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=== LOG START ===
Complication encountered: Attempted extortion from a palace visitor, Dheno Rey (see PROFILES). Claimed to be an associate of the Red Blade, demanded compensation in exchange for silence.
I have no idea if Rey was telling the truth, or if he was simply banking on my unfamiliarity with the area to push me into a vulnerable position. He was a fool to try, though. A fool and an intolerable disruption to my work.
His challenge of authenticity was public, and so the Red Blade persona required an equally public response. But he's still weakened my cover. It will not matter to some that Rey presented no evidence, the challenge alone will alter the thinking of some observers. Keeping in character and moving with efficiency will be especially important now. And yet, I also need to work to stabilize parts of Jiguuna's operations and take actions Nem'ro finds favorable.
Javis is undeniably a bigot. I heard grumbled remarks about aliens who 'can't even speak the language'. I am not exactly impressed to be considered a cut above simply because I spent time learning his silly little language. But it's still a weakness of his to be exploited, along with his sons. Intelligence is recording my conversations, and thus the home office is likely determining how to deal with those two. If they do their job, the sons should soon send favorable word to their father. Whatever my influence on this situation might be, family ties will overrule it.
I have been told the ore shipment has been stolen by Evocii renegades, and is located somewhere in the swamps outside Jiguuna. I am sure my day will be much improved by wandering through unfamiliar, toxic lowlands. I wonder if I can acquire a breathing mask anywhere before I make the attempt.
The Evocii themselves were mot mentioned in much detail in my briefing. When the Hutts sought a new homeworld, they found Hutta, then occupied primarily by the Evocii. Since then the Hutts have steadily displaced the Evocii from desirable territory, via unfavorable treaties, economic pressure, and hiring mercenary forces to break resistance. Yet another reminder of why the Ascendancy needs to take care in its dealings with aliens.
Despite the need for me to hurry, I'm taking on further independent work that coordinates with my itinerary. If my cover is blown, maybe I can pretend to have taken over the Red Blade's operations, regardless of whether I was the Red Blade or not. But that will only work if I have enough reputation built up by the point that I attempt a risky move like that.
The Evocii are universally low-status here, regardless of profession. Aiding one will not be popular with certain segments of Nem'ro's organization, but frankly, Morsel works within the palace and they don't. His successes are more likely to reach the Hutt than others, as are his failures and deficiencies. Propping up the present system therefore has benefits, regardless of whether a pack of rabid Humans sets upon him once I'm gone.
Doesn't bolster core objectives, but it's an easy and time-cheap way to maintain cover as a self-interested pirate making business connections. Less than an hour of commitment to sabotage a payment/bribe headed for Nem'ro from an outside dealer. Doesn't upset the current order of things.
Apparently spice is being refined into high-strength painkillers by Imperial scientists. I'm personally leery of the idea, but it would be a terrible move to undercut another Imperial operation without strong cause. And frankly, Getzo was, as Nokril evocatively put it, a 'shifty little womp rat'. I have no idea what a whomp rat is, but I think I'll recognize them in future with that description to guide me.
===PROFILES===
Name/Alias: Dheno Rey (['dʱiː.noʊ ɹeɪ])
I'm not sure what he thought was going to happen. Extortionate behavior like this has a very low chance of working unless the target feels fundamentally vulnerable. That requires them to be unaccustomed to effective measures of self-defense, or too overwhelmed with other demands to respond appropriately. He targeted someone claiming to be an enigmatic pirate with a distinctly martial alias, openly carrying a rifle and side-arm. I suppose if I were a pure infiltration specialist with no combat training, I would have felt more vulnerable. But as it was, he was not hard to kill.
If anyone cares enough about him to form a grudge over this, then his death might cause problems. I will be attempting to account for this moving forward, but there is no particular local way to find out more about him that would not draw notice and suspicion. Intelligence is the only option, and data will probably be limited to non-existant from the home office. I refuse to further risk my security by asking Linh, no matter how much she seems to live in the palace cantina.
