Wrehn, grinning like a predator, set her cards down on the caf table in the crew mess aboard her patrol craft, Heaven's Cricket, which had been converted into a light freighter, albeit a light freighter with major fire power.
"I fold," Torian said, a bit frustrated.
"Yeah, me too," Mako chirped, as though she didn't mind losing.
"Yeah," Gault said, disgustedly as he set his cards down, "I don't know how I pull off these impossible wins, but here I win again."
Gault's disgusted frown instantly transformed into a devilish grin, even as Wrehn's predator's grin vanished.
"Wait! How?!" she protested, "I've got the Prime Sabacc hand!"
"I can see that," Gault answered, "but I've got the Pure Sabacc hand. Sooooo…., that means I win."
With that, a wide grinning Gault reach over the caf table and, with both hands, pulled the pile of chips towards him, adding to his already large pile of chips. Wrehn slammed her open palm on the table, launching herself from her seat.
"I've had enough!"
"I still haven't figured out how he's cheating," Torian said, with a slight smile that didn't match the edge of irritation in his eyes and in his voice.
"Hey, now!" Gault protested, as though indignant, "I resent that baseless accusation. You even said it yourself. You didn't see me cheat. That means I didn't cheat."
"I don't know why you guys keep playing cards with him," Skadge said, dumbfounded, "He keeps beating you in cards. You guys are dumb."
He'd been watching the game from the other table. Mako laughed on hearing what the brutish Houk said.
"Skadge, you're absolutely right! We're a bunch of dummies!"
"Torian," Gault said, reasonably, "you opened the deck. You made rule three. I'm not allowed to shuffle the deck, nor to deal. I didn't shuffle the deck, and I didn't deal. I didn't cheat. I'm a professional sabacc player. I know how to play. That's all."
A chime sounded on the overhead.
"Time to get to work," Gault said, waving his datapad over the pile of chips.
The credits programmed into each chip transferred into his datapad, and then to his personal bank account. He made seventy three credits off of his teammates. Gault made it a policy never to play for high stakes with people he didn't want to sever ties with. If this had been a high stakes game, Torian might have pulled his blaster on Gault in addition to making the accusation.
Gault got up from the table and rushed out of the crew mess. He trotted across the huge cargo deck to the bottom of the metal grate stairs. He took the stairs up, two at a time, and then rushed across the upper cargo deck towards the front of the starship to the control bridge.
The bright red skinned Devaronian sat in the pilot's seat and looked at the holographic astrogation chart on the center console. The blip representing Wrehn's starship was blinking bright red at the end of a thin blue meandering line projected within a field of faint blue-white dots representing the stars of the galaxy.
The faint blue-white dots represented the stars of the galaxy with known charted hyperspace routes going to them. The faint grayed-out stars, which were also mapped, had no known charted hyperspace routes going to them.
That is, that the makers of Wrehn's astrogation charts updated their charts with the known hyperspace routes for the stars which they knew about. However, that didn't mean that other astrogation chart makers had the same information.
Other chart makers might have information on hyperspace routes not shown on Wrehn's charts, and some of the routes shown on her charts might not be available in other charts. However, not every star had a discovered hyperspace route charted for them, and not every star had a hyperspace route to begin with, and those grayed-out stars were the same on every chart.
Passenger spaceline companies, heavy freight starship operators, and military navies had subscriptions to multiple charts. However, not all chart makers sold subscriptions of their charts to all spaceliners, freight shippers, and military navies.
For example, Republic chart makers didn't sell subscriptions to Imperial freight shippers, or to Hutt spaceline operators. Chiss Ascendancy chart makers didn't sell astrogation chart subscriptions to anyone not from the Chiss Ascendancy, and so on.
However, even if Imperial chart makers refused to sell subscriptions of their charts to Republic spaceline operators and freight shippers, that didn't stop Republic naval intelligence from stealing the information for their naval fleets' use.
