• An addendum to Rule 3 regarding fan-translated works of things such as Web Novels has been made. Please see here for details.
  • We've issued a clarification on our policy on AI-generated work.
  • Our mod selection process has completed. Please welcome our new moderators.
  • Due to issues with external spam filters, QQ is currently unable to send any mail to Microsoft E-mail addresses. This includes any account at live.com, hotmail.com or msn.com. Signing up to the forum with one of these addresses will result in your verification E-mail never arriving. For best results, please use a different E-mail provider for your QQ address.
  • For prospective new members, a word of warning: don't use common names like Dennis, Simon, or Kenny if you decide to create an account. Spammers have used them all before you and gotten those names flagged in the anti-spam databases. Your account registration will be rejected because of it.
  • Since it has happened MULTIPLE times now, I want to be very clear about this. You do not get to abandon an account and create a new one. You do not get to pass an account to someone else and create a new one. If you do so anyway, you will be banned for creating sockpuppets.
  • Due to the actions of particularly persistent spammers and trolls, we will be banning disposable email addresses from today onward.
  • The rules regarding NSFW links have been updated. See here for details.

Governor's Gambit - Star Wars SI into Imperial Governor

Las: Thank you all for coming, now I'm going to say aloud your names and if I don't tell you to sit back down, I'll give you the choice of that window over there or the wall over there with the guards :}

How to clean house of the dumbest traitors and snakes when their cash flow stops. Bet none of them even researched him before they came over with political threats or bribes.

He is the "ideal" Imperial servant. One who, outwardly, does their duty as exactly as they should while not succumbing to corruption and thievery. He lives by his paycheck, taking advantage of the services his office naturally grants him, and if audited they would see his expenditures going to his cocoa drink in shipping fees. So for someone to become his replacement as governor, they have to be of like mind and understand that the systems in place are there to monitor them as much as the system. And unfortunately, has to be human, unless the alien is vouched for by an ISB agent... which we do
 
If Vader ends up being under Las due to the Emperor stirring up trouble or some temporary falling out between the Emperor and Vader, Las could just tell Vader he could register with the Guild under a different identity or his own and take his own jobs and build up his own funds as he pleases. Vader might tinker with own craft and droids and enjoy hunting down slavers and pirates and forget about the Empire for a while before the Emperor recalls him.
 
Good. Satisfaction fills me for a second, just one. Then disgust. It's a quiet thing, but it's there. I've just given a man a life sentence. I did so with evidence, yes, and within a legal system, yes. But it still disgusted me.

Because I didn't have to provide proof. I could've very easily had everyone here shot. I have that power. And so do over a thousand other Moffs across the galaxy. A thousand little tyrants.

There's a reason everyone cheered for the rebels.
Good, this is making him look more ruthless than he is. Therefore helping
deflect the emperor's personal attention. This is the right way to do things.
 
Bribery Requires the Correct Currency New
As a result of giving Vader a lot of autonomy and a LONG leash (mostly to keep him far away when the Emperor relieves him so he isn't within lightsaber or choking distance) along with a direct cadre of COMPETENT soldiers for fire support and a personal vessel (with the ONE request that he refrain from killing any personnel unless they do a particularly egregious screw-up) and NOT treating him like a servant, Las becomes the only person besides Palpatine to survive having Vader under his command.

To be fair, Palpatine didn't survive Vader either in RoTJ. That said, this sounds like omake fodder, so:

"What do you mean Lord Vader is coming here? We are out in the Galactic boonies and I am sure he has more than enough things to keep him occupied," Las said, wondering which God he had pissed off in his prior life.

"My apologies little bro, but the orders come from the Emperor himself. Little bro, I realize that Vader does not have the best track record, but you have turned some hole in the galaxy into a model of Imperial efficiency. I'm sure you'll do fine...oh crap I've got to go," Zyx said, before leaving her brother to his latest headache.

"So..what's our strategy?" Las asked.

Mugwuffin deigned to put his head in Las's lap, demanding head scratches. After providing a few, Mugwuffin gave a purr that seemed to suggest bribery.

