As Brent gets settled into the pilot's seat he straps in and takes the ship rapidly up out of the weather.  He sets the ship on a course out over the unpopulated areas.  Once things are settled he calls Joxe.  "How do you feel about finding another person who has slept out the last two centuries?"

Joxe thinks for a moment. "If it's okay, I'd like everyone to hear this conversation."

OOG: Assuming Brent has no objections, Joxe broadcasts over the comm as she speaks.

IG: "Brent and I are talking about finding more survivors in low berths. Isn't it interesting that, in the two cases where you've found active low berths, that the emergency beacon activated? I don't know about our new friend, Naimh, is it? But, her low berth's beacon activated. From what I know of them, the beacons don't activate unless they're either deliberately set to broadcast, or the berth has developed a fault."

Brent asks; "Can the broadcast be tripped by a signal from outside? If we picked up the signal from the berths as they malfunctioned then we are very, very lucky."

"Thanks..."She takes a few seconds to rein her emotions in enough to look at Veronica again.

Niamh gives her a wan smile.  "Some clothes that aren't over 200 years old would be nice."  She pauses for a moment then, changing the subject.  "Does your ship have a medbay?"

"Thanks," Niamh answers simply, fighting back her terrible memories just an instant too late for them to not show on her face.

"It's definitely possible, especially since my low berth activated its e-beacon early due to a power system fault."  She takes a deep breath.  "As for anybody else in my group making it into a low berth, I really don't know...since I was put into mine against my will..."  Again, there's a look in her pretty, green eyes that hints at her remembering something traumatic and awful.

Veronica shakes her head. "No, no medbay. This is a trader, so there's not enough cubage for it. We do have some medical supplies, and two low berths that are still in good shape."

Brent replied to Niamh.  "Get settled in and rest and when you're ready to talk I'd like to hear more about what happened and why you were attacked here.  There may be more salvage worth carrying off as trade goods further down the main or even other survivors before we head to Poznan."

"We'd best fuel up as much as possible before we move on. I don't think this plant has anything of value to offer unless anyone knows of anything specific."

Gareth makes his point of known, and heads off to the bridge to monitor the ship's sensors.

Brent shifts the ship further from the storm as the crew settles in.  "We should be fully fueled by now although the processor may not have cracked the water yet."

"Let's at least fuel up the bladders while this storm blows over."  He brings the ship around clear of the weather to make another landing in the lake.  "Joxe, standby.  I'm bringing the ship back to the lake to fuel up the bladders."

Niamh nods. "Okay.  Would it be alright with you if I checked on the supplies and ran some diagnostics on your low berths then?  She smiles a little.  "Since all of you were nice enough to take me in, I'd like to make myself a bit useful at least."

The redhead gives Brent a nod.  "I think it's entirely possible, since from what I saw, the survivors were more interested in just trying to get off-planet than actually taking anything with them."

Brent pilots Wanderer to an uneventful landing on the lake. Joxe and Veronica (plus whomever wishes to assist) set up the collapsible fuel tanks in the cargo bay. There are three tanks, arranged so that the doorways into the bay aren't blocked, and the cargo container is still accessible. The plumbing and boost pumps for the tanks are built in, so it's a matter of assembling the parts and plugging everything in.

The tanks hold 280 cubic meters of hydrogen, enough for a single jump. It will take two hours to fill them, and a little under four hours to refine the fuel. The refining and fueling can run concurrently, which Joxe recommends to avoid drawing too much unfiltered water into the tanks.

OOG: In the meantime, you all can decide on your next move. You've seen how equipment left out in the elements has fared in the last 250 years, versus aboard Wanderer where it was properly stored and maintained. This planet had a population of 7000, and two of the main population centers were hit with nuclear warheads. All of the orbital facilities are gone, at least as far as you can tell. This planet has nothing usable for food, and you have a years' worth of food and other supplies aboard. If you do take on more people, food remaining will have to be calculated more closely.

Brent helps the two women set up the fueling while Niamh gets settled in a bit.  "Let's go ahead and get the fuel and refining running together.  It will be faster for sure."  Once things are ready he calls the crew; "Let's have a dinner together, meet our new companion and plan our next moves."

By dinnertime, the fueling and refining processes are done. Wanderer has enough fuel aboard to Jump two parsecs, power her maneuver drive at max accel for 18 hours, and run the powerplant for a year. She is still floating in the lake, three kilometers from shore.

Naimh gets a good nap, and finds a new crewman's jumpsuit and shoes that fit her when she awakens. She is familiar with the layout of these Beowulf class traders, having traveled in them several times in her career.

Everyone gathers in the crew lounge on the main deck, and Joxe sets about punching food and drink orders into the commissary unit. Everyone has their food and drink set before them.

Brent raised his glass toward the newcomer and spoke up; "I'd like to formally introduce Niamh Parker to anyone who hasn't met her.  She managed to escape the holocaust here and then sleep out the last 250 or so years.  I think I speak for the rest of us to say that you're welcome to travel with us as long as you like in whatever capacity you think can contribute to the ship and crew."

The redhead picks up her new clothes with a smile, slipping into them and heading to the lounge at the appointed time.

Niamh gives Brent and the others a warm smile before speaking up. "Thank you everyone, for both taking me in and, most likely, saving my life." She humbly looks down at her plate for a moment before continuing. "As for what I can offer you in return, I'd like to look after your medical needs. I'm a qualified physician and, if necessary, a rather mediocre grav vehicle pilot."
This message was last edited by the player at 06:50, Fri 27 Oct 2017.

Brent returned the smile and listened attentively as Niamh explained a bit.  "Well, I'm glad we were in a position to help you.  Certainly slow starvation down on the planet is no fate for anyone.  And we can certainly use a doctor as long as you are willing to travel with us."

Gareth decides to allow Niamh to join his crew, and graciously decides leave the formalities for later.

"We've found two survivors in low berths now, and im starting to suspect this  is no accident. If this is some grand scheme we need to decide if we're going to investigate further or avoid the entire thing. Not that's have gone great for any of us lately, but they could be worse."
This message was last edited by the player at 01:46, Sat 04 Nov 2017.

Brent agrees with Gareth. "I'd guess that no one has been through these areas since the war winded down.  That's probably why we're finding things.  My only fear is that we trip defense mechanisms that might still be active.  We'll want to continue to be very, very careful.  Still I think we can't back away.  There is too much to uncover that can be useful back home and maybe even for other survivors."

"I suppose we'd be a target unless we deal with whoever is responsible. I too am in favor of further investigation."

"Perhaps Niamh can point us to places of interest in the town in which we were just in.  As well there may be salvage in the vehicles we were examining."

"Thank you! Also, um..."  The doctor pauses for a moment, as if she's considering if it's appropriate to say something more. "...if you'd like to search for more survivors, you might actually be able to do it from orbit.  From what I remember from my medical equipment training, you can activate a low berth's e-beacon remotely by sending a query signal on one of the standard emergency frequencies.  You'd have to take the time to cover the planet's surface with your comm signal, but it can be done."  The redhead then gets a sad look on her face. "I'd like to see the ruins of my home town as well, if possible." Niamh looks down towards her pale hands, wringing them just a bit as she remembers what she'd lost.  "My air-raft didn't have enough fuel to get me back there after the bombing, and...well...I'd like to know for sure...you know?" A brief, shaky smile somewhat conceals her quickly wiping away an unwelcome tear.

Brent listened and thought through the implications of what Niamh was saying. "Let's everyone get some sleep and then we can take you to your hometown first Niamh.  We owe you that much closure.  Then I say we get up into a low, polar orbit that will cover the most ground quickly and see what we can find."