Still in orbit, and out of reach of the less friendly elements on the planet's surface, the two ships have a peaceful night.

In their own lounge the passengers seem to have gotten over the excitement of the (highly ineffectual) attack on the ship, and are now more worried obout the upcoming dinner with the crew of Ore Hound.  Except Eneris, who seems singularly unperturbed, and is declaring to anybody who even looks as if they might listen that he'll probably just shut himself in his quarters with a sandwich and a holovid.

Keryn, in between wondering what to wear for a dinner with what she seems to consider "visiting dignitaries" (which would probably be highly amusing to Jockram), does her best to cajole Eneris into changing his mind.

For the crew, there is the dinner to worry about, of course.  And the little matter of a landing to drop off the much-wanted cargo (and an unwanted passenger).

Three trading companies have responded to Jago's offer.  They are Rangent Trade Factors, Rangent Import and Export, and Davis Trading, and all had agreed to meet his asking price.  Further discussion reveals that only Davis Trading insists on the cargo being offloaded at that particular city dome, the other two companies having branches elsewhere on the planet.  The rep from RIE suggested that if Profit Margin were to drop the cargoes at widely spread locations, it would make it harder for the thugs to coordinate any sort of action against the ship. 

Additionally, Jago had managed to make contact with a group calling itself The Fellowship of the Golden triumvirate.  They seem to be a church of some description, and are considered by the reps from all three trade companies to be trustworthy.  They have declared their interest in the fourth consignment, and explained that they run several small hospitals across the planet, and would use the Loxibac to treat patients, free of charge.

Now it's just a matter of getting everything done and making it back into orbit in one piece...

(NPCd)

"Attention, all crew." Jago sits on the bridge with the ship's internal comms active, "Three minutes until we start our descent.  Three minutes from... now."  Then he switches over to Jockram, "Preparing to drop down to offload cargo now, Jockram."

"Roger, Jago.  I have a small convoy, four vehicles, on the ice down there.  At closest approach they'll be about ninety klicks from you. You got them?"  A reticle appears on the bridge monitors, a direct feed from Ore Hound, tagging the convoy.  Four vehicles each with a larger trailer, cargo transports by the looks of them.  "If they show any sign of suddenly turning towards you, we're all set to make... discouraging suggestions."

Alongside Profit Margin, Ore Hound now hangs inverted in relation to the planet, her turret, with its mining laser, turned towards the surface.

"Apart from those, I have a dozen other vehicles scattered all over this hemisphere.  Nothing else that looks like it could be carrying anything big enough to scratch your hull though."

Ash listens in on the report from the Ore Hound.  He pushes their telemetry feed onto a topographical overlay of the planets surface centered on the landing site.  "We read your feed loud and clear, Ore Hound." he responds dutifully to the relayed information.  "Thank you." the Profit Margin's navigator adds as a slight afterthought.

He sits in the co-pilot's seat and watches the timer and projected navigation track overlay which are also on the main screen as well as his own console.  Ash keeps the Margin's own proximity sensor sweeps and diagnostics cycling in the background of his console, trusting in any alarms to alert him, if anything seems astray.

Ash cinches his five point harness a touch tighter in anticipation of reentry.  He feels the prickles on the back of his neck that always accompanies him when a journey starts.  He finds himself looking forawrd to the slight pull of the inertial compensators as they accelerate (or decelerate, as the case may be) to speed.  "Showing green on all systems, Captain." the thin ex-Scout lets Jago and the rest of the crew on the common crew channel know, "The Margin is ready when you are.  All hands prepare for reentry."

After ensuring the various passengers are safely stowed away in small boxes their quarters, Shui prepares herself for the descent in the lounge.  She has her black bag with her, just in case, but for now it seems her duty will be to ensure everyone has a decent lunch when they return from the transaction.

"All systems powered up.  You're clear to take us down when you're ready."

Saskia is, just for once, at the engineering repeater station on the Bridge, directly behind Jago's position.  From there she can hear everything that's going on between pilot, navigator and gunners, even if the comms are completely frelled.

(NPCd)

Jago continues giving instructions to the crew as he tilts the nose of the ship down towards the planet's surface.

"We have four consignments to drop off, at four different locations on the surface.  Four different ports, which I don't expect to be any more advanced than the last one.  The customers will be waiting at each drop off point, and have arranged their own security for when they leave."

Tylen will man the belly turret, and Yas will drop the cargo on the surface and get signatures for them.  I plan on touching down for the minimum possible time at each spot.  Ash, I want you to watch sensors and stay in contact with Ore Hound.  Saskia, keep everything running smooth in case of trouble."

A pause as the ship starts its descent.

"After we've dropped off the cargo, we'll be landing a fifth time to offload Othati-Fenn.  Shui, start defrosting him when you're ready, but take it slow.  I don't want him awake until after the fourth load of cargo is off the ship, and Yas is free to keep an eye on him."

"When have you ever needed to tell me that?  What sort of frelling engineer do you think I am?" Saskia responds, not taking her eyes off the panel.  Everything is looking good, with no sign that there might be any problems lining up.

There is one nagging little concern though.

"Jago?  When were you thinking of dropping our little gift for the bullies?  Only it's all set up, with the safety systems turned off and everything, but you didn't mention it."

"Sure thing, Boss." Tylen grins as he starts making his way to the belly turret.

"I'll have your arse covered." he says flicking the switch that will put him though to Yas's communicator "Although I expect it will be quiet enough."  with that he settles into his seat and starts arming systems and checking on the gunnery sensors.

The ship descends at a steep angle, and Jago questions Ash about their course.  "Can you plot me the best route between these six points on the surface, Ash?  Just make this one the fifth stop, and this one the sixth, and the rest you can take in any order that means we can hit all five of them in the shortest possible time."

Saskia's question brings a chuckle, "I haven't forgotten.  That's going to be the sixth and final stop.  Sort of a parting gift after we've done everything else.  Insult to injury, and all that."

On the passenger side, everybody is in the lounge, watching the planet's surface sliding across the wall displays.  There seems to be some sort of competition to be the first to spot an artificial structure down rhere.  From this altitude, none are visible yet...

"Of course, Captain." the Profit Margin's navigator responded dutifully to the request for an optimal routing solution.

Almost immediately, the six designated destinations were highlighted and the set of alternate routes were being calculated.  Given his fairly extensive experience he had eyeballed a reasonable first iteration to place into the calculations as a starting point.  Using that and the rather massive computing power of the core, Ash had already gone through a couple hundred iterations in the first few seconds.  The highlighted route rippled a couple of times, but eventually stabilized.

And once that happened, Ash kicked off the secondary calculations and displays which tracked the position of the Margin and posted live-updating estimates of ETAs and streamed them for all six positions in various colours.

Ash overlaid the Ore Hound's trajectory as well as both sets of sensor feeds and public telemetry onto the same main tactical display.  While, busy and in some ways quite imposing with the proper colour coding and transparency settings the HUD was almost entrancing as the various data streams of numbers and the myriad other color points and lines continued to move and dance.

"Done, Boss." the thin ex-Scout noted to his pilot.

He prompted Jago, "Are we going in silent?  Or is there a specific comm channel frequency that you want me to monitor and broadcast over as we come into each site?"

Jago grins, "I hadn't thought about going in silent.  I was planning on letting Jockram know as we made each drop, just a squirt transmission to keep him apprised, but not announcing our next destination.  Though, to be honest, from the look of your course plot we'll be moving pretty fast most of the time, so I don't think we'll be in any danger.  If they couldn't hit us when we were pretty much standing still, I don't think they stand much chance when we're moving at about 700 kph."

"Here we go."

The Captain's hands dance across the controls and the ship angles into a near vertical dive, pirouetting to line up for the exit vector.  "You know, we should do this more often.  It's quite enjoyable."

In his turret, Tylen's  fingers drum lightly, and sub-conciously, against the arm of  his seat as he concentrates on the sensors that would warn of a potential attack.

Yas sits in her turret tinkering with the computer displays and the info displayed thereon.  As they dive she grins, a small and inferior reminder to all the drops she have made.  Some feared it, having no control over going down, but Yas figured if something went wrong she could not do much about it either way, so why worry about it.  She quite enjoyed drops, even the rough ones.  It sort of affirmed that she was still alive as opposed to making her think she was about to die.

"Hey boss, once we're done delivering, how about blowing some dust and ice off their dome before we, ahem, repaint it?  Adhesion and all that," she calls out through to open door to where Jago and Ash sits.  "See how close you can get, eh?"

It was good to see Jago having fun.

"Aye, aye, Captain." the navigator notes dutifully as the Profit Margin begins her run.  Ash busies himself with informing Jockram and the Ore Hound they'll be using and then sending a short test broadcast to make sure that everything appears to be working.  Given his general familiarity with communications protocols, he tries to choose one that he suspects that the general populace of Rangent have likely never heard of, let alone have the technology to crack very easily.  In this case, he opts for a type of 'security by obscurity' - given that the most things might be pretty obscure given the state (or non-state) of their communications network on the planet...

Of course, for the tight beam to work efficiently and reliably, he knows that the Ore Hound will need to be able to accurately track the Margin.  So, Ash quickly pushes their flight plan over the comm link so that Jockram and his boys has a heads-up on what to expect.

Given the speeds that they will be using, Ash makes sure that the sensor telemetry is accurate and that one of the main displays has the proper overlay for the required accuracy.  He tries to not make things too distracting, as he knows that Jago sometimes likes to have a more visceral feel to his flying...

"I'm sure I can manage a nice fast flyby of their dome, just to eyeball the target area, Yas.  Time to get ready for your first stroll." Jago announces.

Jockram responds to Ash's call, "Got that, Ash.  And I'm all set up to hand our telemetry over to you as well, so you should be able to see everything you need."

Tylen's gunnery panel is handily marking all the potential targets, and tagging them with identification codes, velocity and vector tags, projected routes, estimated missile flight times.  All of the moving ones seem to be ground vehicles, and none of them look as if they will be anywhere near the ship's intended course.

At her console, Saskia confirms again that, yes, she knows the sewage tank safety alarms are switched off and that, no, she doesn't want them turned on just yet...

In the low berth chamber, Shui uses her dataglove to review the flight plan, particularly the ETA for dropping her frozen passenger off.  She sets the berth to start thawing.  It looks as though Jago might have to wait a couple of minutes - they will be in position to kick Othati-Fenn off the ship approximately 100 seconds before the berth will open.

All assuming nothing goes wrong...

"Understood," Yas says and taps her info displays for forwarding.  A moment later she gets up to get into her finest threads.  If only she could accessory properly with a more suitable gun.  A Gatling or something would dot the i nicely, add a bit of oomph to the getup, as it were.

Making her way into the cargo bay and the suit she double and triple checks everything, including her guns.  Would not do to have something mess up.  The displays are receiving her forward data so that she can stay up to date on any development, unlikely as it is.  Better to be prepared for trouble and not see any than the other way around.

"Ready when you are," she reports to Jago over the comms.

Shui checks her dataglove again and sighs.  It wouldn't be her choice to remove their passenger at this location, not with what she has learned of it, but...it isn't her choice, is it?  Othati-Fenn dug deeply to put himself in this situation; it doesn't salve her conscience, but not really, but the thought might allow her to set her sadness aside at marooning him here.  With his attitude, Shui doesn't suspect he'll do terribly well.

Either that, or he'll fall in with the wrong crowd and do extremely well...in a bad way.

Security is all caught up in doing their thing; she'll requisition some assistance with their passenger once they hit groundside.  It'll probably take them a good five minutes to get all the cargo off the ship anyway, so Othati-Fenn will have some opportunity to pull himself together.

With that thought...

++ Captain Lanza, I am prepared to release Othati-Fenn after we arrive.  I do assume, however, that if things go poorly we won't simply be dropping him into a war zone? ++

“Of course not Shui, we’ll play it by ear if the situation isn’t favourable, and drop him near another hab somewhere. Incidentally, if you go into my cabin you’ll find I’ve left some warm clothing out for him on the bed perhaps you could put some ration bars in one of the pockets for him.”

Shui smiles, heading out of the coldsleep room.  The berth is on automatic right now, so it's still safe. ++ Of course, Captain Lanza.  I should have expected as much. ++  One eyebrow cocks.  ++ One hopes I won't be scandalized by the condition of your quarters. ++

Tylen sits in the turret, listening to the chatter, but watching his sensors.  Idly he flicks a switch here, turns a knob  there  as he fine tunes his sensors.  While he doesn't expect anything to kick-off, he wants to be prepared if it does.

Ash thanked Jockram and then noted, "Ready to receive, Ore Hound."  And as the coordinates streamed in, the Profit Margin's navigator cross-referenced the flight plans and highlighted them on the main tactical display overlays.

Then he double-checked the internal sensor feeds, making sure that he could keep an eye on cargo bay and ramp.  And that the Security Chief would not been out of visual range at any given time, if he could help it.

Ash checked the ramp status and noted dutifully over the common crew channel, but to Jago and Yasmine in particular, "Ramp status is green.  All systems appear to be a 'go'."

The ship comes in hot, Jago clearly enjoying the chance to flex his piloting muscles.  The ramp seal breaks at the same time as the gear starts to extend, still a hundred metres off the deck, and an ice-cold wind whips flurries of snow into the cargo bay, causing Shui to hurry the last few steps to the lounge door.