[return to LOG]
Name/Alias: Odeph (['oʊ.dɛf])
A collaborationist. Either cowed by the Hutts, deceived by their promises of industrial wealth, on the take, or informing to other Evocii or rival Hutt clans. Data provided will only be as reliable as he is, which will be difficult without a sense for Evocii kinesics. Getting a feel for the Voam tribe will be an important aspect for judging how to proceed, but not much time can or should be spared on it. Not only do other tasks take precedence, but I fear becoming too adept at any one Hutta-specific skill. This planet is horrible. The Hutts can keep it, the Empire can profit from it, and the Evocii can choke on it. I won't be staying here.
[return to LOG]
Name/Alias: Morsel ([ˈmɔɹ.səl])
First Evocii I've met, and he's not a dazzling cultural ambassador. Utterly abased and yet clinging to a small scrap of provisional authority. Pathetic, officious, and spiteful. I would say he would be especially tractable and an easy target, but he likely has so little actual influence with others in the palace that leaning on him will be of limited use. Field operations may see some marginal benefit, but at the cost of reputation among all those overseers he's having trouble with. One quick round of intimidation towards them, and then I'm done with Morsel, I think.
[return to LOG]
Name/Alias: Getzo ['ɡɛt.zoʊ]
Erratic, fast-talking, likely thinks he's charming. He is not. He smells odd and has very little personality worth commenting on.
[return to LOG]
Name/Alias: Nokril ['nɒ.kːɹɪl]
It's fortunate I didn't think very much of Getzo. Nokril, however, made for an interesting encounter. The Empire is taking multiple paths towards influencing and exploiting Hutta in general and Nem'ro in particular. That much was clear already, but I had only met Intelligence assets thus far. It is unclear which house of the Imperial government has retained him, or how. He may in fact be a smuggler they have paid to facilitate the deal, but I can't entirely rule out recent ex-military either. He hasn't got what would be thought of as an Imperial accent, but that can be covered with some practice. Furthermore, the Empire's colonial expansion during the last war resulted in a number of foreign populations falling under their control.
Shame I won't have the chance to ask about it in more detail, but I have my own cover to keep. However, it is fortunate that I took Getzo's offer. Someone else might have actually followed through.
[return to LOG]
=== PROFILE UPDATES ===
Name/Alias: Karrels Javis ([ˈkæɹ.əls 'd͡ʒar.vɪs])
Really, not much more to say. A Human with inordinate regard for his own species, has some children he is attached to. It should be noted, however: his assessment of any situations including non-Humans will likely be flawed. Unfortunately, that includes almost every situation, especially any encounter with me.
[return to LOG]
== WARNINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ==
Certain local factions may have low or no presence within Nem'ro's headquarters. Remain mindful of the distinction between palace politics and realities on the ground.
The mud in Jiguuna is bad enough already. The swamp is going to be horrid.
I arrived with very little resources. And while Mattle's training and outfitting supplies are cheap, they're generally not free. This is another reason to take on side-jobs and loot bodies when possible, no matter how distasteful the process may be. Clothes will mostly be a lost cause--especially on Hutta, which no one's clothing escapes unscathed--but personal items can be sold.
While it may be profitable, this omnipresent class of drugs is the motive behind a large percentage of murders in gang territories. Every centimeter of this planet is gang territory. Thus, I don't intend to transport or hold any of the stuff unless it's specifically for a Nem'ro-related job. Work related to spice is only to be taken if it fits the aforementioned requirement or involves independent dealers rather than gangs. The Red Blade can engage in all sorts of black marketeering and contract work in safer sectors than that.
Further complicating matters, spice is actually a generic name for a number of narcotic products of varying potency, purity, and effect. Many are adulterated with cheap filler compounds or other active ingredients. Consuming spice should only be considered as part of a cover if 1. A sample can be collected for toxicology 2. Detox options are reasonably available 3. No other option presents itself.
