"Really? You met Miria?" Krssh replies to Varca in 'mock' surprise as well as a Vargr pirate growl.

"She calls herself Silverhand now because she's got a cybernetic arm. She runs with Redthane these days. Her ship was one of the ones that attacked Clarke and Torpol."

"You heard about that yet, Trevor? I think Redthane was trying to prove to the others here that he really was the badass he pretended to be."

"Not that he'd stop in here, but you heard if he's back yet? Maybe Miria? I'd pay some good money to see that rematch between her and Varca here! I say she got lucky! If she is here, her luck may have just run out!"

"Yeah, Redthane thinks he's too good for this place, even if his ship's in the docks over there," Trevor agrees with Krssh.

"I can't imagine any reason Silverhand would come in here. If Redthane wouldn't, then she wouldn't either. I think I'd pay some money for that fight, too," he adds as he appraises Varca once again in this new light.

"Ain't seen her, but heard she's back. Either her or one of her crew have been spreading the tale about the raid. Stitch said he saw her the other day, but even he ain't stupid enough to talk to her. Don't know why he'd follow her, but if he had, he'd be dead. Don't think he's dead yet, but he keeps trying."

"When he ain't peddlin' information, he's either crashed in the Camp or Brain Dimming when he can afford it. It's a wonder he's survived as long as he has."

An amused-sounding chuckle escaped from Zhouth's helmet as he wiggled the fingers of one hand together against an invisible coin or credit chip. "I'd pay for the beers just to hear her version of the story! Maybe we should go look that guy up?"

In reply to Zhouth (msg # 34):

     "Huh.  Now that's real interesting, Krrsh." Varca says, then looks over at Trevor, "Because if this is the same Miria I played Tag with, then the last time I saw her -- when she shot me, and sent me rolling down those stairs -- she had two completely natural arms.  I wonder if, maybe, that's why she bugged out?"

     "Of course, if she is the woman I shot at ... it could be kinda dangerous to be me, yeah?  Heh-heh.  Maybe we should look up this friend of Trevor's -- what'd you say his name was, again, Trevor?  Stitch, was it?"

"We could see if he's Brain Dimming," Krssh said. "It's the actual name of the place. Any drug you could ever want can be had there... or so I've heard. Never had the urge to skip out."

"Even if he's there, he probably wouldn't be in any condition to talk to us for awhile."

"If we go to the Camp, we may have to wait for him to return. That's probably not a good idea. We look more like hunters."

"Any drug?" Zhouth sounded rather curious about that, perhaps a little too curious, but his tone quickly lapsed back into conversational chatter. "That sounds volatile, but then but people probably only go there for the you-feel-good-and-stupid kinds, not to stock up on combat stims for their squads, I suppose. Come to think of it, we should do that somewhere while we're here. Any recommendations as the locals?" Zhouth's helmet turned side to side, toward Krrsh and Trevor, as he wheeled one hand about in a line of swirly loops.

Then he started slightly and looked at Ingrid. "Oh. Did you want a go at this before we go start looking up Varca's old gaming buddy?" He pointed at the pool table. "It's not a trid-worthy clash of blades, but maybe it falls under acceptably ladylike for you?"

In reply to Zhouth (msg # 37):

     Varca burst out with a short laugh at Zhouth's question for Ingrid,

     "Ha!  Ladylike!  Not the word I was thinking, when I saw her gut that security guard on our last raid!" Varca says in an amused tone -- while glaring daggers at Zhouth.

Ingrid nodded. "I'll take a try. I've never played a game like this before, but new experiences are part of wandering the spacelanes, right?" At Varca's words, she tried to look fierce and intimidating, not easy for her.

"Take three!" Zhouth exclaimed as he produced another ten-credit chip and clacked it lightly down on the table. "Well, take it once you've won again, anyway!"

He glanced sideways at BB and added apologetically, "I'd pay for a round for you too, but I'm pretty sure that your idea of fun here is to incinerate the table, and they probably wouldn't appreciate that very much."
This message was last edited by the player at 17:02, Thu 21 Oct 2021.

Ingrid's education made her aware of the game even if she didn't know the rules and had never played it before. Having observed it in action, though, and seen that it involves angles and such, her education and intelligence let her get a grasp of the play.

Gambling is the closest skill that would cover a physical game of chance or skill, which Ingrid doesn't have, but, in this case, her Carousing at least offsets the penalty.

