In reply to Sharik Kaagira (msg # 113):

Vonon once again makes a complimentary gesture towards Khea,

"Once again, gentlebeings, the Voice of Reason!" Vonon pronounces, "Khea is absolutely correct, again. I worked for twenty years chasing miscreants around an asteroid belt, so please take my word when I tell you all that what Khea says is true; once we step out of this launch and its artificial gravity onto that rock, there will be next to no gravity."

"I'm used to it, I was born in a spacesuit and lived in a vacuum; I'm a rockhound born and raised. And I know that Sharik and Pablo, here, have at least a minimum of zero-g training, because I met them when they were getting that training. Like Khea says, it'll take a long time to crawl across that rock to go looking for the Longshot. Maybe too long."

Vonon turns a grinning muzzle towards Sam, "And you are correct, Sam, that the Count..." Vonon puts some emphasis on Darrel's Title, as he point towards said worthy, "...may have no tactical training, but we do!" Vonon gestures between himself and Sam.

"And we just advised him of the two tactical situations -- bypass that scoutship or take it out. And now, acting career aside, as a trained administrator -- as the man who indirectly got us this contract -- and as a Count of the Third Imperium, His Lordship will decide on the next course of action." Vonon finishes with his gauntleted fists on armored his hips, slightly rocking left-to-right.

In reply to Vonon Ronkunu (msg # 114):

Sam cocks an eyebrow at Vonun

"I must have missed something. I thought we were on a private contract, not one vetted by the Imperium. So Imperial rank has no meaning here. If you want to suggest we elect an actor" Sam stresses the word " as tactical decision maker, fine, we can vote on it. And if the majority wants that, ok."" She shrugs, before continuing "But. we. are. not. in. Imperial. Service"" she continues, biting down on each word "so no-one should assume they have the automatic right to command." She pauses, then says more quietly "Nor try to take it by force."
This message was last edited by the player at 15:41, Wed 04 Nov 2015.

  Kaengarr had his own feelings on the matter, some of which had been clearly on display, but he remained silent as Samantha and Vonon took it in turns to argue about who was in charge. Still, something in the way that the dispute was being conducted prompted him to slowly tear his gaze away from the viewport and focus on what was happening... and what he suspected might be about to happen.

  For all of his study and practical experience, Kaengarr often found himself in an awkward position as a Vargr whose background was most definitely not Imperial, with all of the cultural conflicts that entailed. The question of who was in charge of what and under which circumstances among this little company was just such a situation, pitting intellect and instinct against one another in a thoroughly uncomfortable manner. Thus, the escalation between Samantha and Vonon was having much the same effect on him, and the resulting twitches of his ears and muzzle were readily evident despite the obscuring effects of his sealed suit.

Realizing this was quickly get out of hand, " We need to stay focused here. True, I have no "real combat"experience. I was just going with what made more sense to me, our target is the Longshot, correct. Taking on an unknown mining ship, doesn't that take away from the main effort? Doesn't that have the potential, actually it likely will, to cause more problems than it's worth, especially given, we're just assuming it's hostile?"

Somewhat embarrassed that this is boiling down to his title and it's connection to the Imperium, "I made it clear from the start, I'm interested in working within the structure of the group, my title doesn't necessarily make me the defacto leader, especially in combat, however, if and or when, me being in that position helps us, as a group, then it makes sense to do so."

Donning his vaccsuit, "And Sam is right, unless officially hired by the Imperium, then that has no bearing here." Before sealing his helmet, "And it's Count, not Baron."

"Then someone needs to quickly come up with a plan or I will make it on the fly for everyone." Sir Walter said. "Too many Captains and not enough crew men." he added, muttering to himself.

Sam Glanced at Walter, and began donning the last bits of her vacc suit "Its simple. We have one choice. Do we ignore the mining ship? I say Nay. the Count "she nods at Darrell " Says aye. What do the rest of you say? Majority wins."

Listening to the ongoing discussion, Pablo kept his mouth shut, and his hands away from the varied weapons he carried. He didn't think anybody was on that short a fuse, but there was a lot more angry in the air then the situation warranted.

He kept most of his attention on monitoring the comms, though, and working up a rough EVA plan for boarding the Miner using a thrust pack. Maybe he could crawl around on the ship's hull, and mission-kill it by disabling its sensors and mining laser. Of course, they might see him coming and broil him in his suit with that big ugly mining laser, but he'd never know it.
This message was last edited by the player at 13:28, Thu 05 Nov 2015.

  They accepted one of their own as leader on the strength of an arbitrary word, then disputed their allegiance between themselves and without established cause even as the leader himself renounced the word's value. It was all very strange.
This message was last edited by the player at 11:49, Thu 05 Nov 2015.

"I vote for the short and simple, straight for the Longshot, our contracted target."

In reply to Darrel Cromwell (msg # 122):

"Find the Longshot, Aye." Vonon adds, crossing his armored arms over his chestplate.

