One last chance for planning... via comms or in person... before departure in the morning, though you can also do that once you rendezvous at Palindrome.

This would be a good time and place to finalize crew assignments, crew responsibilities, and crew berths.

At precisely 0900 hours, Captain McFarlane receives a request for a comm interview from a TAS Dispatch reporter.

"Greetings and good morning, Captain McFarlane," the reporter begins. "My name is Zella Trevayne, a reporter for the TAS Dispatch here on Theev."

"I trust I haven't awoken you too early, but since you are scheduled to depart in an hour, this is probably my last chance to grab an interview."

"We here at TAS try to stay on top of the players and the shakers and the movers on and around Theev... solely for the protection of our members, of course. That's not to say they can't benefit from the information we provide."

"My sources indicate that you might soon become one of those people."

"So, despite any rumors flying around--aren't there always in a starport?--which we won't acknowledge lest we feed a fire that isn't even there, I was hoping to get your opinion on the barbaric practice on Clarke of carbonizing criminals?"

"Naturally we've heard of those terrible raids on Clarke and Torpol even way out here on Theev. Such a tragedy! Do you think the punishment fits the crime?"

"I don't know, never been carbonized. Perhaps it fits the crime, maybe not. Maybe they won't carbonize."

OOC:

     That's "Captain-the-Baron" McFarlane to you, ya Gossip Mongering Bee-Yotch!

---

     Okay, first of all--we now know Redthane is in the Pallindrome system, and that he's on 1 of the Icy Moons to be found there.  I assume we know which moon, but could I get a verification on that?
     Similarly, if we do know which Moon, do we know where on that moon he is hiding?  Is he just parked in a crater, or deep in a cave, or out in an ice field--or is he just waiting up in orbit around that moon?

     We need to formulate plans based on whether it'll be a Space Battle, or if we're going down to dig him out of a hidey-hole.

     Theodore--Space Battles are your wheelhouse.  Varca isn't really planning or expecting any Boarding Actions.  As far as Varca is concerned, just go ahead and blast away at Redthane's ship with the Particle Cannon until everyone aboard that ship is dead & glowing-in-the-dark!  The Clarke-ites are just gonna coat the body with carbonite, so who cares?
     But that's your call, Theo.  Blast 'em outta the sky, or corner 'em and Board....

     Now, if Redthane is down on the moon, we can either launch everything we have at him and blast him outta whatever hidey-hole he's got, or we can go down there, in person, and dig him out.  Varca is hoping this will not be the case, as digging Redthane out of wherever he's hiding his ship will be hard & bloody (not that space combat can't be bloody, it's just that more often than not it's just "Ka-BOOM! Everybody dead...")

     So, do we know exactly where Redthane is?  Do we need to plan on searching for him at Pallindrome, before we can fight him?  Do we wanna just charge in, guns blazing, or do we wanna try and draw him out, maybe let down his guard?

The coordinates of Silverhand's command code was simply not long enough to give a more precise location than the specific ice moon itself, which is named Coolblue. About half the size of Earth's moon, there's still a lot of territory that'll need to be searched to find Redthane's ship. Ice moons are notorious for cracks and crevasses and chasms where a ship can be hidden.

While there's probably no longer any reason to keep it secret, it never hurts to present a bit of uncertainty into the mix, which is why the Mercifuge lifts off from Theev 20 minutes ahead of Vultan bound for Palindrome. Vultan's flight plan has it heading for Vume.

Once Mercifuge has jumped, Vultan files a change of flight to Palindrome.

And now both ships are in J-space for a week, incommunicado with each other.

Other than getting in each other's way, the week passes uneventfully.

The two ships exit J-space within 10 minutes of each other, and less than 1,000 miles apart. You are on the far side of Palindrome--opposite the Coolblue ice moon.

Zhouth had made his way onto the bridge for their exit from jump space, where he remained carefully out of the way of the controls and the people working them, seemingly mostly for the benefit of being able to view their arrival though the main display. Nevertheless, in the wake of their without-incident arrival, he quickly brought up a question.

"So, what's the plan here? Use the Vultan's super-sensors to find him from further away than he can see?" Zhouth held up his hand before his face, thumb and index finger formed into an impromptu lens while the other three wiggled. Then he let his hand fall as he shrugged noncommittally. "I suppose that we could try bluffing with the Mercifuge, but without Silverhand to make it sound plausible and use whatever pass phrases they'd set up, I doubt that will work very well."

“Did we have any recordings of her?” Ghent suddenly chimed in, wondering what else they could do. “Alternative would be for her ship to fake a comms breakdown, explaining the radio silence. Did we ever agree on attacking the ship, to help with the ruse?”

"I heard a lot of ideas get thrown out to see what sticks," Donio offers, "but so far, we're just scouting the terrain, so to speak."

"We've been operating on minimal intel, and even I know that's not good. For all we knew, there could have been an ambush lying in wait, particularly if we'd headed straight for the moon. We couldn't have jumped in close enough anyway."

"Will our sensors ferret out Redthane's ship? Eventually. We've got an operational search time of about 5 weeks before we need to refuel on Palindrome."

"So far, so good. No proximity alarms. We're not exactly on the main route from Vume."

"We should be getting the comm protocols from Palindrome in a few minutes. What's our response going to be? Might I suggest 'watchin' the stars'? Pretty much means what we're doing isn't any of their business, but it's nothing illegal."

"Set the sensors to maximum sensitivity, we need to find Redthane."

"Really, Teddy?" Aaron says. "You think we fly around half blind most of the time?"

"Unless damaged, the sensors are always operating at max."

"So, have you and Ingrid set a date? Or discussed where you want to get married? Or who's going to perform the ceremony?"

"Or am I not in the loop again and this was all just a performance for the Admiral's benefit?"

"No date set, you aren' out of the loop. She just started moving into my stateroom."

"Get under Mercifuges image so Redthane just sees one ship make sure we're running silent. Varca, Make sure that 'broken' comms we have is ready with Silver's snippets, try to draw him outto us. We'd never find him if he tried to hide."

     Varca is at his usual ship-board station--manning the portside Electronic Warfare Suite--when the Captain issues this order,

     "All Passive receivers are active and registering optimal." Varca responds to Cap'n Teddy,

     "All stealth systems are operating at full capacity--well, as full a capacity as we can maintain.  Systems show we are maintaining a signal suppression value of eighty percent--we are emitting no signals that can be detected--and the holographic hull...what there is of it...is presenting a flat-black exterior.  The tight-beam laser comm is syncing up with Mercifuge ... now!. Confirming secure laser-com link to Mercifuge."

     "At this distance, all anyone on or near to that moon should see out here is Mercifuge--assuming that they, too, are using passive sensors.  We're nothing but a blank spot in space, Captain."

You've still got Palindrome and around a dozen ice moons between you and where Janal Torsk is thought to be.

Laser comm is synced between the two ships. Vultan is running silent, which means passive sensors only.
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:20, Mon 13 Mar 2023.

Kira has spent the time in J-space getting familiar with the ship and the crew. They seem to be an agreeable lot, with friendly snipes and camaraderie. She can mainly be found on the bridge, taking a shift as pilot and learning the quirks of the Vultan.

"What do we know about Redthane's ship?" she asks.

“Was hoping you’d have heard something more than us,” Ghent confided to Kira as he kept the helm on a steady pace with the ship in front of them, though he tried to recollect any spacefarer notices about the ship he might have read. “Personally, I’d pick a spot at the poles, which would allow me to intercept radio signals, and giving me a chance to hide behind the moon if I needed to run, or attack,  but that’s just me putting myself into his shoes…”

Though he only surpassed the tallest marine by a mere inch, Ghent weighed a galling ten kilos more than the other did at the very least. His bulk flowed from his legs to his torso, around his shoulders to arms that rippled, and finally ending at a full strong neck in an uninterrupted, unemphatic unity of strength. He might even seem crude surrounded by soft nobles; but while he did look imposing, there was a softness in him. His smile came easily, and his stare was friendly, intelligent and welcoming.
This message was last edited by the player at 00:15, Mon 13 Mar 2023.

"We could also say that we're prospecting, or heading somewhere to do a bit of that, right?" Zhouth stabbed a finger into the air in the direction of the Mercifuge. "It's a salvage vessel, so not quite the rock-and-stone style of prospecting, but it's the same basic idea!" He broke into a grin. "We might even get a side job for it once Redthane is dealt with!"

