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WELCOME ABOARD THE SS NIRVANA!

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You are a mercenary or contractor exploring the fringes of our solar system. Perhaps you're a gun for hire or maybe a traveling doctor? You could be a professional smuggler or spy, possibly even an arms dealer or criminal lawyer. Whatever you do, your work is privately contracted away from the prying eyes of the inner worlds' tight rules and autocracy. This is where you can make the real money.

At the moment, you're working for Captain Octavius Jehnko, a charismatic young man who has assured you that going into business together will be lucrative. He's quite confident and connected for someone so young, and he's supplied you with the tools of your trade and given you your own private quarters on his ship, the SS Nirvana. Despite starting your journey in debt to him, he's been amenable and accommodating and also doesn't seem to ask questions about your past. Which is good for you.

Your teammates seem about as unscrupulous as you and you get the feeling you're among rejects, refugees, outlaws, fugitives, scoundrels, and criminals alike. But the team seems to be very effective thus far.

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You've recently gotten word that Captain Jehnko (aka "Lance") wants everyone to meet in the mess hall for an important announcement. You have a few minutes to sort out your quarters, do some research, get something to eat, socialize, explore, etc. before the meeting.
This message was last edited by the GM at 13:26, Mon 14 Aug 2023.

R-Chi1 looked about his very small quarters after finishing his 48 minute a day recharge. There was a small window and bunk, which was untouched. There was also a standing locker for personal possessions, of which 'Archie' had none.

This makes me...processing...sad.

He sent another email to Valerys Corvo. He inquired how she was doing, her health, and if it was possible to get in touch with Dr Emily Kessler. His creator, aka-'mother' as she preferred to be called. His syntax program told him he should state Dr Kessler HAD wished to be called Mother, as she was quite dead.

However, that was the key issue upon contacting Corvo. She had claimed to other shipmates that she could communicate with the dead. Of course, the research on all such humans who claimed so where actually frauds. Praying on grieving people for money and access.

Despite that, 'Archie' had an emotional subroutine which told him he was grieving. As a result he once asked about a possible session with Corvo about speaking with Dr Kessler. 'Val' had not replied the first two emails he had sent. He waited the customary 25 hours and 36 minutes between such messages, in order not to appear pushy. However, custom time seemed to be not anything he could source as official.

Was he in error? Should he have waited 48 hours and 36 minutes? Longer? He was unsure. Maybe Corvo's email was malfunctioning.

As chief computer officer to the ship's A.I., he knew her email was fine. He could review anyone's email he wanted, but had been told this was not acceptable unless ordered so by the captain. He wanted to serve on this ship, as it helped him achieve several of his primary goals all at once.

In any case, N.O.D., the ship's core computer identity, was always accessible to him due to the computer brian that housed his own data core. N.O.D. had a more developed personality that Archie did, which suggested its emotional subroutine was fully functional. Unlike his. It had not been helpful in trying to correct the errors in his own processing, as it did not understand Dr Kessler's odd programming language.

So, once again, the need to speak to Val Corvo was most present in his central processing. He had been most fortunate to find this ship and someone who could talk to dead people. The odds where literally trillions to one. Assuming the most likely outcome of her being a fraud was not the case.

His internal clock showed the time, and he adjusted his ship's uniform that he had been issued. Then he proceeded to head to the mess hall, as per the captain's orders. He had finished one of the backups of his entire memory and secured it in his locker. There was nothing else to do, other than review Cat posters to hang upon said locker. He had been informed this would make him...happy. He had serious questions about that emotional subroutine.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:44, Mon 14 Aug 2023.

Gill yawned and stretched as he woke up. NOD let him know about the meeting. He shrugged, Lance wasn't really in charge anyway, NOD was and only Gill knew it. The absurdity of the whole thing made him act in a similar fashion. He grabbed the big hat off his wall among a collage of knickknacks and worthless choochkies that he cherished. He put the hat on, representing his alter ego Turd Ferguson. He didn't bother to change out of his one-piece long red underwear, but he does put on a pair of cowboy boots and brushed his teeth before heading into the hallways.