  Kaengarr let out a strained rumble akin to a sigh as he turned his attention back to the viewscreen, still very much on edge and showing it. It was several moments more before he answered, lips drawn back into what resembled a Vargr grimace and a definite note of resigned fatigue in his voice. "We'll go to the Long Shot. Once we're there, anyone who doesn't think they're good for storming it can take the launch back to the mining ship and deal with it, assuming that it isn't coming for us by that point."
This message was last edited by the player at 14:02, Tue 08 Dec 2015.

As people answered, Sam held up fingers on different hands, so far one on her left, three on her right. She turned towards Walter and Sharik, waiting. And hoped they didn't get a tie, but the way it was shaping up it was unlikely...

Finally done with securing her helmet Khea has not heard anything about the vote as she is only now activating her communicator.
"So is everyone ready now?"

Sir Walter looked over to the crew members and saw that Samantha was keeping track of the tally. "I am not voting as it is the rest of you that have to take the vessel, I am just delivery driver. The choice on "how" you want to do it is up for a vote." he said "And so far it looks like we need to drop in, if that is the final decision?" he asked, looking to the Count and Vonon.

Sharik glanced over her shoulder, "You probably should vote, Sir Walter.  Our lives are in as much danger as the rest, even if we don't board."  The shuttle pilot seemed to feel that his job was to theoretically remain out of sight, but reality and theory didn't always meet or cooperate.  The youthful appearing dilettante then conceded, "Or perhaps our votes only count half..."  The slightly crooked smile that she gave her assembled companions was a touch self-deprecating and a touch serious, making it more than a bit enigmatic.

But, of course, that also meant that the auburn-haired socialite turned co-pilot should also vote.  "I can't see any markings or other signs on the seeker that indicate it is part of this operation." Shar shrugged slightly, "Though their placement and timing are inconvenient, unless someone else has seen something with respect to it that links it directly to the Long Shot, we should avoid the ship and not attempt to interact with it."

Her eyes quickly returned to the scanners and the visual sensory input that was streaming to them.

In reply to Sharik Kaagira (msg # 128):

Vonon nods gratefully, as Sharik votes to bypass the seeker.

"Alright, then, this is the plan I had to get aboard the Longshot -- Sam, as the other tactician in our group, if you have any suggestions, or see any flaws, I'm willing to listen."

"So, my suggestion for a Plan A - Walter flies the launch low-and-slow over the surface of the asteroid. We know/suspect that the Longshot is on the other side, so we fly low to the ground and go slow -- like, ten feet abouve the surface and only a couple miles an hour -- and we keep to using the passive sensors. We move like this until we spot the Longshot."

"Now, we know, that the hijackers know, that an SOS got out before they had total control of the Longshot. The hijackers probably think they have a dozen or more hours before help can arrive -- they wouldn't know we hitched a ride on a ship equipped for micro-jumps."

"Mz Blue informed us that the hijackers were locked out of the higher command functions of the Longshot's computer -- that's why they haven't jumped away, or even moved. I don't think they can activate any of the engines, yet. But Mz Blue did say she thought it only a matter of time before they hacked the computer."

"So. We should assume that any system that was active when the hijackers boarded the Longshot is still active. Since we haven't detected any active sensors -- like radar -- coming from the Longshot, we can assume such systems were not on when she was boarded. However, we should assume that passive sensors are active. Maybe they are, maybe they ain't, but we should assume they are."

"Therefore, we make a low, slow approach, so that the launch might get mixed up in sensor readings of the asteroid's surface. We try to mask any electronic emissions from the launch -- I know, it's a cheap, basic Launch with minimal electronics! But I have faith in Sharik's Sensor skills -- so, we mask emissions as best we can and sneak right up to the Longshot.

"Hell, if she's alone -- i.e., that mining scout was the hijackers ship, and they've now all transferred over to the Longshot -- then we might try snuggling up to an airlock. If there is another ship near the Longshot -- let's call that Plan B -- then we ground the shuttle a mile-or-so from the Longshot, and we walk in and try to board from a ventral hatch."

"I'm really hoping that we can actually dock the launch up to an airlock -- a few of you don't have the requisite skills to walk across an asteroid; as we've already discussed. If we can dock with the Longshot, then all of us will have the option of running around aboard the Longshot.  But we won't know if we can do this until we can actually see the Longshot."

Listening to Vonon's plan, Pablo stood still a few moments, working over the implications, then he said, "Sir, with your indulgence, I would like to play devil's advocate for just a moment. Put yourself in the shoes of our hijackers. First, presumably at least some of Longshot's ship's company is involved in the takeover, or it would be called piracy, not hijacking."

He paused for a another moment more, then plunged in. "You have physical control of a ship, but not control of its computer systems. You know that a distress signal got out, so a response is either on the way, or being organized. Now, assuming the Longshot is where we think, you have a mining ship landed a few klicks away over the horizon of a small asteroid. If they are your buddies, part of your gang, then fine, they can help watch your blind spots. If they are not involved in the hijacking, then they are either where they are, right now, by monumental coincidence, or they just might be at least considering a response to the distress call."

