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The Firespray Blackheart dropped out of hyperspace. In its cockpit the Gauntleted hand of Salem Norongachi moved across the controls and switched to sublight engines, propelling the craft toward the singular planet ahead.
Myrkyr...it wasn't a planet the Force Adept fancied visiting...not if his data was right. Just thinking about his encounters with Ysalimiri made him shudder, that coldness that took him, the blanket of darkness falling across all his senses, that feeling of being utterly powerless. It sent a shudder up his spine. This was to important however to be stopped by his fear, if he got what he needed out of this meeting then spending a few hours closed off from the Force would be well worth it. He keyed open a channel to his host somewhere on the planet below as he came into orbit, it was only proper that they start off on the right foot and being shot at tended to make him quite upset.

"Myrkyr Base this is Salem Norongachi requesting permission to land and a meeting with Karrde" He said and then bringing his ship into a stead orbit he waited, it was all he could do, and if they refused well...more a more forceful request would be made.

Minutes can seem like hours to the impatient, or so it was said, Salem fully admitted his wasn't a patient man and so as the seconds ticked by he felt himself growing increasingly anxious and perhaps a tad nervous at what lay in wait for him on on arrival. He wasn't particularly subtle either. His armor was that of the Mandalorian's and was black with touches of red around the joins and across the breast plate, it was old and battered with patches upon patches to repair the damage it had received in his short but turbulent life. The armor spoke of power, it radiated menace and as he looked at it now, with the flaking insignia of his former mercenary group NOVA on the helmet which sat on the copilots seat to his left he couldn't help but think how garish it all was...how unnecessary.

He didn't know why but he started unclipping the armor from his body, unfastening it with all the haste he could and unceremoniously throwing it aside with no care or no regard for the memories the dark metal held. When it was done he wore nothing but a grey vest and shorts and without another look at the armor littering the cockpit floor he retreated to his quarters. It took him only a few moments to select a white shirt and a grey jacket, one extremely similar to his old Corporate uniform, he found the trousers to match and fastened a belt around his waist, pulled on some old boots and then clipping his lightsaber to it he looked at himself in the full length mirror across from his cot.

He looked horrible, he knew, he hardly slept and when he did his dreams were filled with dark memories that wouldn't be silenced. He ran a hand through his scruffy brown hair and then stared hard at the network of scars running across a face that looked at least ten years above its actual age. His life had done this to him, aged him, scarred him, made him bitter and cold....he could feel regret welling up inside him, flashes of memory, a fading want for change, to be done with it all....but just as quickly it was gone and the usual numbness returned. He had a job to do here....there was no place for emotion right now.

He returned to the cockpit and sat down, the hilt of his saber slapping gently against his thigh, when a burst of static came through the com followed by a message from the surface. "Your cleared to land, transmitting coordinates" It was as simple as that and the line was cut while the coordinates to the landing site were uploaded into his ships computer. Norongachi fed more power to the sublight engines and pushed the ship through Myrkyr's atmosphere, soon he was sweeping across a wide spread forest and already the coldness was creeping up on him, sapping his connection to the Force the closer he got to the canopy of green. He felt a bead of sweat trickle down his shoulder blades and forced himself to stay calm and remember that he wasn't always dependant on the Force, there was a time once when he'd fought and won on instinct alone.

He looked at the course plotted for him by the computer and adjusted the ship slightly and then slowed as he came to the landing site, he could see the flashing beacons just off a small encampment, low slung buildings scattered around a clearing that he assumed was Karrde's base. He brought the ship into land and due to the unusual design of the Firespray he found himself facing up at the sky as the patrol ship came to a shuddering rest on the ground.
He slung himself round and got a grip on the small ladder built into the floor and began his decent onto what would be, if he were in flight, the wall of the hold. He composed himself and then jabbed the release switch for the boarding hatch, it hissed open slowly and the ramp whined as it extended the ground, the ship showing its use and its state of disrepair. He hadn't used her since his time as Prex and made a note to put her in for repairs when he returned to The Edge. The Ramp finished its decent and he stepped outside.

Norongachi looked toward a tall blond man coming toward the landing pad as he came to a stop at the bottom of the Blackheart's boarding ramp. His escort, he assumed, and made his way toward the man, they met and all that was offered from the blue eyed human was a nod and then a motion of his head and then he about turned and began walking back toward one of the larger of the duracrete buildings rising up in contrast to the greenery around the base. Salem followed and matched the mans pace until they were at the entrance to the building. The man stopped and then turned to face Salem.

"Don't take this personally" He said and then proceeded to frisk the former Prex. Salem didn't object nor did he protest when the man unclipped his lightsaber and weighed it in his hand and then with a head motion toward the door they finally entered.

Salem followed his 'guide' into a long corridor, it was like many make shift bases he'd come across, designed to be evacuated in a moments notice. The doors on either side were closed to him but he could sense movement throughout the building more so above him than on this floor. The blond lead him up a flight of stairs and then down another corridor and finally into a room. The walls were filled with equipment of various sorts and a table sat in its center with a few chairs spread haphazardly around it. At the head of the table, but unseated, stood Karrde. The man seemed to study him as he entered, his blue eyes following Salem's advance into the room.

