He waves it away as a silly question, "Your name is on the list of authenticated users for the account, but I've never seen you before. Then, when I do see you, it is after two major cyber incursions that compromise bank security just after the operation this 'Tyra Bryn' is allegedly attached to is wiped out. This could all be treated as unhappy coincidence, but you do not appear on my list from Gorka of his 'notable' employees... Those that would have reason to deal with me, and therefore, have access to the account. Even if 'Tyra Bryn' ever existed to begin with, you are not she. Especially as a loyal employee of Gorka who miraculously survived an attack by Mandalorians would surely have informed her master of her return, would she not?" he smiles at her condescendingly, "You shouldn't have even tried matching wits with me. You never had a chance. Not in the sabacc game, and not now." he grins his self-satisfied grin, feeling triumphant at having foiled "Tyra's" scheme so thoroughly.

Maya nodded thoughtfully and shrugged, leaning back in the chair. Valek was definitely full of himself, that was certain, but he’d said too much. On the one hand, taking half of the credits was better then nothing. On the other hand, there was always a chance that they’d need to shoot their way out of this bank. Maya made a mental note to kill Valek before they robbed this bank. Stealing his credentials might come in handy.

” The ‘Unhappy Coincidence’ you speak of seems rather clear to me ,” she replied, motioning to the helmet. “ There’s no matching of wits to be done here Valek. Our deal with the Death Watch went bad. Now they’re wiping us out. My boss is dead. His boss is dead. I’m hardly a notable employee, Valek. But I’m what remains, and I can’t very well follow my orders to continue black market operations if I can’t withdraw the credits. If you really think I would be stupid enough to lead assassins to the Hutt paying me, I doubt I could convince you of anything. But if you’re so convinced I don’t work for him, perhaps we should contact him? I’m sure Gorka would be very interested to hear you made an offer to hand away his money to someone you thought didn’t work for him and keep half of it for yourself. ”

He nods, "Yes, let's do so. You have nothing on me other than your word. On the other hand, if you aren't who you claim to be, you'll be in for a lot of trouble." He picks up the comm, "Shall we?"

Maya leans back in the chair and glances to Darien, contemplating her options. If they could successfully rob the bank, none of this banter was going to matter in the slightest. Even if Gorka put out a bounty on her, that wouldn’t matter either. She’d done nothing to give away that they were Mandalorians. Truthfully, there wasn’t even any reason to try deceiving Valek anymore. For some reason the Twi’lek believed he was holding all the cards. He hadn’t considered that his life was part of the deck with which they were playing. Her patience had worn thin.

” Alright, Valek. I never was a very good liar anyway. There is a bounty on Gorka’s head. He’ll be dead within the month. He knows this. Currently, he is hiring more mercenaries to try and stop it. They won’t save him. Nothing will. If you’re as smart as you claim, you know it as well. So here is the deal I offer. You may consider the credits in Gorka’s account as a payment for our services. Instead of continuing to dismantle all of his assets, our organization will instead assist you in acquiring them. As a trusted representative of Jabba, I expect he will be glad to hear you’ve managed to salvage some of Gorka’s holdings. You hardly seem content with your position, and you’ve demonstrated you have the wits for much more. Do we have a deal? ”

He sets the holo-comm back down on his desk and nods, 'Yes... Yes, I think we do." He grins widely, showing his teeth, "With the Suns in position to sweep in and grab our operations, a smooth transfer of power will be well worth the loss of the credits. I will arrange their transfer, once your end of the bargain has been upheld. For now, I'll simply make sure they aren't used for anything else." He stares off into space momentarily, envisioning himself as the preeminent crime lord of Ord Mantell, a powerful position to be sure. Possibly one day he would rival "almighty" Jabba himself!

Maya stood and collected the helmet, nodding before heading to the door. She stopped before exiting and turned back to Valek, giving him a steely gaze. " We'll be in touch Valek. Make your preparations. " With that she exited the bank, waiting until she and Darien were out of range again to avoid being overheard.

" Well that hardly went well. What do you think? "

Darien exhales and shakes his head, "What do I think? I think I should call Cade back. Figured I shouldn't interrupt." He shrugs, "It's only been a minute though."

He fumbles with the headset, "Su cuy, Cade. Sorry I didn't respond sooner, he glances at Maya, we were... in the middle of something. We're just now leaving the bank. The bad news, Valek didn't buy it. The good news, he didn't sell us out. Maya's secured a... sha'kadir of sorts. I'll let her fill you in. Jate'kara ti Gorka."