"Yeah, I do not think bribing him with bbq would work," Las said, knowing that it would work on the cat, but not on a dark lord of the Sith. Las also briefly wondered why he was arguing with a cat and losing, but he gave up on sanity a while ago.

Mugwuffin telekinetically lifted a book to his desk, and Las read the title. Philosophy and Treatises: Ancient and Modern Thoughts on Darth Plagueis the Wise. Sighing, he started giving Vader a list of people to kill, preferably far away from him. He also hired three philosophy students to summarize it for him, so he could...paraphrase it.

***A week later, in the governor's office ***

Heavy breathing was surprisingly intimidating. Especially when it came in the form of a 6' plus mechanical space wizard who would cut off his own kids hand in order to prove a point.

"Lord Vader, I know you are a busy man and so am I. While under my command, I want you to remove these pirates and slavers from the sector," Las began handing him a datapad and a corresponding piece of flimsy.

"As you wish," the sith lord replies.

"Should you have spare time before the Emperor recalls you, I've tried to glean some wisdom from an ancient Sith Lord, and I would like your thoughts on it," handing him another datapad with his semi-original thoughts on Darth Plagueis.

"Well, I won't keep you, good hunting," Las said. Vader walked out of the room. Las somehow collapsed when he was already sitting.

***Another week later, in the governor's office ***

"And so, even if you have not quite grasped the dichotomy yet, your work shows potential. Comm me with any further questions on this matter, and I will reply AQAP. The emperor has recalled me to Imperial Center for now. I am not quite sure why, but he was muttering something about there being two of them now," Vader explained.

"Thank you Lord Vader. Safe travels," Las said. Vader left. Once again, he somehow collapsed when he was already sitting.
 
Last edited:
Omake: Pailers in Action New
Omake: Pailers in Action

POV: Mab Tyedor
RI: Scout
Certifications: Tracker I
Member of the Mynock Pailers, a RI: Conclave Mercenary Company,
Warehouse District, Town of Dewback Diggers, Minda-4, Minda system


"Anything down that alley partner?"

The tired sigh above her head indicated that their target was not down that alley. A shame, given they and the rest of the Pailers had been patrolling for most of the day. Complaints over the comlink were growing more frequent by the hour.

"No, Mab. The target is not down that alley. Just like the last alley you asked about. Sky Pail walked through this street not 15 minutes ago. I am sure they would have spotted the target if they were just ducking into alleys."

Mention of the Pailers' newest specialists drew a snort from Mab. Those poor fools were our "eye in the sky" as Miss Tak called them. They were helpful for keeping an eye on the streets while on patrol, but boy was their "leashed helper" a sight to see.

The Head of Administration had acquired some RMD-20 cam droids for cheap from a Holofilm studio after the production they were working on went bust. Turns out the reason they were so cheap was that a slicer sabotage attack disabled their ability to receive wireless signals.

Miss Tak had solved that problem by attaching the droids to an individual Pailer with a fiber-optic cable feeding them a live view from the sky. Thus the Sky Pailers were born! Now they could patrol roads and thoroughfares both on the ground and in the sky.

One upside to the silly looking set up was the cable could also be used to keep the RMD-20 charged, bypassing that pesky five hour charge limit. Another bonus was the direct connection prevented most methods of electronic warfare that didn't involve direct action which would give someone's position away anyway. Mab still wouldn't be caught dead lugging that backpack and cable around even if she were big enough to do so.

"Well let's keep looking for this Grieigo guy. What's his deal anyway? Was spaced out for the briefing cause I didn't sleep well last night."

Tear gave a snort through his Augiran style gas mask at her explanation. Wasn't her fault the quarterly Guild company numbers just came in around bedtime. All those stats and graphs told stories the Anomid couldn't comprehend no matter how many times she explained it. This sector was going through an economic revolution in fast motion and she might miss something interesting if she didn't keep track.

"Apparently he's a Vuvrian gambling cheat in his 50s. Been prowling the tables for decades in a profession where fools die young. Showed up on Highreach one day and managed to swindle tens of thousands of Credits before they pinned down how he was doing it, but by then he was already on a commuter shuttle to Minda-4 under a false identity.