Wrehn had to pay a subscription fee every six months to ensure that she got any newly discovered routes updated to her astrogation chart. As hyperspace routes were found, a grayed-out star would become blue-white. Another thing that got updated on astrogation charts were every star's position.
Galaxies rotate, and that means that the positions of stars change. When traveling near light speed, a navigator needs to know when to slow the starship so that they won't fly past a star system, or fly into a star because of an out of date chart.
Wrehn only payed for three astrogation chart subscriptions, one Imperial, one Mandalorian, and one Hutt out of the many hundreds that were available. This was because she didn't need to travel to almost every star system the way a passenger starliner or heavy freight shipper would.
Starliner and heavy freight operators tended to buy many subscriptions of astrogation charts from as many chart makers as would sell to them, because their fleets of commercial starships operated thousands of routes throughout the galaxy. In those cases, the starliner and heavy freight operators used a chart aggregator, as did Wrehn.
This allowed them to display all of the known hyperspace routes to star systems from all of the charts at the same time. This left them with far fewer grayed-out stars on their charts, compared to Wrehn's astrogation chart with nearly two thirds of the stars on her astrogation chart grayed-out.
Gault looked up from the holographic star chart and looked through the main canopy just in time to watch the randomly mottled light blue and dark blue patterns of hyperspace suddenly give way to a black field filled with white streaks. The white streaks, which then quickly shrank into brilliant pin points of light on a field of velvet black signaled that the Heaven's Cricket had re-entered normal space.
When Wrehn's starship had dropped out of hyperspace, it was almost immediately hailed after the navi-computer established contact with the traffic control navigation beacon on the Mandalorian dreadnought.
"This is flight designation Nern Kril Wesk 25276 dash Xesh Thesh Forn 46864 (NKW25276-NKTF46864) Heaven's Cricket requesting permission to dock in the Spirit of Vengeance. I've activated the IFF code and frequency generator for identification verification."
"Heaven's Cricket, this is Spirit of Vengeance. Your flight designation and your IFF are correct. You are granted Permission to dock in landing bay Dorn three (D-3)."
"This is Heaven's Cricket. Thank you, Spirit of Vengeance. Out," Gault said, completing the process.
After ending his communications, he electronically scanned the space around the starship, locating the massive Mandalorian warship. He then set the navi-computer to approach Mandalore's flagship, setting its final destination as landing bay D-3. Then he sat back and relaxed in the pilot's seat.
Wrehn walked into the control bridge and sat in the commander's seat.
"What do you think this is about?" Gault asked.
"It could be a job," Wrehn replied, speculating, "Other than that, I don't know."
"Hey, look at that," Gault said, pointing to something outside the main canopy.
Wrehn stepped down from her command chair and stepped to the canopy and looked in the direction Gault had pointed. An Imperial Harrower-class dreadnought, escorted by three Terminus-class star destroyers, was parked around two hundred and sixty kilometers from the Mandalorian dreadnought, practically point blank firing range.
Wrehn looked carefully, scanning the black, star filled, vacuum of space and began to make out the dim outlines of several Mandalorian warships deployed within two hundred kilometers around Mandalore's flagship.
"So, Spirit of Vengeance isn't here, alone," she thought, a bit relieved.
"I wonder if we'll be meeting with an Imperial big wig," Wrehn speculated aloud, for Gault's benefit.
"Then maybe we're doing a job for the Sith Empire," Gault speculated in return, "It'll be a big chance to charge big credits."
The Spirit of Vengeance's Artificially Intelligent harbor pilot software helped to guide Heaven's Cricket's navi-computer to travel the last hundred and fifteen kilometers of their journey to the correct landing bay.
Inside the enormously cavernous landing bay, the harbor pilot software even directed Wrehn's heavily modified freighter where exactly to park in the brightly lit, huge space. Twenty minutes after receiving permission to dock, Wrehn and her crew ambled down the shallow angled, very wide ramp at the back of her starship.