Yas, safely cocooned in her armour, adjusts the thermostat slightly, because the interior of the suit is a little on the warm side, and does her best to ignore the screech of the ramp...

"Three." Jago tells her, indicating which consignment should be dropped here.  Things would have been less complex had they been able to make the deliveries in numerical order, but that would have made for a less efficient route.

Tylen spots their landing area on the turret display, and notes that this place, Vincent Landing, looks identical to Davis - similar battered dome, similar flattened patch of ice with no facilities... the biggest difference is the crawler parked on the ice near where  they intend to touch down. 

Gear locked and ramp extended, the ship touches down with scarcely a bump.

"Ash, is Jago making himself look good for the locals?  We're showing you as down, close to a parked crawler.  Nothing else anywhere nearby." Jockram reports from his orbital vantage point.

"Wait right there, please!  I will come out to you."

Yas does not want anyone close enough to throw anything into the cargo bay and keeps a sharp lookout for anything resembling one of those primitive launchers.  She would have preferred to have landed further away and to be at the spot first, but this would have to do.  Her ACR at ready she scans the area for trouble, even if her focus is on the crawler.

"Hope you got them lined up in case they try something.  Better safe than sorry," she reports on the line to Tylen, fully expecting him to indeed be on top of things.  She checks the HUD in the suit to get the latest feeds.

Tylen swings the turret slightly so the laser is lined up directly at the Crawler, although he leaves the systems settings on manual with a double tap system required  to firte the weapon.

""Oh, they should be aware they they are looking down the barrel of something." he says with a tight grin.  Even as he makes the comment, he is scanning for other potential targets in the area.

Ash's easy, if slightly deadpan, tone hints at the crooked smile and shrug that accompany his words, "Thank you, Ore Hound.  We're just making sure that the Profit Margin's systems are all in order, Jockram."  He adds as a non-explanation explanation, "The Captain believes that a low approach will be the most effective maneuver..."  To get his point across... is, of course, unspoken.

The navigator glances over at Jago before adding, "Besides, the ice dunes are quite pretty this time of year.  I love that bluish shade of off-white..." and he pushes the high speed visual sensor feeds to the crew and external comm link to the Ore Hound.  So, that everyone can see the local terrain whiz by in a high-speed blur.  Vertigo be damned.

That is before coming to an abrupt stop.  Then, he stops chattering and becomes all business once more.  And Ash focuses all of his attention on the sensor feeds.

Jockram laughs, "Sure... that's what he tells everybody else."

While Tylen keeps watch, Yas steps out onto the ice carrying the cargo.  The company man stays next to the vehicle, watching as the Security Chief approaches in her armoured suit.  The large carton she carries is marked as containing freeze-dried vacuum-sealed groat steaks - they had needed something to put the packs of Loxibac into when dividing the cargo up.

Fortunately the open top shows the true contents as she puts the package down in front of the man.

Once it is clear that this is just plain Trader Todd and not Lying Ludus Yas does her best to not appear too threatening.

"Here are your goods, a pleasure doing business with you." comes her voice over the speaker unit.  She made certain that the volume is for addressing individuals rather than crowds.

Slowly and carefully she reaches out a hand, palm up, so the guy won't have a coronary failure from her getting too close.

"Bet it's nippy without this suit, eh?" she probes in an attempt to break the ice, figuratively, even if she will be walking back again in a moment.

With clothing in-hand and certain items noted (to Shui unsurprised approval), the steward heads back toward the low berths.  She keeps her 'black bag' with her at all times, not knowing when it might prove necessary, and hoping it won't.  She'll likely require security personnel when their 'guest' awakens for his disembarkment (ie, booting off the islandship), but for now it's not necessary.  He won't be awake for a bit longer, and immediately following said waking, won't be any shape for gymnastics of any kind.

Ash continued to monitor the sensors.  There didn't appear to be anything really threatening out there.  Hell, there was barely any traffic really (by his 'Having lived next to the Jewell Imperial Naval shipyards' standards); and definitely nothing really close by to the ship.  "Skies are clear." he noted dutifully over the comm channel.  His tone was informational and his delivery rather deadpan, "Closest ground traffic is a convoy ... 15 klicks out.  Non-intersecting trajectory."

He glances at the system diagnostics.  "All systems reading green on my board.  Profit Margin ready for dust-off, Captain," the navigator reports, also over the crew channel, "once the Chief finishes the delivery."  And Yasmine is back on-board with the ramp is closed, of course.

Ash double-checked the route to the next drop-off point and updated the chronometer estimates on the overlay display of the main tactical screen.

The drop completes without difficulty, the company agent hands Yas a packet containing Imperial currency, and the ship lifts moments later.

The next two landings, at two widely spaced locations, are equally hitch-free.

The problems start with the fourth, and smallest, consignment - the one intended for the charitable organisation.  Jockram's surveillance shows only one vehicle on the landing field, plus a parked ship.  Thermal scans show that the vehicle's motor is running, but the ship is dead, at about the same temperature as the environment.

Jago takes a low pass over the field.  The vehicle is at one end of the cleared area, with the ship a good six hundred metres away.  As Profit Margin does its fly-by, a the ships computer identifies the other ship as a Marava class, a standard small trader similar in capabilities to the Margin.  The hull is broken open, and covered with a thick layer of ice.  It looks to have been there for several years, at least.

The ship circles back around towards the waiting vehicle, a small ground-car like model with tracks, and sensors report several warm spots on the ice nearby.  Each a little cooler than a human body...

There is no visual sign that anything is at any of the locations.

"What do you think, guys?  A surprise party for us, as well concealed as they can with this tech?  Wouldn't that be sweet?  Might still be innocents in the vehicle, though, just caught by the bad guys.  As I see it, we got two options.  Land here, expecting an ambush, of sorts, or ask them guys in the vehicle to relocate, blame it on bad landing site or something, or we....  All right, three options!  Last one would be to bugger outta here, but what fun is that?  Not an option, really, is it?" Yas says over the crew comms, having seen the feedback from the ground situation.

A moments pause, then she adds, "That's the optimistic view, any way.  The pessimistic is that these guys are all recently dead and rapidly cooling.  But that's no fun either, so let's stay positive, eh?"

"Tell them to move ten miles north, and we will be back in an half an hour." the ex scout offers.  "Then pop upstairs and watch from a distance." he says with a grin.

As he says that, however, he is setting his systems to monitor the six warmer 'blobs' and let him know if there are any changes or movement.

"Ash?  Can you get any detail on those warm patches?" he asks.  "I have my sensors locked onto them, but I am concentrating on signs of attack than detail."

That said, his scanners are still covering the rest of the area for potential threats, however until there are any tell tales, Tylen's attention is focussed on the immediate area.

"Already on it..." the Profit Margin's navigator chirps into the comm and the common crew channel, with respect to Tylen's request for more sensor information.  Ash tries a couple of different filters on the external sensor feeds and scans the entire electromagnetic spectrum for anything that might be helpful in giving better resolution to the developing situation.

He pushes the highest resolution feed to one of the side screens looking for any signs of life - movement, anything.  Hopefully, with his, Jago and Saskia's eyes all looking for any clues, they might see something more of use to help them make a decision.

Ultimately, Ash doesn't like the idea of either an ambush or a massacre.  Of course, the ex-squid, ex-scout has also learned that the Universe has never really catered to his whims either.  And it is unlikely to start now - so, both scenarios are quite possible.

Shui closes her eyes as she studies the telemetry through her dataglove.  She can't get access to all the feeds - they're encrypted for security reasons, obviously, and some are far more complex than her glove can handle - but she can watch footage while overseeing the defrosting of their guest.  And what she sees disturbs her.

It's quite possible the criminal organizations have struck back in order to maintain their grip upon the citizens.  Kill those who deal with the ones who defied them - a simple, brutal solution to the problem.  Maintain the fear, maintain the control.

Her head comes up.  + If those are people, + Shui begins over the com, + and I get down there quickly enough, there is a small chance of ressucitation.  Captain, I request that I be dropped off if you can determine it safe for the Profit Margin +

Jago takes Tylen's advice, and starts trying to contact the parked vehicle in an effort to move their rendezvous point.  Meanwhile Ash starts trying to get a little more information from the sensors...

After a few moments Jago reports that he's not getting any response from the vehicle crew, and that he's going to try get hold of the organisation they're supposed to work for, and see if they have any idea what's happening.

"This feels more and more like an am bush." tylen says over the com as he notices that the warm spots are are grouped in pairs and make up the corners of n equilateral triangle centred on the truck.

"Perhaps we should drop those waste tanks here ..." he suggests lightly
This message was lightly edited by the player at 20:09, Tue 01 Oct 2013.

+ Explosives? + Shui wonders over the com.  + Three corners are the best, easiest method to blow the ice under the truck.   Place the explosives beneath the ice. + She pauses.  + Logically, + the doctor finishes.

"Classic ambush pattern, concealed under camouflage, invisible to the naked eye.  Wait for us to come down with the ramp down or even land, then boom, from any of the three directions.  Whether they got to the charity guys or they actually are the 'charity' we have no idea, as in for all we know the charity is just a front.  Either way, this is a trap, one that anyone from this ball of ice would fall for, not having our level of equipment to see through the ruse." Yas reports over the comm.

"Here's a thought, how about you frying the ice around those paired dots, Ty?  No hitting them, merely draw a line around them, that'll send a clear message.  What's your orders, Jago?  And the delivery, a lost cause?"

“Good idea Yasmin, but I think we can go one better,” Jago says with a little chuckle as he toggles the comms switch.

“Jockram, that little stunt you pulled off warming the ice back at Davis City, do you think we could have a repeat here, there seems to be an ambush or something and we’d like to flush them out.”

On the general intercom he explains, “ I think we’ll have to abandon this drop for now, but I would like to know what happened here, specifically what happened to the crew of that truck.”

Ash remains quiet, simply keeping tabs on the ambushers (for he agrees with what the other crewmembers have said) and the relative positions of both the Profit Margin and the Ore Hound.

He purses his lips at the thought that the real charity members (if there ever was an actual charity, of course) might be dead or otherwise injured.  Quite possibly because of them.  Not generally what one signed up for when trying to help others.  But, possibly to be expected when you attempt cross bad men...

Jockram confirms that, yes, Ore Hound stands ready to use her laser to discourage attackers, on Jago's command.

The charity group, The Fellowship of the Golden Triumvirate, also respond to Jago's call.  They seem a little concerned that their "people" might have been captured, or worse.  Partly because they don't have "people" at the drop point, they have a "person", singular, in a snowcrawler, the description of which matches the one sitting on the ice.  If there are two people in the parked vehicle, then as far as the person on the comm is aware, only one of them represents the Golden Triumvirate.

So far, at least, there doesn't seem to be any hostile action.  Though as Profit Margin circles around again one of the warm spots on the ice moves a little, as if trying to keep track of the ship.

Still nothing is visible in the visual portion of the EM spectrum.

"So we have two scenarios, people.  Scenario one, hostage situation.  Scenario two, collaborator and all hostile.  In the first case, our duty is to try to retrieve the hostage with no harm coming to them, in the second to neutralise the threat.  My suggestion is to let Jockram heat up our would be ambushers and, when they have had enough, then drop me down to give them a chance surrender or commit one last mistake." Yas suggests over the comms in her suit, checking over her weaponry.  "If they have a hostage then a personal presence will help us, and the hostage.  If they are all hostile, it is doubtful that they have anything much that can affect this suit that we cannot spot and intercept before they can put it to use."

Then she chuckles and adds, "And if we have a collaborator playing hostage, well, then we simply wait and watch for them to slip up or not, but I suggest we in either case do not let them leave without either tracking them, should they not head 'home', or wait until they can get another representative or two out, to ensure things go to where they should.  Mind you, that's just my suggestion, nothing more.  Just feels as if we are going to do this, heck, then we might as well do it properly."

“I think I’ll put her down and send you in to check out the snow mobile Yasmin, if you’re up for it,” Jago says, he’s holding the comms open for the crew but including Jockram who he address next.

“Could you warm up the site for us please Jockram, though I wont be landing in the middle there. Ash, can you pick me a good landing spot next to the snow crawler, not behind it, that’s to obvious and they may have buried a mine there, those people in the snow might just be a ploy to make us land the other side of the wagon.”

“I think those people are alive right now Shui, one of them moved a little as we passed over but we may still need your skills if things kick off.”

“Right, lets do it,” the Captain says as he brings the Profit Margin round for one more circuit.

“There’s seems to be some sort of ambush here,” he says over the passenger intercom, ”so I’m going to put down off to one side rather than in the middle but first, Jockram, in the Ore Hound, is going to warm things up a bit for us. I’m feeding the visuals through to your screens if you’re interested.”

"Do you want me up here with the main laser and sand casters, or down there supporting Yas with the Las carbine?" Tylen asks laconically.

"Maybe we ought to get Yas a grav belt?"" he says with a chuckle in his voice.  "She would make an impressive drop trooper ..."

Saskia's status report is cool and professional, spoken calmy and clearly, "All systems in the green, Jago.  Drive and weapons have full power.  Thrusters at maximum efficiency."