However an immigration officer matched the photo to an old mugshot and contacted Commander Tak. She ordered everyone deployed for the reward and earn goodwill with the Guild higher ups. Why he came all the way to the town of Dewback Diggers is anyone's guess."

Mention of the Dewback Diggers' new classification brought no small amount of pride in Mab's chest. They don't even call it a mining settlement anymore. Things had progressed to the point that people are even talking about millages, council elections, and setting up a town hall. Dewback Diggers was less of an outpost and more a proper place to live these days.

Once folks realized there was a possibility of stable work in Minda-4, shuttles had started bringing in actual families instead of just all working singles for the mines. The stability brought by the Mynock Pailers' protection had attracted no small number of those shuttles to Dewback Diggers. Last count had the number of permanent residents at over 2,000. Granted a good portion of them had to be housed in a small rookery lined with flophouses originally meant for miners while the proper housing got built.

"Right. Well let's pass through the Eopie district and see if anything comes up."

Turning down the street brought them to the heart of the town's new industry. Eopies were a Tatooinian animal that was being shipped in large numbers thanks to the lack of natural predators and similarity to their desert homeworld. Ranchers were buying up land outside of town and betting on being able to set up a decent business raising Eopies for transport, livestock, animal products, and export.

That in turn had caused the Eopie district to spring up inside the town with places ready to take advantage of the ranching industry's outputs. The new wave of butcheries, dairies, and tanneries were starting to make the plateau feel a bit more crowded. Personally Mab thought the Eopie milk balls made for a good meal at the Pailers' mess hall.

"Hold up, the back door on that Eopie milk processing plant isn't closed properly. Workers wouldn't do that and risk spoiling their product in this heat. They'd get fired in an instant if the manager found out who did it. Let's hitch up and check it out."

The duo got off the Blurrg they were riding and hitched him to a nearby animal post. The giant two legged balls with teeth were an excellent choice of mount and transport by Mister Garik. The denizens of Dewback Diggers have learned to clear a path when a Pailers patrol Blurrg comes down the street.

"W-why hello there! What brings the illustrious Mynock Pailers to my business?"

Case in point, by the time they walked in the front entrance the manager was already there hands clasped in acquiescence. After explaining why we were here, she showed us around the facility. Their workforce was small enough and the ground floor open enough that they cleared it rather quickly. The only other place to search was the storage basement which the manager conceded someone could have snuck into.

"This is the Pailers! If anyone is here, say so and come out with your hands up!

Gosh it is so dark in here, even with the lights on. You would think people would want to see where they are going."

Tear turned on the glowrod on his SKZ to get a better look. All there was to see were some shelves of milk with the occasional orb shaped tank to break up the monotony. It was times like this Mab regretting opting for something smaller, but it was better to have both her B22s out in this close confines than having a second light source. Having a glowrod on her blaster would mess with the weight too much for her liking.

"Looks like this place was renovated instead of purpose built. If I were to guess this place used to b…"

*Tink! Tink! Tinktinktinktinktink…*

The sound echoed through the basement. A familiar sound that Mister Garik drilled into their heads as the object rolled closer. Training took over before thought.

"COVER! FRONTAL!"

Mab was unsure which of them barked the command. Both dived back behind a pillar to avoid the blast. While she waited a blur sped past her towards the stairs. Mab glanced around the pillar to behold…

A bottle of milk.

"Frak! That sleemo must have hid in a Bubble Cloak! After him!"

Mab began dashing up the stairs struggling to keep one of her B22s aimed upwards. Not for the first time she cursed the town's architecture not being made with an Aleena's frame in mind. Knocking open the back door to the street revealed a dust cloud becoming ever more distant and a woman lying on the street.

"That frakker just stole my Eopie! He stole my Epsi!"

From there it was scramble to get their Blurrg unhitched to give chase. Without much encouragement their beast was plowing through the streets in pursuit. Tear had his comlink almost touching his mask. The bellow that came forth barely even muffled by it.

"I have a suspect fleeing down Tapput street! Yurgala, you are the closest Sky Pail! Can you get eyes on them?"

