Aaron had been consulting the medkit in Varca's suit and quietly consulting with Varca--when Varca suddenly shouts at Aaron,

     "No!  Dammit, Aaron--No!" Varca shouts, as he rises to his feet, facing off against Aaron,

     "I'm the Medic, and I say you'll do it and do it now!  You're using dangerous levels of painkillers, right now.  You have new bruises to your ribs and I need to re-wrap your ribcage!  So just quit being a candy-assed Vespexer germophobe and open your suit so I can work on those injuries!"

     "Not here, not now!" Varca growls back, pointing at Viridian "Look!  Viridian took a bigger hit than me--go pester him!  He must be dead on his feet.  Leave me alone!"

     Varca holsters his pistol as he stumps away from Aaron and over to Frad and Lu,

     "Right, you two are now with us.  Welcome.  Do your jobs well, and you'll be well rewarded.  Screw up and I shoot you myself.  Consider that a sign of respect...oh, and when you meet our Chief Engineer, be sure to thank her.  She's the one who talked me out of eating the people who disappoint me."

     "Now...speaking of Engineering...we received Intel that Mercifuge was down for repairs.  Is this true and what's under repair?"

     Varca barely pauses for breath before adding, "You may speak, now."

We came loaded for bear, so it shouldn't be a surprise to anyone that Varca and Viridian came through virtually unscathed.

Viridian's TL12 Boarding Vacc Suit has protection of +13 worn over his TL12 Cloth with +4 protection for a total of +17. He got hit for 20 points of damage... the AP3 bypassing some of his protection, delivering 6 points! His 9 END dropped to 3!

23:00, Today: StarMaster, on behalf of Aaron Lancaster, rolled 11 using 2d6+5 ((2,4)). Medic skill check. For an Effect of 3! Whoopie. So Aaron successfully treated 3 of those wounds.

Don't get me wrong--Viridian took a hefty kinetic hit to his chest/ribs. Aaron's drugs notwithstanding, Viridian is still sitting there in some pain.


"We find Redthane and collect the bounty," he answered Kira. "We're pretty sure his location is somewhere here on Silverhand's ship. We just have to find it."

"And, no, the bounty wouldn't apply to you, Frad, or Lu or Drem or Gwyr if you weren't on the ships that attacked, now, would it?"

Lu couldn't hold in a snicker as he pointed to the seat of the captain's chair and the piece of silver flex-tape covering up a small tear.

"It was bothering the captain's backside, sir," he replied to Varca. "Repairs have been made."

In reply to Lu (msg # 70):

     Varca turns to look back at the Captain's Chair and the 'damage' that was repaired...then he turns a surprised look back at Frad and Lu...looks back at the chair...turns back to Frad and Lu, smiling, and says,

     "I knew she was a stone-cold Bitch when I killed her, fellas, but damn!  That's..." Varca points at the chair, "...a whole new level of bitchiness to me! Harr-harr-harr!"

     Varca then pulls out Silverhands patched together comm-unit and inputs the code to shut down the override.  Once again, as he's running the code, he gets the idea in the back of his mind that he's missing someth--

     "No.  Frelling.  Way!!" Varca mumbles to himself, as his suspicions come together,

     "I need an Astrogator!" Varca suddenly shouts at the group, "Somebody with better than just the basic familiarity!  Somebody who's any good at Astrogating!"

OOC: Varca is hoping, here, for anyone with Astrogation/2+, but even Level/1 is better than his "basic familiarity" of Astrogation/0

ooc - Teddy is Astrogation 2, but he ain't here.

Kira gives a small shrug. "Sorry, boys, but astrogation ain't exactly my forte. I can fly circles around most pilots, but when it comes to plotting anything more than a basic course through the galaxy, I'm a little out of my league."

She leans back against the console, crossing her arms over her chest. "But hey, if you need someone to pull off a crazy maneuver or shoot down some enemy ships, I'm your girl. Or if you need someone to stir up trouble and cause a distraction, I'm pretty good at that too."

"I said there was something familiar about Silverhand's comm code," Krrsh quipped up. "It's an astrogation location in the old Iltharan coordinate system. I'm pretty sure it's one of Palindrome's ice moons."