13:18, Today: StarMaster, on behalf of Ingrid Gustavdottir Sigar, rolled 11 using 2d6+2 ((5,4)).

Somehow, Ingrid manages to win the game! Trevor looks at the table suspiciously, then shifts his look to Ingrid, and then to Zhouth, but quickly changes to a smile.

13:22, Today: StarMaster rolled 6 using 2d6+5 ((3,1)).  Trevor.

"Well-played, Ms. Ingrid," Trevor says as he hands over his 10-credit chit. "I guess the others must have tired me out more than I thought. I'm still 10 credits ahead, though, so that's not a bad exercise. I'll have to think about how the game went and see if I made any mistakes. If I did, maybe I can correct them for future games. After all, that's one of the reasons you play. The other two reasons are money and fun... not necessarily in that order."

Zhouth happily accepted one of his credit-chips back with one hand, exclaiming as he did, with the finger of the other hand stabbing upward at the air, "And! We just learned that Ingrid has been hiding her talents!" That hand descended and waved between Ingrid and Varca, accompanied by a slightly less vigorous - and slightly more mischievous - "Now I'm going to have to arrange duelling sessions between those two to find out how good she really is. I'm not sure where we'll fit one of these tables on the ship, though." A small sigh of disappointment punctuated that thought.
This message was last edited by the player at 07:22, Wed 03 Nov 2021.

Ingrid beamed. "Oh, that was fun! It's all angles and physics, really. I'm sure I had some beginner's luck, but I liked it. I wonder if Theodore plays."

In reply to Ingrid Gustavdottir Sigar (msg # 43):

     "Congratulations, Ingrid." Varca nods in recognition of her victory, then gives a nasty little chuckle, "*heh-heh* And, I'm pretty sure that that Imperial Boy-Toy you keep on a leash, back aboard ship, plays some version of Pool or Billiards.  All those prissy Imperial types go for that kind of thing.  I'm sure your Theodore understands just how truly humanitarian it was of you to kidnap him away from that pampered life, eh? *Heh-heh-heh*"

     Varca attempts to give Ingrid a conspiratorial wink, without letting Trevor see it,

     "Alright, you mugs, we've had our sit-down and a drink!  Time's a wasting, and we got people to ki--um--I mean, we got people to visit, yet.  So let's bounce." Varca gives his companions a meaningful glare,

     "Trevor.  Next time I'm around this way, we'll do this again.  I'll practice, until then -- so next time won't be as easy."

"It's never easy... at least, I hope I don't make it look like it is," Trevor responds as the group leaves. "Nobody would play me if it did!"

The small group heads out of the bar and across the street to the shipyard. It's not 'across the street' like it would be in the middle of a city, but there are no other buildings in the area. Not only is the bar set back from the road a good 30 yards, but the shipyard is set back nearly 100 yards. The only discernible reason is in case there is an accident. Some blast walls would have been nice, but no one wanted to bear the expense of those, apparently.

There's only minimum security at the shipyard, with a locked from door that only opens when someone comes to the door in answer to the buzzer and you inform him that you're there to see Kazgar.

Once inside, you see why there's no need for security--everyone is armed. On the other hand, besides a glance, no one pays much attention to you.

You're directed over to a ship where several workers are repairing the hull.

After a few minutes wait, one of them disengages from the work, climbs down the scaffolding, and walks over to you.

"Now what have you gotten into, Krssh?" the man says without preamble.

"Heard you were in on that Clarke-Asim raid by Redthane, and then your crew booted you off your own ship. So, who are these jokels?"

"You got yer facts wrong, Kaz," Krssh answers. "I'd already figured out that my crew were a buncha phlags. We almost got blasted from their incompetence. I was considering other options even when they decided to blame me for their incompetence. I let them throw me off the ship. Those buffoons were going to kill themselves fighting over command. Besides, I didn't expect the ship to survive the next jump anyway."

"So, I hooked up with these badasses. Don't let their looks fool you. They may look tough, but they're even worse!"

"Say hello to the scowler-in-chief, the sword worlder, and The Heavy." Zhouth stated, pointing toward the three with one thumb. Apparently only BB's informal title warranted verbal capitalization. Then he turned the thumb toward himself and added, rather cheerfully and almost-plausibly, "I'm the genial one!" The smile could be sensed even though the helmet, and the toothiness of it about as well.