An additional comment is less professional and accompanied by a broad grin, "Frell!  I should have thought of it sooner.  If we'd filled a sand cannister with forty or fifty kilos of sewage we could have fired it at a target from a couple of kilometres range.  Which would scare you more?  Having a load of sewage dropped on you, or thinking you were dealing with the sort of farbotz maniacs who'd design a weapon to fling barrels of dren at people from kilometres away?"

"Aye, aye, Captain." Ash notes simply when the request for a good landing site is made.  Almost immediately, an altered course begins to take shape as the change in coordinates in input.  It ripples a bit as the Profit Margin's navigator compensates for local weather conditions and the ship's orientation upon approach in the atmosphere.  Within seconds the route has stabilized and Ash announces dutifully, "Course correction plotted.  Proceed at your discretion, Boss."

Ash shrugs to Saskia's question, though he knows it is semi-rhetorical.  "Both are equally nasty at the endpoints." the thin ex-Scout notes, "And completely scary for different reasons.  The frozen drop probably gives better dispersal and will be frozen upon impact.  "  He purses his lips for a moment before continuing, "The barrel will be much more concentrated and much more liquid at the target..."  A bit of a pained grimace accompanies that last statement.

"No problem, boss," Yas reports over the crew comm, doubting she will face much problems, especially not after the warm-up by Jockram and his crew.  "I think the main laser will quickly discourage anyone, plus you wouldn't be risk getting hurt, it'll give me more freedom, Ty.  Oh, and I have done a few drops, so yeah, why don't you all save up for a grav belt for me, eh?"

"Sassy, you always had a way with things like no one else," she chuckles to the inventive engineer of Profit Margin.

"Ready when you are, boss," she reports, prepared to drop and set out with a moments notice.

Shui winces as the reports flow in.  She needs to be in two places at once, and that's just not possible.  + Captain Lanza, I realize you are swamped at the moment, but I may need to deputize one of our passengers. + Eneris, most likely.  She studies the readouts. + Our lower berth 'passenger' is set to awaken; the process has begun, and I cannot simply shut it down.  However, the situation outside may warrent a medical officer, and I think you agree we cannot leave Mr. Othati-Fenn to wander the ship unsupervised. +

+ Do I have permission to contact Mr. Armusezash for assistance, what with the remainder of the crew rather busy at the moment? +

Profit Margin descends towards the appointed landing spot, and there is a faint, almost imperceptible flickering in the air.  Sensors spot it thogh, and trace the source - a laser, set to low frequency visible light,  flicking between six points in three distinct areas on the frozen surface of the planet...

The ship touches down, angled to present the side of the hull to the parked vehicle, and only a handful of metres away from it, as faint wisps of steam start to rise from the laser targeted areas.  The belly turret swivels, bringing weapos with ranges measured in thousands of kilometres to bear on a target that's almost within arm's reach.

The ramp drops with a screech like a wounded beast, and Yas is on the ice even before it's fully open.  Armoured and armed.

There is yelling from the perimeter of the LZ, and six men hurriedly extricate themselves from a tangled mess of blankets, now soaked with meltwater, and attempt to get out of a slushy morass of partly melted ices, as the laser intecsifies and flash boils the melting ice only a metre from each of them...

As the ship descends Tylen concentrates on his sensors, knowing that his weapon systems will track the targets they have already been given.  While he doesn't expect there to be any other threats, it is always good to be prepared.  However, by the time they are down and Jockram warms up the ice around the targets, he is concentrating on the local situation again.

"Two in the crawler, Yas." he reports  as soon as he has a decent view.  "One appears armed the other might be unconscious." he continues giving as full a feedback as he can.

He can't stop himself laughing as the six men start their own little dance, but he still maintains a watch for weapons capable of damaging the ship.

"SURRENDER PEACEFULLY NOW, THIS IS YOUR ONLY WARNING!  YOU IN THE CRAWLER, YOU HAVE SEEN WHAT WE CAN DO!  IF YOU WISH TO LIVE, DROP YOUR GUN AND STEP OUT OF THE VEHICLE!  THIS IS NOT WORTH DYING OVER!"

Yasmine Crow has turned the loudspeaker up high and begins a slow but steady walk towards the crawler, allowing the soaked hostiles a chance to realise what she just said and the fact that she completely ignores them.  She hopes they will take the hint that they pose no threat and surrender before anyone has to get hurt.

The one in the crawler with the hostage, or so she suspect it to be the case, have to be shocked and awed into submission before doing something fatal for both occupants.

"Yup, that's my take on it too, Ty, thanks for the info," she reports over the crew comm.  "Be ready to melt some ice around the wet blankets whose party we just crashed if they didn't get the message yet, but if possible let's try to do this without casualties."

She continues towards the crawler, wishing she had all the hardware inside that the military spec suits had.  Come on now, make the only sensible choice, she thinks, hoping the hostile in the crawler will have enough common sense.

She's running out of time, and Jago is far, far too busy.  Shui doesn't bother dithering further; instead, she switches her dataglove to page Eneris' quarters.  + Mr. Armusezash, please come to the Lower Berths.  A situation has arisen, and your assistance is requested. +

It's either that or bug Saskia, and she assumes the engineer probably has more important things to do right now.  Like ensure the ship is working perfectly so if trouble rears its head, they can deal with it.

And with impeccable timing, Jago finds a moment to contact Shui, "Negative on that, Shui.  You won't be leaving the ship until Yas pronounces it safe out there, at which point somebody else will be able to look after sleeping beauty.  No need to put one of our passengers at risk."

"Besides, I'm hoping to be well away from here before he wakes up."

Eneris replies to Shui's call, "Are you sure it's me you want?  I don't know anything about Low Berths."

Outside, the door on the far side of the crawler pops open, and a hand emerges, slowly and carefully, and places a pistol on the roof, then the door opens wider, and the owner of the weapon steps out with his hands held out to the sides, and above shoulder height.

The other figure doesn't move.

+ Understood, Captain Lanza, + Shui replies, struggling to keep her tone from growing dull.  She does understand - it's not just a politeness - but there's someone out there potentially injured.  Possibly dying.  And she's the best possible person to deal with that particular situation, much as Yasmine is the best to deal with the surrounding issues.

For a long moment she studies the low berth in front of her, and options flash through her mind like code through a machine.

Sickened, she turns away, putting a hand over her mouth, just as Eneris replies.  Shui closes her eyes for a long moment, struggling to set aside her former training, and breathes deeply before answering.  When she does speak, she keeps her tone light and apologetic.  + Mr. Armusezash, my thanks for your reply.  As it turns out, Captain Lanza has dealt with the issue.  My apologies for disturbing you unnecessarily.  I shall explain later. +

She could ask for Eneris to join her anyway, as an additional check against a weakened Othati-Fenn acting up; that would allow the Profit Margin's security to focus completely on the more pressing issue.  But Jago makes a good point about putting a passenger in danger, whatever Eneris' qualifications.  The situation doesn't warrent such an emergency; Shui is relatively certain she can keep a young man just out of coldsleep from getting into any trouble.

"STEP OUT OF AND AWAY FROM THE VEHICLE AND KNEEL DOWN WITH YOUR HAND ON TOP OF YOUR HEAD!  THE REST OF YOU TOO, NEXT TO ONE ANOTHER!"

"All right, Ty, if they comply, come on out and help secure them, then we'll check on our envoy.  Just in case they are playing still, doubtful as it is."

"Did you copy that, Doc?  Once we have secured the area you can come, not before.

Staying all professional, since it not a time to play around, Yas keeps her ACR trained at the man emerging from the crawler, still ignoring the others as far as they know.

"IS HE ALIVE?"  The rifle ought to underline who it is addressed to, she figures.

"Lone figure in the crawler is not moving at all, but is generating heat, Chief." Ash chirps into the common crew link for everyone to hear, "Likely still alive.".  The implication being from his standpoint that the figure is likely unconscious and doesn't appear to be bleeding out at this point.  He knows that Shui (from a medical standpoint) and Tylen (from a back-up tactical standpoint) immediately need that information, and that it helps for everyone else on the crew to be on the same page.

Otherwise, Ash keeps his vigil on the multiple sensor feeds, both the visual and the infrared spectrum analyzers looking for anything unusual so that none of the Profit Margin's crew (himself included) is caught by surprise.  He takes a deep breath and nervously rubs the fingers of both hands across each other, barely noting the thin, slick sheen of perspiration on them.

"Are you happy with that Jago?" the ex-scout asks "I need to get my suit and carbine if I am going out there." he adds by way of explanation.

“Yasmin knows best Tylen, stay put but do keep your eye on those other guys out there.”

The gunman follows Yas' instructions to the letter.  He walks a good ten metres away from the  crawler and drops, clumsily, to his knees.  TL 7 cold weather clothing is, apparently somewhat restrictive.  Once he is on his knees, and more stable, he interlaces his fingers, as best he can in a pair of gloves which leave only the thumb and index finger free, with the other three fingers on each hand  basically bound together.

Some of the thugs in the outlying portions of the ambush might not have heard Yas telling them what to do, though it's unlikely, given the impressive volume the suit's voder system can output.  In any case, once they've extricated themselves from the half-frozen remains of their hiding places, four of them make a dash for safety, in four different directions.

The remaining two clearly heard the orders, but misunderstood it.  They move just far enough to get clear of the pools of slush and then kneel down.  One of them (coincidentally the one closest to the general direction where Tylen's weapons are pointing) then thinks again and lays face down with his hand on the back of his head.

Yas sighs at the sight of two guys running and lifts her ACR to fire a few rounds well above their heads.  If they stop, good, if not, well, then they have to walk unless they got transportation stashed somewhere unless Jockram feels like melting them a bit more, so to speak.

The guns sprays several rounds into the air as she calls out, "STOP RUNNING AND DROP TO THE GROUND, NOW!"

"The guy in the crawler is sedated but unharmed," she reports over the crew comm.  "Could someone ask Jockram to make a couple of pools ahead of these runners, just to help them get the message?  Thanks."

Tylen lets the turret swivel slightly, so the lasers point towards one of the men who are running away.

"You tell me when you want me, Yas." He says quietly on the crew comms channel.  "Just remember I need to get dressed before I come out there."
This message was last edited by the player at 19:52, Sat 12 Oct 2013.

"Once the situation settles.  Feel free to fire warning shots meanwhile," Yas replies to Tylen while she awaits more orbital magic to enthral the natives with.

Tylen grins and lets the laser swing slightly so that it will score alongside the man he selected, reduces the output to a sensible level, makes sure that he is well away from everyone who has done as they are told, sights on an appropriate target  and fires a very short pulse of energy at it.  If nothing else it will be interesting to see the effect of such a large laser fired  almost along the ground.

One of Saskia's monitors flickers, causing her momentary confusion as she tried to locate the cause of the minor power anomaly.  Then she realises that it isn't an anomaly.  Tylen has fired the laser at an output level that would barely toast bread, and the engineer isn't used to seeing the ship's power reserves used in quantities that don't involve the prefix "mega".

Saskia opens a direct link to the ventral turret's fire control, "Tylen, I think your confused dear.  Real ship weapons don't have frelling stun settings."

Jago relays Yasmin's message to Jockram but is otherwise content to just enjoy the show.

"How's our last passenger coming along Shui?" he asks over the intercom, "how long before he's moving about on his own?"

This message had punctuation tweaked by the player at 10:57, Tue 15 Oct 2013.

Tylen opens fire, with the laser on minimal discharge for a fraction of a second.  Even so, given the range, the weapon still delivers more energy than the gunner's beloved laser carbine.  The shot misses all of the possible targets, as intended, and cuts into a snow bank, punching straight through in a cloud of steam.

The nearest runner throws himself flat, even as more pools of slush start appearing around the area, thanks to Jockram's efforts.  Even so, he keeps crawling.

Yaz's ACR fire, coupled with all of the other intimidating distractions causes another man to skid to a halt and turn with his hands above his head.  He is shaking visibly, with steam rising from a dark stain spreading down his trouser leg.

The two remaining runners clearly aren't stopping for anything.  Which might be a problem for them unless they change direction, because they are heading away from the nearest dome, and will soon be out of sight among the mounds of ice and snow.

Shui checks her readouts...again...then goes back to watching the 'drama' through whatever sensors her dataglove can access.  + Eight minutes to pod opening, Captain Lanza.  After that point, it will be another five to fifteen before our passenger is fit to leave. +

She purses her lips thoughtfully.  + If the hostage is truthfully only sedated and there are no actual injuries, our people could bring him or her here, and I could deal with the issue in the Low Berths.  There are, after all, recovery bunks here.  But if there are actual toxins, I will need to take them for more comprehensive treatment. +

Ash grimaces slightly as he watches the display of firepower.  "Chief, two are still up and running scared." he notes dutifully into the common crew channel, "Heading..." and he gives coordinates and vector paths to Yasmine and the others.  Then he adds with a touch of consternation in his voice, "Hmmm... they are headed straight into no man's land... no habitations or vehicles in that direction..."

There is a bit of a pregnant pause and when Ash speaks again the navigator's concern does seem to grow as he assesses their chances, "Appears they would rather freeze to death."  Even with audio only, the pursed lips and shake of the head is apparent, "Not a pleasant way to die..."  Unspoken, as is voice trails off, is the question of whether they should try to take on actual prisoners.  For what would they really be able to do with them?  Other than eventually offer to leave them stranded in the middle of nowhere.  To potentially freeze to death...