In future, I hope I can impress upon Intelligence's quartermasters how poorly human-optimized disguise solutions work for Chiss. It's quite possible to make us look like humans--even regular broadcast holos are managing to paint their actors in convincing shades of brown these days. But it require three things:
First, a fundamentally different face mesh. These already need to be custom-fitted to match the proportions of the wearer, but Human facial musculature is slightly different than chiss. I'm a closer match to them than a hundred-generation Aristocra, but the fact remains that my facial musculature in motion will look wrong on a Human face if they aren't addressed. A well-built mesh can disguise this, but it has to hold tension in the right directions to redirect movement. They haven't bothered with that, as training exercises (not to mention undeserved points docked in the process) demonstrated.
Second, they don't have glow-mitigating lenses or eye drops. Just lenses and treatments that work with their unnerving, black-pitted eyes. Unless you want to go in for full surgery, but I'm not looking to disfigure myself any further for this job.
Third, more carefully chosen makeup blends. While a proper base coat and hair dye can work wonders, Humans' unfortunate limitations have caused me no end of trouble. Everything past red is invisible to them. They have no idea what color their faces really are. And that means they don't realize that easily half their makeup products don't match their skin tone at all, including shades stocked by Intelligence. Before I began language and culture classes back in the Ascendancy, I thought the comedies were exaggerating the look. They weren't. Fortunately, those classes recommended color-filtering contact lenses and glasses to combat the effect. It means I have another piece of equipment to carry with me--and one I had to explain to the Imperial instructors, who were convinced it was somehow an unfair advantage. So I had to do without, leaving me I cursed with whatever the opposite of color-blindness might be. I'm trying to accumulate a list of reliable brands, but it's difficult to do so.
Putting past speculations in print: There's a high chance I'll have to work in makeup within view of a fellow chiss or an alien with full color vision. For covers posing as Human or other near-chiss species, this creates two categories of disguise and attendant makeup: True natural looks, and those which use makeup for stylistic purposes. Stylistic makeup will have to be off-color, and preferably be applied with color-filtration already in place, so I remain at least partly oblivious of what a hash I make of myself, just like a real Human.
=== LOG END ===
Complication encountered: Attempted extortion from a palace visitor, Dheno Rey (see PROFILES). Claimed to be an associate of the Red Blade, demanded compensation in exchange for silence.
▶ Payment was ruled out as a possibility: Possible admission of guilt, left self and other Imperial agents open to further extortion. Therefore, publicly eliminated Rey.
I have no idea if Rey was telling the truth, or if he was simply banking on my unfamiliarity with the area to push me into a vulnerable position. He was a fool to try, though. A fool and an intolerable disruption to my work.
His challenge of authenticity was public, and so the Red Blade persona required an equally public response. But he's still weakened my cover. It will not matter to some that Rey presented no evidence, the challenge alone will alter the thinking of some observers. Keeping in character and moving with efficiency will be especially important now. And yet, I also need to work to stabilize parts of Jiguuna's operations and take actions Nem'ro finds favorable.
Spoke with Karrels Javis (see UPDATED PROFILES). Javis initiated discussion of the Empire as a potential controlling business partner. Javis' anxiety over his sons beginning trade in Imperial space is his stated reason for questioning.
Javis is undeniably a bigot. I heard grumbled remarks about aliens who 'can't even speak the language'. I am not exactly impressed to be considered a cut above simply because I spent time learning his silly little language. But it's still a weakness of his to be exploited, along with his sons. Intelligence is recording my conversations, and thus the home office is likely determining how to deal with those two. If they do their job, the sons should soon send favorable word to their father. Whatever my influence on this situation might be, family ties will overrule it.
Taking on a task to mitigate Javis' loss of standing: retrieving a rare ore shipment from native Evocii territory. En route to the collaborationist Voam Tribe's work camp to question their chief, Odeph (see PROFILES).