Rayjay was indeed quite the feather weight, but with his daily calisthenics he was hopefully improving his reedy form into something more befitting a man of action, instead of just the dapper dandy he portrayed at every opportunity.

"Indeed, a flexible doss'e'A of commercial interests is always a sure bet." Rayjay chuckled only half-jokingly.

Kira was mostly a free-lancer, avoiding getting too deep into the cesspit of Theev pirates until she had a better understanding of the factions and the pros and cons of joining up with each. That was also a long term plan.

Still, to that end she paid a bit more attention to gossip, rumors, bar talk and scuttlebutt than most, trying to fathom out the underlying truth behind them.

One thing did stand out--she didn't think he stole something from the Admiral... at least not in the usual sense. It wasn't that he was above that sort of thing--it just wasn't his style.

Steal the Admiral's woman... that she could see. Maybe even his prize Snickerdoodle dog... if he won it in a poker game or something.

No, it just didn't sit right with her. There was clearly more to it.


Ghent came at it from a different perspective. The Janal Torsk/Mercifuge/Misery's Company triad of ships was a dubious unit at best, but it was a (minor) faction. The alliance between the Admiral and Redthane lasted only as long as the two sides agreed that it did.

That made two significant points: something had caused that fracture and it had been abrupt enough that the other two hadn't had a chance or say in it.

Taking into account Silverhand's loyalty covered the  Mercifuge, and, sadly, Misery's Company had such a bad rep that no other pirate wanted it. However, it was still a SHIP. It had served its purpose on the raid on Torpol quite well.


At least on that account Kira and Ghent were in agreement--Redthane was daring, bold and ruthless... and a reasonable leader.

How he found himself between a rock and a hard place was still a mystery.

Ingrid entered the bridge wearing an apron over her swing dress and, incongruously, her toolbelt. "Looks like the drives are doing well, which is remarkable given everything. Oh, and I made cookies. Do you want me to go have a look at the sensors?"

Neither Krrsh nor the Mercifuge crew know anything more about Redthane's ship than is common knowledge. It's a 200-ton Far Trader, jump-2 capable, with two twin pulse laser turrets.

However, Captain Grunge does ask if that starboard sensor bundle ever got replaced. It took peripheral damage on a raid they'd conducted on Arunisiir. It produced an intermittent blind spot. No one can say that it was.

This prompts Lu to mention that Silverhand had managed to tweak the Mercifuge's lasers to overcharge them--they'll do one extra point of damage for three rounds.

"Captain Grunge, this is Captain McFarlane, pleas fly your ship as if it is damaged and partly crippled, fluctuate your power betweem 100% and 120% as if you are having trouble with the drive, anything else would be welcome that you can think of to simulate damage. Ignore Starport Palindrone. We'll get through that--let the guys have a chance to react--before we see if Redthane calls out to Mercifuge (I honestly don't think he will) before we all deal with trying to "contact" Redthane and draw him out."

"Roger that, Captain." Grunge replies over the laser comm. "Not sure how convincing I can make it. Fly drunk... that I can do, though it's all in context."

"A week in Jump gives you a lot of time to think. Not used to doing that."

"We may have overlooked a few possibilities. That coordinate may not be where Redthane is hiding but a rendezvous point. Whoever gets there first transmits a signal. Time limit, too, of course."

"Redthane has had plenty of time to recruit from Palindrome. He could be waiting in ambush behind any of these moons. Like we wanted to pretend to be a target... he could be luring a ship or two in. He's never struck me as the waiting type."

"Given that we don't really know what Silverhand's mission was, or whether she succeeded or not, we could be walking into a hornet's nest."

"Clearly you want me to take the lead and act as bait or prey or whatever. No problem; I can do that."

"I'll use a bit of stealth, though, in case things aren't exactly the way they seem."

"Anything else?"


He then leads the way from one ice moon to the next, ducking behind one moon after the next as he cautiously works his way to the indicated moon.

There are no ships or even space debris out here among the moons... just half a dozen course beacons.

I often find it useful to have ChatGpt summarize things for me when there are lots of posts and I'm trying to catch up between work, so this is what it came up with for the Palindrome jaunt so far;

The crew of the Vultan and Mercifuge have arrived at Palindrome in search of Redthane. They plan to use a combination of stealth and subterfuge to locate his ship. Varca is tasked with ensuring their ships are running silent and that their holographic hulls are presenting a flat-black exterior. They plan to use the Mercifuge to draw Redthane out using pre-recorded snippets of Silverhand's voice.

The crew discusses various scenarios that could play out, including the possibility that Redthane may be waiting in ambush behind one of the moons. They decide to approach the indicated moon with caution, using stealth to avoid any potential traps.

Zhouth asks about the plan, wondering if they will use the Vultan's sensors to locate Redthane's ship from further away than he can see. The crew explains that they will need to rely on their sensors to locate Redthane eventually, but that they are operating on minimal intel.

Ghent suggests faking a comms breakdown to explain the radio silence and using recordings of Silverhand's voice to bluff Redthane. Donio admits that they have discussed a lot of ideas but are still scouting the terrain.

The crew continues their search, setting their sensors to maximum sensitivity to locate Redthane. Grunge confirms that they have a secure laser-com link to Mercifuge and that they are emitting no signals that can be detected. They plan to position themselves under the Mercifuge's image so that Redthane only sees one ship and make sure they are running silent.

Teddy jokes about his relationship with Ingrid, and Varca confirms that their stealth systems are operating at full capacity. The crew discusses the possibility that the coordinates they were given may be a rendezvous point rather than Redthane's hiding spot. They also consider the possibility that Redthane has had time to recruit from Palindrome and may be waiting in ambush.

Grunge takes the lead, using stealth to avoid any potential traps as they move from one ice moon to the next. They find half a dozen course beacons but no ships or debris. The crew remains cautious and alert as they continue their search for Redthane.

OOC:  An outstanding and concise overview, Kira.  Keep it up--but next time put that in the OOC Thread.

     Just 1 adjustment.  Only Vultan is "running silent".  As Cap'n Grunge pointed out, Mercifuge is acting as "bait".

Our hope is to convince Redthane--wherever he is hiding--that "Silverhand" has returned, but her ship is experiencing trouble.  We want him to decide to come out to her, rather than she head in to him.

If it works, then when Redthane shows himself, we try to entice him as close as possible, before Vultan--hopefully unseen--and Mercifuge start blasting him.

Aboard Vultan: Port Electronic Warfare Suite

     Varca links to the laser-comm with Mercifuge,

     "Mercifuge, this is Vultan EWCOM." Varca sends, "Prepare to receive and record an audio file I've patched together.  It's mostly static, but I've added a few snippets of Silverhand's voice that we got one place and another."

     "At your discretion, begin intermittently transmitting at various power levels.  Let's see if we can tease Redthane out of his hidey-hole."

No ships are detected in orbit around any of the moons, nor are any ships detected on the surface of the moons. Despite Grunge's efforts, he doesn't see any indication that Redthane is on the Coolblue moon.

The Mercifuge doesn't detect anything but as the Vultan passes over a chasm on the moon, it detects TWO ships! Oddly, they are in adjacent crevasses only about 100 feet apart!

Passive Sensors vaguely identify the one ship as a possible 200-ton Far Trader. The other one seems to be a sister ship to the Vultan!

"Can the Mercifuge scan those ships actively and send us the data?" wonders Kira. "They're supposed to be looking for Redthane anyway. Maybe we can get some better readings on what we're dealing with."
This message was last edited by the player at 22:26, Mon 13 Mar 2023.

Zhouth's face twists into a look of puzzled concern. "Where did he get another one?" Concern is then overtaken by puzzled as he adds, "And why didn't he use it at Torpol?"

There is a beat before his eyes widen a bit as he hits on a possible solution, waving his hand frantically in the vague direction of the crevice. "Are you sure that isn't a false reading on the Misery's Company? They could look kind of similar down in there, right?"

In reply to StarMaster (msg # 27):

Orbiting Coolblue. Aboard Vultan: Port Electronic Warfare Suite

     Varca's eyes go wide, and his hand snaps out to open a channel to Vultan's Bridge,

     "Captain!  Passive sensors detect two--repeat--two ships hiding in ice crevasses, right below us! One ship looks pretty much like a two-hundred-ton Free Trader with high probability of being the same type as the Janal Torsk!  But Theo..."

     Varca scans the data for a third time, "According to this data...the second ship down there...it's a Harrier..."

     Varca types a command into the sensor equipment, "Sending you imagery and data, now."