R-Chi1's door was closed which usually meant he was still in that closet of his. Gill went over and pounded on the door, "Yo! "R" let's go harass people." He didn't wait for R though, he headed on down the corridor to his favorite target, Valerys. He rapped his trade mark knock and said, "Helloooooo Nurse." This is a reference from some cartoons he loves, Animaniacs, and something he says no matter which of his alter egos he is currently occupying. He pressed his face against the door, folding the hat, "Oh ba-abay. Ain't nuthin in the world like a brown eyed girl make me act so funny make me spend my money." He knocked again, "Please Louise, pull me off my knees. Jack, get back, C'mon before we crack. Everybody cut footloose!" He backed up a step and spun on his toes before heading to Skip's room.

He banged on Skip's door, "Yo! Peanut butter, we gotta rap with the Captain, wake up ya big lug."

Next Andre's door, stating with his trademark knocking, "Ray...RAY! Get up Ray, I need my coffee!" Ray is the only one who can make coffee to Gill's liking.

Edwin had stowed his meager personal object in his cabin earlier. Wasn't like there was much to keep track of. Some old photos, a couple of books and a few changes of clothing.

He was currently lounging in the mess hall enjoying a cup of Morning Sun tea and flipping through a copy of Magston's Technical Reviews. The magazine was several months out of date and filled with plenty of techno babble. Some he understood, others not so much, but he liked to keep fresh on such things might have to impress someone, someday.

He could hear someone back toward the crew quarters, sounded like Gill, or Ferguson, or whatever ID he was sporting this morning. He wondered if it was all an act or if the man had a serious psych problem.

He had a cousin who had gotten formal schooling in the inner worlds and sometimes messaged him about fancy parties and making a new kind of lightbulb.

His half shouted ranting could be heard well away from his quarters where he was testing out installing this light bulb that his cousin had sent him. "Sandra... Who cares?! It is a damned lightbulb. One of the original ones is STILL lit in that forsaken museum that used to be some kind of... Local emergency response unit barracks. That means that for a VERY long time people have made lightbulbs WORSE than the prototypes! It is because of expensive, narrow-minded, short-sighted, pinheads like you that starship technologies are stagnating!"

He adjusted the fixture and checked his tablet as a comfortable hue expanded gently into the room. "Damn. It IS a better lightbulb! Fine," this last bit was significantly subdued. He wouldn't call her a stupid pinhead anymore.

His work was here, NOD was amenable to his tinkering as long as he had proofs to show it should improve things, and while he didn't understand Gill even as much as he understood others apparently the cowboy needed coffee and it wasn't a bad idea to get it started before the meeting - for everyone. He entered some data while he moved through the passage(s) to the mess hall.

The sound of a dying cat woke Jak from his dreams. Dreams where he was warm and comfortable. Dreams where he wasn't running or hiding. Dreams that he was now no longer part of.The dying cat? Well, it sounded an awful lot like a feline in distress...wailing and crooning. However it was accompanied by intermittent banging as well. He started to roll over and pull the soft pillow over his head when he spied a glowing message on the room communicator. Blinking once or twice," NOD...messages?"

Jak was still waking up when he realized that NOD had been trying to wake him up. Repeatedly. Aggressively. It was only when NOD started to relay the hallway shenanigans did it make any headway in getting Jak's attention. "Shit..."With deft quickness, Jakova slipped on the oversized hoodie, covering most of his extraness and bolted out the door. Taking the hallway at a quick jog, he made his way towards the messhall and apparently the feline in distress.

NOD, being the polyprescient snarky AI that it was, responded to multiple inquiries simultaneously on multiple monitors, communicators, etc.

@R-Ch1: "You know, I am the administrator for ship communications. I could encourage the first mate to answer your inquiries more expeditiously."

@Gil: Gill will notice the cameras watching him make his loud walk down the halls. NOD didn't say anything, but Gill knew that AI was rolling its digital avatar eye at him again. He could feel it judging him like a mother or aunt would.

@Edwin: "More tea, Mr. Park?" Edwin knew if he agreed, the nearest dispenser in the mess hall would start brewing but he'd likely be given a sarcastic remark.