Wrehn had, long ago, gotten used to Mandalorian aesthetics, when it came to the color scheme of Mandalorian warship interiors. There was a lot of brass, brightly polished brass. The bulkheads were painted a faint brown-white, with medium brown trim, and then there were the many, many brass fixtures and accents.
The landing bay deck was a highly polished metallic medium grey. The overhead was painted in the same faint brown-white, but filled with many lights illuminating the cavernous landing bay. The very bright lights glaring down from the very high overhead guaranteed that anyone looking up was not going to get a good look at the overhead paint.
Two Mandalorians in fabric non-armored uniforms drove up to the back of Wrehn's starship in their wheeled, manually operated people mover. The Mandalorian in the passenger front seat got out of the vehicle and called to her.
"I am greatly honored to take the ever victorious Grand Champion of The Great Hunt and her followers to Mandalore The Vindicated! I am Grell Dan Lok," he said, in Mando'a, then waving his hand towards the conveyance, added, "Ryley Truuan Lok is our driver. Please board. My driver and I shall take you to Mandalore."
"It is a great courtesy that Mandalore has given me," Wrehn said, in the stilted formal syntax of Mando'a, "He has graciously furnished an escort to bring me and my crew to him. I am pleased to accept your courteous offer."
With that Wrehn and her crew boarded the two rear bench seats behind the driver and the escort. The driver operated the people mover, going at a leisurely ten kilometers per hour through the giant docking bay. When the people mover had moved past a row of tall shelving filled with tools and parts, it turned towards the far end of the docking bay. Wrehn marveled at the size of the docking bay when the whole space came into view.
"I can fit sixty Heaven's Cricket's in this bay!" she exclaimed her exaggeration in Basic.
"A tiny exaggeration," Gault quipped his understatement, yet conceding, "but this space is huge."
The people mover, dodged and weaved in between parked fighters, shuttles, maintenance stations, and Mandalorian warriors conducting exercises until it finally reached the far end of the hanger bay and passed through a huge threshold with the giant blast doors locked in the opened position. The driver then guided the people mover into the wide corridors, making turns at intersecting corridors, until they reached a freight lift that operated with magnetic repulsor lift generators.
The ten by ten meter open platform took them up ten decks surprisingly swiftly for the size of the lift. The driver then resumed the leisurely ten kilometer per hour drive, through much smaller corridors, until reaching another bank of turbolifts. This time, the escort got out.
"Champion of the Great Hunt, please follow me to the turbolift. I shall be proud to guide you to Mandalore," he told her in the heavily guttural language of Mando'a.
Wrehn and her crew dismounted the people mover, following their escort into one of the turbolifts. As the door slid shut, the driver drove off to park the wheeled people mover. He parked out of the way of traffic, but where he could keep an eye on the turbolift. Later, he would drive the Grand Champion of The Great Hunt back to her starship.
Two decks up, they got off the lift and walked for half a kilometer through a maze of passages until reaching a wide, double sliding door with half of the coat of arms of Clan Lok painted onto each door, so that when the doors were closed, the coat of arms was complete.
At either side of the double doors stood two heavily armored and armed sentries guarding the entrance to the stateroom of Mandalore The Vindicated, also known as Artus Lok.
The wide doors slid apart, hiding the coat of arms painted on them, but revealing a very large office, one of the rooms in a suite of rooms that made up Mandalore's stateroom.
"Please, enter, Grand Champion of The Great Hunt," Grell Dan Lok said, adding, "I will wait here. I will guide you to wherever you whish to go aboard the Spirit of Vengeance."
"You have honored me, greatly. I am deeply pleased by your excellent work in guiding me to Mandalore," Wrehn replied in the stilted formal language of the Mandalorians.
With that, Wrehn and her crew passed into the state room of Artus Lok, Mandalore The Vindicated.