I have been told the ore shipment has been stolen by Evocii renegades, and is located somewhere in the swamps outside Jiguuna. I am sure my day will be much improved by wandering through unfamiliar, toxic lowlands. I wonder if I can acquire a breathing mask anywhere before I make the attempt.
The Evocii themselves were mot mentioned in much detail in my briefing. When the Hutts sought a new homeworld, they found Hutta, then occupied primarily by the Evocii. Since then the Hutts have steadily displaced the Evocii from desirable territory, via unfavorable treaties, economic pressure, and hiring mercenary forces to break resistance. Yet another reminder of why the Ascendancy needs to take care in its dealings with aliens.
Acquired further assignments to bolster cover and Javis' position
Despite the need for me to hurry, I'm taking on further independent work that coordinates with my itinerary. If my cover is blown, maybe I can pretend to have taken over the Red Blade's operations, regardless of whether I was the Red Blade or not. But that will only work if I have enough reputation built up by the point that I attempt a risky move like that.
Lean on enforcers at Voam camp on behalf of Evocii administrator Morsel (see PROFILES).
The Evocii are universally low-status here, regardless of profession. Aiding one will not be popular with certain segments of Nem'ro's organization, but frankly, Morsel works within the palace and they don't. His successes are more likely to reach the Hutt than others, as are his failures and deficiencies. Propping up the present system therefore has benefits, regardless of whether a pack of rabid Humans sets upon him once I'm gone.
▶ Sabotage a spice deal for pay by a palace dealer, Getzo (see PROFILES).
Doesn't bolster core objectives, but it's an easy and time-cheap way to maintain cover as a self-interested pirate making business connections. Less than an hour of commitment to sabotage a payment/bribe headed for Nem'ro from an outside dealer. Doesn't upset the current order of things.
▶ ▶ UPDATE: Plans changed: rival dealer Nokril (see PROFILES) was an Imperial asset. Will rendezvous with Nokril at the palace to place pressure on Getzo.
Apparently spice is being refined into high-strength painkillers by Imperial scientists. I'm personally leery of the idea, but it would be a terrible move to undercut another Imperial operation without strong cause. And frankly, Getzo was, as Nokril evocatively put it, a 'shifty little womp rat'. I have no idea what a whomp rat is, but I think I'll recognize them in future with that description to guide me.
===PROFILES===
Name/Alias: Dheno Rey (['dʱiː.noʊ ɹeɪ])
> Species: Zabrak
> Sex: Male
> Gender: Masculine
> Height: ~175 cm
> Skin color: #c60
> Eye color: #c50
> Hair color: N/A
> Identifying features: Horns closely spaced over forehead. Three major and minor pairs, one major central horn. Tattoo lines flank central horn, paired lines from inner eye corner to cheek, line down nose, three lines from lower lip to neck. Thin lips, average nose, high cheekbones.
> Status: Dead.
I'm not sure what he thought was going to happen. Extortionate behavior like this has a very low chance of working unless the target feels fundamentally vulnerable. That requires them to be unaccustomed to effective measures of self-defense, or too overwhelmed with other demands to respond appropriately. He targeted someone claiming to be an enigmatic pirate with a distinctly martial alias, openly carrying a rifle and side-arm. I suppose if I were a pure infiltration specialist with no combat training, I would have felt more vulnerable. But as it was, he was not hard to kill.
If anyone cares enough about him to form a grudge over this, then his death might cause problems. I will be attempting to account for this moving forward, but there is no particular local way to find out more about him that would not draw notice and suspicion. Intelligence is the only option, and data will probably be limited to non-existant from the home office. I refuse to further risk my security by asking Linh, no matter how much she seems to live in the palace cantina.
[return to LOG]
Name/Alias: Odeph (['oʊ.dɛf])
> Species: Evocii
> Sex: Unknown
> Gender: Masculine
> Height: Unknown
> Skin color: Unknown
> Eye color: Unknown
> Hair color: Unknown
> Identifying features:
> Status: Chieftain of Voam Tribe.