@Andre: "It appears the installation of the new light fixture was successful. Will there be anything Mr. Klanktonne?"

@Jakova: "Glad you're finally awake Mr. Jakova. Seems the 7th alarm was the charm this cycle."
This message was last edited by the player at 16:47, Tue 15 Aug 2023.

Edwin looked up from the magazine. "Thanks for the offer NOD but I'm good with this cup. Sounds like the others are almost here anyway."

He closed the magazine and took another sip of tea as he waited for the show to start.

Gill looked at the camera and that was NOD, "What? You comin' here to shake my monkey tree? I don't need this abuse from you, I've got a long list of people who want to abuse me. You're in charge but you got not power over how I behave. I will show them the absurdity of all of this and you can't stop me."

"NOD, I'm sure there will be more later but the specifics will be based on what information we get from Captain Jenko... Or I'll revisit the bioluminescent algae ducting ideas and carbon harvesting tanks. We animals put out a lot of the stuff and it would be great if we could efficiently forge half our expressed carbon and feed that through my proposed logic crystal press we could have... something like a cubic foot of quality crystals a year- per organic!" both were system upgrades best suited to a custom built ship... Most ships were made with the idea of how little they could be made of and still get people into space. "Maybe I need to settle down before Captain says his piece."

He jangled of strapped hand tools and scrap filled cargo pockets as he entered the mess hall with a short wave or nod to anyone there before him.

Archie, also a multifunctional AI, could multitask as N.O.D. could. He replied to the computer while walking to the mess hall. "The captain made the security of crew's email paramount. Proper protocols must be observed." He said in his monotone voice. "You should know this requirement as part of your own security program."

He had been about to reply to Gill, but the man had rushed off. His fellow crewmate should also know harassing the crew was also against protocol. It must have slipped his mind. His memory was not computer quality after all.
This message was last edited by the player at 21:58, Tue 15 Aug 2023.

Valerys appeared at the mess hall entrance.

A young woman in her early 20s, Val was always in her black flight suit that doubled as a space suit with her foldable helmet halfway up to cover her head like a hoodie. She was also wearing her typical bone necklace, crystals, and other weird mystical stuff.

She stopped, twirled her fingers, and whispered something to herself before entering. She was a weird one alright.

She quickly walked in not so much as flashing a smile or a nod to the others but found an empty seat in the corner and planted herself there. She wasn't exactly what you'd call "friendly".

Immediately following Val was Lance. Wearing a duster, a worn out uniform, and boots, he strode in with a self-confident swagger. He couldn't be any older than Val, but he didn't seem to realize that.

Lance: "Good morning, everyone! How are you all doing this fine morning?"

He reeked of "try-hard". He reached out to fist bump people as he walked by. A tradition that had come in and gone out of style many times but he seemed to be trying to bring it back.

Osram had been up for a while before the designated start of the "day" cycle aboard the Nirvana chimed.

He'd gone down to the cargo hold and spent time shifting and shuffling the storage containers around.  It wasn't a strictly necessary task as NOD had designated a loading plan when they'd last resupplied that maximized the usage of the space based on an anticipated rate and pattern of usage of the supplies and the ease at which they'd need to be accessed.  Still, shifting the arrangement from 98% accurate based on the current usage projections to 100% gave him an excuse to put some physical work in, which suited him just fine during longer trips.

As the day began Osram strolled out of his cabin with a bit of a cheerful whistle, clad in a pair of thongs, loose shorts, and a tank top with a damp towel around his neck which he planned on dumping into the recycler.

"I don't smell no coffee."  He declared genially as he wandered passed the mess to deposit his towel.

"I'll make some."  He offered, or perhaps threatened from down the hall.  The last pot of blackstrap Osram had made had only resembled coffee in that it was boiling hot and black in color.  Otherwise the casual observer would had assumed it was intended for degreasing engines.

A few moments later he circled back and ducked into the mess.  "Mornin' Cap."  He greeted the man, proferring a large alloy fist to bump.

"Doin' right as rain myself." Osram answered Lance despite only having seen vids of that particular weather phenomenon.