He sighed, not really wanting to say more, but decided it was best to get it all out, and let the command team make the decision. "Either way, sir, the hijackers would be very foolish to assume they have a lot of time on their hands. I believe we have a lot less time to intervene than the current plan envisions. If that is true, then the alteration to the plan I would suggest is not going in low and slow, but instead pushing the launch's propulsion as hard as possible. We're less than twenty kilometers from the asteroid, we could cover that distance and be on the ground, in less then two minutes, and aboard the Longshot a few minutes later, at least with the first assault team, those who are trained in boarding actions. No matter what, we cannot assume we are going to have the element of surprise. Not if the hijackers are any good at what they do, sir."
This message was last edited by the player at 08:02, Tue 10 Nov 2015.

With Shariks vote, Sam shrugged and said "fair enough"

As Vonun outlined his plan, Sam continued checking her gear, and secured her helmet last.

Triggering her comms she said "Sounds fine to me Vonun, lets get it done"

Turning to Pablo she said "The mining ship might have arrived after the Long Shot was taken, so no-one would have detected it. If it was here before, the hijackers, their approach vector, might mean they may not be aware of it all. In fact we don't know anything about it, except its there. Apparently, that's irrelevant." She shrugged and grimaced "Which means theres no way to know if Long Shot is alerted to us or not. So, we're assuming its not until we have signs otherwise. Anyway, orders have been given, time to get them done."

She nods at Vonun and grins "Shall we start the Boarding party?"

Walter listened to Vonon's plan for taking back the Longshot "Got it, low and slow, try to land next to it so the group can transfer over via airlock." he said "Hang on in case it gets gets bumpy." he added as he started moving the launch, using the cover of the terrain to help hide their signature from both vessels.

When finally underway Khea aks through the comms "Is the scout still here? It can keep an eye on the other ship and also provide a distraction for our approach in case they have some ship functions under control"

In reply to Kheaiftouaw (msg # 133):

"Actually, Pablo, that's another reason that I believe that seeker scout to be harmless." Vonon responds, "If it actually was the vehicle that the hijackers came here in, then they might be trying to use it to tow away the Longshot."

"Truth be told, while I am seriously hoping that the hijackers ship will not be hovering nearby, when we spot the Longshot, I wouldn't put any money on that bet. I am actually dreading that we will find another ship there, when we find the Longshot."

"But, as I said, we won't actually know that until we put eyes on the Longshot. I am expecting, once we see the scene, that we'll have to modify our plans. More than likely, if there is another ship, we'll go with your suggestion -- a quick rush to get close enough to the Longshot that neither ship can get a shot at us, and then we get aboard as fast as possible. As you say, with us walking walls leading the charge."

Pablo was ready to go. The plan was in place, at least until contact with the enemy or the mischievous Mr. Murphy scuppered it. He started whistling to himself quietly, as he made one last check of his gear. Going in initially he intended to stick to the Navy pistol, or flashbangs and tranq grenades. The assault weapon wasn't exactly designed to be a precision instrument, after all. Until it was clear who the targets were, single shots and non-lethals were the order of the day. Happily, the targets would be conveniently self-identifying by pointing weapons at him. Then all bets were off.

The last thing he checked was the strap that secured him in the airlock. Getting bounced around the launch's interior, or worse, blown out into space by a lock failure for whatever cause, would be embarrassing.

Once the discussion about the 'Plan' was resolved, Walter steered the launch out from behind the asteroid where it'd been hiding, and made a beeline for the other asteroid, aiming for as tight a circuit of it as was safe.

There was no activity from the mining scout parked on the near side of the asteroid, but everyone gave a mental sigh as the launch slipped over the horizon and out of sight of the scout.

At that point, Walter slowed the launch to nearly a crawl until it approached the far side of the asteroid. He was able to position the launch in such a way that he could pop up over the asteroid's edge to get a snapshot of the other side before popping back down into the shadow.

The Long Shot was landed on the surface of the asteroid. The cargo/ore bays on the underside were open. The launch, as had been planned for and hoped for, had come up on the aft end of the ship.

The best news was that there was no other ship in sight.

The second best news was that the Long Shot had no active sensors running. The transponder has also been disabled.
This message was last edited by the GM at 20:27, Tue 17 Nov 2015.

After a quick visual check to make sure that everyone was sealed up, Pablo exited the launch, and headed over to the aft airlock of the Longshot*, using his various vision aids to scope out the surrounding terrain, just in case the hijackers had posted a sentry outside the Longshot for whatever reason.

---

  As the launch made its final approach, Kaengarr made a few observations, though he evidently did not feel the need for full sentences or proper grammar at this point. "No transponder fits the story. Cargo bays open - lockdown or sloppy? Might be booby traps."
This message was last edited by the player at 14:01, Tue 08 Dec 2015.