"Redthane thought he was being clever... well, I suppose he was. Not too far off the beaten path yet close enough to be viable. A good place to hide for a while. I'd get antsy after two weeks, though."

"He'll be expecting Silverhand's arrival. The Mercifuge should go in stealthy... let him know something's up."

"Okay, now down to business. I'll let the other team know we succeeded," he told Varca.

He then proceeded to type a text message to Teddy: Congratulations! Nebulous enough to be interpreted any number of ways.

"Even with two ships, things are going to get a bit cramped. Just keep in mind that the two people sharing a stateroom will seldom be off duty at the same time. Not as severe as hot-bunking, but should maintain a certain amount of equilibrium."

"Now, the practical side," he added as if anticipating Varca's plan. "Captain Grunge, I volunteer myself as your First Officer. Maybe Kira will consider joining me to catch up on the good times."

"I suggest we take Rejji, too. We can transfer Drem and Gwyr once we're back down at the Downport to pick up the others."

"Ship is fueled and serviced, so we can depart in 12 hours. Probably shouldn't delay any longer than that. Word does get around. And now let's have that drink for everyone!"

"Oh, and what do we do with Murdo?"

"We can use his hand as proof of demise, and dump the body somewhere." Collyn volunteered.
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:44, Sun 05 Mar 2023.

"Just dump him out on the gangway," Frad said. "For a hundred credits, the Skull will dispose of the body for you. Hell, for the armor he's wearing, the scavengers will do it for nothing!"

"C'mon, Lu... that's our job. Grab his feet."

"Wait! Might as well spend his creds before they know he's dead! You guys want anything? A couple bottles of hooch can't hurt, right? What about some more ammo?"

He and Lu then proceed to do what he said--spend the creds and drag the body out of the ship onto the gangway.

In reply to Frad (msg # 77):

     "Now you mention it, Krrsh, I sorta do recall you saying something along those lines, before." Varca says, "But my Astrogation skills just didn't let me understand what you were saying.  Sorry I didn't listen to you, then."

     "But now we've got a solid lead on Redthane--and a big ship to add to our forces!  Also, Krrsh, or whatever you choose to call yourself, going forward, I'm thinking we should go with what Viridian just suggested--I promised you command of Mercifuge, and you shall have it!  And I also think it's a good idea for Viridian to be your Exec.  His skillset is being underutilized aboard Vultan."

     Varca leans a little closer to Krrsh and lowers his voice just a little, "Plus I trust him to put a bullet in your head if you ever try to double-cross me.  But of course, we really don't need to worry about that...do we...?"

     Varca straightens up and turns to Kira, "And as for you..."

     "Viridian says he wants you on his crew.  Obviously, there's some history between you two so, I'm gonna leave that choice to you--you wanna stay on Mercifuge and, uh, catch-up on old times, that's on you, and I'm okay with it.  As long as things stay consensual..."

     "Otherwise...everyone now serving aboard Mercifuge will be transferring to our other ship.  That means you two--Frad, Lu, as well as Drem and Gwyr--I hope none of you have skillsets specific for this salvager-type ship..."

     "Because our Vultan is a dedicated warship." Varca pauses, frowns, then adds "...if a little on the plush and fancy side..."

     "Anyways, I want the four of you who served under Silverhand close by, where I can see you, while I and Vultans Captain, determine if we'll keep you on.  Viridian--you want Rejji, he's yours.  I've known him for a while, and I'm certain he'll jump at the chance."

     "That's four for Mercifuge--I'd like to put at least six crew on board.  Collyn?  Should I assume that you will want to stay on Vultan so that you and Zhouth can continue with your..." Varca makes a vague hand gesture towards his own head, "...training?  Truth be told, with those skills you have, I would rather keep you aboard Vultan, but I'll leave it up to you.  Taliesa--same with you.  With the loss of BB, I'd like to keep you onboard Vultan as our Space Marine Operations specialist.  Your choice, though."

     "Alright, that's that, for now.  Eventually I want a full complement of eight, onboard Mercifuge, but we can settle that once everyone is back together."