     Varca scans the data, as the passive sensors update.

     "No sign they are Weapons Hot, or that they have detected us, Captain.  We could open fire on both ships immediately..."



     "I suppose that that is a possibility, Zhouth." Varca responds, "Both ships are maintaining a low profile, down there--and this data is just from passive sensors..."

     "But Misery's Company--that's a one-hundred-ton Scoutship, isn't it?  This bogey below us is coming up at around two-hundred-tons.  Just like a Harrier, just like Vultan."

     "I can light them both up with a full sensor scan--but that'll show them exactly where we are.  Of course, the longer we maintain this position abouve them, the longer our passive sensors will collect data, and the clearer that data will become.  Flip side--the longer we just sit here, even running silent, the greater their chance to detect us."

     "It's your call, Captain.  I recommend firing a spread of missiles at the ice cliffs around the possible Harrier--bury it now, deal with it later.  Meanwhile Vultan's particle cannon pounds the free trader, while Mercifuge comes closer and uses its lasers for point defense against anything that comes up at us."

     "Perhaps check with Cap'n Grudge?  See if he knows anything about the mystery ship--or has any alternative ideas.  Just make it fast!  If we don't choose to act in the next few minutes, our current course will move us out of sight of those two ships..."

"Correct me if I've got this wrong," Aaron says, "but we're the only ones that can detect the Harrier, right? The Mercifuge has no idea it's down there, right?"

"So doesn't it follow that the Janal Torsk doesn't, either? If anything, it probably has worse sensors."

"Keep in mind, too, that Redthane is hiding from Darokyn. There's no reason he knows we're hunting him for the bounty. I say just light him up with our full sensors and scare the bejeezus out of him!"

"Captain Grunge, This is McFarlane, does Redthane or anyone you know, have a Drinaxi Harrier in their company. There are two ships down there! A Harrier, and Redthane!"


"Varca, keep scanning for a moment, pilot, maintain our position over the chasms and the ships, you too Grunge, stop here, let's gather info for a moment or two before we light them up. then fire at both while Mercifuge gives us point defense with his lasers. Missile spread at the cliffs over the Harrier and Particle gun at Redthane. As you say Varca, you're getting the hang of it."

Further sensor scans will only serve to annoy Redthane, as he'll just be further convinced that you want something he doesn't actually have.

"PARLAY!" He nearly screams as the comm flickers to life catching his hand slamming down on the console.

"Who the frell are you people?! What do want?!"

"How the frell did they find us?" he's still fuming 'off-camera' as the comm officer forgets to cut the circuit. "Must have been that scurrilous dog Krrsh! Never thought he had it in him. Hell, still don't."
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:30, Tue 14 Mar 2023.

Kira maintains the ship's position over the chasms and the two hidden ships, waiting for further instructions from the captain. She glances over at Zhouth and quips, "Looks like Redthane has some new toys. Maybe he's hoping to take over the universe one tiny ice moon at a time." She then focuses back on the controls, eager for any action that may come their way.

     "Continue passive scans of target vessels.  Aye, Captain." Varca responds, "Gunner Brown, I am now sending you analysis of passive scan data for your targeting systems.  At Captain's order I will activate targeting scanners and give you live feed."

     "Just be aware, Captain--they are probably running silent, themselves.  I'm willing to bet they haven't detected Vultan, but Mercifuge is running normal.  If that ship comes to a stop directly abouve them, they will see that."

     As Varca goes through the motions of following the Captain's orders, Varca also assigns more computer processing power to the analysis of the reading on the second, unknown ship, down below.

     "I have been sending our passive scan data to Mercifuge, yes, Aaron." Varca responds, "They can see what we see, and they can use it to adjust their own sensor scans.  But whoever is running the sensors, over on Mercifuge, is hopefully spraying around their active scans as if they don't see anything.  Mercifuge's sensor sweeps passing over them with no reaction from us would go a long way towards giving Redthane a false sense of security, down there."

     "As for us lighting him up...well, that certainly would be something startling, Aaron!  It is something for Cap'n Theo to think on, yeah."

"Uhh, Varca? I don't think that he's feeling very secure right now," came the response over the comm - and unlike Redthane, he was careful to ensure that it wouldn't carry over the ship-to-ship connection. "Unless you think that this is all an act?"

A few taps sent the incoming from Redthane down to Varca's comm, including a replay of the panic-laced introduction.

"I'd say blast 'em" interjects Kira. "But that's just me."

"Not that I was ever aware," Grunge replies to Teddy over the laser comm. "Hell, I didn't even know it existed till you rescued me."

"Can't see it clearly but that looks like it's been down there for a few hundred years.  I find it hysterically funny that he's' been sitting right next to everything he wanted and didn't even know it was there! Har-har-har!"

"Everyone in the system heard his squawk for Parlay," Aaron said softly to the captain. "Do you really want to go down the path of a cold-blooded murderous pirate, Ted? There may not be any coming back from that one."

     "I got a good question for you, Zhouth..." Varca responds, "Redthane has to know that Mercifuge is up here--its transponder is actively calling its name.  And, knowing it's Mercifuge, his immediate demand to know who we are means that he and Silverhand had some kind of recognition signal prepared between themselves that we obviously didn't give."

     "So, if Redthane is assuming that Silverhand isn't in command of Mercifuge, why didn't he demand to speak to her, or see her, or know where she is?"


     "How can he...?" Varca barks out at this revelation, "Right--he's combining the results of his active scans with our passive scan data..."

     "Krr--Cap'n Grudge?" Varca sends via the laser comm, "This is Varca.  While Cap'n Theo deals with that Dead Pirate Walking, down there, please have your Mercifuge run a set of full spectrum scans on that unknown ship and send me the data.  We'll keep an eye on Janal Torsk, in case it lights up targeting sensors."

"He won't go down as a cold-blooded, murderous pirate!" Zhouth whispered fiercely toward Aaron - though also quite audible to the rest of the bridge crew - as he swung his arm around to point at Theodore, then brought the other one up to point toward the Janal Torsk. "He'll go down as a no-nonsense bounty hunter since, you know, there's a massive one out on that fellow for being a cold-blooded, murderous pirate!"

That done, Zhouth calms down a bit and replies to Varca's by-comm inquiry. "How should I know why he didn't ask? Maybe he just figures that if she's not hailing him by now, she must be dead and someone else is in charge? Or he's actually powered down enough that he didn't recognize the ship to start with?" His voice gained a note of distress as he waved wildly in the direction of the Janal Torsk with his hand in a finger-gun form - a detail rather lost on Varca. "Either way, I'd really rather get the shooting part over with before he gets a chance to start shooting back, which becomes more and more likely the longer we sit here talking about it!"

"Or we could, perhaps... parlay?" suggest Kira. "If the other Harrier is unmanned, we could earn ourselves two more ships."

"This is Captain Theodore McFarlane of the Harrier Vultan, stand down and surrender please, or die right here. Missiles and particle cannon aimed right at you Captain Redthane. You have five seconds to answer or die."

"Cdr Varca, begin countdown, then send him to hell." he says over the open comm, for Redthane to hear.

"If you see signs he's firing weapons, shoot."
This message was last edited by the player at 18:16, Wed 15 Mar 2023.

In reply to Theodore McFarlane (msg # 45):

     "Aye, Captain--lighting them up!  Activating all combat systems...now!" Varca responds, his hands flying over his control boards,

     "All targeting sensors on-line.  Full spectrum sensor scan initiated.  Full Power now available to weapons.  Sensor lock on primary target--the Janal Torsk--with Particle Barbette.  Request confirmation for setting missile lock on secondary target, Captain.  We gonna go with Grudge's belief the second ship is an old derelict, or do we assume the possibility it's a live ship that might fire at us?"

     "I'm painting them with everything we've got, right now, Captain--even some stuff they have no clue about!  If we assume that Harrier-or-whatever down there is dead, then putting a second weapon lock on Redthane aught'a turn his hair white with fear.  Just gimme the word, Captain, and Gunner Brown can drop every bit of Hell we have down upon Redthane with extreme precision and prejudice!"

     Finished activating all combat systems except the actual firing of the weapons, Varca sits back to await Redthane's answer.  However, after only a moment, Varca gets ... an Idea...
     Varca opens the circuit to the bridge,

     "Captain!  Permission to engage in Psychological attack against the crew of Janal Torsk?  Sow a little discord, down there..."

