Battle of the Bulge (Pt II)
A thick rolling steam billowed out the Bath House door way, filling the corridor as a spider-legged droid marched in it's quick patterned ticks passed a pair of dozing Gamorreans, one leaning forward upon his ornate pole arm vibro-axe and the other slumped back against the wall. Their jowls raised and lowered in sync with the tips of their snouts as their heavy breathing neared a snore, peppered with snorts and gurgles, nearly waking themselves as with a quick seamless shift of direction, the metallic octo-pod swung in to the steam filled chamber and skittered off in to the dense vapors.
A pungent incense filled the air while in the far corner a trio of musicians manipulated their odd string, percussive and wind instruments, producing a strangely timed and wide ranging toned ensemble, not necessarily lacking rhythm or tune, just the kind pleasing to most species ear. A seductively attired and exquisite specimen of a Wroonian woman clenched a large palm leaf fan, three or four times wider than her petite frame. Her bronze colored lip cover matching the same natural shade of her glistening eyes. Her midnight blue hair accentuated by her deep indigo skin. She was expressionless and tight lipped as she carefully and slowly waved a gentle breeze upon her master.
Zapata basked in a recessed floor tub of what seemed to be a slowly stewing mud. As the heat bubbles rose, expanded and exploded, they occasionally tossed small splotches of the brown sediment filled liquid throughout the room. The walls were covered in the cooled and dried speckle, fresh layers of condensed and settled moisture rolling down over it. The bulbous creature swirled a finger of one hand in the warm brewing dirt satured water while in the other he daintily pinched the conical metallic end of a hookah hose as the uninhaled exhaust vapors rolled from the tip. He leant back on the elbow of his hose clenching arm against the tubs slightly raised and cushioned out-lining, his eyelids weighing heavy and fluttering. The source of the smoke itself was a rather excessive device, a multi bulbed glass enclosure three meters tall in progressively smaller chambers of refinement that stood behind him, it's inner walls above their liquid line caked with a resinous compound, the smoke feed tube extending in an angle from the lowest and largest section. It was decorated with ornate etchings in ancient Huttese, perhaps the oldest still known written language in the Galaxy, and encrusted with precious metal and gem linings. Upon a kind of rudimentary swing dangled from the ceiling, a kowakian monkey-lizard bore a torch that he occassionally put to a firebox atop the mechanism to keep it churning. The exhaled and unconsumed second hand smoke from his master's indulgence wafting up in a large cloudy path encompassing the space the tiny frail jester alien occupied, fighting sedation himself from it's effects.
The spider-droid paused for a moment, and seemed to almost sigh with it's mechanical body langauge before approaching the Hutt.
*BO-DOOP!* it called out for the massive creatures attention, going unnoticed.
*BOBOOP BOBOOP!* it again hailed in a higher pitch.
"Ooooo, poochala!? [WHAT IS IT?!]" the Hutt bellowed, his eyes finally breaking their spaced out flutter as his elbow lost it's grip and his pose slipped.
"Magaga vuchi sem teppa! [Can't you see I'm Busy!]" he called out while adjusting himself and taking a slight pull from his inhaling tube.
*CHOOOOOOP!* the droid beeped before commencing a hologram. . .
. . .Pachanga Izissi's holo-image emanated from the spider droids flat head-body surface, manifesting roughly a foot above. . .
"BRUDDAH! [BROTHER!]" the miniature blue likeness deeply yelled.
Zapata's eyes widened with surprise as he dropped the hookah hose and seemingly spit out his mouth and lungs full of smoke. He shoed away the female Wroonian attendant and abruptly stopped the three piece band with his frantic hand motions.
"BRUDDAH! Wegah ekko chee chee moola vamash!? Mokash Eldruun eemood chakala! [BROTHER! Where is the fleet I've secured for you!? The Elders demand you move on Kessel at once!]" the holo-hutt continued in a scolding tone.
"Mocha mocha meenee Bruddah! Wogasa midi veemoooo! [Relax relax dear brother, My plan is in motion!]" Zapata responded in his own defense.
"Wogasa? [Your plan?]" Pachanga countered. "Me chooga, tu ahd beecha dumesh, fo deese Kajidii Beemo ahnooka Wekash Eldruun! [I doubt that, but you had better deliver, in honor of Father Beemo and one day for our rise to the Elders!]" he offered the heavily weighted provocation.
