"I'm in! 5 Card Stud? 5 Card Draw, Texas Hold'em?

"Jump space is all the poker I can handle, life is a gamble."

+++Dealers Choice+++ Forge said over the intercom.

"I'm always good for a game!" Steve chimes in.

"We usually play just for bragging rights, not real money. Penny ante stuff. If one wins too much, it can cause resentment among the rest of the crew."
This message was last edited by the player at 01:44, Sat 11 Apr 2020.

Doesn't seem to be any interest in the poker game, except for an occasional game during the week of transition.

Nothing untoward happens in J-space during the week. Nothing on the ship malfunctions or even needs repaired, and only the regular schedule maintenance that can be done in jump-space needs to be done.

Exit time arrives with the usual standard alert. It's just a precaution in case the jump wasn't quite accurate--makes sure no one is doing something that could cause a problem.

The three-second alert sounds... and then all hell seems to break loose!

The ship takes a hit! Artificial gravity cuts out! Alarm klaxons sound!

Everyone needs to make a damage roll of 1D-1.

04:23, Today: Arc Tangent rolled 2 using 1d6-1 ((3)).

Ouch!

Arc had been in his room laying down reading the latest Captain Tallant novel and when the transition signal sounded, he'd been considering getting up and heading to the bridge to see what this system was like. Not that there'd be anything really to see, but the computer could display a simulation. It could have anyway, but actually being there was made it more real.

And then he was getting tossed around! First up against the ceiling and then back down onto the floor!

"What the frell?!" he said out loud as he got to his feet... or tried to as he floated in the air.

"We're under attack?! How the hell is that even possible?"

The sudden jolt of the ship and its gravity failure throws Adriannah from her bunk. Landing heavily she slides across the floor into the bulkhead colliding with a solid thud. Her form lays in a bundle in the junction of floor and wall of her cabin.

Harry was on the bridge but had no time to react! He was slammed about in his chair, thank goodness he had bee strapped in! He thought his shoulder was separated anyway!



09:02, Today: Harry McStubbin rolled 1 using 1d6-1 with rolls of 2.  damage.

Roland had been in Engineering getting ready to switch over the drives to the maneuver drives when he was thrown from his seat, The only damage was a bruised butt and a bruised ego though.

09:03, Today: Roland Steel rolled 0 using 1d6-1 with rolls of 1.  damage.

Feeling the gravity start to cut out, Forge grabbed onto the door frame and avoided getting seriously injured.
10:00, Today: 'Forge' Harris rolled 1 using 1d6-1 with rolls of 2.  damage.

Luise had been on the bridge when the ship exited jump-space. She didn't really need to be there, and there was certainly not going to be anything to see, but she felt that was her place... just to make sure there weren't any problems.

10:54, Today: Luise Wechsler rolled 2 using 1d6-1 ((3)).

She had a momentary glimpse of what the sensors were suddenly showing before she was tossed against the nearest bulkhead as the artificial gravity cut out and the ship lurched under the impact of what felt like a missile hit.

Once Forge got his bearings, he started to secure his armor, before pulling out his stunner and cutlass in case they was some unexpected visitors.

13:48, Today: Steve Cable rolled 5 using 1d6-1 ((6)).


Ouch, ouch, ouch! The lurch and simultaneous cut out of the gravity caught Steve in mid-stride, tossing him down the hallway into the far bulkhead. In an effort to keep from landing head first, he put out an arm to brace himself but didn't get it around in time. He heard the crack of the bone just before the wave of pain swept up his arm.

"Oh, you damn frackin' puss=bucket!" he swore out loud, though if anyone heard him, it was probably unclear if he was swearing at himself, his arm, the bulkhead or situation. Probably all of them.

She'd been thinking about what to do with her career. There was enough material and recordings left behind to keep her on the charts for at least a year, maybe two... depending on how the marketing moguls played their cards. Fans tended to be loyal a lot longer  than management.