"Roger t'at Varca, got t'em in my sights, someone else will need ta fire t'e missiles if ya want any t'ough. Could be anyone really, as t'e wonderful t'ing about missiles is t'at missiles aim t'emselves." He chuckled darkly as he focused in on the Far Trader which he believed to be the Redthane's.

"Anot'er Harrier for t'e fleet would certainly make for a fine prize, a Far Trader too if Redt'ane's a lick of sense left in 'im." Rayjay added with a mercantile grin.
This message was last edited by the player at 20:04, Wed 15 Mar 2023.

The Janal Torsk is in powered down mode; it couldn't fire its weapons if it wanted to.

It's clearly using its passive sensors to detect the Mercifuge, which is broadcasting on active sensors anyway.

There are two possible errors in your thinking: is the Mercifuge broadcasting its ID as Mercifuge and does its normal operating parameters easily make it identifiable as such.

This initial exchange between Redthane and Teddy is using the standard video comms, so the two of you are conversing 'face-to-face'.

"We're already standing down as much as we can," Redthane says with a touch of exasperation. And then his face gets an expression of enlightenment.

"Bounty hunters! You're bounty hunters!" There's a clear sign of relief in his voice.

"Yes, yes, surrender and all that."

"As you are probably aware, pirate captains always have a few tricks up their sleeves. What if I was to provide you with intel that could be worth 10 times your bounty?"

"Point everything at Janal Torsk I think Commander. Ready your boarding party Marines." He switches to internal comms momentarily, "What should we do? I never captured a ship before, they come here, or risk an ambush and go to them? Varca? Zhouth? Needless to say, he gave up rather easily since they're going to carbonize him" I suspect the Harrier is dead and has been, keep sensors on it, look for life forms."
This message was last edited by the player at 13:40, Thu 16 Mar 2023.

Ghent rose from his seat, boarding action..! He loved the sound of that.

“Is 10 times our bounty worth crossing Dorokin for? He looks desperate,” cautioned Ghent, “and desperate men tend to fight to the death, and fight dirty. He’s had time to prepare for a boarding.” There was something else bothering him, and he squinted a long time at the vid feed trying to confirm his suspicions.
This message was last edited by the player at 13:51, Thu 16 Mar 2023.

Zhouth waved his hands side-to-side. "I'm not a naval tactician! I worked in a completely different field!" His hands froze in place mid-sweep as he spoke quietly, barely over a whisper, "Shouldn't you just, I don't know, use the particle cannon to shoot the ship full of holes and them full of radiation? That's how it usually works in the vids, right?"

Kira swiveled her pilot chair around and regarded the rest of the Vultan bridge crew, "Alright, lads and lasses, I've had my fair share of run-ins with the likes of Redthane. Let me share a wee bit of my hard-earned wisdom with ye."

She ticked off suggestions on her hand, her tone conversational and laid-back. "First things first, we could take Redthane's surrender and whatever valuable intel he's offerin'. Could be a sweet deal, but remember, pirates are as wily as a fox in a henhouse. We best keep our wits about us."

Her eyes narrowed as she recalled her own experiences with boarding parties. "Second, we could board the Janal Torsk.  I've done it before, and I'll tell you, it ain't a walk in the park. We'd need to watch for traps and surprises, but if we're clever and quick on our feet, we could nab the ship and whatever treasures they've got stowed away."

She smiled as she considered Varca's suggestion of a little psychological warfare. "Three, as mentioned, we could have a bit of fun and stir the pot among their crew. Make 'em doubt each other and maybe even turn 'em against ol' Redthane himself."

She closed her hand to a fist, "And four, we go in with all guns blazing and reduce them to a thick red smear on the ground. It's not the most subtle option, but sometimes you just have to let 'em know who they're dealing with."

"Psychological first, then radiate if that doesn't work. It can still be used. So it is written, so it shall be done! Kira, you and Varca take care of the psych side and do it ASAP before they think too much!"

Kira turned to Varca. "So, what can this beauty do? We have a holographic hull, I believe. Can we... embiggen ourselves?" She grins at the thought.

"Or perhaps send messages to our 'fleet of allies' hovering nearby? Tell the crew of the Torsk about the bounty on Redthane? Or just hack their systems remotely?"

Rayjay spoke up correcting one of Kira's misconceptions before adding his own two creds. "A partially operational 'olographic 'ull mind ya, so not likely to pass under close inspection, and correct me if I'm wrong but we s'ould be all but invisible to t'em currently, and talkin' to t'em t'rough our tight band to t'e Mercifuge? Eit'er case, I t'ink gettin' Redt'ane off 'is boat and into our custody is t'e best course of action, whet'er t'rough boardin' or diplomacy, t'en we can give 'is crew t'e same offer we did Silverhand's, and if all else fails t'en we start irradiatin' t'em. How's t'at sound to ya Captain?"
This message was last edited by the player at 20:58, Thu 16 Mar 2023.

"Gotcha," nods Kira at Rayjaynul. "It would be amusing to pop out from behind the Mercifuge and scare the bejaysus out of 'em though. And I'd love to see what that other derelict ship is all about."

"Happy to broker a deal with Redthane if you folks want," Ghent said from his corner, raising an eyebrow at the suggestion of having the newest recruit doing the talking with what was technically her old boss. "I do have the skills for that, and I have done some negotiations in the past. If you do decide to attack the ships, I'm still trying to figure out on which ship he's actually on. Could just have been some mods that I saw, but I want to be sure we're not firing at the wrong one. The two ships are significantly different, that the bridge layout would confirm which one he's on. So, if we have that feed opened, we can determine that. I think I can anyway."
This message was last edited by the player at 21:25, Thu 16 Mar 2023.

OOC: Yes, Cap'n Theo was, initially, talking to Redthane via Mercifuge by way of the laser-comm link.  As far as we know, Redthane (with his TL12 ship) was only seeing Mercifuge in orbit abouve him, because Mercifuge was making no effort to "hide", like Vultan was.  But when Cap'n Theo ordered that Vultan go ahead and target the Janal Torsk, to Redthane, Vultan would have appeared out of nowhere, lit up like a Christmas Tree.  Currently, both Mercifuge and Vultan are now Active scanning both ships down on the icy surface.
     One other thing--StarMaster recently pointed out that I/Varca never bothered to ask 1 important & specific question about the status of Mercifuge.  We knew it was an ex-Imperial Navy ship, but it's also a TL15 build.  Mercifuge is almost the equal of Vultan...

---

    Varca presses a few buttons on his console, then uses the open intercom to speak to Theodore,

    "Captain, Mission Commander is requesting a conference." and a small holographic videos screen appears to Theo's side, hovering abouve the right arm of his Captain's seat...
This message was last updated by the GM at 14:52, Sat 18 Mar 2023.

Ghent has access to the sensor readouts on the bridge like anyone else--no question Redthane's transmitting from the Janal Torsk.


Now that the Vultan's sensors are fully active, they definitely reveal the other ship as a Harrier. However, it appears to be a different model and there are no records in the Vultan's computers that match it.

Sensors also show extensive damage to the ship.

"What do you think Zhouth? Radiate them and collect the bodies? Go ahead Ghent, 'negotiate' to stall for a minute while we decide to kill them now or later."

Ghent nodded, and opened a channel to the Janal Torsk. “Janal Torsk, I have been authorized to negotiate terms,” he said as he started bluffing his hardball negotiations, hoping to convince them to surrender without further resistance. His square no-nonsense features engulfed the viewscreens, his three o’clock shadow giving him a menacing air that would hopefully convey that serious shit was going to go down if the terms were not accepted.


17:34, Today: Ghent Bel-Andis rolled 12 using 2d6+5.  Broker + Int.

Used broker (3), but Persuade is at 2 if you need a number...

This message was last edited by the player at 21:47, Sat 18 Mar 2023.

"Terms?" Ferrik replies to Ghent in surprise. "I've already unconditionally surrendered myself, my ship and my crew to Captain McFarlane... Oh, I see. We're now entering the formal part of it."

"Very well, I, Ferrik Redthane, independent free trader and pirate, Captain of record for the Janal Torsk, herewith surrender myself, my ship and my crew to Captain McFarlane of the IFT Vultan... unconditionally."

"There, does that take care of the formalities?"

"Since your bounty hunter eyes didn't light up like headlights at the mention of ten times your bounty, I'll take a wild stab at saying there's some other condition to the bounty. As it turns out, my intel might even help with that."

In reply to Ferrik Redthane (msg # 62):

     Varca's eyes go wide when Theo tells Ghent to begin surrender negotiations--then narrow to give Theo a red-eyed glare when Ghent accepts Redthanes formal surrender.

