Business has been good for the Alliance lately. In fact better than usual.. there have been a few really prime raids, not to mention that tip a week ago that helped the Alliance avoid an ADD sting operation.

One name has come up several times in terms of the information that has led to these operations. "The Star Dancer." A few discreet questions, and it is easy to learn that "The Star Dancer" is the name of a privately owned scout ship.. one of the specialized ships meant for long, solitary travel - often used by anyone from messengers, to small-item smugglers, to deep range explorers.

Apparently, "The Star Dancer" is captained by a man who is making a name as an information broker. Buying, selling and trading information that one party might have, for something another party could use. The captain though is a mystery - none of his clients have ever seen him.. they've only heard his messages, or have made contact through one of his agents (which rumor says are some slave-girls he apparently owns).

He is an independent operator.. and makes no qualms about selling to either side (both to law enforcement and to the criminal element) - although it does appear that he has some ethics, as he does not sell out information about his clients, nor what information they have bought from him.

Perhaps this is someone that the Alliance might find a more regular use for?

' The Star Dancer'.

Kouzakai was in a cantina, drinking with a few officers and crew from the flagship 'Grendel' when he heard of this ship. He was walking to the bar when he heard a few of the locals utter this name with almost utmost praise, as if for a god.

'The Star Dancer'.

They say that, almost comparable to some of the talented captains and the Lieutenant of the Alliance, this man was almost someone whom would do the organization some good. The man was a privateer, under the employ of no one but himself...although, of course, for the right price, he could call you master and serve you for a limited time.

'The Star Dancer'.

He went back to the table, and asked around for the men for any information about this ship, it's crew, and the man that owned it. Some say it was a spy from the ADD. Others said it was on their side, spying on the ADD. And others...they said it was a double agent, spying on both sides for personal gain.

This only made the Lieutenant even more interested about the 'Star Dancer'. KOuzakai decided that it was time to pay a visit to the local Alliance outpost and ferret information from their Scout Bureau.

Information on 'The Star Dancer' is both exceedingly easy to find, and frustratingly difficult.

There are plenty of stories and rumors. Ask almost anyone in the information business, and they will all have something to tell you about him.

Unfortunately - half of them either contradict one another.. and the other half are two exaggerated to take seriously. There are rumors of him being in three different systems at the same time. Stories of him escaping an entire ADD fleet. Suggestions that his 'network' is even larger than that of the Alliance.

However - there are SOME common facts that can be discerned from all of this. He does travel - a LOT. His ship is his base of operations.. and he seems to have no pattern to his travels.

No one has met him personally, and he has at least three beautiful slave girls whom serve as his contacts. Rumors also suggest that these girls may be one of his major sources of information.

Even the Alliance, with all of its resources does not know much more about this man. They have marked him for attention though - both because he has provided good information for them.. but also because he has unquestionably cost them some operations. But again - he has done this through his own sources of information. He has never used any information he learned in the process of making a deal with the Alliance, to then turn it around on them. Apparently he does have a code of honor of sorts - perhaps not surprising since a broker doesn't stay in business long if he betrays a deal (in fact, betrayal tends to seriously shorten a broker's life expectancy).

It takes days, even weeks to try and trace down some of these leads.. to try and determine how it would be possible to make contact with this man. Then one day - a message comes in to KouzaKai's ship.

"I believe you have been looking for me." says a soft, masculine voice. Subtle, cautious, and yet strangely melodic in the rhythm of the words.

His search began on the same day that he realized things like just randomly asking around for clues and answers won't work.

The Scout Bureau hadn't been able to give much on the Star Dancer and it's captain, except for the fact that he had been able to cover those areas which had recently lost their commanders for the Alliance. For months without a head of operations in these sectors would've been disastrous, but the Alliance was one step ahead of things and decided to try out the efficiency of the Star Dancer. Surprise surprise, she delivered. She exceeded the expectations of most everyone in the Alliance, except for Kouzakai. Not one to trust someone so fast, he decided to ferret out the truth.

He was in deep space, in the Devourer, currently in transit towards Wild Space when he heard a distress beacon coming out from somewhere in the region.

-kkk-



The voice was choppy, but the transmitters picked it up and located it as being on somewhere around the Outer Belt. It felt as if it was on the other side of the belt, and was in no intention of showing itself. Still feisty as ever.

Believing that he should be skeptic for his safety, Kouzakai hailed the comm and spoke back.

" Designate yourself, pilot, I do not have your signature here."

The next answer may or may not be what he was looking for all this time.