In reply to Zhouth (msg # 49):

     Varca takes a half-step forward, clears the faceplate of his Hazard Suit's helmet, and ... well, scowls ... at Kazgar,

     "You're wrong about one thing ..." Varca says to the Mechanic, in a humorless tone, "Redthane didn't hit Clarke and Asim -- he hit Clarke and the shore leave planet Torpol!  So, I'm betting you haven't, actually, seen Redthane or any of his people since they last left Theev."

     "But, since you know about our friend Krrsh's little tiff with his former Crew -- it'd be a sure bet that you've seen them recently, yeah?"

     Varca shifts his body, to lean a little closer to Kazgar, and softens the scowl a little,

     "Look, Friend ... Redthane stopped by to hit us up for working capital, before he pulled his operation.  Then he skipped out on paying us back.  We're just looking to get what's owed us, see?  If you know anybody on-planet that could tell us how to find Redthane -- or if you can tell us where to find Krrsh's old Crew, so we can ask them -- we can slip you a little piece of what we get back ..."

     "Wadda ya say...?"

"You aren't any more intimidating than this whole frackin' planet!" Kazgar scowls back. "Torpol, huh? Not Asim. Good to know."

"Nah, ain't seen anybody's crew. Not a lot on this planet except Blacksand, so word tends to travel fast. Though... now that you mention it, it does occur to me that someone must be on planet to have started the scuttlebutt. Intentionally, no doubt."

"It's no secret... well, not to some of us, anyway... that Redthane's on the outs with Darokin. No one seems to know why, though rumor has it that it's over woman."

"So, the scuttlebutt would be to get the other pirates to back Redthane in some way. Wouldn't be Redthane himself. He's got a target on his back. Wouldn't be any of Krssh's former crew. He's at least half right about them."

"I'd guess, if it's anyone, it'd be Miria... his second in command."

"Anyway, if I knew where any of them were, 'bout the only think you could bribe me with is a ticket off this dustball. Tired of sleepin' with one eye open."

"Really? You fancy a trip to Torpol yourself, maybe?" Zhouth grinned and held both arms out to the side, then raised them somewhat and wiggled them in imitation of what he was describing. "Warm and sunny with a chance of raining orbital debris. Tomorrow's forecast is wetter, with showers of body parts!" The gesture transitioned smoothly into a shrug. "That's more or less how they were putting it after Redthane's raid, anyway, so maybe somewhere quieter, like Oghma?"

"But let's say that there's a ship out there somewhere that would take you." That was accompanied by a twirling of his forefinger and thumb as he raised his hand skyward, and then he made a throwing-away motion with the other hand. "Better ask for an actual ride, not just a ticket, because knowing this place, it'd be fake."

Another shrug, this time of the long, exaggerated variety. "Anyway, how good are you really at putting these things back together? Or flying them yourself? And how much will Krrsh vouch for what you say?"

"Women, they're trouble" Ingrid joked. "Almost as much trouble as going offworld... but both well worth it." she finished

"I'm pretty good at anything engineering," Kazgar replies to Zhouth. "Got certified for my Masters Rating in 6 of the 7 categories just last month. The thing around here is that there's not much room for advancement unless you want to start doing assassinations. And, down at this level, the pay isn't all that good."

"Theev is like one big mouse trap--it's easy to get in, a helluva a lot harder to get out."

"Are offering a ride outta here?"

"Well, we have a few things to do before we leave, but if everything goes even half-right then we'll be heading back rimward once we do, and I hear that Torpol has a bit of rebuilding to do. You know, system defenses, orbital refineries, that sort of thing!" The smile was still evident in his words even as his hands described several vague arcs and a point or two (presumably toward Torpol). "As long as you aren't hydrophobic, anyway. Water worlds are bad places for that."

In reply to Zhouth (msg # 55):

     As his helmet is sealed, Varca opens the Team Channel, and says,

^{COMM >>>} "We'll bring him back to Asim, Zhouth." Varca sends, "If he's as good as he says he is, he'll be the Starport Chief within a year." ^{<<< COMM}

     Without waiting for any comment, Varca closes the comm, and re-opens his helmet speaker,

     "Yeah, as long as we have a ship, you have a ride outta here, Kazgar.  You and any other of your StarMechanic buddies who wants to go with you."

     "But, let me ask you something, Kazgar ... you mentioned that Redthane was on the outs with The Admiral -- is there anyone else that comes to mind, that you think may be gunning for Redthane as much as The Admiral?"