Zhouth's expression, meanwhile, had shifted to one of wide-eyed bafflement, and he started furiously tapping at his comm unit while striding quickly out of the bridge.
This message was last edited by the player at 15:28, Sun 19 Mar 2023.

Kira leans back in her pilot seat and raises an eyebrow. Well, that was easy, she thinks. Too easy?

Rayjay remains nice and alert as he keeps the Janal Torsk in his sights ready to blast and irradiate the whole ship if the talks start to go south.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:01, Mon 20 Mar 2023.

"Ghent, have Redthane transfer to the Mercifuge, by himself, no others, or we dust him, I thought we wanted him here? Varca, who do we put on Redthane's ship to take control? Zhouth, Varca, give me advice, that is what you're for. I think Redthane should be frozen here on Vultan."

In reply to Rayjaynul Brown (msg # 66):

OOC:  You've got Vultan in your sights?!!  But--we are on Vultan!  Vultan is us!
     Ahhhhhhh!  Run for the escape pods!  Rayjay is gonna blast us with our own guns!

^_~  Just kidding, I mess up my typing like that all the time.  Editing, retyping, re-editing and re-retyping is one of the reasons I take so long between posts ^_^


Oh, and, uh...Vultan doesn't have escape pods, so...we gonna die....

Ghent complied and started to go down a list of things that needed to be done, starting with Redthane going through the physical process of surrendering himself to the Mercifuge; “Did you want me to head over and ‘welcome’ him?”

Message to Varca

In reply to Theodore McFarlane (msg # 70):

Portside Countermeasures Cabin, aboard Vultan. Orbiting Coolblue:

     Varca continues scanning the area, constantly feeding updated targeting data to Rayjaynul up at the Gunnery Station.

Although not privy to the private comms, he was using the shared comms/sensors between the two ships.

"Why are you all acting so schizoid? THIS was the PLAN all along. We didn't expect it to go this well, but every positive turn adds to our rep," Viridian tries to explain. Based on the actions of Teddy, Varca and Zhouth, they were in some sort of panic. Fortunately, none of the new crew could see this 'unprofessional' reaction. Just as obviously, they'd never studied at the School of Never Let Them See You Sweat.

"Sensors indicate ten crew on Torsk... Redthane, 5 crew and, based on UPPs, 4 marines."

"Now, for short term operation, it only takes 3 people to operate a ship--pilot, astrogator and engineer. We've easily got that covered. At the very least, we can drop off the Torsk with the rest of our fleet on Asim."

"We can put one of his crew on Mercifuge with a hefty bonus. That brings three of them to influence the new guy."

"I don't see any way around it but to sleep the marines."

"Now comes the tricky part... getting the crew off the Torsk. We definitely don't want the Torsk lifting off under its own power without us being in control. Transferring while it's still down in the crevasse is out of the question."

"So, we're looking at EVA. Redthane first, then the marines... one at a time. Then we go down with our own crew to take control."

"Once it's in orbit, then we take a look at this other Harrier."

In reply to Viridian Starfire (msg # 72):

     Just then a message flashes over to Mercifuge from Vultan,

     "Mission Commander to Captain Grudge.  Have your First Officer pick a two-person Marine Detail, then have that Detail accompany your First Officer to take Mercifuge's Gig down to Janal Torsk.  Their mission is to bring Captain Redthane up to Vultan for continued negotiations.  Captain Redthane is to be treated as a guest--repeat--Captain Redthane is to be treated as a guest."

     "Both Mercifuge and Vultan will maintain overwatch and keep hard weapon locks on Janal Torsk during this operation.  Over To You."
This message was last updated by the player at 03:39, Mon 20 Mar 2023.

One of the problems with being on two ships was that you didn't always get to hear both sides of a conversation. From what little he was hearing, it didn't sound like the others fully grasped the situation. They were brainlocked into a death and destruction scenario. Even Teddy had it in for Redthane, who he'd never even met.

"Varca! Teddy! Snap out of it!" he nearly shouted over the ship's internal comms.

"He's already surrendered twice! Unconditionally! He's dead. That's what it means when you're a pirate and surrender."

"The minute we appeared overhead, he knew he was a dead man and that his last gambit had failed."

"He has no expectations of you letting him go... under any conditions! He wouldn't believe you anyway. If you're telling him lies, he'd expect you to double cross him. If he's still negotiating, it's for some other reason. Probably for his crew."

"Which isn't the problem you think it is. Yes, they are loyal to him, but, as far as they are concerned, his fate is theirs now. Dangle a carrot of hope in front of them and you shouldn't have to worry about them. However, you start farging with their captain and all bets are off. I really recommend you don't go down that path."

"I'm not saying you can trust them, but there is a certain amount of honor among thieves... or, in this case, pirates. You don't steal from crewmates, for example. That'll get you all killed."

"And remember, the Admiral wants Redthane tried, convicted and carbonized on Clarke."

"Ghent!  Belay current instructions.  Inform Captain Redthane that we want to discuss his offer face-to-face.  We're sending a ships boat down and he should prepare to transfer to our flagship."

Ghent responded with an “Aye, sir,” then added the requested set of instructions.

"Volunteering for the group examining the other Harrier", said Kira. She was slightly amused by the apparent lack of a chain of command on the two ships.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:22, Mon 20 Mar 2023.

OOC: I'll take em all out just you wait! lol

Rayjay continues to keep lock on the Torsk till otherwise told while passing the time with a nice little shanty. "... John Paul Jones is a pirate, no loyalty does he possess, keep it up we'll catch the pirate, and sink him along with the rest..."
This message was last edited by the player at 20:01, Mon 20 Mar 2023.

In reply to Viridian Starfire (msg # 74):

     Varca very calmly, very slowly, reaches out to open a circuit to Mercifuge,

     "Viridian..." Varca says in a calm tone, "If you feel that you cannot, in good conscience, fly the ships boat down to the moon's surface and escort Captain Redthane up to Vultan--just say so and I'll assign someone else to do it.  If you think that you might not be able to control yourself in Redthane's presence, I can respect that...and so, I'll let this, apparent, reluctance of yours to follow orders--slide.  This time..."

     "And I feel you should know that every person I've ever killed--outside of military combat--has known that it was me coming for them!  I've never lied about killing.  If I say somebody's safe around me, they are safe--and I'll kill anyone who tries to make me out to be a liar!"

     "Darokyn?  The Admiral?!  Oh, I have great respect for the man--he's a fierce warrior and the power that he personally wields...?  Well, I'm not ashamed to admit it--he frightens me, a little..."

     Varca's face suddenly contorts into a grimace and he slams his gloved fist down on the console as he raises his voice to a shout,

     "But why the frack would you think that I cared one wit for what The Admiral wants to happen to my prisoner!  The Admiral is not here--and unless he shows up in the next ten minutes, who frelling cares what he wants!!"

     Varca pauses, closes his red-orbed eyes, and regains control,

     "So, Viridian..." Varca finally says, his tone calm and even, "I'm asking--will you go down to the surface and bring Captain Redthane back up to Vultan...?"

     "Please."

Viridian stared at the console for a moment trying to figure out what Varca's little rant was all about. Viridian had just told him he had everything he wanted and yet he seemed determined to kick it all to the curb.

"Never said that, Varca," he answered. "On my way now."

"Lu and Rejji, you're with me. Suit up. We're going to fetch Redthane." He'd much rather have had Taliesa with him, especially if the situation was anywhere like Varca was expecting, but Viridian was convinced he was reading it all wrong. And while Viridian wasn't one-hundred percent sure that the crew was 90% loyal--more like 60% at this stage, he felt Taliesa could handle the rest better. Plus, taking the 'runt of the litter' with him sent a couple of positive signals.

In short order, the three of them were in the shuttle and dropping down to the Janal Torsk. It was only as they were settling atop the far trader that it finally occurred to him what Varca's problem was--he hadn't killed anything! On Drinax, you don't get something unless you kill something! You have to fight for everything you get. This didn't involve any physical fighting and Varca was having trouble processing that.

The chasm was too narrow for any other transfer except via ventral/dorsal connection. Once the hatches were both open, Viridian dropped down to the other ship.

"Personal escort for Ferrik Redthane to formally surrender in person to Captain MCFarlane," he said while he surveyed the rest of Redthane's crew. They looked about the way he expected to look... like Redthane... no bowed shoulders, just standing, walking and talking proudly. He might be defeated but he was still hoping for a way out of this... alive.