It turns out Yurgala was able to track the suspect down. An Eopie running through a small town was not exactly subtle. It became even more obvious when said Eopie dashed through the town gate and down the bridge into the desert.

They had left the bridge deployed to avoid Grieigo feeling trapped and trying something stupid like taking hostages. Besides, it was easy for the guards stationed to spot anyone fleeing down it. Maybe the frakker thought the heat haze would provide them cover? Fortunately the Sky Pail stationed at the gate had a RMD-20 with a strong enough zoom to keep track of wherever the frakker is heading.

Before long Tear was kicking down a door to a bankrupt mining compound half a kilometer away from the town's plateau. The place had been seized by the town and then converted into a cheap landing field to support the expansion. Looks like Mab would have to report to Miss Tak that they needed more eyes on this place.

"Come on out sleemo! I have to pay you back for that milk bottle trick!"

It didn't really matter whether her provocation worked. She just had to keep the frakker busy enough for reinforcements to get here. The more they are focused on them, the less chance they have to do whatever it is they planned to do here. It was a landing field so ma…

*thwip!*

"Frak!"

*Pew!Pew!Pew!*

"Crikk! I give! I give! Stop shooting!"

It was only thanks to her quick reflexes that the bolt passed centimeters from her body. Looking at the struggling suspect on the floor the bolt appeared to come from a QuickShot under Grieigo's long sleeves. Wire-casters were archaic enough that most low level bouncers wouldn't know what to look for if they were hidden well. Only reason she knew what they were was because she read about them while looking into alternatives for the Pailers' standard SKZ. Must have been an insurance policy in case anyone took offense to his "good luck".

Still that firefight was over quick. Faster than even the stories mister Garik and the others would tell her about. Everyone fired a single shot and she only clipped the guy with one of hers, why did he give up so easily?

"Owowow! That hurts! You're gonna break something!"

Right a Vuvrian. No pain tolerance. Must be why Grieigo stuck to gambling for his thrills. And boy was Mab glad this was actually Grieigo. It would be really embarrassing to go through all this trouble just to have the wrong person. Speaking of which…

"So why are you all the way out here if you don't mind me asking? Running Eopies aren't exactly stealthy."

"Maybe if your brute of a partner would stop manhandling me, I would be a bit more coo…"

*chirpchirp!*

The sudden noise drew the trio's eyes towards a shut door. Mab made her way towards the door while Tear finished tying up Grieigo with syntherope. Inside was one of the compound's landing pads. There was a tarp over it to keep the coarse and rough and irritating sand from getting everywhere. However it was what was parked in that landing pad that caused Tear's eyes to sparkle like the river in Accordia.

"Oh wizard! Is that a vintage G-400? I didn't know any were still around outside of a museum! Which collector did you cheat to get ahold of this beauty?"

Grieigo began struggling against the syntherope's hold even more. Probably had something to do with having what was likely his most prized possession revealed. Although it was clear the gambler was more built for dexterity than brute strength.

"Hey! I resent that! I acquired the holodeed for Gashilama with my own hard work! Don't touch it!"

Worked hard at cheating, Mab imagines. From the looks of it Grieigo poured a lot of his winnings into his Gashilama. Shame he probably didn't keep enough of a nest egg to cover all his incoming fines when they bring him in.

"Well if you that interested Tear, I can see if Miss Tak is willing to put in a bid at the police auction. Given we are the police in this town and Grieigo was arrested in our jurisdiction, her word should carry some weight. Besides we need something to escort the Hurtwagon around."

Watching the bad guy wilt at the thought of having his ill-gotten gains being confiscated gave Mab such a rush. Taking a sabbatical from her job as an accountant was the best decision she ever made. Who knew being a budding mercenary could be so exhilarating? Just wait until her family hears about this adventure!

——
Been awhile since I did an Omake about how Garik and Tak are doing, even if they didn't make a physical appearance in this one. I wanted to show a subordinate look at how the Mynock Pailers operate. They're a technically unsophisticated but passably competent PMC now. The Sky Pails were inspired by militarized drones connected to up to 50 kilometers of fiber-optic cable being fielded recently in certain places.

Crossposted on SB and SV
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top