A soft laugh comes over the comm, "How many people have you been trying to get information on then?" The voice pauses for a moment.

"I am the Captain of the Star Dancer. And you are a member of the Alliance."

"If you are interested in doing business, and are willing to pay the price, talk to my agent at Harem Market. Look for my symbol."

The comm then goes dead except for an image presented - a figure of a young female dancer imposed over an 8-pointed starburst.

Harem Market.. of course KouzaKai knows the place - a slave market that specializes in pleasure slaves. Independent - but the Alliance has certainly done a great deal of business there. The Market is known for its fairness as well as for the quality of its slaves. Both in terms of their beauty, as well as their training. At the least, it would probably be entertaining while meeting with his agent - if KouzaKai decides to go.

" The Captain..." Kouzakai mutters under his breath, as he is left looking over at the symbol of the young female dancer dancing under an 8-pointed starburst. He tried looking for clues withing the symbol, but can't seem to find none.

" Alright." he said to himself. " I'll go...but this better not be shit."

He punched in the coordinates for the system, which happened to be aptly placed in the core of the galaxy. Harem Market was a place where he had been a few times or more, and he was quite known there particularly. It was a place not seen by anyone so easily, and the traders were vile and vicious...so quick to misjudge and so easy to trust, if you had the right money and the right connections. Yet fair they truly were, and most of them were good friends of the Alliance since they started barging into the trade deals here.

Truly this was a place to find the most exotic, erotic, and finest slaves anywhere on the galaxy. It was a regular place for the top mob bosses to find their fix...for kings to find slaves...and for leaders to find relaxation. One just needed to go and look for something here in order to come home to a rousing good time.

In a matter of a few minutes, Kouzakai came out of a jump and docked right in with the planetary security ring. The planet used a transport system of its own to get the pilots off their ships and onto the Market itself.

Upon arriving, Kouzakai began his walk thru the busy streets, trying to find that one female dancer which could be the key to clues he's been given.

It takes a couple of hours to work through the entire market, but there is no sign of a dancer, or of the starburst pattern. Was this all perhaps a trap? or perhaps just a distraction to get you off the trail?

KouzaKai is walking by the open auction block for 'pleasure slaves' when something catches your attention. The auctioneer is talking, "And now, to close out today's auction we have a most incredible find! We have a six-month contract fully-trained pleasure slave available. The contract has a standard confidentiality rider. The contract price will begin at 100,000 credits, and the damage bond required is 5,000,000 credits!" Which gets some groans, complaints, and gasps.

Slave contracts are not offered often, but are occasionally. Under such arrangements, the slave remains owned by the original owner, who gets the contract price paid (minus the market's commission of course). The contract buyer then has all rights to the slave for the period of the contract with a few exceptions. The confidentiality rider means that both parties (owner, and buyer) agree to not use the slave as a means of obtaining confidential information about the other. The price is definitely worth a few reactions though. Normally only a top-level trained pleasure slave is worth over 100,000 credits - and that's for ownership, not contract! The damage bond is what the buyer must pay if he damages the slave in any permanent manner or for breaking the confidentiality agreement. This 'permanent' damage can range from just an 'unagreed' upon tattoo or brand, up to death of the slave. And 5,000,000 credits? That could purchase a small scout ship! To ask that for a slave is almost unheard of!

The auctioneer asks for order. "Please.. listen to me gentlemen.. the price is high, but I tell you that in all my years in the market, I have NEVER seen such a creature as I am about to present to you - she is worth every credit! She is a creature of extraordinary exotic beauty, effortless grace, and amazing stamina!" A small figure glides up onto the stage, wearing a hooded cloak that is wrapped around completely so that nothing can be seen of the figure.

"Gentlemen, she has accomplished what no other slave has ever managed in the history of Harem Market. She exhausted not just one level 10 trainer.. but all FIVE of our level 10 trainers, including taking the last two on simultaneously!" And there are again audible gasps at that - for Harem Market ranks their slaves from 1 to 10 based on how they endure against a number of trainers of a variety of species who are all trained to test and train a slave's sexual capacity. Most untrained humans would rank about a 4. Most pleasure slaves are ranked at high 8, or low 9. Only perhaps two or three slaves a year come up who manage to rank multiple 10's.

"So Gentlemen, do I hear a bid for this extraordinary dancer?" he asks, as he pulls the cloak off the young woman who stands there perfectly still. She is almost completely naked, and her body still shows the signs of arousal from her 'testing' at the hands of the market trainers. Dark, cafe skin -- smooth and glistening with sheen of exertion. Rich black hair, reaching all the way to the floor, falling around her like a cloak. Full breasts, swollen with arousal, and capped with dark, erect nipples. A smooth hairless mound, on which is tattooed a thorned rose. Long, muscular legs that would be able to clench tightly around a male's waist in passion.