"We'll be back for the rest of you shortly. If you don't cause any problems, you'll be treated with dignity and respect."

He then sent Redthane up the ladder to Mercifuge under the guns of Rejji and Lu.

It only took 15 minutes to dock with the Vultan and transfer Redthane.

He then approached Ghent. "We're looking for a 'face'... someone who can do business at a starport while scouting out potential targets. You would seem to be the perfect fit for a Far Trader captain to pull that off. You interested?"

"Once we clear the Torsk, we'll take you down as the new captain. Not sure yet about crew. Give some thought to what your new ship will be named; we'll change it on Palindrome. Plus, a few back-ups for previous history won't hurt."

"Donio, you're with me while we bring up two marines at a time. They are going directly into cold sleep."

That entire process was going to take an hour to two, getting done while Redthane was being interrogated by the 'triumvirate'.

Redthane was suited up--didn't want no accidents; besides, he was already suited up for survival protocols--but was encouraged to remove the suit before meeting the captain.


The marines were brought on board the Vultan and escorted to cold sleep. As was pointed out, there aren't any detention facilities on the Vultan.


The current plan is to bring the Torsk up from the planet into orbit then send the Mercifuge down to investigate this other Harrier wreck. If it's not flyable, then the three working ships will head to Palindrome to refuel and work out crew details.

Ghent blinked. He slowly tilted his head sideways, an air of confusion or suspicion clear upon his face. "Sorry, I thought you just offered me command of Redthane's ship?"

His mind was racing; he couldn't have heard right. He had been looking to grind his axe at the Merchant Marines for what they had done, but he hadn't expected to be given command of one of the most notorious vessels this side of the sector.

He stared at Viridian looking for a bluff, or half-believing it was a hazing ritual, and that his friend was pulling his leg. Another part of his mind was racing at the prospect. "How would such an arrangement work..?"
This message was last edited by the player at 19:07, Fri 24 Mar 2023.

"You'd have to work those details out with Teddy, Varca and Zhouth," Viridian replies.

"I'm pretty sure we'd have to work as a fleet, rather than each ship going off on its own trade operations. Varca has already hinted at this assignment, but I suppose even that's subject to change."

"He'll have to explain the Grand Scheme... which is primarily create a buffer state between the Imperium and the Aslan, and possibly the Florian League. As long as there's some sort of neutral polity in place, a balance of peace can be maintained."

“The fleet idea makes absolute sense,” Ghent conceded, as he looked over the scans of the Torsk, sizing her up and comparing to other vessels he had served on. He’d commanded ships just like her, but had you told him a week ago that he’d be taking over Redthane’s own ship and crew he would have slapped you in the back as he roared in laughter, thinking you were helluva funny. He‘d then have ordered several shots, and insisted that you drink up with him. Now, he didn’t find it that farfetched or funny anymore.

He stood a bit taller, stroking his chin pensively. “I’d totally be interested,” he heard himself say before he’d realized that he’d already made his decision as he scrutinized the other ship’s lines. Those who didn’t know him probably missed the undercurrents that radiated from him, but Viridian could tell that his old gambling buddy was elated, even if the large man had barely raised his voice, pushing down his excitement down, letting logic rule him, rather than the hot passion he felt at that very moment.

"Well, I have to admit that things are moving a bit faster than I was expecting," Viridian answers. "But then that's what star travel is all about--a week of oblivion and then days of activity."

"Here's the Torsk's crew manifest. I was thinking of moving one of them to the Mercifuge, one of Mercifuge's crew to Torsk. I can give you Collyn. Scramble things up a bit. Once we're on Palindrome, we can shake things up a bit more."

"Okay, Varca wants you to escort Redthane into the lounge to meet with them. Then we'll go get your ship."

"...Born the son of a Scot, he was, Born the son of the Scot, But cut a man down in his prime, he did, So away to Virginia he got..." Rayjay continued his shanty, keeping his eyes on the sensors as he waited for the other shoe to drop. Truly all his time in the navy and merchant marines had taught him, there was no such thing as an easy job, just varying degrees of suck. So, with Redthane on ice, a new prize ship and crew to add to the fleet, and a Harrier to salvage as well, this haul was looking far too good to be true, making the old navy man suspicious as hell.

"'Ey Captain, Varca... it just me or is t'is all goin' over way too easy? Makes me wonder when t'e ot'er boot's goin' to drop." He asked sounding more than a little superstitious.

"Agreed," adds Kira. "That lot brought shame on the good name of pirates. No fightin' spirit!"

In reply to Kira Cerise O'Neill (msg # 87):

     "Yeah, well, I kinda got the same feeling." Varca responds to both Rayjay and Kira,

     "That's one of the reasons we're bringing Redthane aboard Vultan--so's I can get the measure of the man.  An despite Viridian's explanation of him just being a 'practical pirate', I gotta admit, I'm having a hard time accepting that the reputation that we've been hearing about Redthane the Pirate was made by this guy..."

“They’re right, you know,” Ghent said as he nodded towards Varca and Kira and took the Torsk’s crew manifest from Viridian, “with the reputation Redthane made for himself, you’d think they would have shown more grit. It's sad to see another tired man... Lay down his hand and quit the holy game of poker, but I guess he knew he was deep in shit for whatever reason, and that means there’s a bigger fish to be afraid of, and he knows it. Time to go square up with the man and find out.”

"Take a picture of him and send it to Capt. Grunge, just to make sure we have Redthane here on Vultan and not someone pretending to be him."

In reply to Theodore McFarlane (msg # 90):

OOC:  Oh.  Good idea.  I often forget that problem-solving can be that simple!  If it ain't Building The Pyramids, I tend to overlook it  ^_^
Nice call, Theo.

Ghent pulls up the pirate’s official wanted poster from the computer for comparison.

Ooc: >.>
This message was last edited by the player at 16:46, Sun 26 Mar 2023.

In reply to Ghent Bel-Andis (msg # 92):

OOC: Daaaaaaaaaaaamn, that's smart, too!  ^_^

I'm no5 one of those nit-picky if you didn't absolutely, positively specifically SAY it then it didn't happen. There is simply a lot of stuff that'll get done behind the scenes. This is one of them. Viridian would have assessed the situation and verified that NO ONE else looked like Redthane.

If Viridian had thought of it, though, he would have made the verification.

With the now triple-vetted Redthane being questioned by the Troika, Ghent took out his inspection sheet and waved for Collyn to accompany him on a tour of the Torsk (and questioning of its crew) about her systems, in an attempt to get to know them better. He even had her pilot follow them through their inspection of the engine room, and while Ghent might not have been a grease monkey, he seemed at ease discussing the ship’s performance with her engineer (Zestro), asking all the pertinent questions, while not getting slowed down by the complexity of the jargon being discussed.

He even expertly played the pilot and the engineer off of each other in what was to become the first of many discussion on how to improve the ship’s performance, and creating a list of priorities for the ship’s maintenance. After a good while, he was sure he had a very good idea of the ship’s limitations and a better idea of what she could and could not do, what was left was to get a feel for the rest of the crew.


14:06, Today: Ghent Bel-Andis rolled 12 using 2d6+6.  Discuss Ship with Pilot (pilot + int).
13:55, Today: Ghent Bel-Andis rolled 15 using 2d6+4.  Go through the Torsk for inspection (mech + int)
This message was last edited by the player at 18:20, Sun 26 Mar 2023.

The ship went through normal monthly maintenance a month ago just before Redthane bugged out. It can forego next maintenance for a month without any problems.

Other than that, the ship is in good operating condition. Neither the pilot nor the engineer have any suggestions for improving the ship's performance but they'll consider it.

The ship could stand a cleaning, but seems typical of ships of this level of command. Redthane wasn't the kind to get his hands dirty cleaning and therefore didn't insist his crew do it.

It's Redthane's quarters that provides the surprise. It's decorated with an assortment of bric-a-brac, relics and similar decor.

On the desk is a 17" tall stone carving of what looks like a one-eyed screaming monkey.

On a sideboard is a  blinking electronic device about the size of a soda can setting on its side.

Four weapons hang on the wall behind the desk: a scattergun, two pistols, and a katana.

The wall opposite the desk holds a picture/painting.

Also on the desk is a gold-framed picture of a Korsakan Mister dog--a silver-gray retriever. The name at the bottom is : Gorgo.

