivering drinks and wiping down tables.

Walking in, the group is approached for drink orders:

* Starshine Surprise for Rusty and Jowkazza
* Hoth Asteroid for Jawa Jimmy
* Rydonnian Spice Wine for Katira
* House Lum for Blaine
* Vader’s Bane for Droo

> "*What? No! I don’t want a drink*"
> ― Droo
>
>

> "*It’s on the house, miss.*"
> ― Kenneth
>
>

> "*It’s about to be on the floor…*"
> ― Droo
>
>

Katira not too subtly hints that she doesn’t trust Ameral, but becomes bored with his deflective comments, and annoyed that the wine has not revealed any Clawdites. As Blaine carries on polite conversation with the “technician”, Katira leaves to order another glass of wine and to mess with Cantle Spiros.

As Katira scrawls out “Tek Krodak is coming for you!!!” onto a small napkin, Jowkazza approaches the flamboyant accountant and strikes up a conversation about the galactic business that is tax auditing. Gold Pants launches into a rant disparaging the New Republic for their efforts to clean up the underhanded activities that he had previously profited from under the Empire, intimating that things were better when auditors could swindle their customers as long as the government got their cut. He becomes so animated in his complaints that he fails to notice when Katira exchanges her napkin for his business card as Jowkazza encourages the conversation further.

Spiros continues to speak in thinly veiled metaphors about varying methods of extortion, money laundering, and funneling credits with Jowkazza as Katira orders a drink to be delivered by Kenneth and offers the butler for hire a more permanent job on Cloud City. Eventually, Jowkazza interrupts Cantle’s complaints to ask if he has any knowledge of the office space that the group has recently leased, and a surprised Gold Pants comments that Jowkazza is “Working with the Corporate Sector, eh?” before quickly returning to his monologue of how to launder money and perform other illegal financial services.

Somewhat turned off by Gold Pants brazen comments, Jowkazza asks for a business card so that he can touch bases at a later time when Spiros is given his free drink by Kenneth. When the flamboyant auditor reaches into his pocket his demeanor completely shifts to a mixture of anger and confusion upon discovering Katira’s message.

> "*Did you put this in my pocket?! Who put you up to this? Do you know who I am? I’m Cantle Spiros! Do you know who Tek is?! Are you with him? Do you know where he is?*"
> ― Cantle Spiros
>
>

> "*You should back off before you make my friend here angry, pal. I don’t think he likes being accused of things he didn’t do.*"
> ― MT-D
>
>

Receiving none of the answers that he is looking for, the man storms out of the bar and into the bustling city beyond.

### **Mission Update**

Blaine accepts a communications request from Cal Omas, who is looking for an update on the group’s progress in search of Bota Zi. Blaine responds that the group has made some limited progress, and requests that the New Republic forward him 22,000cr for his newly acquired lease, confusing Cal thoroughly.

> "*So, did you call for a real reason, or are you just trying to bother us?*"
> ― Blaine
>
>

Cal tries to explain the importance of the mission that “Aurek Team” has been assigned, noting that New Republic counterintelligence has been assigned to the search for the missing ambassador as well and asking if the group has come across Lannik Rakto and telling Blaine that they need to locate Merrick Kleiner as well. Blaine accepts the added persons of interest, and requests the New Republic look into Ameral Breed as well.

## **Featured Characters**

### **Our Heroes**

* Blaine Hansom
* Droo Vos
* Jawa Jimmy
	+ Sparky
* Jowkazza
* Katira Eve
* Roostan Steele

### **NPCs**

* Cal Omas
* Ameral Breed
* Reginald Johnson
* Cantle Spiros
* Kenneth

### **Mentioned**

* Governor Parnot
* Gold Armored Mandalorian Female
* Bota Zi
* Merrick Kleiner

## **Inventory**

* -2cp to *bargain* for a better lease (Blaine)
* -22,000cr for leased office space (Blaine)
* +22,000cr stolen from Reginald Johnson (Jawa Jimmy)
* -1,000cr to bribe receptionist for no reason (Katira)
* -50cr for Rydonnian Spice Wine (Katira)
* +1 favor (flavor?) from Blaine (Jawa Jimmy)
* +Cantle Spiros’ defaced business card - everything except the name is scratched out, with the word “Fraud” written underneath (Katira)

## **Notes**

* Arriving in the main lobby, Katira stepped away for a few minutes to inform the Gold Armored Mandalorian that the team would be unable to assist in their mission due to the kidnapping of their “leader”, Bota Zi. Katira used her recent study of Mandalorians to invoke the Mandalorian Code of Honor that “Loyalty is life, for without one’s clan one has no purpose”

## **Quotations**

> "*Uh, sorry miss… these tools are for union workers only. I can have someone else perform those repairs after our tour though.*"
> ― Ameral Breed
>
>

> "*I guess I’ll just have to trust in my reliable bodyguard, pink gloves McGee. Rusty can knock someone out with his fist of fury.*"
> ― Katira
>
>

> "*That’s Rusty’s prison name.*"
> ― Blaine
>
>

> "*I understand. Meddling with minds is a weird line to cross. I’m sorry, Katira*"
> ― Droo
>
>

> "*I don’t so much mind meddling with people, or fooling them. I do that all the time after all. But I don’t like the part where you’re **actually** meddling with my mind so much.*"
> ― Katira
>
>

> "*Sorry Bota, we would have found you sooner, but we did score a sweet deal on a lease for this guys old office.*"
> ― Rusty
>
>

> "*They won’t get rid of your license after the first infraction. Think about it.*"
> ― Cantle Spiros
>
>

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