She wears only four articles of jewelery. A pair of golden shackles around her ankles, chained together by a delicate gold chain - more for show then truly limiting her movement. A thicker golden chain around her waist, which rests on the swell of her hips. A pair of golden earrings. And lastly - a black leather slave collar. From which hangs a golden starburst with the picture of a dancer embossed on it.

Apparently, this is what the Captain meant about being willing to pay the price to do business.

Kouzakai had walked among the markets in search of this particular slave. No one among these girls seemed to possess such impossible talents...but it can't be helped that he managed to procure a few high-level girls for use with his officers and men under his Hydra squad. They had been so talented, so gung-ho for their squad commander, he'd decided to reward them for their loyalty.

As for him, though, no less than a rank 10 slave or a highly dangerous agent would suffice.

He has since arranged for the girls to be bought to the nearest Alliance ship, and be sent to the space station where Hydra was taking a rest from scouting. As for him, he still has unfinished business he has to close.

Walking amongst these traders meant that you would also have to buy something if you were an Alliance officer. It was your own way of paying respects to them, for their having procured something out of nothing specially when the Alliance had everything under lockdown. These were fledgling market players whose skills were renowned. But he had no time to stop and buy something every few centimeters he walked, so he had himself cloaked with a desert poncho so out of place in this warm planet.

One particular item, or event, caught his eye...



This was in the middle of the marketplace. He knew the man, Gorne Horn, an alien trader whose reputation for finding rare slaves has become the stuf of legend. An Alliance agent at one time, he has since been making his living among these planet's slave trades and has since become the planet's richest trader.



My, my, level ten, huh...

Kouzakai moved closer and saw the things he'd been waiting to see. The slave was nothing special, but she seemed full of vitality...and that distinguishing mark, on her clothes...



Kouzakai stepped up. Fuck the credits, he's got so much of that he knew what he must do...and waht the Captain had meant by prices to pay.

" 5,000,000 credits. I am going to call her damage bond." he spoke calmly.

Both the girl, and Gorne are stunned at KouzaKai's "opening" bid.. both of them staring in his direction for a few moments. The market has gone almost completely silent in an instant.. the bid hanging in the air.

It is the girl who actually seems to recover first, lowering her eyes in a bow to KouzaKai. Gorne recovers, and you can see the greed in his eyes - yes he has plenty of money - but never has a single slave sold for this kind of money! He'll be even more famous after this.. and he will be able to charge even more outrageously for his slaves.

"Yes.. right.. 5,000,000 credits called. Do I hear any more?" he asks - with a mix of nerves and hopeful greed. "Sold to the Lieutenant.. thank you sir."

Everyone moves aside to let KouzaKai approach the recorder.. and as the contract is signed, and the money is transferred, the slave is led off the stage and over to you.

She is still wearing nothing but the jewelery as she gracefully kneels in front of you, bowing her head. "My Lord KouzaKai?" she asks simply, awaiting confirmation and recognition. Her voice is soft, but has a purr of subtle sensuality, and the promise of pleasures and passions beyond compare.. musical, alluring, and mysterious.

He saw the signature glint in Gorne's eyes. He knew Kouzakai, even under a disguise like this. The officer who does not settle for just anything. He winked as Kouzakai approached.

" Gorne." he spoke, calmly but smiling. " Greedy bastard...who'd knew you would find a girl like this."

" I really had no idea who dropped her by." Gorne spoke with an air of confusion." Had no papers on her, just that...weird charm...and what do you know, turns out she's one of a kind! Haha! Now I don't care where she came from, long as she gives me what I want...more money!"

Kouzakai fought the urge to laugh along, as if laughing with an old friend, to keep the air of mystery. The events that just transpired managed to get a good sized crowd and everyone was talking about the selling prize and all that had just happened.

" Anyway, think of it as a gift old friend." he said, walking up to claim his prize. " See you again old friend."

Gorne smiled behind him as Kouzakai walked with his prize. " A pleasure doing business with you sir." then he turned to the crowd, " Alright! The second business of the day..."



The first time Kouzakai spoke, he heard qualities of a voice that would make anyone lunge at her the first time they hear it. Soft, sultry, and sounded like it was full of lust. Kouzakai smled and fought the urge to go after her right there and then, as he was someone who was supposedly peckish.