"Rather freeze to death than what ..." Tylen wonders aloud.  "Be careful Yas, there might be more of a trap here than you can see." the gunner adds with a note of concern in his voice.  "Some of these guys are just that bit too keen to get away." he finishes.

"Copy that, Ash," Yas replies to Ash and then sighs inside her suit without the microphone on.  Fear of the price of failure or sheer panic, either one is bad for those guys.  "Just tag the runners, we can pick them up once they run out of steam, unless we wish to leave them to their fate, that is.  I think they merely fear failure, Ty, or are possibly panicking.  If so, nothing will stop them then until they run out of adrenaline, unless you plan to shot them."

She clears her throat.

"YOU CAN EITHER DIE OUT HERE OR MOVE IN FRONT OF THE CRAWLER!  THEN DROP TO YOUR KNEES AND PUT YOUR HANDS ABOVE YOUR HEAD!  I WILL NOT REPEAT MYSELF!"

As long as they track the runners she feels that the situation is under full control once she got her little group together.  Enough time have been wasted on these losers, they need to check up on the driver.

"Ty, once they are grouped, come out here and secure them, check on the guy in the crawler, carefully.  Once that's done, you come on out, Doc."

She lowers her rifle and sweeps it across those who are not running, or crawling.

"Shui is busy at the moment Yasmin. Ash, would you mind popping out there and bringing the driver back to Shui in the low births, you can stay with her then and help reviving the passenger. Tylen, you can stay in the turret or help Yasmin with the captives but I'll need one of you back here in a little while when we go after the runners in the air car."

"Jockram," he goes on, "are you able to keep tabs on those two runners from up there?"

Tearing his eyes away from the various readings, Ash looks slightly taken aback.  But only for the briefest of moment.  "Uh..." he notes softly, then with more volume adds, "O-of course, Captain."  The tall, thin navigator release the buckle on his five-point harness and stands, pushing his console away from him.

Ash leaves the bridge and starts to make his way to the cargo ramp, but along the way he grabs his long coat and a pair of gloves.  Duster donned, he intends to fulfill his orders and bring the crawler's driver back to the Profit Margin for medical attention.   Taking a deep breath, primarily as an old superstition, the ex-scout centers himself before venturing out into the blistering, dark cold.

"Copy that, boss, but I rather make sure we neutralise any potential threat before we send someone out to check on the driver, to play it safe."

She does her best to cover all the hostiles, even though they are spread out.

"Just be careful, and come armed if you're coming out, Ash," she tells the navigator.

Ash stops halfway down the ramp than then heads back up, to grab his autopistol.  "Roger that, Chief." the navigator notes dutifully.  Not bothering with the shoulder holster or the extra clips, he checks the breach and then tucks the gun into the small of his back secured by the waist band.

Then he turns around, heads back towards the cargo bay and starts down the ramp again - this time not bothering for the pause of the deep breath to ward off the cold.  His little jog around the ship has already elevated his blood pressure and gotten him warmed up a bit.  Given the conditions outside, the presence of the prone hostiles, and the slush, Ash carefully picks his way towards the crawler - moving as quickly as safety will allow.

The captives comply with the instructions they're given, moving around to where Yas can keep an eye on them, and (coincidentally) intimidate them at leisure.  Ash, having warmed himself up a little, moves out onto the ice.

Several of the local thugs are kneeling before Yas, who gives them instructions at a volume which seems likely to shatter the windows of the crawler.

Making his way across to the crawler, and already starting to feel the cold, Ash cracks the nearside door open and starts to examine the driver. 

Jockram responds to Jago's question, "Should be easy enough.  There's nothing else moving anywhere near you.  Sun's fairly low, so they've got nice long shadows.  Wait, let me just try something."

He pauses for a moment, then, "If you're interested, I can sort of steer them.  Just... ah... persuaded one of them to change direction."

Deciding that his role in this escapade is liable to be ship side rather than shore side, Tylen heads to his cabin and quickly changes into his security guard  costume, with a  single holstered revolver and the shotgun on a strap across his shoulder.

"Are we bringing those captives aboard?" he asks across the crew link,  "and we do you want to keep them?" he continues, hoping that someone has thought of a room to use as prison cell.

He makes sure that his combat environment suit and Las Carbine are easily available but secure and then fixes com dots so that he can use coms  after he has secured his breathing apparatus.

Them he makes his way to the cargo area to await developments.

“Depends on a couple of things Tylen, I won’t bring them on board unless I have to, but if so, it won’t be for long and we’ll just keep them in the corner of the hold.”

“Yasmin, ask that guy if they have their own transport nearby, if so, where is it?”

“Thanks for that Jockram, I was going to round those stays up in the air car but if you can guide them back it will save a lot of bother.”

OOC
Incidentally, how far are we from the nearest civilisation.

Privately, Shui opens a channel to the captain.  + Six minutes until the berth opens, Captain Lanza, to keep you appraised of my schedule. +  That's it, that's all.  There's no point in disturbing him further, or anyone else; they're busy, and she's currently not needed outside.

That could change in a hurry, but for now?  She sits in silence, dividing her attention between the berth and the drama playing out at the air car.

Jockram laughs, "Banster wants to know should we keep them running around in circles for a bit, just to tire them out for you?  Says the exercise will help them stay warm."

Tylen waits in the cargo bay, his combat gear within easy reach in case he needs it in a hurry.  The cold air near the top of the ramp is... bracing.  Mixing with the warm air from the interior of the ship, it produces a swirling mist which would probably make Tylen look very dramatic to anybody coming up the ramp.

Questioning the prisoners, Yas discovers that the one from the crawler had been dropped off here, but the rest were locals from the nearby settlement.  The plan had been to dump the sleeping man out of the vehicle and steal it, with the cargo.

Ash calls in, "This man seems to just be asleep.  Can't see any injuries."  A quick look around the inside of the cab, "No signs of a struggle.  There's a pack of some sort of pills on the dash.  Says it's called meta... metranpresan-something.  Brand name on it is Restful Night."

Right on schedule, another light on the low berth controls switches to green...

OOC: Not too far from civilisation.  There is a settlement dome on the edge of the landing field, about a kilometre away from where the action is.

Ash knows that he isn't the sharpest tool in the shed.  And his confusion is apparent in his voice as he speaks over the comm, "Uh... I don't get it.  Why was an armed man guarding a self-medicated driver?"  He pauses for a moment, then continues, "I mean why would the guy take the pills, if was expecting to meet us.  Do you think that he was coerced at gunpoint?"

He pockets the pills, presuming that Shui may need to know what the guy took.

After another pregnant pause, the Profit Margin's navigator ventures, "Captain, do you still want me to bring the driver over?"

"Yes Ash bring the sleeping beauty in so Shui can take a look at him, if you are up for it you can leave him in the cab and drive the whole crawler into the hold, otherwise, just carry him and I'll come and fetch the crawler in a minuet."

"Yasmin, the dome is just over there, I think the bad guys are going to have to walk home, can you check they have a phone or comms of some kind, it's not a long walk but things can degenerate into an emergency very quickly in conditions like these."

"Current plan is to get the crawler and it's driver on board and once Shui has given him a clean bill of health we'll drop him off any where he wants to go, meanwhile, the bushwhackers will be walking home, empty handed. Once that's done we'll drop of Mr Othati-Fenn somewhere suitable and head back into orbit to prepare for our dinner guests. Any questions?"

Jago leans back into the well worn leather of his chair and takes a long, slow pull on his unlit cigar before blowing out a long stream of virtual smoke, 'all going quite well' he though, apart from this spring, or whatever, sticking into the small of his back.

Saskia perks up a little at Jago's announcement, glad that they'll soon be leaving this no good, backwater snowball and its lowlife criminal reprobates behind.

Meanwhile she keeps an eye on the instruments, just to be sure that nothing goes wrong.

Everything does seem to be going well, so far.

Jockram reports in again, "Nothing suspicious headed your way, Jago.  Still all clear.  Guess they weren't expecting you to come in with everything hot and guns blazing."

From his place at the top of the cargo ramp, Tylen can hear Yas, yelling at the prisoners at the top of her amplified voice.  They're probably grateful, if they have the time to think, by the sound of it she's keeping them moving about, so they won't be getting cold.  Then an engine starts up, and a cloud of dense smoke blows across Tylen's field of vision. 

Profit Margin's systems all seem to be operating smoothly, and in the low passage chamber, the timer on the one operating cold berth continues its countdown towards popping the seals.

Shui pops open a channel, still dividing her attention between her patient and the screens...more on her patient, at the moment, as his timer counts down from four minutes.  + Please bring the drugged man directly to the Low Berths for examination.  It will also give me an extra measure of security for when our passenger awakens in...three minutes, forty eight seconds. +

There is nothing like everything happening simultaneously.

Tylen is grateful that he is wearing his filter mask,  because the air is going to get really thick when that vehicle gets inside.

However, he maintains his position at the top of the ramp, but ready to step to one side when Ash starts to drive aboard.

Ash surveys the controls quickly.  "Starter here..." he half-narrates as he pushes then twists the control and the vehicle sputters to life.  The Margin's navigator puts his hands on the steering while his feet test the pedals for a moment.  He glances about looking for a brake release as well as a clutch.

Satified that he is reasonably situated, he tests his ability to actually drive the thing by easing the thing into gear (hopefully without stalling, but probably with some sputtering).  "Package on its way..." Ash notes into the common crew channel.  Though it is not as if the rest of the crew can't see that...

Politely inquiring the would-be ambushers Yas learns about their radio and then urges them to a new spot.  Exercise and variation makes for a happier life, after all.  That, and avoiding being run over by Ash's driving.

"Short range radio only, boss.  I could probably shout further with this suit," she reports to Jago.  "I'd suggest keeping close track of the runners either way to ensure they don't get themselves killed, but running will keep them warm, at least, so feel free to practise, Jockram."
This message was last edited by the player at 20:56, Tue 29 Oct 2013.

Yas shepherds the prisoners out of the way of the vehicle.  If shepherds were to use advanced combat weapons to move and guide their flocks.  In any case, this particular flock seems cooperative, if not particularly happy.

Ash gets the vehicle moving, a little erratically at first, but at least he doesn't have far to take it.  By the time the tracks hit the bottom of the ramp he's mastered the fine art of steering the unfamiliar vehicle in a straight line.  It crawls up into the hold, as Tylen steps aside and waves Ash by.

That leaves Yas alone, outside, with the would-be attackers.  Those attackers though, seem quite aware of the fact that she has them outnumbered and out-gunned.

The crawler comes to a halt in the hold, directly outside the low berth room, and only metres from Tylen's quad-bike and Yas' motorcycle.

Tylen is distracted for a moment as the crawler starts heading straight for his quad, and wishes that he had the forethought to move the bikes before Ash had started the crawler up the ramp.  He lets out a little sigh of relief as the crawler comes safely to a halt and then steps back to the top of the ramp to cover Yas as she makes her way back on board.  Not that she needs it of course, but it pays to be professional, just in case ....

Nobody has died, putting Shui in a fine mode.  She can't really help herself; looking at the holoscreen image of the sad little group under Yasmine's cold gaze, she flicks open a channel.

+ Will we be taking on more passengers for the Low Berths, Captain? +

"I don't think so, Shui.  They can walk home from here." Jago replies, before opening a channel to Yas, still outside, "Send them home, and get back aboard at your earliest convenience."

Jago starts ramping up the thrusters, and outside stinging blizzards of ice and snow are soon whirling around the ship.  None of which bothers anybody in armour, of course, but makes things a little less than comfortable for the prisoners, who are now hunching down as much as possible against the extremely localised storm and the growing roar of the drive.

Shui moves out into the hold to examine the that has just been brought in, under the watchful eyes of Ash and Tylen.  He's still asleep, and snoring.  Ash shows her the medication package. 

At her bridge station behind Jago, Saskia watches her instruments for any problems as the ship prepares to lift.

And right on time, the one occupied low berth sounds an alarm to indicate that it will be opening in fifteen seconds...

"YOU'VE BEEN GIVEN THE GIFT THAT IS YOUR LIVES.  NOW RUN BEFORE YOU BURN IN THIS COLD!"

Yas uses the last ounce of volume to make herself heard, without chance of being misunderstood and promptly turns around to walk back towards the ramp, showing the men behind her that they could do nothing to deserve further attention.  Not that she thinks they really want it, for which she cannot fault them.

Never mind the fact that she is not only keeping an eye on them still through her suit, but also via all the sensor feeds.  If they look in the wrong direction she will know it before they do.

"Coming back aboard now," she reports.  "Shame, really, such nice weather out here, if perhaps a bit gusty of late."  The grin on her face is evident.

Ash lets out a sigh of relief as the crawler lurches to a halt in the hold.  "Ah..." he muses under his breath over the crew channel, "Mirrors and blind spots.  How quaint..."  The fact that there are no backup cameras or proximity alerts and that there is the tight fit in the hold are the cause of some momentary consternation for the Margin's navigator.

But Ash is able to navigate the situation without incident.  Much to his obvious relief.