Mandalore, in his gold plated ceremonial, but functional, armor stood behind his antique ornately carved grand desk. Behind him, at either side of the wide desk stood, at attention, two more heavily armed Mandalorian warriors. His bodyguards.
"I thank The Grand Champion of The Great Hunt for answering my summons. I have news and opportunities that I believe you will find interesting," Mandalore said, by way of greetings in Mandalorian accented Galactic Basic.
Unlike most Mandalorians who grew up speaking Mando'a as their first language, Mandalore, the son of the previous Clan Chief of Clan Lok, was highly educated and schooled in the proper syntax and grammar of Basic. He still had his Mandalorian accent, but his use of Basic could not be faulted, otherwise.
Wrehn immediately saw that he was not alone. Seated on a couch, to her left as she entered the expansive lounge was a heavily armored mechanical cybernetic monster of a man.
His armored frame was painted blood red with black accents. Certain parts of his mechanical form were stainless polished metal. If the style and colors of his mechanical armored body did not give away that the remaining organic parts of the Sith Pureblood was a Sith lord, then the weapon attached to his builtin utility belt would.
The antique couch his mechanical frame sat in was flanked by two heavily armored Sith lords. His bodyguards stood, not at attention, but not casually, either. They were alert and very carefully eyeing Wrehn and her crew.
Mandalore had done a fantastic job of building Wrehn's legend in their minds. They viewed her and her crew as a real threat to their master.
Wrehn had to work hard not to stare at the mechanical monster. However, by the looks of this Sith lord, and his guards, it was obvious that he wasn't just some run of the mill Sith lord, either. He looked important.
"I guess those Imperial ships I saw earlier, are his ride," Wrehn thought to herself, "He must have just got here, right before I did."
"Great Hunt Champion, this is Darth Tormen. He comes to us as an agent of the Sith Empire's Dark Council," Mandalore said, making introductions, "Darth Tormen, this is Yehw'reh'nomai. She is the Grand Champion of The Great Hunt, the greatest bounty hunter and warrior in all of Mandalore."
"I've heard of your legend," Tormen said, in his dark, ruined and raspy, Imperial accented voice, "I hope to see it in action."
Wrehn said nothing to that, instead just tipping her head forward, briefly, acknowledging the polite words of praise. She then turned her head to face the chieftain-king of the Mandalorians, quietly waiting for an explanation.
"Greatest bounty hunter in all of Mandalore? Yep," Wrehn thought to herself, "But greatest warrior? Being a warrior is not for me."
"He has a job for which he wants to hire you," Mandalore said. "Will you sit?" he invited her, indicating another lounge seat at the opposite side of the grand office.
Wrehn turned to her right and made her way to the couch, Mandalore took his seat in an ornate antique office chair behind his desk. The size of the room, and the distance to which the three principles sat from one another, would necessarily force them to speak loudly and clearly to be heard.
Wrehn took a moment to sweep her eyes around the room. The walls were adorned with captured banners of defeated enemies from various battles that Artus Lok had won in past conflicts. At the corners of the room were pedestals, each corner displaying several weapons of great enemies that Mandalore had personally battled and defeated in combat.
Wrehn's crew stood on either side of the couch on which she sat. They betrayed nothing of what they felt, but their instincts told them it might be a very big job. Even Skadge realized that something important was going on. For once, he kept his mouth shut without having to be told.
"Yehw'reh'nomai, some background," Mandalore said, to start things off, adding cryptically, "We spoke about this many months ago."
"You've got the big fish that ordered the hit on me and the former champions?" Wrehn asked, leaning forward and showing that she had taken real interest in what Mandalore had to say.
"I've got them," Mandalore the Vindicated confirmed, adding, "Also, they are directly tied to a particular figure that our potential client desires to have killed."
Mandalore turned his head to regard the Sith lord.
"This isn't a big fish, however," Darth Tormen, rasped with his broken voice, "It is a leviathan."
Wrehn waited quietly for the Sith lord to elaborate.