What ctaches Ghent's interest is the Captain's chair--an Ultracline Super-Deluxe with heating, cooling and massage.

Then there's the fancy ottoman/footrest/locker tucked in at the foot of the bed.

Ghent knew he wouldn’t tolerate a dirty ship, but he’d have to ease the crew into it. There’d be time enough for that, but the locker itself had peaked his interest. He could technically open it with his arc-field weapon, but he liked the chest and didn’t want to break it. He’d also heard plenty of stories about locking mechanisms with various traps waiting for the unwary, that he redoubled his caution when investigating it.

Ghent finds no traps on the padded chest... the picture of Gorgo seems to have no connection... until he realizes that the key is tucked into the back of the picture frame.

The chest has a rather ordinary lock that can be snapped open easily enough, but with the key, it isn't necessary.

Upon opening the chest, you discover Redthane's REAL treasure: FOOD! Gourmet coffee, gourmet jelly beans, and gourmet peanut brittle.

'Krifing nobles,' Ghent thought as he found the stash of coffee and sweets. 'Of course he'd sit on a stash of candy and hide it from the crew. At least he kept the ship maintained.'

Ghent took out the coffee and inspected it to make sure it was actual coffee, not some stash of drugs hidden in coffee to throw some mongrels off the trail. Once he was sure the coffee was genuine, he set it aside determined to give it back to the crew. He himself detested coffee, preferring tea, but if he could treat the crew to something... they might thank him for it.

The jelly beans he put in a bowl on his new desk, but the peanut brittle he kept for himself.

With a loud sigh he slumped himself into the Ultracline Super-Deluxe and swivelled to take a glance of the room. The weapons could come in handy -- he had to like a man who had managed to collect a katana blade --  he then considered the painting, screaming monkey, and blinking electronic device.

Perhaps it was the relaxation generated by the chair--after all, that was its reputation--that finally triggered a stray/strange thought: why these particular items? There was certainly no connection between them.

Was there some sort of significance to them? Or were they just items that Redthane's 'twisted' mind found interesting?

A search through the computer identified the painting as "The Last Dezarro"--self-portrait with killer in painting. The original is valued at 2MCr.

The idol was almost as easy to identify: a Xuvendi cursed idol--one-eyed screaming monkey-like 17" statuette carved out of zharwood. Worth... 200MCr?

He probably should have recognized the last item--Vanadium Trace, a myth-legend in the region. It's kind of like a treasure map in that it's supposed to contain the astrogation coordinates to Xhal'la-Bha'al--the Treasure of Sindal. It was last sold for 3MCr.

Another thought occurred to him then: where's the ship's money?

That prompted the Braddock Incident to come to mind. Ship's Captain Apollonium Braddock had bought an Ultracline... and promptly customized it! Apparently, most owners did. An unauthorized assistant had sat in it and was promptly electrocuted.

After Ghent finished searching the Torsk and the three ships were all back in orbit again, Viridian commed Teddy.


"So, what's our plan now, Captain," Viridian asks.

"Do you want to risk refueling all three ships here in the ice? Or would you rather we just land up on Palindrome, refuel there, redistribute crews, give them some shore leave, spread a little wealth around to make contacts, maybe get in on the good side of Yemar."

"Astrogo Downport is a dive by most standards but it is a pirate hangout. Not as good a haven as Theev, but it's another option."
This message was last edited by the player at 02:00, Thu 06 Apr 2023.

"Geez! We need to put a bell around your neck, Viridian..!" Ghent said as looked up in surprise. He had been deep in thought, figuring out how much he could negotiate for the artwork. He pointed towards the art, though the gesture was lost to the rest of them as they listened in. "There are possibly millions to be had, right in this room if we hawked these, assuming they’re legit," he said with a frown.

He carefully got up from the chair, really not liking the thought that Redthane might have booby-trapped his own chair. "You know, for a man with so many trinkets on display, Redthane hides his candy and coffee. There should be more in here. Maps. Credits. Plans. Booze. A Black Book... anything..." Ghent was distracted now, closely inspecting the chair.

"Honestly though, I was thinking everyone should let their hair down a little while we figure out our next move, starting with giving the crew access to this premium coffee. I also love the idea of refuelling at a lower cost here, but do you think we have the team that could refuel the ships and not blow us up at the same time? And how's the inquest moving along? Do we know?"
This message was last edited by the player at 11:44, Thu 06 Apr 2023.

Finally getting around to searching the desk, Ghent finds the rest of Redthane's personal treasure. The desk is locked but it doesn't take much to disengage the lock.




Only Ghent and Collyn are on the Torsk with its 5 crewmen.

"You left your comm open again, Ghent!" Viridian chides Ghent at his comment about putting a bell around Viridian's neck.

"Besides, what makes you think he didn't share the coffee? Maybe his crew doesn't even drink coffee. Maybe he only brought it out on special occasions. If you just left it out all the time, it'd be gone in a week!"

"200MCr for a stupid little idol? Yeah, I'd be suspicious of that, too! Of course it's stolen! Redthane's a pirate! I would have liked to have seen the expression on his face when he realized what he had! If it's authentic."

"You can always hawk it at a flea market on Palindrome for 50 credits and be done with it. Personally, I don't know of any art market in this region that could handle that value. You'd have to go to auction at a prestigious house. Imperium. Florian League? If we transship it, we might get 20%."

"Same for the painting. Better sale chance cause the price isn't so steep."

"Vanadium Trace sounds familiar but can't say I've ever heard of it. How about you, Varca? That's more up your alley."

By now, all the VIPs were on open comms--across three ships--to discuss next actions. He checked his comm to see who wasn't listening.
This message was last edited by the player at 09:31, Thu 06 Apr 2023.

Ghent ignored the Viridian’s coffee remarks, though he did consider keeping some for special guests, though he did believe that his days of catering to the rich and famous was something he kissed goodbye when he left the merchant marines. “Yeah, I’d want the artwork appraised, but I want to do some research before we get that done. I’ve never trusted appraisers in general, so I like to have an idea of the object’s history and worth and confirm my numbers, which means we ain’t hawking it here.”

He finally reached for the desk and found the credits and drugs. Not a bad stash of credits he thought.

"Well captain, what are your orders? I always have my blade and I'll keep my gun, they are pirates after all, and might try to space us."

Ghent gave Collyn and wicked smile, “Let them krifing try to space us… maybe we should interview the last three crew members now. I have their cred sticks here, and I can increase the amounts on those, and discretely isolate the bad apples if any. I assume we’ll take our cue from Ted when the task force is ready to move on out.” Truth be told, Ghent was eager to see how the crew worked, and they would need to know about crew problems early. “What’s your feeling on the Pilot and Engineer?“

[Coolblue, moon of Planet Pallindrome]
[After Redthane's Surrender, Later That Same Day.  Post-Battle Crew Assembly, aboard Mercifuge]

     After the Troika interviews Redthane the Pirate Popsicle, Varca arranges for all three ships to land on the icy moon's surface, near enough to each other that all crews can assemble in the upper cargo hold of Mercifuge.  A single Watch stander will remain aboard Vultan and Janal Torsk (each being from Vultan's crew) and can monitor the Crew Assembly from there.

     Varca climbs up onto a small, empty cargo pod to address the assembled Pirates.  As usual, for him, he's wearing his black Hazard Suit completely sealed up--and he has something shiny and metallic slung over a shoulder with a piece of tie-down cable.

     Once standing atop the pod, he puts his hands and looks out over the crowd--his sealed helmet scanning side-to-side.  His voice suddenly booms out of the suits vocoder,

     "Aw-right Shut It an Lissen Up!"

     He continues in a voice raised only loud enough to be heard in the large cargo hold,

     "My name is Varca Lexand.  You lot will call me Commander Varca or simply Commander.  Some of you can call me Varca.  Anyone who chooses to do so--if I don't punch you in the mouth, then I'm okay with it."

     "On behalf of myself and my fellow Crewmates from Vultan, I welcome all of you to our Organization.  The ships that you've been serving aboard now belong to us.  Your former Captains are gone..."

     Varca reaches behind himself and produces the object slung by a cord from his shoulder--a shiny silver cyber-arm.

     "Captain Silverhand is dead.  She got blowed up." Varca tosses the arm down to the floor, "Captain Redthane has chosen to retire and live out the remainder of his existence as a popsicle.  However, I hope it will warm your larcenous hearts to know that his final thoughts were for all of you, his Crew.  He asked us to offer all of you the opportunity to join with us or be allowed to sign-off down at Astrogo.  With no hard feelings."