Cutting the engine, he clambers out of the parked vehicle and proceeds to low berth area.  Poking his head through the hatch, the lanky ex-Scout informs the ship's doctor of the obvious - they he has just arrived with the sleeping driver, "Doc, additional sleeper in the hold..."  Then he prompts, "Would you prefer me here?  Or there?"  Obviously, it is up to Shui as to which individual she would prefer to have him watch...

As Yas approaches the ship, Tylen looks around to make sure there are no other threats in sight.  Again he doesn't really expect it, but it is the proper thing to do - so he does it anyway.  After all it is when you don't expect trouble that you should prepare for it most.  Just for a moment he wonders where that gem on insight had come from.  It had the ring of a training manual, but he had a sneaking suspicion that it come from a digitised copy of an older text book of some sort.

With a shrug, he voice activates his coms systems.  "All yours Yas.  I am backing up to keep an eye on sleeping beauty." he says as he drops back to lounge against the door to the Low Berths room.  Leaning against the rearmost door post he can see into the low berth area and see the ramp at the same time.

"Nice driving, Ash." he says  when the ex-scout is in hearing distance.

"Thank you, gentlemen.  Right here is fine, Mr. Tescali; Mr. Orgesh seems to be keeping an eye on my guest."  Shui offers the security man a smile as she leaves into the hold.

Once there, she leans over, examining the package Ash holds out.  "Metranpresantopoloramin-357.  Interesting.  I'll need to look that up, but it appears to be a local, commercial product.  Nothing dangerous...assuming he hasn't had too many."  Popping open the package, she checks the number of pills against what's listed, then keys in a search function for the drug in question.

Once that's complete, she begins checking the man's vitals.

"He probably has been given some level of overdose," the doctor remarks.  "Sleep aids generally don't put people so deep that they ignore being manhandled."

OOC - Again, checking the man's vitals and doing a search for the chemical.

With everybody safely aboard, the ship rises into the air with a roar like thunder and the customary screech of the ramp lifting into the closed position...

In his low berth, Edrin Othati-Fenn lays yawning and blinking, bleary eyed, at the cold brightness in the room.  His movements, mostly just lifting his hands to stare at them as he flexes his fingers, are slow and imprecise.  It seems that he is not a "morning person".

Shui examines the drug package and runs a datatrawl for the product.

Ash nods to Shui, when she requests he stay put.  "Yes, Ma'am." he intones simply and crosses his arms while watching the groggy criminal slowly awaken.  With his gun tucked into his belt behind his back and out of sight, Ash makes no movement to try and give away the fact that he is armed with it at all.  He has his long knife visibly strapped to his thigh.  But with the safety snap still down on it, he doesn't believe Othati-Fenn can get the drop on him concerning that piece of hardware.

It too bad that Shui is such a conscientious doctor Ash notes privately to himself.  Not that he wants a low berth mishap, but there wouldn't necessarily be a better way to deal with this miscreant, in all honesty.

Still, abandoning him on one of the more remote parts of Rangent might not be a better fate.  So, perhaps it all came out in the wash.

The thin navigator hands the Doctor one of the spare towels off to the side, gesturing silently that it is for the patient - just in case, Edrin needs it.  To Ash's rather untrained eye, the guy seems to need it ...

Shui flicks the holoscreen of her dataglove and it vanishes. "This should not be a problem," she states.  "Give me five minutes, and I suggest keeping an eye on this man after he awakens." She wouldn't put it past the villains to attempt to place their own man aboard the Profit Margin as part of an elaborate scheme.

That said, she heads for her office at a quick stride, in search of the most efficient antidote to the drug.

OOC - sorry, I'm rather busy right now.

"That was fun," Yas says over the crew comm, still in the suit, as the ship moves on, "Well, for us, any way.  So, what about the trade?  I assume we wait for sleepy-head to wake up and seal it with him, dropping him off somewhere with the cargo?"

Jago's voice comes over the crew channel, responding to Yas' question, "That's the plan, yes.  He has a crawler, so he should be able to get to where he needs to go.  We can always ask him if he has any preferences."

Shui treats the sleeping man.  Watched over by Ash, she administers a stimulant which should counteract the sleep meds.  Within seconds he starts to stir, his snoring replaced by grumbling and the occasional moan, and he tries to open his eyes, without much success for the moment.

Edrin Othati-Fenn manages to sit up, but still looks about as lively as a corpse.  A particularly unhealthy one.  He opens his mouth to speak to Tylen, but most of what he says is partly muffled by a yawn, "Are 'e 'ere 'et?"

Ash is off the Bridge and Profit Margin in flight in a hostile zone with no gunners on station, so Saskia pulls some of the sensor data over to her panel and assigns it to a side screen.  Only the vital stuff -- lidar, thermal, EM tracking.  Anything that will warn her of incoming fire.

Jago, after all, has enough on his plate.

"Not tracking any threats Jago." she informs the captain, so that he at least knows she's still awake.

"There," Shui notes, satisfied.  "He should be fine, now.  There shouldn't be any side effects, either.  I would...keep a close eye on him, nonetheless."  She gives Ash a small bow. "Thank you, Mr. Tescali."

Then it's back to the coldsleep room with a small eyeroll for Tylen as she passes him.  "Ah, Mr. Othati-Fenn.  Awake, I see.  We have arrived at your current destination, and the captain will issue orders for your disembarking shortly.  Are you feeling well?  Any aches or pains, or other issues to report?"

Professional, as always.

Jago nods and smiles, then realises that Saskia can't see his face, "Thanks.  Not expecting much trouble up here, unless they've got somebody with a really good arm and a pile of rocks, but keep an eye on things, just in case."

Othati-Fenn shakes his head, and slurs his words as he croaks, "No.  Fee' fine.  'irsty."  He mimes drinking something.

Out in the hold, the driver's eyes open and he starts to look about.  He slowly sits up straight, and shows that he's better able to wake up in a hurry than the prisoner in the next room by looking at Ash and saying, "Maker's name!"  A wince is followed by an odd gesture, with the tip of his index finger drawing a circle on his forehead and a muttered, "Maker forgive me." then louder, "Where am I?  You might as well let me go, you know, I have no money on me, and the Fellowship of the Golden Triumvirate do not pay ransoms."

Then he catches sight of Yas, or rather, her armour.  "Ah!  Am I on a starship?"

Tylen winks as Shui brushes past him and then nods towards the woman in response to Othati-Fenn's questions, leaving the responses to the doctor.  However, Tylen stands up a bit straighter, rather than leaning on the door frame, and takes a more professional stance, now that the  man is awake.

He smiles slightly as he hears the man from the crawler awake and starts to turn towards the crawler, intending to keep and eye on both passengers. Then  he remembers that Yas is standing behind him in her full suit, and turns back towards the sickbay doorway to concentrate his full attention on the awakening passenger.  Tylen hefts his shotgun slightly, just to help Othati-Fenn remember that he is still a prisoner aboard this ship and that he really should behave himself.

Sure the man is as groggy as a teenager waking up from a three day bender -  but that is no reason to go easy on the thug.  "Is everything OK, Doctor?" he asks formally, taking another chance to make the prisoner aware of the armed man by the doorway.
This message was last edited by the player at 08:34, Sun 17 Nov 2013.

Ash holds up his open hands to show that he is unarmed.  "It's okay...." he starts, then pauses to let the groggy driver get his bearings.  He nods curtly to the man's question.  "Yup." he acknowledges, "you are parked in the cargo hold of the Profit Margin, a Van Rijn class merchant starship."

"Don't worry." Ash tries to reassure the man, "we aren't kidnapping you."  He pauses thoughtfully for a moment, as if deciding something, then continues, "We merely noticed that your crawler was in danger of being surrounded by a number of potential hostiles.  We, uh, took the liberty of moving you while you were out..."  No need to mention the armed man in the cab with him earlier.  Yet.

He holds up a finger, to pause the conversation for a moment.  "Captain," he notes dutifully into his comm to the common crew channel, "our representative in the crawler from the Fellowship of the Golden Triumvirate is awake now."  He trusts that Jago will let him know if that is not the organization that he was expecting at this pick-up.

"Once we are clear of the danger zone," Ash turns back to regard the driver and picks up the conversation with him again, "we can pretty much let off wherever you like on Rangent."  He looks thoughtful for a moment and then sheepishly adds, "Oh, and I'm Ash.  Ash Tescali, navigator of this here starship..."  He extends a hand towards the crawler driver.

The cigar rolls back and forth in Jago’s mouth as he studies the various images on his screens.

“Thanks Ash, could you explain the situation and find out where the best place to drop him would be please. Also could we load that last consignment of ‘Breath Easy’ ™ into his wagon ready to go.”

“Shui, when Mr Othati-Fenn is awake he might appreciate something to eat before we drop him off. Could you as if he’s familiar with this planet, he might have a preferred destination.”

Othati-Fenn accepts a little water, and smiles wryly as he notices that the cup is soft, thin plastic.  He doesn't have the energy, or the coordination, to put up a fight with a real weapon, let alone a piece of broken glass.  Still, that and the shotgun in the doorway remind him that he's a prisoner.  "Thanks." he murmurs as the water lubricates his vocal apparatus, then hands the empty cup back to Shui.

He looks towards the deactivated berths.  "Others all ashore?"

The driver looks around again, nodding at Ash's explanation.  "Profit Margin?  Yes, that's who I was supposed to meet.  Then some poozer pointed a gun at me and made me take some pills.  Guess they made me sleepy because I don't remember much after that."

He clambers stiffly out of the cab and peers under his seat, "I still have the agreed cash if you still want to trade?"  He starts to reach under the seat, before stopping and looking from Ash to Yas and back again, "Is it okay with you if I get the packet out, or do you want to get it yourself?  There isn't a weapon, the Fellowship of the Golden Triumvirate does not take part in violence."

Shui tries not to divide her attention between the discussion out in the hold and her discussion with Othati-Fenn.  It's not easy, given how the former is turning out, with the rescued driver figuring he has been kidnapped.  Hopefully Ash's explantion will head that issue off quickly.

Tylen's wink does not go unnoticed, nor his reassuring presence in the doorway.  "Everything proceeds normally, Mr. Orgesh," she briskly replies. "You are most welcome, Mr. Othati-Fenn.  To answer your question, you are our only passenger at the moment.  Captain Lanza will decide where we will drop you off, but it will be shortly and we'd like to have you ready for it."

"Ah, yes.  Of course." the Profit Margin's navigator exhales, through his pursed lips, "We've dealt with the hoodlum that was harassing you.  We detected him and his associates waiting in ambush for us before we actually touched down."  Ash paused for a moment, "Those men have been dealt with.  Though it did require us to load you and your crawler into the ship's hold to ensure your safely."  He gives the driver a slight shrug.

"Captain Lanza welcomes you aboard, sir." Ash offers amiably, "He regrets that since we are in flight that he cannot greet you in person."  Another pause before he continued, "He is also offering to set you down wherever you would like on Rangent."

"And the Captain has informed me that we still have your portion of the Breath Easy™ consignment still available for you." the thin navigator notes off-hand, "Assuming that you are still interested."

"We can have it loaded for you," Ash adds dutifully, "in the next few minutes."

Having had her fun with the silence and letting Ash do the talking, Yas opens her face plate and grins, if in a somewhat friendly fashion.

"Trust me, with this on I doubt you could produce a weapon that would dent this little baby, had you been into guns and in cahoots - I love that word! - with those thugs," she says, as always having fun with her toys.  "You're safe here, as Ash says.  I'm Yasmine Crow, head of security, by the way."  She doesn't offer a hand, as it would no doubt be intimidating, but she offers a nod instead.

"Sorry to have put you on the spot, inadvertently, I hope you guys one day can clean trash like them from your planet."  She is and sound completely sincere.

Tylen nods at Shui's assurances that all is well, then stands his ground, watching the sickbay but listening to the conversations in the main hold.

The driver nods happily, "Very pleased to meet you all, and even more pleased that the plan to ruin our deal failed."  he reaches under the seat and pulls out an envelope.  A very thin envelope.  Then he walks around to upen the large hatch at the rear of the vehicle.  "my name's Barrat, Barrat Haynes.  I'll have the medicine in here please.  Definitely still interested." The thin envelope is held out towards ash, then Yas, and back to Ash.  "Who wants this?  I'll need a receipt."

Othati-Fenn manages to clamber out of the berth, and leans against the side of it, swaying slightly.  "One of these days I'm going to get the money together to travel unfrozen.  I don't mind missing the journey, but the headache is always annoying.  And I feel cold for days afterwards, even when I know that my body temperature is normal again."

He steps away from the berth, "I'm ready to leave as soon as the captain... " he screws his eyes shut for a few seconds, "As soon as he's ready to let me off the ship.  Doesn't matter where it is."

"Jago." Saskia says quietly, a note of concern creeping into her voice, "I'm getting a radio signal from the planet.  Not directed at us, it's a broadcast.

"Seems as if our new friends are declaring war on us.  Reception is frelling terrible, but it sounds like they're telling all their gang members to watch out for us and report in if they see us, and to try to detain us.  They're saying that we attacked some of their people who were, quote, engaging in authorized business on behalf of the organisation, unquote."

Then she cheers up a little, "Not that they've shown any sign, so far, of having anything that could even hit the ship, let alone damage it.  But I think what they're basically saying is, 'Please Jago, come and drop all that sewage on us.'"