He concentrated on the matter at hand, and with a tentacle played with the charm she had on her neck.

" I did not expect this to be placed here." he said. " So...you have some information for me?" he said, speaking calmly as they made their way through the crowds and towards the Devourer.

Triella bows her head as Kouzakai plays with the starburst that hangs from her neck. "Yes, my lord, I do." she murmurs in that same sultry voice.

Then suddenly her breath catches in her throat as the tentacle just barely brushes across one of her breasts as he examines the charm. Her eyes close for a second as she bites her lip. The little sound that comes from her throat makes it clear that her response is one of pleasure, rather than anything else.

She takes a deep breath to control herself (which certainly draws attention from the males who continue to watch her as she walks past), before continuing. "My lord Kouzakai, I fear you do not have much time. The "Phoenix Rising" is a Directorate trap, my lord. My Master advises that you cancel your plans to raid the vessel immediately."

And that bit of information speaks volumes about the Dancer's information network. The "Phoenix Rising" is a pleasure cruiser that was rented out for a rather lavish 'coming out' party for a wealthy politician's daughter. It was going to have dozens of young, beautiful girls on board for the party - just the type to either be ransomed by the Alliance, or sold as slaves. The Alliance has had their eye on this operation for weeks - an operation that is scheduled to take place TODAY... in just a few hours!

The Alliance though had researched this party, and the people involved - and everything appears to be on the level. There was no indication of any kind of ADD involvement (either in the planning, nor even as security) for the cruiser.

Could this "Dancer" really have such a network that he could find out information that even the Alliance had been unable to uncover? Of course, he shouldn't have been able to discover the Alliance's plans either. So maybe the information is accurate. Or maybe it isn't, and the Phoenix is a perfectly safe target. Or is this information meant to direct the Alliance away from a choice target?

Can you trust this girl? Can you trust her owner, this "Star Dancer"? Clearly, there is not much time to decide - not if the information is reliable at least.

The breathe that escapes her lips...

The incredible sway of her shapely hips...

And the way the passers-by, both humans and aliens alike, ogle at her...

Clearly, this was someone who would fetch such a high price and leave you panting and wheezing while still wanting for more.

However, though, at this time Kouzakai was not so much interested in her wares as much as the information that she had on her. He was waiting for her to speak about information that the 'Dancer' would have on what was so important, that he would not divulge so personally.

" Well?"

Afterwards, after regaining herself, she speaks.



" Oh?"

She once again gave me a courteous bow.

This was a serious matter, since for months now the Alliance had been waiting on the 'Phoenix Rising' event, an event which could save them a lot of money and put them strongly on top of the heap in terms of galactic exports and trades. This was supposedly the finest of catches, with each girl guaranteed to fetch at least a rating of eight.

This...

" Well..." Kouzakai said, still walking to the hangar and guiding the girl through an increasingly boisterous crowd. "...Guess I have no choice but to go it alone and do what I always do...spring the trap."

The Lieutenant gave the girl a wink.

Triella walks easily with you as you guide her through the market and towards the hangars. But she actually stops still, her eyes wide with shock when you say you're going to go there anyway.

"But.. there will be at least two agents on board.. and a half dozen light fighter craft standing by. And that is only what my Master has been able to confirm. Some of the information suggests the actual numbers may be twice that!"

She looks at you like you're insane.. and that she doesn't want to die with you when you commit suicide.

Kouzakai smiled, with a definite twinkle in his eye.

" I'm no fool to even consider fighting without a plan." he spoke, and looked at Triella strangely. " This is actually the first time that I have encountered a slave with genuine concern for her master, but you won't die. And this is no suicide mission."

" If there will truly be two agents on board, well, I guess I'd have time to kill before anything else happens. As for the light fighters...well, the Devourer sure ain't no spring chicken. Let's just say in terms of ships, it's a freakin' black hole compared to those little stars."

Kouzakai continued to walk, ignoring the fact that Triella's feet were still planted firmly on soil. She was still to shell-shocked to move, but Kouzakai walked along just fine, even greeting a few familiar faces in the process.

" Well?" he asked. " Are you coming or not? You are my slave after all, you know."

Triella listens to what KouzaKai says, but her expression indicates that she still thinks that he is going to get HER killed with whatever he is planning.

She flushes though when KouzaKai reminds her that she is his slave, and she rushes forward to resume her position to his side and slightly behind him, lowering her head. "Of course, my lord. I am ashamed that I forgot my place, my lord." she whispers again in that soft purring voice she normally uses.

She will continue to follow him along back to his ship silently, unless addressed.