A collaborationist. Either cowed by the Hutts, deceived by their promises of industrial wealth, on the take, or informing to other Evocii or rival Hutt clans. Data provided will only be as reliable as he is, which will be difficult without a sense for Evocii kinesics. Getting a feel for the Voam tribe will be an important aspect for judging how to proceed, but not much time can or should be spared on it. Not only do other tasks take precedence, but I fear becoming too adept at any one Hutta-specific skill. This planet is horrible. The Hutts can keep it, the Empire can profit from it, and the Evocii can choke on it. I won't be staying here.
[return to LOG]
Name/Alias: Morsel ([ˈmɔɹ.səl])
> Species: Evocii
> Sex: Unknown
> Gender: Masculine
> Height: ~165 cm
> Skin color: #fc7
> Eye color: #367
> Hair color: #210
> Identifying features: Hair ~15 cm, bald from brow ridge up except for tuft above forehead. Pockmark on left cheek.
> Status: Administrator of Nem'ro Clan work crews.
First Evocii I've met, and he's not a dazzling cultural ambassador. Utterly abased and yet clinging to a small scrap of provisional authority. Pathetic, officious, and spiteful. I would say he would be especially tractable and an easy target, but he likely has so little actual influence with others in the palace that leaning on him will be of limited use. Field operations may see some marginal benefit, but at the cost of reputation among all those overseers he's having trouble with. One quick round of intimidation towards them, and then I'm done with Morsel, I think.
[return to LOG]
Name/Alias: Getzo ['ɡɛt.zoʊ]
> Species: Human
> Sex: Male
> Gender: Masculine
> Height: ~170 cm
> Skin color: #fb7
> Eye color: #378
> Hair color: #320
> Identifying features: Slight build. Small, thin nose, very thin lips, monolid, downturned eyes. Overbite. Scar halfway down the chin. Wears mascara (#000) and lip pencil (~#310).
> Status: Spice dealer seeking approval to deal in Nem'ro territory.
Erratic, fast-talking, likely thinks he's charming. He is not. He smells odd and has very little personality worth commenting on.
[return to LOG]
Name/Alias: Nokril ['nɒ.kːɹɪl]
> Species: Human
> Sex: Male
> Gender: Masculine
> Height: ~170 cm
> Skin color: #eb9
> Eye color: #247
> Hair color: #420
> Identifying features: Broad shoulders. Pinched cheeks, short, thin, downturned nose, thin lips. Double eyelid crease. Scar from corner of left eye to sideburns.
> Status: Spice dealer and Imperial asset, securing deal in Nem'ro territory.
It's fortunate I didn't think very much of Getzo. Nokril, however, made for an interesting encounter. The Empire is taking multiple paths towards influencing and exploiting Hutta in general and Nem'ro in particular. That much was clear already, but I had only met Intelligence assets thus far. It is unclear which house of the Imperial government has retained him, or how. He may in fact be a smuggler they have paid to facilitate the deal, but I can't entirely rule out recent ex-military either. He hasn't got what would be thought of as an Imperial accent, but that can be covered with some practice. Furthermore, the Empire's colonial expansion during the last war resulted in a number of foreign populations falling under their control.
Shame I won't have the chance to ask about it in more detail, but I have my own cover to keep. However, it is fortunate that I took Getzo's offer. Someone else might have actually followed through.
[return to LOG]
=== PROFILE UPDATES ===
Name/Alias: Karrels Javis ([ˈkæɹ.əls 'd͡ʒar.vɪs])
> Species: Human (cyborg)
> Sex: Male
> Gender: Masculine
> Height: ~180 cm
> Skin color: #753
> Eye color: #531
> Hair color: #ddd
> Identifying features: Cybernetic right eye: pinhole lens, two white stripes descending to cheek, auxiliary sensor disc attached above orbit. Left temple attachment point for lead (neural interface?). Bald, with a drooping moustache. Scar beneath lip, left side, descending leftwards. Scar on mid-left jaw.
> Status: An advisor and lieutenant to Sudaa Nem'ro.