Moving over, Shui attempts to assist their passenger find his way to the recovery seat. "Please sit.  I have some tests to run, and you really should eat a nutritional bar and drink some water.  The coldsleep can be quite hard on the body, as you are well aware." She frowns. "I can also give you something for your headache.  Sadly, there is nothing I can do regarding the psychosomatic chill you experience."

Nothing with medication, in anyway.  Meditation in motion?  She could manage something with that.  Sadly, Shui has no interest in teaching Othati-Fenn her family's style of qigong.

"The captain will, no doubt, prefer to put you down somewhere in reach of civilization rather than out on the middle of the ice," she finishes.  Much as some members of the crew and passengers might wish otherwise.

"What's the weather like here?  If it's nice and warm I might stay for a while." Othati-Fenn declares as Shui examines him, "Otherwise I'd like to be put off at a main port, so I can get a ship out of here as soon as possible.  Cold enough from the berth without freezing parts off due to the climate."

Barrat Haynes watches as Yas loads the cargo into his crawler with no difficulty whatsoever.  "Thank you.  Can one of you let your captain know that he can take me home at his earliest convenience.  The transport was refuelled this morning, and the gauge still shows that it's almost full.  If he could drop me off anywhere within a hundred kilometres of where you found me, I'll be able to get back easily enough."

"We glad to make your acquaintance as well, Barrat." Ash said crisply with a nod.  "I will inform the Captain of you desired destination, as well." the thin navigator responds to Haynes' request for drop off.

He cast a glance in Yas' direction as the envelope is thrust towards him.  The chief is busy with cargo.  Ash looks at the physical package with a 'deer in the headlights' look for a brief moment.  Physical money transfer is... quaint.  Well, perhaps not quaint.  But, highly archaic to him without a doubt.  He holds up finger and halts the transfer for the time being, "I'll take that... in juat a moment."

He taps his earbud and speaks quietly into the common crew channel, "Captain, Mr. Haynes of the Golden Triumvirate has informed me that when we are done he wants to be dropped off within one hundred klicks of where we picked him up.  Also, he has physical payment for their portion of the cargo."  The thin navigator admits into the mouth piece, "How should I verify the amount and terms?  And he is asking for notarization of the funds transfer..."  In all honesty, Ash's confusion likely stems from the fact that he was blissfully unaware that they were accepting compensation - let alone know the amount to expect; he thought that these were charitable donations...

Well that, coupled with with fact that the ex-Scout isn't sure that they have a receipt book with carbon paper in triplicate anywhere on board the Profit Margin. "Uh," he notes tentatively, still not taking the envelope yet, "about that receipt... "  He pauses, stalling slightly, "I may have to check the ship's locker to be able to properly generate that receipt."

Tylen steps back slightly from the doorway, although making sure that he can still keep an eye on the doctor and her patient.  Then he speaks softly into his voice com, trying to keep his voice low enough that neither guest can overhear clearly

"Do you want be back on the bridge, Jago?" he asks in response to Saskia's last message.  After all, it might be good to have the turret manned, even if the local thugs hadn't get shown anything capable of damaging the ship
This message was last edited by the player at 18:38, Wed 27 Nov 2013.

Shui sighs.  "Sadly, Mr. Othati-Fenn, you'll then want to be off at a main port.  The weather here is inhospitably cold.  Hence, my earlier comment about your leaving us shortly, rather than immediately."  She offers a small, somewhat sad smile.  "We can't very well drop you off in the middle of an icy field."

Pursing her lips, she considers the situation for a long moment. "In fact, when we do let you off, I would suggest finding a ship out immediately.  And not informing the locals that you arrived with us.  It could get in you into some trouble."  It might get HER into some trouble informing him of this fact, but Shui isn't going to just drop him off without warning.

Jago responds to Ash first, "They have some sort of rule here which says that a charity can't just accept a donation above a certain value.  Our donation is above that value, so we agreed they would buy it for a small amount of local currency.  Just bring it through, and I'll give him a receipt for it."

Tylen's question brings a, "Stay were you are for now, Tylen.  They've got nothing on this planet that we wouldn't spot in time for us to react.  For the moment, it's just talk.  Saskia's keeping an eye on them, and so is Jockram."

Othati-Fenn frowns, "Port it is then, at Captain Lanza's earliest convenience."

"Well, I expect that 'at Captain Lanza's convenience' would be more appropriate." Tylen drawls from the doorway.

"Indeed," Shui agrees with a smile. "Gunnery Officer Orgesh is correct - we are in the middle of a situation at the moment, so some patience is called for.  Rest assured, I shall see that you are deposited at the spaceport when it is safe."  She cocks her head to the side.  "In the meantime, would you like something to eat or drink?  I can provide a small lunch, if you feel up to it."

Ash listens carefully to Jago's orders and then nods curtly, acknowledging into his comm, "Aye, Captain."

He turned to Barrat and notes cordially,"Mr. Haynes.  The Captain is drawing your receipt right now.  May I take the envelope?  Or would you prefer that either you or Ms. Crow, our first officer, ..."  And he indicates the rather large armoured exoskeleton loading the cargo - even though Yas had already introduced herself, "to hold the envelope 'in escrow', if you will, until you get your receipt?"  The thin navigator is more than willing to do it any of those ways, though he does have to review the amount first.

Once that is done, Ash makes his way to the bridge to collect the receipt from Jago - relaying the amount so that that Captain can complete the form.  He glances up at the security and sensor feeds on the tactical displays.  The lanky ex-Squid nods silent thanks to Saskia acknowledging her diligence in covering for him - especially while in the air.

Once he has the receipt in hand, Ash makes ready to head back to the cargo hold.  He tugs at the sleeves of his duster for a moment.  "Anything else that I should convey to the Golden Triumvirate representative?" he prompts Jago.  He heard the chatter of over the line concerning potential mobilization or retaliation by the Syndicate on any involved parties.

Ash brings the envelope through to Jago, leaving Yas to keep their guest company.  Opening the envelope reveals a single bill, similar in size to an Imperial credit, but more colourful and bearing a design that is unfamiliar to both the captain and the navigator.  The value is displayed as a single digit; 1.  Jago holds it up to the light for a moment, "Better make sure it's genuine.  It's worth nearly one third of a credit."  He writes out the receipt and hands it back to Ash.

"Tell him thanks, and we'll be starting back down in ten minutes."

Jago opens a channel to Shui and Tylen, "If your charge wants anything to eat, Shui, it'll have to be sandwiches and coffee to take with him.  I'll be starting back down in ten minutes, and he'll be off the ship as soon as humanly possible after that.  As I see it, the sooner we can finish our business on the surface, the less time it will give the locals to come up with a real plan."

"My plan... " he studies the map provided by Ash, "... is to drop the Golden Triumvirate rep as close to his home as I feel comfortable, then go directly to the furthest landing field from there to let Othati-Fenn off.  I think we'll be all done here within a half hour."

Ash smiles slightly at the payment amount as Jago scrutinizes it.  "Nice." he quips lightly, "They use pretty paper at least."  Then he nods to the further instructions and takes the receipt in hand.

"Got it, Boss." the navigator confirms to the Captain, as he trots down the corridor making his way off of the bridge.

Once back in the cargo hold, he holds out the slip of paper to Barrat, "Mr. Haynes.  Captain Lanza expresses his gratitude to the Fellowship for doing business with us.  He also wishes you the best of luck."  He pauses for a moment to let the man peruse the receipt if he so desires, before continuing, "Lastly, the Captain also wanted me to tell you that we will be landing as close to your dome as possible.  And should be doing so within the next 10 minutes or so."

He motions towards the cockpit of the crawler.  "So, without further ado, Mr. Haynes," Ash notes amiably, "if your cargo is properly stowed..." and he glances towards Yas and the rear of the crawler, "you should likely make ready to disembark in short order..."

Shui nods as the captain's message comes through. + Of course, Captain Lanza.  That seems wise.  Thank you. +

"Well, Mr. Othati-Fenn," she briskly begins.  "Captain Lanza estimates no more than a half hour before you can leave us.  I can most certainly provide you with a packed lunch, if you would care to follow me to the galley once your legs feel strong enough.  It's good to move around as soon as you can after coldsleep; it helps prevent the cramps from settling in."

She gestures toward Tylen. "Gunnery Officer Orgesh will accompany us, of course."

"Don't worry, we'll make sure we've landed before you drive out," Yas chuckles as she wraps up the loading.  "And you can tell your friend you've been on a genuine space ship, travelling faster than this crawler ever could, and not using up a drop of fuel in the process.  Well, not your fuel, at least!"

"So, Ash, ever done something like this before?  Reminds me of one time in the corps, if less shooting," she asks the navigator.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:34, Mon 09 Dec 2013.

Tylen nods at Shui's comments but responds to Yas's comment to Ash.  "Sometimes a  shooting livens things up.  Just needs an excuse ..." he says with a grin, raising an eyebrow at Othati-Fenn.

His fingers are restless, like the often are, and he picks lightly at a minor ridjge on the stock of the shotgun.

Othati-Fenn stretches and flexes and winces and grumbles as cramps and assorted aches and pains make themselves known, and he follows Shui out through the hold and towards the galley.  As they pass through, he gives the group gathered around the crawler a curious look...

In the galley he waits under Tylen's watchful scrutiny while Shui prepares a snack for him, answering questions about preferences and allergies mostly with simple yes and no answers.  Suddenly he seems to build up a little nerve, and straightens himself up to ask, "Can you do me a favour?  Pass on an apology to the man I grabbed.  Tell him I'm sorry, and that it was nothing personal - I needed a hostage, and he was there.  It was just... business, I suppose.  If not him, it would have been somebody else.  But I'm sorry it had to be anybody."

Barrat Haynes looks into the back of the crawler, pocketing the receipt.  He tries to move one of the containers, then tries harder, sliding it a few centimetres.  After which he gives Yas an appreciative look, "That suit makes you stronger?  I've heard of those I think.  Wonder how much it would cost to import one for the Triumvirate.  But then I suppose it needs special training to use, doesn't it?" 

He swings the door closed, then climbs into the cab with a nod to Ash, "Thank you for your help."

Jago calls back to Saskia, "Keep an eye open, we're dropping now."  Then he activates the crew channel, "Here we go, people." and as an afterthought, "Brace for impact." and a laugh to follow up.

Profit Margin rolls and tips her nose towards the frozen surface of Rangent as the thrusters come to life...

Shui blinks in surprise at Othati-Fenn's apology.  He hadn't seemed the sort, choosing to otherwise blame everyone else for his difficulties.  This, however, might be a starting point for a new path, a burgeoning change in his outlook signifying a different route for his life.  She hopes so.

"I believe the word for which you search," she quietly states, "is 'mistake', not business.  If not, please pardon my presumption.  But whether or not that is the case, I do appreciate the apology, and I believe Mr. DeSant will as well.  Thank you, Mr. Othati-Fenn.  I will most certainly pass along your feelings on the matter, and assure Mr. DeSant that you did seem truly contrite."

She inclines her head to the side, studying him for a long moment.  "And I hope that events proceed in a more fortuitous manner for you, and that you find what you seek in life."  Or what he needs, she reflects; sometimes they are not one and the same.

"Oh yeah, this baby makes you a lot stronger.  So strong, in fact, that without proper training you might end up breaking your own arm or tear up this crawler like it was paper.  Sort of like handling eggs with thin shell, if you ever done that.  A moment distraction, and splash!  Or crunch, be it a head or a wall.  Stands up to small arms fire, though, and a bit upward.  Learnt to use it in the corps, without hurting anyone in the process," Yas explains, happy to be talking shop about something she enjoys, actively demonstrating the crushing of eggs and skulls alike on imaginary targets.  "Costs a cute credit, though, but it's worth it, doubles as a space suit as well.  I'm as safe as a seedspitter on a ship in this."

The ship rolls and drops groundward.  Oh, frelling great!  He thinks he's piloting a dropship!

Saskia quickly pulls the radar onto the central display, and adds an altitude warning, just in case.  Then she double-checks the arrangement of system monitors around it.

"Still clear.  Power is stable.  Would now be a bad time to tell you I'm going to take a break?"

Ash shakes his head to Yasmine's query.  "Hate to admit it," the thin navigator readily concedes, "I've never given to charity before."  He smiles slightly sheepishly towards Barrat, before continuing, "But then, I never knew that it could be so ... engaging."  He shrugs slightly.

Then he gives a casual salute to Barrat, "It's been a pleasure to do business with you, Mr. Haynes."  Ash shows genuine concern for a moment, "Be careful out there.  As you are well aware, dealing directly with us will not win you friends in certain circles."

Still, the ex-Scout gives the crawler driver a 'thumbs-up' and pats the door.  "Farewell!"

Yas gives Ash an incredulous glance and then laughs.

"Ha!  I meant a drop.  Quick landing, getting this crawler off and then blast off right away," she explains, grinning from ear to ear.

"Yeah, so perhaps not talk too much about this, except in private among good friends, eh?  Perhaps once your grandkids can live in a less, uh, unfriendly world then you can tell them of your adventure."  She has no idea why she goes off on a tangent like that, but it is perhaps a nice thought that somewhere someone will remember the Margin fondly, beyond the crew.