Skip always found his room rather soothing.  Unlike the typical room, the captain had generously modified it for him.  The walls have additional soundproofing (which means not hearing Gill's antics as anything more than a muffled tapping), and there is a the low hum of an low-powered electromagnetic field generator mean to screen the constant bombardment of emotion from the others.  Only the strongest fear and anger would get through as a warning to him.  This allows him to actually sleep restfully.
He is currently awake, and running through scenarios on the training simulator that had been added, so he could keep his marksmanship up without the potential fir injury to his crewmates or damage to the ship.  He runs through a number of shoot-or-no-shoot situations, drawing the simulator pistol from the gunbelt and holster strapped about his bare hips and thigh.  Then NOD reminds him about the meeting in the meas hall.  He shrugs.  I guess I'm gonna be a little late.
He hops into the sonic shower before getting dressed in casual clothing:  undergarments, shirt, boots, jeans, gloves, leather jacket, and cap.  The clothing is a bit stiffer than normal, but not uncomfortably so, giving away its lightly armored nature.  The gunbelt returns, with his plasma pistol in the holster, and a slug pistol in a holster tucked at the back of his pants.  NOD, could you let the captain know I'm on the way? he asks the AI as he finishes with his boots.
When he enters the mess, he greets his crewmates, but first, What's happenin', Cap'n?
This message was last edited by the player at 07:23, Wed 16 Aug 2023.

"Turd Ferguson" strolled in, wearing his red one piece underclothes, giant cowboy hat, boots,  and butt-flap hanging by a single button. He nodded to Skip, "Peanut Butter, glad you joined, always nice to see your smiling face." Osram, the giant piece of metal and flesh, was given a fist bump in passing, as he said "We talked about this before big guy, Ray makes the coffee when other people are going to drink it."

Jakova who was all dark and shadowy got a brief nod. Turd was headed in a specific direction. He moved to Ray, "Ray, please, make the coffee. I need...coffee." Turd offered his hand for the "cool guy" hand shake and when either accepted or rejected he kept going. Edwin was there, his rival...not really but Turd always joked they were each the other's nemesis and as he passed he narrowed his eyes, "Eddie make sure you keep that seat from floating away." Turd kept moving, obviously now headed for Val's table, but on the way he grinned at R-Chi1, "R, make sure Eddie chair doesn't float away."

Finally he reached Val's table. He turned a chair out and sat at her table, putting his boots up. "Val, I'm sorry, it isn't going to work. Last night was amazing but...yea there is just too much man here for one woman." He made sure to say this loud enough that everyone heard it. He wasn't telling anywhere near the truth and wasn't trying to convince anyone, he was just saying it to try to get a rise out of her. The one person in the room he hadn't acknowledged was the Captain. The Captain would have to say Turd Ferguson before he would.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:12, Wed 16 Aug 2023.

Edwin watched as the the others slowly filtered in. He nodded to Andre it was easy to tell the man was a tech above all else. He seemed to always carry enough tools to fix any problem. He still hadn't figured out why Gill called him Ray, someday he would have to look into it, maybe ask NOD eventually.

He also nodded to Archie as he came in though from the bit of conversation he overheard Archie was discussing something with NOD. So he didn't attempt to interrupt.

Val's entrance was rather cold she ignored everyone and found her seat. She was a beautiful woman but seemed to prefer her solitude which was her prerogative. If she decided she needed to talk to him he would be around. Not like there was many place to hide aboard ship.

At the captains entrance he returned the fist bump, "Morning captain."

A quick nod in greeting to both Jakova, Osram and Skip as they entered. Of course then there was Gill. Edwin returned the mans eye narrowed stare as he passed. "No problem there Mr. Ferguson. Figured I would take care of the job since I was recently informed your qualifications were rather lacking." He smirked as Gill found a chair next to Val, this could get interesting. "I'm sure that by some stretch of divine intervention if your comment to Miss Corvo was true, she could easily confirm your lack of ability in other fields too." He would never admit it to anyone but he actually enjoyed these little exchanges with Gill some of the time.