> Notable Relations: Sons (number unknown)
Really, not much more to say. A Human with inordinate regard for his own species, has some children he is attached to. It should be noted, however: his assessment of any situations including non-Humans will likely be flawed. Unfortunately, that includes almost every situation, especially any encounter with me.
[return to LOG]
== WARNINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ==
Certain local factions may have low or no presence within Nem'ro's headquarters. Remain mindful of the distinction between palace politics and realities on the ground.
▶ Check seal on gloves, water and chem-proofing on all outerwear.
The mud in Jiguuna is bad enough already. The swamp is going to be horrid.
Discretionary account is limited. Ensure side-objectives are profitable where possible.
I arrived with very little resources. And while Mattle's training and outfitting supplies are cheap, they're generally not free. This is another reason to take on side-jobs and loot bodies when possible, no matter how distasteful the process may be. Clothes will mostly be a lost cause--especially on Hutta, which no one's clothing escapes unscathed--but personal items can be sold.
Spice is a focal point of the local gang economy, and is thus not worth dealing.
While it may be profitable, this omnipresent class of drugs is the motive behind a large percentage of murders in gang territories. Every centimeter of this planet is gang territory. Thus, I don't intend to transport or hold any of the stuff unless it's specifically for a Nem'ro-related job. Work related to spice is only to be taken if it fits the aforementioned requirement or involves independent dealers rather than gangs. The Red Blade can engage in all sorts of black marketeering and contract work in safer sectors than that.
Further complicating matters, spice is actually a generic name for a number of narcotic products of varying potency, purity, and effect. Many are adulterated with cheap filler compounds or other active ingredients. Consuming spice should only be considered as part of a cover if 1. A sample can be collected for toxicology 2. Detox options are reasonably available 3. No other option presents itself.
Continue acquiring disguise components.
In future, I hope I can impress upon Intelligence's quartermasters how poorly human-optimized disguise solutions work for Chiss. It's quite possible to make us look like humans--even regular broadcast holos are managing to paint their actors in convincing shades of brown these days. But it require three things:
First, a fundamentally different face mesh. These already need to be custom-fitted to match the proportions of the wearer, but Human facial musculature is slightly different than chiss. I'm a closer match to them than a hundred-generation Aristocra, but the fact remains that my facial musculature in motion will look wrong on a Human face if they aren't addressed. A well-built mesh can disguise this, but it has to hold tension in the right directions to redirect movement. They haven't bothered with that, as training exercises (not to mention undeserved points docked in the process) demonstrated.
Second, they don't have glow-mitigating lenses or eye drops. Just lenses and treatments that work with their unnerving, black-pitted eyes. Unless you want to go in for full surgery, but I'm not looking to disfigure myself any further for this job.
Third, more carefully chosen makeup blends. While a proper base coat and hair dye can work wonders, Humans' unfortunate limitations have caused me no end of trouble. Everything past red is invisible to them. They have no idea what color their faces really are. And that means they don't realize that easily half their makeup products don't match their skin tone at all, including shades stocked by Intelligence. Before I began language and culture classes back in the Ascendancy, I thought the comedies were exaggerating the look. They weren't. Fortunately, those classes recommended color-filtering contact lenses and glasses to combat the effect. It means I have another piece of equipment to carry with me--and one I had to explain to the Imperial instructors, who were convinced it was somehow an unfair advantage. So I had to do without, leaving me I cursed with whatever the opposite of color-blindness might be. I'm trying to accumulate a list of reliable brands, but it's difficult to do so.
Putting past speculations in print: There's a high chance I'll have to work in makeup within view of a fellow chiss or an alien with full color vision. For covers posing as Human or other near-chiss species, this creates two categories of disguise and attendant makeup: True natural looks, and those which use makeup for stylistic purposes. Stylistic makeup will have to be off-color, and preferably be applied with color-filtration already in place, so I remain at least partly oblivious of what a hash I make of myself, just like a real Human.
=== LOG END ===