"Supreme Chancellor Dorian Janarus," Tormen said, without further comment.
After a moment of shocked silence Wrehn started to get to business.
"Capture him alive, or kill him?" she asked.
"I am afforded options?" Tormen asked, suddenly overcome with curiosity, "How much for either?"
He'd heard rumors that Darth Nox had paid a billion credits for her help to bring down Darth Malgus, putting an end to his attempt to usurp the throne.
"Alive, six trillion. All up front," Wrehn said, without hesitation, adding, "Dead, three trillion, two trillion up front."
Mandalore was startled by her asking price. He knew she'd ask for a lot, but he didn't expect it to be this much.
"Why such a difference in price?" Tormen asked.
The question struck Mandalore as a curious thing.
"You'd think he'd haggle and bargain for a lower price," the chieftain-king thought of Tormen's response.
After thinking about it a little more, however, Mandalore realized it was actually a fair price.
"The entire might of the Galactic Republic will be after her and her crew. The bounties on their heads will be legendary. They will live out the rest of their days hunted," he realized.
"I'm hoping you'll go for the cheaper option," Yehw'reh'nomai said to Tormen, "but if you don't, I'm hoping my greed will motivate me to keep him alive," Yehw'reh'nomai said, adding passionately, "I really want to blast him into ash, now that I know he's behind this mess."
"Ha!" Tormen laughed, clapping his hands.
His hands, however, were mechanical. They only made the sounds of metal clashing against metal. Yet, he liked her answer, and he now found reason to believe the rumors of how much Darth Nox had to pay.
"Lucky for you, I don't want him alive," the Sith lord told her, adding, "The Empire will save a few credits, and you'll get your wish to ash him."
"Do you accept the deal?" Wrehn asked, keeping to business.
Tormen cast his eyes down to the center of the large floor. The very large metallic deck was enameled white, with the emblem of the Mandalorians emblazoned across the expanse in red.
Tormen was one of six agents of the Dark Council, carrying out the will of the Dark Council throughout the empire and across the galaxy. He became the senior most agent when Darth Malgus betrayed the Dark Council and usurped the Emperor's throne.
In the years that he'd held his post, he had never made a decision that incurred such enormous expense. If this hunter failed, he would have to prove to the Dark Council that he didn't embezzle two trillion credits, but if the hunter succeeded, he'd have to explain why he agreed to pay three trillion.
The Force impressed upon him greatly, that he would succeed if he followed this path, and the Dark Council sorely wanted the supreme chancellor dead. Darth Tormen knew that even with success, the victory might leave a foul taste in their mouths because of the great cost.
Tormen lifted his eyes from the enameled deck and carefully regarded the Chiss woman. Her cobalt blue skin, blue black hair, and bright red eyes (all red, no whites) was striking. He noted the scar on her right cheek. It seemed to be an old wound, but it had not faded. It was quite visible.
"I accept the deal," the Sith lord intoned.
"Mako, draw up the contract," Wrehn ordered the cybernetically enhanced woman standing beside her.
"For the purposes of this business arrangement," Mako said to Tormen in a slightly jittery voice, "I require your transceiver frequency so that I may transmit the contract to you for your signature. Also, the business account information to which you will deposit the payments will be forwarded to you upon receipt of the signed contract."
Gault did all he could to not shout out in triumph. Torian, kept his eyes on Skadge, ready to instantly shut him up. Wrehn, meanwhile, was in disbelief.
"This is a dream," she told herself.
Earning a billion credits from Darth Nox over a year ago for her job on Ilum was exceptional. She never expected to ever get another contract like that again. Yet, here she was, accepting a job for three trillion credits.
"Signed contract received. Forwarding business account routing code," Mako, who started shaking, reported to her boss.
Darth Tormen returned his datapad to his utility belt and looked up to meet the Great Hunt Champion's eyes. She felt a buzz on her utility belt. Taking her datapad from its niche, she looked at the text message on its screen.