After signing off with Cade, he looks over at Maya and shakes his head, chuckling. "I'm glad you're taking the lead on this. I'm in way over my head. I prefer a nice straight job. You know the target, you find the target, you collect on the target. Oyayc ra... kyrayc." he pantomimes pulling a trigger, "Simple, and something I'm good at." He shakes his head, "Not always easy, not always safe , but simple. Haatyc or'arue jate'shya ori'sol aru'ike nuhaatyc, serim?" he shrugs. "This is... something else. Something way outside my area of expertise." He stops walking and puts his hand on her shoulder, looking her straight in the eye, "You've got the lives of the rest of the team in your hand. My life. We've only known you for about a week. You've already proved yourself capable, but don't press this too far. I trust your judgement on this, but don't be afraid to cut it loose."

“ I won’t. Part of me wanted to just shoot him in there, but seeing as we plan to kill Gorka anyway, it seemed like the easiest way to get the credits without putting us in danger. Really reinforces my need to get armor. I may lay low for the next part, make us some gear for the upcoming fight, and make my own beskar’gam. ”

Darien nods his approval, and his face lightens a bit, the worry starting to smooth out of it.
________________

Kymber leads them to the casino, where they are nodded past the pair of bouncers guarding the door. As she leads them into the vestibule, the scanner techs jump to their feet as their consoles start flashing a silent alarm. Kymber smiles apologetically to them, "Ah, yes. This will be a touch irregular, I'm afraid." She turns to the Mandalorians, "Please give these gentlemen your rockets and pistols, and any other weapons you may have on your person. Kara, you may of course keep your pistol as we discussed."

They try to keep their grenades and the rockets in their jetpacks, but the scanner techs notice them. They take the grenades and the missiles, but they don't realize that they were trying to smuggle them through, assuming they just hadn't mentioned them yet. After checking their weapons with the scanner techs in the vestibule, Kymber leads them through the doors and into the lobby, an expansive room of tan walls and green carpet. On the wall, there is a large gold-leaf framed portrait of what you presume to be Gorka, a young Hutt, attractive as far as Hutts go. Directly in front of the entrance is a large wroshyr-wood desk, and on the wall to either side of the desk are huge, ornately carved doors matching the desk. To the right is a spiral staircase winding down, and to the left is a spiral staircase winding up, but it is roped off. The poised Twi'lek receptionist nods to Kymber, and the Bothan lifts the rope to usher them past, replacing it behind them. At the top, there is a solid wooden door that pushes open easily as they proceed. They exit to the noise of the patrons enjoying (or sometimes not) themselves, and step onto a balcony that wraps around the room, a good eight meters over the floor below. As they look over the railing, they see a variety of tables for games running the gamut from Pazaak to Hintaro and a dozen variations of Sabacc. The tables are run by a variety of beings, all in the livery of the casino. The tables are the same rich wood as the doors and the cornice. The vaulted ceilings hang tremendous chandeliers, the floor is a mosaic of giant tiles, and at the end of the room is a large stage, which at this point has nothing going on. On the other side of the room, the balcony bows out in front of large double doors guarded by a pair of Weequay with vibro-axes. Kymber slips ahead of them as the group begins to walk around the balcony. As they approach, Kymber turns back to them, smiling her big Bothan smile, "Are you ready?"

Kara waves her forward. Lead the way.

The Weequay open the great doors, and Kymber enters ahead of them, announcing them to her master before she slips into the shadows of the room, "Your magnificence, I have brought you the Mandalorians." She gestures behind herself, and the three Mandalorians enter through the double doors, which shut behind them. The room is much more dim than the great room outside, but as their eyes adjust, they see Gorka atop a raised dais, with two Weequay wielding vibro-axes standing as guards. To either side of the room were archways leading off to small halls, their doors currently shut.

Gorka's swollen form sat atop the dais in the dim but luxuriously decadent room. His skin, leathery, but more taut than you would expect from a Hutt. Instead of grotesque, he seemed healthy. Instead of loathsome, he seemed... Grandiose. He held himself in such a manner that spoke class, authority and dignity. Perhaps not what was first expected. His skin, a pale purple, contrasted by white mottled markings that flowed up over his shoulders and certainly gave him a distinct and different appearance. The Hutt leaned forward slightly as the Bothan approached, then glanced at the newcomers behind her, a smile on his face.

"Kymber..." he said, his voice deep and smooth, a richness echoing into the room. "You've brought me guests, Mandalorians . I welcome you, friends, I have been looking forward to making your acquaintance. Come now, introduce yourselves!" He said with a broad smile, waving a hand in your direction and taking a deep breath from the long apparatus he was holding, then proceeded to blow a plume of misty haze up into the air.

