"Uh, can I have a word next, Sir?  It's kinda important." Kal-chan asks as Jago goes past.  It looks as though is luck is holding firm.  Just when he wants to talk to Jago, so does everybody else.  He just hopes that none of them have bad news to pass on before he gets his turn.

Then the cabin door closes.  Something he's always associated with trouble.

Kal-chan sighs, and goes to help Yas.

"Will do, skippy," Yas chirps as Jago passes and then looks up at Caution as he coms over.  "Talk to Jago?  Nothing serious I hope.  If you're wondering about the bug, he's hardly blaming you or anything, you know," she says while she continues to search, now with her former marine colleague to aid her.

Jago pauses before going into his cabin, “make yourself at home Corlan,” he says to his guest, “help yourself to a drink, I wont be a moment.”

Still in the doorway, Jago turns and peers intently at Kal-Chan, “what is it?” he asks with a little smile, “more trouble?”

"Not exactly, Sir.  But I need to speak to you.  Privately."

“I was just going to have a chat with Corlan, will it wait until after then?”

"Yes, it's not that urgent that a few minutes, or even hours, will make a difference.  But it is important."

Kal-chan can feel his face flushing red.  He knows that Yas is staring at the back of his head.  He can feel her eyes boring into his skull.

"I-it's about Regina." he finally finishes.

Yas says nothing, but she gets a nagging little voice trying to make itself heard in the back of her head.  With a shrug she turns back again to her search, pretending it is nothing - but she does not even fool herself...

Jago glances between Corlan inside the door, and Kal-Chan on the outside, “OK, as soon as we are finished I’ll give you a call and we can talk in here.”

With what he hopes is a reassuring nod, Jago enters the cabin and closes the door firmly behind him.

Shui watches Corlan head into the Captain's cabin, then slowly turns to others.  She looks over at Yasmine and her 'task', then turns a long, steady stare on Kal-chan.

One thing the doctor hates is mysteries.  But the thing she hates more than mysteries are nosy busybodies.  And she's honest enough not to require a mirror when she steps near that line, herself.

With a nod, she settles down into a chair, waiting to see what the result will be with Corlan's talk.  "What are the odds," Shui finally states, to the area at large, "that the Captain will agree to take Mr. DeSant home?"

Corlan sits nervously in Jago's cabin, accepting the offered drink.  When Jago indicates that he's ready, he launches straight into his request...

"Captain Lanza, Miss Tiesi said I should come and speak to you.  As you will recall, Regina is my home, and I have family there still.  The recent news has made me concerned for their well-being., and, while I know there is little I can do for them, I would feel better if I were closer to them."

"In short, Captain, I'm requesting passage to Regina.  Or as close as you're willing to take me."

“That’s a tricky one Corlan, I do sympathise, my own family is there as well, but I simply don’t think I can afford it,” Jago bites his lip and pats down his pockets in search of that cigar. “I have to run a pretty full ship just to meet the mortgage payments, its six or seven jumps back home I’d guess, and if I can’t fill most the ship with passengers and cargo for each jump, I’m in trouble.”

Jago finds his cigar, or at least the broken remains of it, and sets about transferring flakes of tobacco from his pocket to the incinerator as he continues. “If I there were people and goods heading in that direction I still wouldn’t go unless all the crew were willing, it just wouldn’t be right to put them into that kind of danger without it. You do realise the dangers of such a journey to yourself, personally?”

With his pocket mostly clean, Jago fetches a fresh cigar from his desk, “talking of dangers, I was coming to see you presently, to let you know hat we have another commission for the Imperial Security Bureau, well not so much a commission as, letters of marque. Basically we get a bounty for any Zhodani we take out in the course of normal operations.”

“We won’t be leaving here for a day at least, I’ll put out some feelers to see if there is any trade in that direction, and we’ll take it drop there, how dies that sound?” Jago smiles, trims the end from his fresh cigar and pops it into the corner of his mouth with a disproportionate measure of satisfaction.

"What?" Yasmine says and looks up from her search.  "Back to Regina?  I think a frotlog bird with one wing missing has a bigger chance impressing the ladies during mating than that happening, to be honest.  It's a mighty long way, but nothing is impossible, after all.  So, he wants to go home, uh?  Can't blame him, really," she concludes and glances sideways at Caution before once more returning to her, so far, fruitless search.

Shui listens to Yasmine's assessment of the likelihood, then rubs her forehead.  This isn't good.  Not at all.  "No," she agrees quietly, "I cannot blame him, either.  I pray he manages to convince the Captain."  Her fingers drum together for a moment, tips padding against each other, then she frowns.

"What is going on?  Everyone seems to be a trifle on edge...did I miss something?  Beyond a mob attack?"

"It's not so much convincing as making it possible, I think.  I'm sure we'd all go there if all we had to worry about was going there," Yasmine continues while searching, lifting up the seat and feeling around the frame.  "We had a visitor from the Navy.  Making sure he didn't 'forget' something...  Other than that, I don't know."