"From: Cignos Statti Bank of Nar Shaddaa. To: Yehw'reh'nomai. Esteemed banking customer, 2,000,000,000,000 credits, Imperial currency, have been deposited to your account. Converted to Hutt currency it translates to 1,853,957,754,583 credits. Your beginning balance was 957,754,634 credits, Hutt currency. Your new balance is now 1,854,915,509,217 credits, Hutt currency. Have a bountiful day, highly esteemed banking customer!"
"Woo! I'm a 'highly esteemed banking customer,' now!" Wrehn thought to herself, greatly excited.
This was the first time that line was added to her banking correspondence. Wrehn's jobs averaged between half a million to seven hundred thousand credits. Getting million credit paydays were miracles to her.
Yehw'reh'nomai considered that unlike her last job for a big time Sith lord, this time, she might make many enemies. In her last billion credit job, the enemy could have been Darth Malgus and his followers if her client, Darth Nox had failed, but Malgus and his followers were all dead. This time, however, she would be making enemies of the entire Galactic Republic.
"Succeed or fail, the Galactic Republic will have it in for me," Wrehn realized, "I'll have to retire early, change my identity and appearance, and go into hiding," she realized for the first time.
Also, for the first time, she worried for the survival of her crew.
"Will they be able to keep a low profile and stay alive?"
Remembering how slippery Gault was when she hunted him years ago, she knew she had nothing to worry about for him. Mako would be able to monitor the holo-net and would know if anyone was closing in on her. Skadge and Torian, however…
"Skadge is too stupid to know when to keep his head down, and Torian is full of that Mandalorian pride," she thought, sighing as she looked at her blue Chiss skin, thinking, "Eventually, they'll find me, too. Aren't so many Chiss Mandalorians these days."
As far as she knew, she was the only Mandalorian of the Chiss species.
"You've got yourself one dead supreme chancellor, Darth Tormen," Wrehn said, "Give us a couple of months to set up our operations. I'll keep you up to date. I've got your frequency." Then as though in afterthought, she asked, "Did you want his head, or is Galactic Republic news reports enough?"
Darth Tormen became excited at the prospect of depositing the Supreme Chancellor's head on the floor of the Dark Council chamber when he reported the successful completion of his task. However, he realized that the bounty hunter was angling for an additional bonus.
"How much for the head?" he asked, a predator's smile spreading across his otherwise emotionless facade.
"Five billion credits," Wrehn said, without missing a beat.
Tormen gave a dark raspy laugh, on hearing that.
"Only five billion?" he asked, with obvious sarcasm." Then, with respect, he added, "Your greed does you credit! You are a tough business partner, but you know the value of things and charge accordingly."
The cybernetic mechanical monster of a Sith lord's laugh sounded as though he had a terrible breathing ailment.
"Very well, five billion extra for the head," Darth Tormen agreed.
"Mako," Wrehn said.
"On it," Mako replied to her employer.
Tormen heard his datapad vibrate in its niche on his built in utility belt, which also vibrated against his mechanical body. When he looked at it, he rasped out his hearty laughter as he signed the agreement. This time, he didn't need to pay in advance. Payment was due upon delivery of the Supreme Chancellor's severed head.
"We have a deal," Wrehn said, adding, "The supplementary contract is also signed. We will do our best to complete that part of the mission as well. As stated in the supplementary contract, circumstances will dictate whether we can retrieve the item or not."
Darth Tormen merely nodded his acknowledgment, with an evil grin. Then he turned his head to regard Mandalore.
Mandalore was deeply pleased. He turned to Wrehn.
"If you need anything, do not hesitate to ask," reflexively adding, "Standard rates apply."
Mandalore gave Yehw'reh'nomai a warm smile, but he was not joking. This was business.
"Thank you, Mandalore. I'll keep you in mind," Wrehn said, returning Mandalore's smile, "I have a lot of work to do setting up the operation, but I'm already thinking I'll need a small army and a small navy. I'll hold you to only charging me standard rates."