     "Frad, Lu?  Yeah, take whatever you want off Murdo--any of his stuff, actually--then toss him out the 'lock." Varca nods agreement, "And, hey, speaking of ammo--what's Mercifuge's weapons load-out, and is any resupply needed?"

Kira has seen plenty of death and blood in her career, so she casually ignores Frad and Lu as they haul the carcass of Murdo from the bridge.

She nods at Viridian's suggestion. "Sure, I'd love a drink and a chance to catch up. Just need to get my stuff from the Highport. You're in luck, I was actually on the lookout for a new ship."

She grins, turning to Krrsh. "So, what kind of benefits can you offer?"

      At Kira's question, Varca slowly turns his helmeted head towards Krrsh--a grin of curiosity on his face...

"What? That doesn't make any...." Viridian started to protest Varca's crew assignment.

"Why would you put these spacehands on a ship that they have no experience with and keep them off the ship that they DO have experience with?"

"With the four of them, Grunge, myself, Kira and Rejji, that fills this ship. Leaves you ten on the Vultan."

"I figure these assignments are only temporary anyway. We can figure out the best fit once we collect the bounty."

"Anything else before I file the flight plan downside? Collect the rest of our crew and depart Theev in 12 hours? True destination or not?"

In reply to Viridian Starfire (msg # 81):

     "Yes," Varca nods in agreement, "The ship assignments for our new friends are only temporary--just until we determine that we can both trust 'em, as well as live with 'em."

     "Also, yes, file a flight plan for Vultan to return to the surface as soon as possible, there to wait for the return of the others.  Once they are finished meeting with The Admiral and are back aboard Vultan, return here."

     "Once we are all back together, we'll meet aboard Mercifuge--so everyone can look it over--and then we'll start planning.  Figure we won't be filing an outbound flight plan until the end of that twelve hours--we'll file right before we leave."

     "In the meantime, while we await our dining companions, I shall go and search through the former Captain's cabin for more info on Redthane--as well as any unsecured valuables she may have left in there.  I will most certainly not be pawing through Silverhands underwear drawer! I want to make that clear--right now!"

     "Collyn!  Join me, won't you?  I might need that glowing toothpick of yours to cut open the Captain's Safe..."

     As Varca heads for the airlock door off the Bridge, Varca calls over his shoulder,

     "And somebody find out if this tub has an auxiliary craft!  There's a hanger for one, aboard ship."

Kira listens as Varca and Viridian discuss the crew assignments and flight plans. She's eager to get back to Highport and retrieve her belongings before joining the crew for a drink.

As Varca heads towards the airlock door, Kira speaks up. "Hey, before you go, can you tell me more about this other ship you mentioned? The Vultan, was it? I'm not exactly a fan of flying lobsters, if you catch my drift. Cramps my style. " She grins, hoping to lighten the mood a bit.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:42, Sun 05 Mar 2023.

"Of course there's a launch!" Lu pipes up. "This ain't no fly-by-night op! And it's a atealth launch at that! Silverhand had us paint it flat black while she was down on the planet."

Collyn follows Varca to the captains cabin when he is ready to go.

     Varca, with Collyn right behind, pauses mid-reach for the button to open the airlock, and turns back around to face Kira,

     "Vultan is a fully refurbished Drinaxi Star Guards Harrier-class Commerce Raider.  Consult historical databases if you don't understand just what that means."

     His gaze suddenly turns very intense as he adds,

     "We are a Predator from the Past, returned to once again Prey upon the Stars..."

     After an appropriate dramatic pause, Varca suddenly breaks into a grin, and reaches out to lightly backhand Collyn on the breastplate of his armor,

     "Hey!  That was pretty good!  Remember that bit, Collyn -- 'predator from the past' ... 'returned to prey on the stars' -- yeah, we gotta remember that..."

Kira can't help but let out a chuckle at Varca's dramatic introduction of their ship. "Oh, I like you guys already. It's not every day you come across people who talk like they're in a holovid."

She grins and adds, "But hey, I'm all for it. Let's be predators from the past, returned to prey on the stars, or whatever it takes to get the job done."

"Okay, Kira, let's go get your gear," Viridian suggests, "while Varca loots his new allies... I think he calls it 'building trust'."