"'Making it possible'?"  Shui rolls the words over in her head, considering their meaning.  "And what did this naval person leave behind?" she inquires, thoughtfully.  "Surely not a uniform, or medal.  Something more precious, no doubt, and equally ethereal?"

She frowns.  "As for possibilities...is it debt, then, that is the issue keeping us from bringing Mr. DeSant home?  Are we in that deeply?"

"Just some Navy droppings, possibly.  You know, more bugs and such," Yas continues.  "And those are often quite expensive, yup.  Debt is only one part of the equation.  But let's wait and see, I can't say much more until I know more," she chuckles.

Shui raises an eyebrow.  "He planted listening devices?"  A hint of disgust creeps into her tones.  "One would think the navy had better things to do than harass us.  Or maybe it is simply a sign of the times."

She frowns.  "Do you require any assistance?  I am not completely unversed in this situation.  I had taken a berth aboard another ship, perhaps two years ago, and a similar situation..."  She waves one hand.  "Well, that is neither here nor there.  The point is, if I would not be underfoot, I can aid you."

"He might have.  Turns out they've had us bugged since probably we got these upgrades, two years ago.  And this time I ain't taking any risks!  Feel free to check around here, it is the only place where he actually touched anything.  We should have given him a cup without a handle filled to the brim with hot coffee so he had to keep his hands on it," Yas explains, glancing up at Sushi briefly with a crooked grin on her face.

"Perhaps laced with some phenolpthaline," Shui mutters irritably, and glances around the room.  "Well.  I will assist, then."  She puts fingers to the bridge of her nose, as though struggling to remember something, then nods, decisively, moving to an area of the room.  A glance at Yasmine to confirm it has not been checked already, then she begins.  Her sweeping is hesitant at first, but then her motions grow more relaxed.

"It has been a while," Shui confesses.  "If they installed bugs, might they have also installed some surplus hardware within the engine core, or the weapons?  Something small, out of the way?"  She pops up again from her search.  "What do they think you did to warrent this sort of treatment."

Very careful question, there.

"Did?"

Yasmine starts to laugh with amusement and stops her search for a bit, turning to grin ominously at Sushi.

"They want to keep track of their goods, of course.  When we are nearby, the bug Caution found tells them that.  Keeping tabs on us, without asking.  But if they tried it this time around, then we will find it," she says, still chuckling as she turns back to her so far fruitless quest.  "Oh, and we need to check every single system they upgraded back then.  Every single thing must be swept."

Shui blinks at Yasmine's stare, adjusting her glasses.  The woman, on occasion, makes her nervous.  "Well.  One hopes that is the only reason they would wish to track you.  The Navy often does things for different...more difficult purposes than the obvious."  Her small smile certainly edges into the 'wry' territory.

"I would suggest sweeping more than the modified systems," she continues, going back to her search.  "Did you have their technicians under guard the entire time?  If not, they would have had plenty of opportunity to place a bug elsewhere.  Perhaps multiple bugs."

Corlan nods slowly.

When he speaks, his eyes are fixed on a point on the floor.  "Very well, Captain.  I understand your position perfectly.  I will need a little while to consider my own position, and my options."

"It is possible that I may wish to terminate our arrangement.  Should I decide to do so, I will let you know in plenty of time for you to find another fare."

He places the glass, almost untouched on the desk, and stands to leave, "I have no hard feelings about this, Captain.  I just want you to know that.  I have enjoyed my time aboard Profit Margin immensely, and should I choose to leave her, I will miss yourself and your crew.  You have all made my stay aboard a... most happy one."

"But I am concerned about my children, and my grandchildren.  Thank you for your time."


Outside, Jett steps into the lounge, looking curiously at Yas and Shui as they tear the place apart.  He moves across to Kal-chan, and asks, "Jago about?"


Saskia tidies up in the gunnery position, and packs away her tools.  Then she gives the console an affectionate pat before heading back to her beloved drives.  They'll be missing her.

"C'mon, it's the Navy we're talking about.  They hardly know why they do anything, they just do it because their bosses said to do it," Yas replies with a snort, still search but now moving to look under things as there is is not much left of the seat itself, running fingers around.  "And the whole ship was upgraded, basically.  Even the paint.  But I'm sure Sassy can help with that so we don't have to crawl to everywhere trying to spot something with our eyes.  This right here is different, though.  If he did drop any, it won't be concealed."

"Hm."  Shui nods.  "I am concerned about bugs that remain deactivated for a long period.  They could activate only briefly when they encounter a Navy beacon, and then shut themselves off, again."  She sits up, briefly, brushing back her hair and adjusting her glasses.  "We would never find those, save through sheer luck."

A glance to Jett, but he is speaking to Kal-chan, not her.  Ducking her head, she goes back to hunting.

"Exactly.  That's the one Caution found.  Well concealed.  Probably a minor malfunction that made it show up in the first place, it should've masked itself better.  But then, this is the Navy we are talking about," Yas comments with a teasing glance at Jett, knowing he is ex Navy after all.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:02, Thu 15 Dec 2005.