Salem stopped at the foot of the table and rested his hands at his side and met Talon's gaze. He let himself take in the details of the man, goatee, black hair and a face that gave away nothing. "I apologise for the unexpected arrival Mr Karrde," Began Norongachi. "But unfortunately i was in no position to contact you, if i had done it was possible that your base here would have been discovered." Salem continued, well aware that not everyone in his organization could be trusted, not even Nik knew he was here. "The Dark Force...I'd like to strike a bargain for its location"

Salem let a small smile play across his lips at the suggestion. He was weaponless and armorless in what could potentially be enemy territory and now his host would like him to lose his mobility and sit with his back to the door. Norongachi tried to gauge Talons sense through the Force he was a touch guarded but that was to be expected under the circumstances aside from that he couldn't sense anything malicious directed at him that might signify a trap then again Sal still wasn't sure if his abilities were being affected by this planets unique animal life.

Salem was half pulling out the chair when Karrde spoke again. Norongachi nearly flinched at the name, felt his composure slip for the briefest of moments and then regained himself in time to turn and give a forced smile to the new comer. He studied her for a moment, there no sense of ill will toward him, perhaps a touch of confusion at the mention of the Katana Fleet but nothing more...he did however note a slither of Force potential.

The former Prex took his seat and then turned to Karrde. "Please call me Salem, i feel old enough as it is" He said with a smile, yes it was a joke but he was feeling the aches and strains more so these days, right now his ankle was throbbing. Just another battle scar accumulated on his path to...what? What had he really achieved? Power perhaps, yes, but what had that power granted him....loneliness, betrayals, the odd decent into madness....and to top it all off it was this very same ankle that another Strife shattered on more than one occasion. He often wondered what his life would have been like if he'd stayed with the then New Republic, if he and Kal hadn't gone down the road of enemies....he had to many regrets and now wasn't the time.

"A pleasure Ms Strife" He said with a nod as she took her seat and then his gaze shifted back to his host. It was an interesting tale indeed, how he had come across not only the legend of the Katana fleet but also the information that had lead him to Karrde. However that was a long story and the way he was feeling right now he hadn't the energy for it. "Hoffner..." A single name, that's all that would be needed to see if his information was correct.

He had his answer and now Karrde wanted his. He had nothing to hide, it was, up until a point, a standard information trade. Salem sat back in his chair and fumbling in his pocket found a battered pack of cigarras. He tugged one of the slim white tobacco sticks from amongst its brethren and set it between his lips, he places his index finger to its end and with minimal effort summoned the Force calling up a small burst of flame that lit the Cigarra's end. He exhaled a plume of smoke as he considered Talon's question.

"Your right, the man was willing to extort us for quite a lot of credits for the location and i was more than willing to pay but before the meeting could get into full swing he was assassinated. I learned nothing of its location." He said behind a haze of blueish smoke that played across the surface of his skin. This of course would raise several more questions, ones that he was a little reluctant to reveal.

They didn't believe him, that was to be expected, he wouldn't have either and if either of them knew of his reputation, of the company he'd kept, it wouldn't have been a far stretch of the imagination at all. What they obviously didn't know was that Salem Norongachi wasn't one for violence unless it was forced upon him by circumstance or as a last resort.
"Yes it's hard to swallow but we both know that any organization, from the smallest to the largest has its leaks." He replied. "My ascent to power was not a smooth one and my enemies would not like to see me in possession of such a force..." Norongachi was unsure why he was explaining himself, perhaps it was the thought that even strangers who knew his name thought it synonymous with the word "Killer".

Salem sighed and ran his free hand through his hair exhaling another gust of smoke as he did and then looked back up at Karrde. "You wouldn't believe the answer i really want to give so i'll give you one that's easier to swallow." The Force adepts green eyes grew hard as his stare intensified. "Protection, plain and simple."

"That utterly depends on what my enemies have been doing with their time..." He said with a brief glance in Raine's direction. "But the real question is do i have the man power to crew two hundred Dreadnaughts, if my information is correct i would need four hundred thousand men and even for a man of my means that's a very high number of employees." He finished taking another drag of his Cigarra and watched Karrde rise and walk toward the window.

His eyes flicked to Raine again, was she a relative of Kal's? Then again when he thought further on it, what would he do if she were. He returned his attention to Karrde. "The terms are acceptable Mr Karrde, name your price and the details of the trade." Said Salem his tone all business.

"two point five billion credits" Salem thought, right now he wished he had his old CSA account back. To the Corporates that was a paltry sum but to The Cutthroats...it could be done but they'd be skating pretty close to bankruptcy. He made a note to increase raids when he returned and then focused on Karrde.

"Done, you'll be paid for each Drednaught upon delivery" He said and stood from his seat. He could feel the excitement rising as he always did when a deal was near closure but he kept a lid on it, it was generally at this stage that any transaction fell through.