She extends a hand towards him, saying "Don't worry, I won't even squeeze, just shake it up and down a bit."

In reply to Ash Tescali (msg # 132):

Tylen smiles wanly at Othai-Fenn's half hearted apology.  He really doesn't have Shui's sense that the man means anything by it at all.  It won't be remembered the next time the thug needs a hostage to get his own way.

It doesn't matter how prettily they speak.  A thug is still a thug.
This message was last edited by the player at 12:26, Sun 15 Dec 2013.

Ash shrugs to Yas and her chuckle.  "Everything is timing critical in the Imperial Navy." he notes to her, his gaze slightly distant as he recalls some of his time there.  Then the thin navigator refocuses, "Less so, with the Scout Service.  Or at least, there is less coordination between individuals since you spend so much time alone.  Some timing is still critical there, too..."

He quietly starts to make his way to stand in front of the crawler in preparation to help direct Barrat in backing the vehicle down the cargo ramp and off the ship.  Once they land, of course.  But, from what he can tell from the way the inertial dampers are compensating - it will likely be soon.  The Captain appears to have started his final descent...

"No break's Saskia, you'll need to hold it."

Profit Margin drops fast, entering the atmosphere at high speed. but still well within the hull's tolerances.  Jago pulls the nose up, and the ship pulls into a more horizontal trajectory, covering distance while still descending.

Barrat Haynes sits in the crawler, waiting for the signal to depart.  "Well, it's been nice meeting you.  Thanks for your help.  There are people that will be very grateful for the medicine.  Even if they never find out all the details, the Triumvirate will see that they know that help was delivered by a starship called Profit Margin."

A low frequency vibration  produced by air friction against the hull gradually reaches the point where it becomes audible, then stops as Jago makes some vector adjustments.  The ship slows, and drops lower.  Now only a couple of hundred metres above the ice, Profit Margin continues on at just barely subsonic speed...

Othati-Fenn nods glumly.  "I assume that I am to be deposited somewhere far from my brother and his captors - it's what I'd do in the same circumstances.  Just one question.  Can I also assume that I will be delivered somewhere where I won't freeze to death?"  He gestures towards his clothes, more suited to the regulated climate aboard a ship or a space station, "This is all I have to wear.  Didn't exactly come aboard with any luggage."

"Saskia, remember when I said you'd have to hold it?  That doesn't include the contents of the sewage tanks.  We'll be passing over the gang's dome in a couple of minutes, get ready to leave our friends a token of our respect."
This message was last edited by the GM at 10:49, Sun 15 Dec 2013.

"Oy, don't forget to video the whole septic tank dumping!  Good for feedback for the next time, as well as a warm memory of this welcoming paradise!" Yas says over the crew comm, making sure that their visitor doesn't hear it.  No need to cause undue offence with him, after all.

"Always more interesting when there's multiple people and wills involved in manoeuvres," Yas tells Ash with a bleak grin.

"Mr. Othati-Fenn, I will personally see to it that you are placed somewhere within shelter where you have opportunities, like the local spaceport."  Shui offers him a sympathetic frown.  "I am sorry, though, for your situation with your brother.  Indeed, to the best of my knowledge he is nowhere in the vicinity."

The doctor knows all about the loss of family, regardless of who they might have been.

She takes a long moment to consider, then sits down in the nearby chair.  "Mr. Othati-Fenn, I realize your situation is quite difficult at the moment.  You have no supplies, and I am uncertain as to whether or not you have access to your bank account.  I am willing to loan you a certain amount of money, sufficient to see to your needs for a period of time or to purchase a ticket to another planet."

Loan is a ridiculous word, given the circumstances; Shui cannot see him ever paying her back.  Whether or not he cared to do so, locating her might be an issue.  And she prefers it that way, given her past.

But it's also the word that might break past his pride on the matter.

She's aware of Tylen's thoughts on the matter of Othati-Fenn - they almost radiate off him - but having been given a second chance of her own, Shui is loathe to simply abandon the man to chance's vicious sense of humor.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:54, Mon 16 Dec 2013.

Saskia grins to herself then answers the captain, "It's already organised Jago.  Just need to double-tap that handy control I'm just setting up on your panel."  The joy of dynamic configurable control systems -- reorganise a layout to suit your own preferences or, if you have the override codes, add a new control to another panel so that the operator can take charge of that function.

Touch sensitive surfaces, holographic virtual interfaces and layout saving had revolutionised control panel design about half a millennium  ago, and now they're going to let Jago deliver a surprise package to some people who, to be honest, probably aren't really any more pleasant than the little gift they're about to get.

"Dren's ready to hit the fan at your discretion, Captain mine."

"Thank you, Saskia."  Jago notes the position of the new control on his panel, a yellow disk off to the right hand side, surrounded by a circle of inward pointing red arrows, all blinking to make sure he notices.  "The smiley face is a nice touch."

And on the crew channel, "Don't worry, I'm monitoring it with the sensor arrays, full visual spectrum.  You'll all get a chance to see it later.  Coming up on the target in... five... four... "

Profit Margin swings in a wide curve, less than a hundred metres off the ice and slows...

"... three... two... "

... and almost comes to a complete halt...

"... one... and done."

... before accelerating away from the dome at maximum thrust.

The soon to be released prisoner slumps a little as Shui explains that he won't be anywhere near his brother when he disembarks.  "So much for my plans for a daring rescue."  He seems about to say something else, but the offer of money makes him shut his mouth again.  He looks at Shui, then at Tylen, and back to Shui again.  "You do realise I won't be in a position to find you and pay you back?"  Another look at Tylen, "And I mean that in the sense of repaying the money."

Tylen stands and watches passively.   If Shui wants to try and help the guy, that is her choice.  Tylen will be much happier when the man is ashore and The Margin is well away from this dump.

The Profit Margin's navigator offers a slightly shrug and nods ruefully to the Security Chief when she makes her observation about the potential logistical nightmare involved with coordinating events.

Ash holds on to the one of the cargo lashes along the back wall of the hold as he feels the increased deceleration.  He nods to Barrat and gives casual salute, it does feel to help others and it be recognized for it in the right circles.  Then he takes a deep breath and braces himself slightly as Jago begins his countdown.  It's primarily superstition, but he braces himself even if the inertial dampers will do their job correctly.

He merely offers a simplified explanation to Haynes, "Another intermediate drop, I suspect."  His tone barely betrays that there may be more to it, before a slight smile creeps onto his lips and he adds, "Your stop will be next, I believe."  He gives the Triumvirate's representative a thumbs-up with his free hand.

"Oooh, lookitdat!  Dome of Icky Stuff, a new landmark on this planet!" Yas suddenly calls out, having routed the video feed into her suit to be able to watch it real-time.  Nothing like being there, after all.

Unlike Ash she does a little jig of sort in her armoured suit and claps her hands together once.

"Space-nuts 3, Meanies 0!" she referees, "first we turn 'em down, then we turn 'em wet 'n runnin' and now we give them a fresh coat o' paint!  Hoo Rah!"  She punches the air with a metal fist.

"Coming up on Mister Haynes' stop now." Jago announces a few minutes later, "Approximately twenty kilometres due south of where we picked him up."

The ship slows and descends again, and then the cargo hatch screeches and begins to open while Profit Margin is still a good twenty metres off the deck.  Landing gear extends, and the ship touches down on a broad expanse of ice somewhere between Nowhere and No Place.

Barrat Haynes starts the crawler and starts to back it, slowly, out of the hold...

And jago is back on the crew channel, "Thought you might like to hear this."  There is a click, a hiss, and a low whine, and Jockram's voice replaces Jago's.

"Jago, I've been monitoring comm chatter.  Couple of minutes ago there was a broadcast from that dome you just painted, telling their people what you did to it, and offering an 'increased reward' for anybody who can shoot down the Margin.  Then another station started rebroadcasting it, but with added commentary that the syndicate got what they deserved at last, and somebody did to them what they've been doing to honest businesses for years.  Now there are seven, no, eight different stations broadcasting their own versions of that message.  One of them even added music and a laugh track.  You might have made it difficult for the thugs to get themselves taken seriously down there for a while."

Tylen smiles grimly as he hears the recordings from the  ground stations, although he still says nothing as he watches Shui and their final 'guest'.

"Of course I realize this," Shui quietly replies.  "Nevertheless."  The doctor cocks an eyebrow at their resuscitated prisoner/visitor.  "I would think that two thousand credits would be sufficient for room, board, a ship's ticket and basic necessities in this place, would it not?"


Her gaze remains steady on the man throughout this question.

Watching through her lowered face plate as the crawler rolls out, Yas make sure it is clear of the ramp before starting to close it up, giving Barney or whatever his name was one last wave.

"Yeah, well, they finally smell like they behave then," she says over the comms with the grin that is audible and claps her hand together, even if that perhaps does not translate all that well over the audio.  "Hey, maybe we should take that reward?  I'll go down there and collect it, I'm dressed for it!  Oh wait, never mind, I don't want to make it smell."

Revenge is a dish best served smelly, perhaps.  Smelly and frozen.  Like a really cheap and nasty chocolate frosting.

"Now then, what about our other... guest?  I assume he's off next?" she asks over the crew comm and starts off towards where Tylen stands to see if he needs help with taking out the trash.  The face plate lifts up again now that the ramp is up.

"Hey, Ty.  Having fun?"

Ash waves farewell to Barrat Haynes once more and gives him any aid required in guiding the crawler out of the hold.  Only once that duty is discharged does he give the announcement over the comm channel more than a passing thought.  He shrugs slightly to no one in particular, seems that Jago and the rest of the crew want to make an impression - something that frozen poo to a dome is sure to do.

With the security chief in her armoured exoskeleton getting ready to escort Edrin off the ship, Ash figures that he is most needed on the bridge.  So, he quietly pads back to the co-pilot's console, nodding to Saskia and the Captain along the way.

And even though it is one the security feeds, the thin navigator of the Profit Margin gives his personal account of events, "Mr. Haynes and his crawler are away.  Ms. Crow is getting ready to escort Mr. Othati-Fenn off of the ship."  He adds a bit of commentary, "Likely we should land before she opens the airlock..."

"Right everybody, we're off the ground and heading for our next drop at best speed.  Twenty minutes, tops.  As long as we don't run into traffic.  Yas, take over from Tylen, and make sure our friend is ready to leave as soon as I give the word.  I don't want him on the ship a second longer than he needs to be.  Tylen head back to your gunnery position, just in case the natives start to get unfriendlier again."  Jago relays a string of instructions over the comms, then nods to Ash as he returns to his Bridge station, "Good work with the Triumvirate rep.  Take over sensors from Saskia, as soon as you're ready."


Yas enters the galley area, where Edrin Othati-Fenn is just saying, "That should be more than enough, thank you." in response to something that Shui has offered.  Perhaps sandwiches and coffee, since the Steward/Medic seems to be in the process of preparing such a snack...

"Ready to step off this ship?  Or would you rather we land first?" Yas asks with as straight a face she can muster.  It seems Sushi is giving him something, and she briefly eyes the pair of them.

"Is he all set?" she asks the steward-medic without waiting for a reply from the man who took Corlan hostage under gunpoint.  Something she has not forgotten.  If he had asked for help her attitude would have been different, but he had chosen his path and thus so had she.  "You missed the live show, by the way, frozen waste makes for such an interesting display."  She glances briefly at the recent popsicle as she finishes the sentence.

"All yours." Tylen  acknowledges that Yas is the new keeper of the prisoner/passenger.  However, there is not hint of his normal smile or grin -  just  pursed lips as he contemplates Othai-Fenn for a moment, before he shrugs and heads back to his turret.

Once there, he checks the tell-tales and screens just to make sure he knows exactly how everything is set - taking great care to make sure the lasers are running on full power again.

"Thank you, Captain." the lanky navigator acknowledges Jago's compliment simply and quickly, as he finishes buckling his five-point harness.  "Ready on sensors." he then notes with glance as his session restores itself on his console moments after he unlocks it.  He gives a glance at Saskia to ensure that she is fine with the transfer and then gives Jago a thumbs-up.

He methodically surveys the summary displays for the non-visual spectrums, checking for anything that is not green and then starts to look over the tactical displays both on his console as well as on the main displays.  He also takes note of route of the Profit Margin, noting the deviations from the original flight plan.

Lastly, Ash chimes over the external feed to the Jockram and his crew, "Ore Hound, this is Profit Margin.  Thanks for the heads up on the communique.  Our long range sensors are clear of airborne traffic.  Are you seeing the same?"  He narrates slightly, "We have one last drop to complete."  He appears to have omitted the word 'off' on purpose, as he is unsure if it is warranted in this case.

He leans over towards Jago, while muting the external line, "Are we planning to rendezvous with the Ore Hound following the business with our last 'passenger'?"

Jockram responds to Ash's call, and confirms that from his perspective, there is no sign of anything that looks like it might be a threat of any kind, "Just some ground traffic, looks like a convoy of some sort, about a hundred klicks east of you.  That and a few small vehicles scattered across  a couple of hundred square kilometres centred on your current location.  Planet's deader than my love life."

"The one you just dropped off is heading directly for the port where you picked him up, and making good speed already."