"We'll go ahead and stash it and you on the Vultan and I can introduce you to the others, Rejji and Donio."

"We've also got Captain McFarlane, Ghent Bel-Andis, Ingrid Gustavdottir Sigar, Rayjaynul Brown, and Zhouth down on the planet creating a diversion... sort of. Don't worry, they are all on public record... at least as far as it goes on Theev."

He leads her off the ship and up two levels to where the other ship is docked. She's probably got her gear stashed in a secure locker on the upper docking ring. Lower ring security would be doubtful at best.

After retrieving her gear and making their way to the ship, Rejji and Donio are introduced as 'security' but since Aaron was summoned to the combat scene, they have already been apprized of the outcome.

Varca and Collyn pay a visit to Silverhand's quarters. It's a bit on the austere side with two notable exceptions: the lava lamp (those things just won't DIE!) on the side table and the animated holographic picture on the wall that shows a tropical beach at sunset.

The silver sheets on the bed seem appropriate but not particularly unusual.

There is no safe but there is a locked security box. Silverhand's passcode opens it easily enough.

There's a holdout pistol in there, and 6 credstix... one for each of the crew (except Murdo), one for the ship, and one for Redthane.

Crew stix have 2,000Cr on them, 57,000Cr on the ship one, and 365,780Cr on Redthane's.

As Kira takes a closer look at the Vultan, she can't help but admire the ship's graceful lines and intricate designs. She runs her hand over the wood paneling, feeling the smooth surface beneath her fingertips. "I remember when we used to fly ships like this back in the day," she reminisces to Viridian. "Everything was so ornate and luxurious, even the military vessels. Nowadays, it's all about efficiency and functionality."

She hefts her heavy duffel-bag over her shoulder, adjusting the strap. "It's a shame that some of the original fittings and gilding have been replaced or damaged," she says, eyeing a particularly worn area of the wood paneling. "But it's still a beautiful ship. I'm looking forward to seeing what it can do in action."

OOC: It's not a portable security box that you can just pick up--it was fastened to the wall. Doesn't mean Collyn can't cut it away.


In reply to StarMaster (msg # 89):

     As he's checking the contents of the strongbox, without looking up, Varca says,

     "Collyn--grab the lamp and the holo--I think the lamp'll make an amusing present for our fat patron.  His daughter might like the simple serenity of the holo, as well."

     Varca removes one of the credsticks, then closes the strongbox and tucks it under his left arm.  Varca looks around the spartan quarters for a final time,

     "I'll have Frad pack up the clothing and send it over to Vultan.  Silverhand definitely had that whole Man Killing Pirate Bitch style locked down--we'll offer the clothes to Ingrid so she can start working on her own version of that look."

     Varca looks over at Collyn with a smile and a crimson twinkle in his eye,

     "I've got this hunch about us one day needing Ingrid to present herself as a Pirate Queen--and probably some of Silverhands clothing, here, has the appropriate couture..."

     Varca suddenly loses the grin and raises an eyebrow at Collyn,

     "That's right, I said Couture! I know what it means...I read...sometimes..."
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:15, Wed 08 Mar 2023.

Since Viridian will be the XO over on the Mercifuge, he shows Kira to his old stateroom.

"Maybe so, but craftsmanship doesn't have to be ostentatious luxury. In any case, the nature of craftsmanship has changed, changed again, and changed again. It's really about what's trendy, fashionable and in vogue at the time. In 10 years, no one will remember what those were."

With Murdo's body dumped out on the gangway for the scavengers, it's not like no one won't know there's been a shake up on the ship. Whether anyone also associates that with Silverhand's demise remains to be seen.

His filed flight plans had the Mercifuge departing 20 minutes earlier than the Vultan in an attempt to dissociate the two ships. Grunge's ship had to make a beeline to Palindrome as its neutrino trail couldn't be hidden. Vultan, on the other hand, could change course mid-flight and still catch up to Mercifuge before jump. He didn't see any reason to sync jumps, anyway.

With Palindrome's 19 icy moons, he'd opted for an emergence point on the back side of Palindrome away from Silverhand's coordinates.