Mandalore's smile widened, realizing his mistake. She had just been paid two trillion in advance, and he unthinkingly only charged her standard rates.
"What a rookie mistake! I'm losing my touch," he thought, laughing bitterly at himself, then wondering, "Would Yehw'reh'nomai really be so dishonorable and not, at the least, give bonuses to the warriors I will supply to her?" he wondered to himself.
In the end, he resolved to wait and see what she would do. Mandalore knew about her billion credit deal with Darth Nox. However, he hadn't known about what a cheapskate she was.
Yehw'reh'nomai had withheld from her subcontractors how much Darth Nox had paid her. In that instance, she only paid her subcontractors the agreed upon amount without giving any kind of bonus to them.
"I've got a question, though, Mandalore. You said that they were tied to the chancellor," Wrehn said, then asked, "Are they the chain of command, the people who made the chancellor's order happen? What's their part in this?" Looking at Darth Tormen, she added, "This will hide the Empire as the client behind the assassination, and make it a Mandalorian thing."
"If that is the case," Darth Tormen began, clearly angered by this, "Why should we pay? If you already wanted them all dead, refund my money and kill them yourselves!"
"The Republic are waiting for our retaliation. They are expecting something from us. If the Empire wants to have credit, then your Dark Council will have to be ready for reprisals," Wrehn explained, "I'm offering cover. Do you want the cover, or not?"
Darth Tormen was reminded what a shrewd woman this Chiss bounty hunter was.
"And if she refunds me the credits, she will simply not go after the supreme chancellor, even though she wants him dead, too," Tormen realized, "I will be left with nothing to show to the Dark Council."
"Now I begin to see how you are able to command such high prices, and why you are the champion over all Mandalorian hunters and warriors," Darth Tormen reluctantly confessed, before declaring, "Very well. I will accept your cover.
"Do you not fear that the Republic will come for you in reprisals, Mandalore?" Tormen asked, a bit mystified.
"Ha! Let them come for me! I will slaughter them all!" Mandalore declared defiantly, adding as he shifted his gaze towards Wrehn, "Besides, if they do manage to end me, "They'll only find themselves facing a new Mandalore."
Wrehn shifted in her seat a bit uncomfortably. The way he'd said that made it seem to her that he was eyeing her as his replacement.
"There's no way I want to be Mandalore!" she thought to herself, "I don't want the responsibility!"
"I'll forward the names of those responsible for setting up the operation to you, Great Hunt Champion," Mandalore promised, adding a caveat, "However, I will charge you premium rates for the intel."
"If there is nothing else, I'll be on my way," Wrehn said, matter-of-factly, getting to her feet, "I've got a lot of planning and work to do."
Wrehn rose to her feet and began to make her way to the exit.
"May I send an observer?" Tormen asked, suddenly.
The Chiss bounty hunter stopped and turned to face him.
"He can observe the planning and preparations, but he cannot go with me to the operation. He'll get in my way, and I don't need anyone tagging along that I have to babysit," she said, pointedly but politely, then adding, "I know I'm charging you a ton of credits, but you will get your money's worth."
Tormen intensely scrutinized her, keeping silent for a long moment, before finally giving a single nod of acquiescence. Yehw'reh'nomai turned towards the exit and resumed her way out with her crew following in her wake.
When the door slid shut behind the Grand Champion of The Great Hunt and her crew, Mandalore turned to Tormen.
"Darth Tormen," he said, "You should trust her. She is the Great Hunt Champion – for a reason."
Tormen didn't say anything to that. He'd learned of her exploits from intelligence reports. By all accounts she and her crew were highly capable and well qualified for an operation of this complexity. It was The Force, however, that compelled him to believe that he was on the right path with his actions and his decisions. The Sith lord turned to regard Mandalore and gave a tight nod, indicating that he accepted Mandalore's claim of Wrehn's abilities.