Shui confirms that the prisoner is ready to leave, having been provided with a snack to aid in his recovery from the low berth.  She asks Yas to keep an eye on him for a moment, while she goes to collect a "care package" from Jago's office - some warm clothes and enough credits for him to survive a few days. 

Tylen's check of his weapons panel confirms Jockram's report - there don't seem to be any potential targets lining up to be shot at.

With little else to do, Tylen selects some music and settles back in his seat as he watches the monitors.  Idly, he taps his fingers on the arm of his chair, in time with the music.

With Jago's present for their passenger in tow and her own addition to it, Shui returns to where Othai-Fenn awaits.  Giving the man an appraising glance, she hands over the clothing and small parcel.  "I cannot say I am sorry to have missed the 'bombs away', Ms. Crow, but I imagine it made quite a sight."  This with a small smile for the security officer.

Facing their 'guest' again, she taps her foot on the ground for a moment, then nods. "By the good graces of our captain, who chose to take you aboard rather than place you in the hands of the authorities, you have been given a second chance.  Few people receive such.  I hope you do better with it." The words could be hard, but they aren't.  Instead, they're quiet, almost musing, as Shui considers her own past.

"I'll do my best to live the rest of my life to the very highest moral standards." the soon-to-be-ex-prisoner replies to Shui, with a shallow bow and a shallower smile, as he accepts the clothing and the parcel.  Knowing that Yas, and the Captain, won't tolerate any dawdling, he starts to pull the cold weather clothing on over the outfit that he'd been wearing in the controlled environment of Denotam Highport.

The small package disappears into a pocket - at least he has the good grace to not inspect the contents in front of his hosts.

As it happens, he's ready in plenty of time, and attempts to pass the remaining minutes in witty banter about his lack of winter boots.  He gives up soon enough though, and it is clear that even he does not find his comments that amusing.  He turns his attention to the sandwiches and coffee.

Profit Margin flies over the ice at an altitude of about fifty metres, while Jago continually adjusts her speed and flight path to suit the terrain...

Finally the Captain announces, "We're there.  Please help our guest to disembark safely."  The screech of tortured metal sounds through the ship, signifying that the ramp is operating...

Ignoring any references to anyone's love life, Ash glances at the medium range sensors at Jockram's prompting about the Triumvirate rep's progress.  "I see that, Ore Hound.  Thank you." he acknowledges, "Good for Mr. Haynes.  Godspeed."

Amd though he trusts Jago's piloting skills, which are definitely better than his own, the Profit Margin's navigator still dutifully monitors the ship's progress, continually revising the route and silencing any terrain warnings on the topological overlay on the main tactical display.

He also continues to monitor the external commlinks for any additional planet-side chatter for additional bulletins or other useful information.
This message was lightly edited by the player at 13:16, Wed 08 Jan 2014.

"One can always hope," Shui quietly replies.

She remains with the man as he continues to prepare.  It's unlikely he will change, she knows.  There's nothing pushing him to do so but his own conscience, and it hasn't done terribly well thus far.  He has no reason to change, in fact - consequences for his actions have been extremely light, and people generally don't change without a blow to somewhere sensitive, metaphorically speaking.  Or not.

But he could.

'Unlikely' isn't 'won't'.  'Generally don't' isn't 'never'.  People sometimes change when given an example, like Jago's generosity in moving Othai-Fenn here and providing for him.  She hopes he takes it to heart.

Finally his journey comes to an ending, punctuated by a metallic scream.  Wincing, Shui gives Yasmine a pained smile as she stands.  "Mr. Othai-Fenn, if you'd follow me?"  She doesn't bother pointing out that the Security Chief will be following him, nor is she concerned about having him behind her.  Yasmine is extremely good at her job.

With Ash once again handling the sensors, Saskia reconfigures her board to a pure engineering station again.  She notices the flickering readings from the section dedicated to Tylen's turret as the gunner performs his system checks, and she makes sure that the PDH is giving priority to meeting the turret's power requirements.

She contacts Tylen to inform him of this, "Tylen.  Turret capacitors are at full, and the set to auto-recharge as soon as you do something to change that."

Tytlen grins as Saskia tells him the lasers are as ready as they will ever be. and turns down the music so that he can hold a proper conversation.  "Thanks, Saskia." he replies after turning the music down "It is always good to be prepared, although there doesn't appear to be anything that will need my attention." there is an invisible shrug that the engineer can't see "Ore Hound is watching from orbit, I have all of my sensors running with heavy warning tell-tales built in.  just in case." he adds the last bit softly.

"However, I suspect that they will be  miffed off by the present we left at their base" and this time the grin is audible in his tone "So they may well throw everything they have at us, just on the off chance of getting a bit of 'face' back."
This message was lightly edited by the player at 09:18, Sat 11 Jan 2014.

"FRIENDLY ADVICE, DON'T LAY HAND OF ONE OF MY FRIENDS AGAIN OR I'LL MAKE YOU REGRET IT, FOR A FEW MINUTES," Yas voice comes brusquely from behind the face plate to their disembarking hostage taker, "AND EVEN IF YOU'LL NEVER MEET AGAIN, DO YOU BLOODY BEST TO NOT DISAPPOINT THE CAPTAIN AND MY FRIEND HERE.  KARMA MIGHT JUST BE REAL."

She makes a point of following the pair without getting Sushi in any potential line of fire, even though all she really needs to do is stretch out an arm with a fist on the end to discourage any foolish attempts, which she does not put beyond him at this point.

"AND DOC, YOU PROBABLY DON'T WANT TO STEP OUTSIDE, IT'S COLD OUT THERE, I'M TOLD."

With the merest hint of an jolt, Profit Margin's landing gear touches the icy surface at exact same instant that the ramp reaches its maximum drop.  There is a thin sheen of moisture on the metal surface, caused by warm air from the ship, its humidity precisely controlled, meeting the cold air outside the ship.

Guided and guarded by the two female crew, who hold position at the top of the ramp (where it seems quite chilly enough), Edrin Othati-Fenn says nothing as he pulls his clothing tighter about his ribs, though he nods to his escorts as he starts down towards the surface of the planet.  Stepping onto the ice, he looks about, taking in the vista of snow drifting across the frozen expanse, driven by a lazy wind - the sort that seems to cut straight through a body, instead of going around it.

He shakes himself, and starts to trudge towards a small dome a little over a hundred metres distant, his head bent into the biting wind and the hood of his jacket pulled down low across his face.

As soon as he's out from under the belly of the ship, the ramp starts to lift, screeching a farewell to him.  Perhaps one tinged with a hint of "and good riddance".  Through the narrowing aperture, Shui and Yas can hear the rising whine of the drives, preparing to send the ship starwards, while on the bridge, Saskia can feel it as a vibration through the soles of her feet.

"Attention Profit Margin," Jockram's voice comes from the bridge comm system, "There is a door opening about ninety degrees around the left side of the dome from your current position.  No sign of any other activity yet, just a sudden flow of warm air."

Profit Margin starts to lift, a little less gently than she had descended, while still doing her best to fly casually.

In the hold, the sound of the drives is cut off as the ramp closes fully, seating itself against the pressure gasket, and locks...

Tylen patches a visual feed through to a one of his screens that will allow him to  keep and eye on Othai-Fenn and whatever else may be moving in the region of the dome.

"Well that is rid of him." he says softly to himself.

"First the liquid septic tank dumped, now the solid waste dumped too.  Somehow the latter almost makes me feel bad for the people on the frozen ball," Yas says over the crew comm as she moves back to where she keep her suit stored.

"I'll be back in my turret soon, Jago."

"Thank you, Ms. Crow," Shui quietly states when the ramp fully closes. "I appreciate your support, both security-wise and moral."  She closes her eyes for a moment, hoping - but not praying - that Othati-Fenn finds some measure of harmony in his life.  And changes his ways.

It's really all she can do, now.

Then she shivers, once, from the cold, and moves back into the heat.  "If you require assistance with your suit, Ms. Crow, I can help.  I'm unfamiliar with that particular model, but I have some experience with similar ones."  A small nod of the head follows.  "Not wearing them of course, but assisting people enter and leave them, yes." Also a great deal of study of such things earlier in her life, but there's little sense in mentioning that.

Yas stops in her tracks and turns to the other woman, offering a small but happy smile.  Briefly she wonders why she always get the feeling there is so much more to Sushi than she lets on.  Perhaps once in J-space she can sit down and try to pry some secrets out, gently of course.

"You're welcome.  We're part of the same crew, we have to look after one another," she says and makes a grimace as she continues, "which is perhaps why he got to me, pulling that stunt on Corlan.  He's like, I don't know, the ship Uncle..."

She shakes free from her thoughts and chuckles, although a warm one.

"I appreciate the offer, but it's just a matter of a couple of button presses, military efficiency at its best.  Civilian models are different, though, so no need to feel embarrassed or anything.  Here, watch this..."  She moves over near her motorcycle, pushes a couple of buttons, just as she said, and more or less steps out of the suit.

"Ta da!"  She spreads her arms and the suits closes up behind her to assume a staunch pose as if standing guard and being fully capable of acting on its own.  "You could possible help with the awful helmet hair, though."  She pulls off the hood part of the undersuit and ruffles her hair to try to bring it back to its wild, uncontrollable natural state.

"Guess there's a reason for those military hairdo's after all..."

As the ship climbs towards orbit, Jockram is still keeping watch, and feeding information to Jago, Ash and Saskia on the bridge.  "Doesn't look like anybody's coming out to do a meet and greet or anything.  Perhaps they just opened the door when they spotted that somebody was coming towards the dome.  Might be the local equivalent of hanging out a 'welcome' sign."

In the hold, Yas shows Shui how the suit practically removes itself with the entry of a simple code on a wrist mounted datapad.  And how it shuts itself down for storage.

Tylen keeps an eye on Othati-Fenn as the ship climbs higher.  The marker on the display which represents the man moves around the dome, and then vanishes as it reaches the position of the opening in the structure.

"Hm.  More advanced and certainly more user-friendly than the ones with which I have some familiarity.  I admit to the ones I have actually seen being civilian models..."  During her travels, of course.  Studying the military models earlier in life was certainly not for the purpose of learning 'how to take off and on'.  She flashes a quick smile to Yasmine, fascinated by the tidy exit of the suit.  "Very efficient, that.  And no embarassment, no.  I am, as always, interested in learning."

She makes a quick look of disgust of her own.  "I was...unimpressed by his taking of a hostage.  Poor form.  Cowardly, even, though it bespeaks of his desperation to recover his brother.  Lack of care for another's life when weighed against his own interests.  I was not pleased - a poor first impression, to say the least."  She sighs.  "The expression, I believe, is 'nowhere to go but up.'  Still, one can always hope he takes this opportunity and learns from it."

With a critical eye, Shui studies Yasmine's mane of hair. "I might do something with it, assuming you aren't joking.  There are styles which might suit you - easy ones, not taking a great deal of effort, nor getting in the way.  Assuming you are looking for a change, of course; your own style well suits you at present.  Though I understand it being a problem 'under the hood', so to speak."

Ash chuckles slightly as he flips the switch over to unmute the external commlink and readily agrees with Jockram, "It sure beats freezing to death on the surface."  The lightness in his voice gives a hint at the relative levity of his statement, "I mean we know that there are some nice people on Rangent..."

The Profit Margin's navigator turns his attention back to the Captain, "Hmmm.... Would you prefer the direct route back to the rendezvous point with the Ore Hound, Boss?  Or do you want to take the scenic route?"  His expression is slightly distant, which means that Ash is already running some calculations in his head - presumably, starting both sets, just in case.

"Learning is what life is about.  Well, one of the things.  The day we stop learning though is the day we're dead.  Literally," Yas says with a chortle and let slip into oblivion their now departed criminal.

"What, cut my hair?  Never!" she exclaims with overacted indignation, "Thanks for the offer, but it was mostly in jest, although I haven't worn anything like this in a long time.  All I need is a proper brushing, even if it can get a bit tangled at time, if you can believe it."

"I just felt, once I was out of the corps, that I had to make some other change too.  Move on, if you will.  The hair was the easiest, just leave it be, mostly.  I do like to keep some habits, though, such as staying fit.  I try to do a bit extra in the hopes it will help Jago," she says, a teasing grin appearing at the last statement.

She starts walking, intent on heading back to her station.  "Got duties?  If not I thought I'd grab a cup of something hot.  It looked real cold out there!"

Too true, the words of the security chief.  Words to live by, in fact.  Shui wouldn't be where she is now had she not learned.  She'd be dead.

Not exactly what Yasmine meant, but close enough.

"I was thinking more of a stylistic change, if cutting were not an option, but should you wish to keep it as it is, I quite understand."  Shui smiles, nodding.  "Change is a terrible and frightening thing," she faux-whispers.

At the security chief's offer, she checks her dataglove.  There is some time before she needs to begin work on the food for tonight.  "I could stop for tea," Shui decides, "if you are still interested."

"Well, about the hair, there is something, seeing what is coming later..."

Yas smiles lopsidedly and motions for Sushi to go first.  "We can talk about it over tea, so to speak."

"Tea would be wonderful," Shui returns.  "My quarters, if you prefer privacy."  A finger-flick to a control on her dataglove, and her pot of hot water begins brewing, linked as it is to her quarters' computer.