"Ooooooo, choomu ichee mala meenee Kajidii! [Ooo, do not lecture me on dear Father!]" the previously scolded Hutt answered now bold, turning the aggressor. "Geemo alla dumesh Xo's Eek tu fo Eldruun! Ahn dee meenee Bruddah mekala bo foovo Izissi! [I will deliver Xo's Eye to the Elders! And then dear Brother, I will be the favored Izissi!]" he proclaimed, now chins raised in pride and motioning to his band to play something upbeat to which they immediately obliged.
"Ooohohohohoho! Doosh meenee Bruddah, Doosh. Ahspeega suuvo mekka unt Nar Shaddaa. Cowaka agama Hoota jamma deeso talla! Nah, golo woogash fo Huttuk Eempeerlio![Oohahahaha! Good dear Brother, Good. Those aspirations will serve you well here on Nar Shaddaa. Ashame I'd have you killed before setting tail on Hutta! Now, go conquer for the Hutt-kind Empire!" Pachanga replied yelling over the jazzy instrumental, then immediately terminating the transmission.
"OOoossssssssssss" Zapata hissed at the threat.
His brother Hutt Pachanga was diminutive in stature, but his scheming and shrewdness made up for it. Clan Izissi had been elevated from a mere family branch of the Besadii only centuries ago by the Elders and because of this were bound to serve as the Council's personal dogs for a thousand years. Their first Kajidii was the powerful baron of Teth, Beemo Izissi Chikori, meeting his demise some years ago. Long winning the favor of the Elders since the cowardly murder of their Clan Patriarch, Pachanga was the Elder Council's eyes, ears, and fist on Nar Shaddaa, enforcing tribute and the Council's personal tasks there, making him one of the most untouchable yet despised amongst the Hutts. But all Hutts had aspirations as bright and vast as the stars. For too long Zapata had served second to his puny brother Pachanga. The conquest of Kessel he'd hoped would stoke the Council's notice and faith.
Elsewhere, the plan devised by Zapata's military adivsor, the Duros indentured soldier Waugak, began to unfold. . .
A run down Corellian Engineering Corps Barloz freighter approached Kessel's Garrison Moon, Sky Bogey. An organized chorus of shipping traffic and armed escorts slowly circled in holding patterns over the natural satellite, awaiting their turn for docking and ensuring order respectively. Occassionally a freighter emerged from within the moon itself, departing loaded with the precious Glitterstim Spice. While the massive mishapen planetoid below served as the prison colony and mining site, the tiny moon was it's administrator and distributor. The central hub of the Imperial Warlord Ishfan Szymon's economic life, his betrayal of his oath to kill Leia Organa had brough the vengeance of the Hutts to his doorstep. But absent from his nest on some brashly decided hiatus, Szymon was no where near his base of Kessel and had no way of being reached. His forces would face the threat unprepared and leaderless.
As the weathered Medium Barloz freighter drew near the Garrison Moon, a pair of TIE Interceptors and a StarViper formed up in escort of it and attempted to establish contact,
*SHHHHHHH* "Barloz, identify and authenticate to proceed to queue, Over" *SHHHHHH* the comm-speaker within the CEC freighter's cockpit buzzed. It's seats were empty. An old Astromech droid, preceding the R series by at least five generations was plugged in to a control port and piloted the vessel. The comm-speaker chatter prompted it's lament,
"Wooowooo," it quietly remarked in it's electronic language, unsure of what to do. A moment later, the cockpit door slid open and a bulky Gonk Droid bumbled it's way in, announcing itself along the way, "*GONK!* *GONK!*". Approaching the comm panel, a small mechanical arm emerged from behind on of it's face panels and depressed a button. The boxy metal being then activated a preloaded recording,
*SHHHH* "Esssscort, this isssss Hutta Flyyyt Zeeroo Two Foe. Asss Sssscheduled arrrriving forrr weekly sheepment do Na Shaddaaa. Transsssmitting Awwthenticasssshun!" *SHHH* a Trandoshan or Twi'lek sounding accented basic speech replied to the hailing.
*SHHHH* "Affirmative Zero Two Four, you are cleared. Follow us to the queue." *SHHHH* the greeting starfighter escort answered before peeling off and heading for a swirling congregation of eager traffickers hovering above the Garrison Moon, followed by the droid manned beat up old freighter. . .(TBC, Conclusion in Part III)