Would there be a new market for her music where they were going? Did she even want to find out? After all, she was here on the Frumious Bandersnatch to get away from it all. At the very least, she could wait and see what it was like and how she felt when she got there.

In the mean time, she could consider her options. She used to wonder how ancient music would be received in modern times if no one had ever heard the ancient music. Like that guy, Pelvis King... somebody was always covering his songs, but if no one had ever heard them till now, would he still become popular?

Would that be the case with her in the Foreven Sector? What's old is new again?

Or, when she got back, would she keep doing what she was doing? Or should she try something new? Should she be true to herself or to her career? What would make her happy?

18:06, Today: Siyeon Lee rolled 2 using 1d6-1 ((3)).

Her reverie was abruptly interrupted as she got bounced out of the chair! Fortunately, there was no one around to see her land on backside before bouncing back up to the ceiling in the zero-gravity.

As the designated Pilot, Gahler would have been in the pilot's seat, prepared to take control of the ship once it exited J-space, so he was strapped in to his seat. 99.9% of the time, seat harnesses weren't needed, but there was always that .1% that could happen.

Apparently, this was it.

Unaffected by the sudden lurching of the ship and the sudden cut-out of the gravity, Gahler was able to throw the ship into evasive maneuvering purely as instinct.

The ship still took another hit before the sensors fully registered what was going on and Gahler was able to interpret the sensor readings.

The ship had apparently emerged from J-space into the middle of a space battle--six ships on one side, 4 on the other. Additionally, the shields had come up automatically so the last hit hadn't done any damage.

A moment later, the back-up grav generators kicked in, restoring gravity to the whole ship.

"Orders captain?! We seem to be stuck in the middle!"


"Take evasive action Pilot!"
This message was last edited by the player at 16:21, Wed 15 Apr 2020.

As the sensors come fully on-line and begin displaying the status of surrounding space, it becomes clear that the four ships are from Tremous Dex. That, at least, is what their transponders say.

Oddly, the other ships either don't have transponders or they've been shut off/disconnected. Seems odder still when visuals clearly show a symbol and lettering on the sides of the ships, apparently representing some government force. It's not immediately determinable what government that is, though.

"Shields?" Luise said in surprise. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN, SHIELDS?!" she nearly yelled at the display console.

"When the hell did we get shields? HOW did we get shields? And what the hell are 'shields'?" she demanded of everyone and no one.

She hit the comm switch.

"This is the free trader Frumious Bandersnatch! We're not on any side! So stop shooting at us!"

Harry ran to the computer consoles to read the readouts as well, the talk of shields confusing him.

Roland immediately went over his readouts and powerplants adjusting power for the drives and such so that they could get out of here.

Even as Gahler does his evasive maneuvering and Harry checks out the computers, one of the Tremous Dex ships gets targeted by two of the attackers... and blows up.

"This is Captain Zarn of the Tremous Dex Defense Ship Stormstriker!" came a reply over the comms. "We're being attacked by Federation of Arden ships! Either help us or get out of here!"

"Someone get on the guns!" Luise yells over the comms. "If anyone shoots at us, SHOOT BACK!"

In reply to Luise Wechsler (msg # 38):

"I'm the best gunner, I'll take it!" Harry ran for the turret and crawled inside and strapped himself in and powered up at the same time. "Let's get out of here!"

When Harry had been looking at the computer screens, he'd discovered a section of the display that he'd never seen before. For that matter, no one else had, either.

It was a dynamic display, and he can see the corner button that 'turned it off'. In retrospect, it kind of made sense: what did a restaurant need with shields? It wasn't until the ship took fire that automatic protocols brought it online again. Of course, if anyone had known it was there, they could have activated it at any time.

Since it seems perfectly integrated into the existence display, it probably means it was of original Darrian design.

He had a brief chance to calculate the readings... it would seem to translate into a 20-point shield. Not all that impressive, but effective against light weapons.

Harry rotates the turret to point at the Federation of Arden ships as they accelerate. Holding his fire until they are fired on.