I'm Kara, this is Cade and Ge'tal.. Kara said, making the introductions. We would've had more here but they ran into some trouble..

"Welcome Kara, Cade and Ge'tal." He replied. Then leaned forward slightly, a concerned look on his face? "What kind of trouble? Nothing too serious I would hope. "

He blew another plume of smoke into the air, the smell sweet and sickly.

Cade shrugged, Other than Death Watch making push into the criminal underworld in the sector. Rumor has it they want to corner the market by taking out any organization and syndicate in their way... Something about establishing a power base to finance a return to The Good Old Days, when Mando'ade were on the verge of a system spanning Empire. Cade's voice didn't even try to mask the disgust in his voice. The hutuun are going to wipe out all the lucrative jobs!

Gorka frowned and nodded slowly as the Mandalorian spoke. "Yes, they are becoming quite a nuisance, to that I would agree." He replied.

"But first, where are my manners!?" The Hutt waved a hand and a Twi'lek Servant came around with a tray of assorted drinks, Liquor of all types in varying colors.

"Refreshments? I have quite a collection here, the finest the galaxy has to offer I do assure you." He said with a smile, his deep voice filling up the empty spaces and echoing in the room.

Kara held up a hand and slowly shook her head. Thank you, but not while we're working..

Cade's helmet slowly panned across the room, resting a hand on the pommel of his beskad as he quietly guessing if these were servants or slaves.

"Of course! Of course." He replied. "Mandalorians. All business. I respect that." He shifted on the dais, making himself comfortable.

"So, I'm interested in why you're here, I know you were invited by my lovely Kymber." He said motioning to the Bothan with his smoking apparatus. "But, why choose to accept?"

Cade shrugged and responded before Kara could stop him. Well, that misunderstanding with Black Sun didn't leave us with much option.. That and the rumor going around that they don't understand Mando'ade and contracts. Apparently, they didn't like contractors working for other groups, nor did they understand that we don't use knowledge of past employers against them, simply because we might be currently working for the competition. Which is a problem for mando'ade these days; this war is an employment boom for our people, ignorant aruetii like Black Sun are just restricting our opportunities.

Kara stepped up slightly, Officially , we only accepted a face-to-face meeting with a prospective employer.. She glanced around the room, To be honest, we would feel better with more of us if we were to consider your employ.. The three of us would be able to handle whatever criminal threat you might face. But if you have Death Watch gunning for you, we would want to bring in a few others. But I'm afraid they wouldn't agree to be restricted on their weapon loadouts.. they have some history with Death Watch.

Gorka listened carefully to the first Mandalorian, puffing away on his smoker, nodding slowly throughout.

"Oh I agree Cade, indeed I do. But see this meeting as an opportunity!" The Hutt exclaimed, his voice loud and excited. "An opportunity to to earn riches and renown."

He then looked to Kara, a broad smile on his face. "I understand, I am sure your talents and commitment to my cause could be very beneficial and lucrative for us both. And no doubt, if I were to hire you. I'd want to hire you all!" He said, raising a triumphant fist into the air.

"However... as you can see, my humble abode here is well defended. So until we come to some kind of... agreement... or contract. I could not let you come before me with all your bells and whistles now could I?" He shook his head slowly.

"That would not be prudent, such is the life of a Hutt with many enemies, wouldn't you say? Make a deal now, or perhaps come back later with your friends. If a deal is struck, your weapons will run free within my walls."

He puffed on the smoker again. The room starting to haze just a little.

"What say you, my newest friends?"

Kara seemed to consider that, then nodded, I'll see what they say when they get in the system. We'll come back with the decision in.. she looked at Cade, A day or two? Cade's half shrugged and nodded.

We'll be back in two days at most. Kara told Gorka.

"Splendid." The Hutt said with a smile. Then motioned to the Bothan. " Kymber will see you out. It was most pleasant to make your acquaintance."

The Bothan nods to Gorka as she materializes from the shadows and slips behind the group, ready to lead them back through the big doors.

The big doors open, letting in the noise of the casino as they begin the long walk around the balcony, passing the Weequay guards with their heavy blaster pistols and vibro-axes. A couple people glance up curiously, but no one takes special notice. As the group scans the casino, taking note of the security, they see a serving girl come through a set of doors on the same side as the Hutt's rooms, carrying a tray of drinks. They take note of the lock on the door at the top of the staircase, and the reinforced glass of the security doors at the entrance as they retrieved their weapons from the scanner techs. All in order, nothing tampered with. The bouncers give them a nod as they step out. Kymber gestures to a landspeeder that pulled up next to the curb, "Here, courtesy of Gorka." She gestures to the driver, an aging Bith, "He'll take you where you need to go."