     Varca pauses his speech to again scan the group,

     "We have chosen to honor Captain Redthane's request.  Any of you who wish to remain and work with us is welcome.  There will be some ship crew reorganization, but you can all, pretty much, expect to keep doing the same jobs you had.  And if you want to be considered for a different job, we'll listen."

     "We pay all crew at a pay rate equal to current Imperial Spacer's Guild scale for the job you do.  Shares of Loot will follow the accepted method in use by the Pirate Lords of Theev.  We also tend to reward excellent performance and outstanding efforts."

     "However, before we drop down to Pallindrome for a visit, it seems that Captain Redthane's choice of rendezvous locations is, unknown to him, right on top of the final resting place of a sister-ship to our Vultan.  We are going to spend a few days up here salvaging that ship.  After that job is done, we will drop down to Astrogo Downport, and any of you who wish to Sign-Off may do so and be given one months wages.  You will not be given any Shares owed you by your former Captains."

     "Understand that your former Captains surrendered both themselves and their ships to us, so all the swag to be found aboard those ships--not that there is much swag--are now our property.  The contract for any Shares against those treasures was with your previous commanders."

     "Any of you who want to sign-off who have a problem with that, I suggest you complain to your former leaders.  There's Captain Silverhand..." Varca points at the cyber-arm on the floor,

     "...and Captain Redthane the Popsicle is in the freezer, aboard Vultan.  His visiting hours are between Never in the morning and Not At All in the afternoon."

     "I will pause now for any questions.  Don't be afraid to ask questions!  I never shoot anyone for asking a stupid question--only for making stupid statements..."

Considering nobody has yet tried to interact with any of the crews, though that does include not abusing them, they don't really have any basis for making a decision.

"Keep doing the job we've been doing for the same pay, Commander Varca, with the possibility of shares... sounds like a sweet deal to me," one of the men speaks up.

"Can't speak for everyone," another one adds, "but sounds like you got yourself a crew or two."


Since it was going to take 4 days to salvage the other 'Harrier', it was decided that the Vultan's tech-15 fuel processors (as well as the Mercifuge's fuel processors) were more than capable of processing the ice moon's ice into safe and usable fuel, that was the way to go. 40 tons a day has the three ships refueled with time to spare. The Vultan's systems also make transferring fuel to the other two ships quick, safe and easy, too. The crews are offered an extra 1,000Cr for 'breaking ice rocks in the hot sun'. Turns out to be a good way to build crew morale as each 3-person team competes with the others, and the winner gets to split an extra 6,000Cr. (OOC: yes, courtesy of Viridian the Morale Officer.)

The prototype Harrier's transponder is found amid the salvage, identifying it as the Imperial Star Dragon Flaming Victory. It's construction date is only 2 years after the Vultan.


During those 4 days, Ingrid works on studying, analyzing and installing the Jump Booster on the Vultan. There's no way she'll ever be able to build a duplicate for the other ships, but there might be secrets to be unlocked in the Scholar's Tower or even on Tech World. Drinax tech knowledge + Tech World industry should do the job.

It seems to use some sort of hyperfusion injectors on the jump bubble to expand it to J-3 without requiring any additional hydrogen fuel. It's kind of fooling the Jump Drive into thinking it's bigger than it is.

She does realize it's like over-inflating a balloon until it explodes, but that's what all the safety wires are for.

Astrogation is just as tricky, but Vultan's sensors seem to be up to the task. 'You want to go HERE but 'here' is really there.'


Oddly, the Mercifuge has auxiliary fuel tanks, so it can store enough extra fuel (120 tons) to cover both other ships. That means you can make just one jump to reach Borite.

Because the only commodity Drinax has is Knowledge, the Vultan's library is pretty extensive, and it was updated on Theev (for what that's worth).

So Ghent has no problem finding out more about the art.

The painting was last known to be in the possession of Charad Vorona-Sakatha, Financial Over-Vice Presidio of GeDeCo Amalgamated, a subsidiary of Oghma Highport. There was some dispute over ownership.

The value is accurate, since that's what Charad paid for it. If it was stolen, though, there's lack of provenance... reducing the value by at least half.


The statue is another story. Several stories, actually. It's been claimed to having caused the death of several prominent people over the past hundred years. Someone pointed it or shook it at the target in anger and within a week, that person was dead... under mysterious circumstances usually.

The origin of the statue is uncertain, but radiocarbon dating puts it at about 2,000 years old. The carving style is that of the Vilani art movement known as Ravani--generally translated as 'psychotic sculptures'. It is also rumored to be a secret Zhodani weapon.


Vanadium Trace, though obscure, has a few references, mostly by the notorious treasure hunter
Hazargo Jellicar. She's convinced that the Treasure of Sindal is not only real, it's on Noricum.

Of course, no one agrees on what this treasure is... death stars, battle wagons, teleportation chambers, FTL comms, and piles of gold, gems and jewelry are the most common speculations.

The device itself is supposed to be a Zhodani electronic mathematical puzzle box--you need to figure out the right combination of formulas, symbols, fractals and subroutines to unlock the exact 42-number coordinates.


Somewhere along the line, Ghent manages to get Ingrid to check out the Ultracline. Almost as a passing thought, she does locate two 'unexpected' circuits. This is mostly because she's gotten so used to dealing with Vultan's high-tech sensors and systems that lower tech stuff is easier to spot.

The first circuit isn't anything that is dangerous/lethal, but she just doesn't have the time or focus to fully analyze it... maybe just super-Bluetooth.

The second one is more intriguing to Ghent because it's a transponder! There's no way to know if Redthane was aware of it, but why would you put it into the Captain's chair?

Its transponder ID has it registered as the Independent Far Trader Starfang out of Tyr.
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:38, Sat 08 Apr 2023.

Although you've been receiving communications requests from Palindrome since you entered the system, it's only begun to get more insistent the last two days.

While what you are doing isn't clearly visible from the planet, their sensors can clearly detect activity. Since you could be in possible need of rescue--three ships all down on the ice moon, they are 'offering' rescue services, clearly anticipating salvage opportunities.

The authorities are clearly reluctant to 'interfere', but curiosity, business, and greed are starting to tip their hand.

"This is Commander Krimson Onaki of the the Palindrome Space Force," is the latest comm. "Do you need assistance? REPEAT: Do you need assistance?"

"We have state-of-the-art rescue ships and services to assist you if you require it. If you do not need rescue assistance, then I am afraid I must insist that you identify your intent, purpose and operations. This close to Astrogo, you represent a major potential threat to our security, trade and economy."

"REPEAT: Identify intent and operations... or we will be forced to take a defensive posture."

Ghent grumbled at the security force’s arrival. What would Varca say when he cut him to the comm? At that point in time, Ghent figured giving Varca no chance to respond might be better for eveyone. Besides, if things went sideways, he knew enough about Varca to know that he was already thinking about cutting them into shreds, so giving him some time to make a plan might be beneficial anyway; “Greetings Palindrome space force, this is Ghent Bel Andis, Captain of the Salvage Team Oasis Bravo. One of our ships was stuck in the ice after having to do an emergency landing. The crew and personnel are now fine, we’re currently making a few last minute repairs and will be on our way. We appreciate your concern, and apologize for not hearing your comms, there seems to be interference from the moon’s ice structures.”

In such situations it was best to explain everything that the others might be seeing. A rescue attempt after an emergency landing would explain the ice excavation, the three ships, and the activities in this area of the moon. He didn't want to bring attention to the other vessel still in the ice, but he hoped the three ships were going to block that particular detail from their scanners.

The last thing he wanted was for their security force to claim the wreckage, but the fact that the team beat them to the most interesting parts that could be salvaged, he was ready to cut their losses. They had better things to do, but alienating the local security force wasn’t going to help things. Unless of course they had to tip their hands and fight their way out…


10:25, Today: Ghent Bel-Andis rolled 10 using 2d6+5 ((2,3)) persuade to stand down (int and persuasion)
This message was last edited by the player at 15:01, Sat 08 Apr 2023.

In reply to StarMaster (msg # 111):
[Coolblue, moon of Planet Pallindrome]
[After Redthane's Surrender, Later That Same Day.  Post-Battle Crew Assembly, aboard Mercifuge]

     "Aw-right, aw-right...I'm glad to hear everyone approves of the change in Management!" Varca jokes "So, then, like I said, before moving on we're gonna stay here and salvage a crashed ship.  We're also gonna swap a bunch of you around between all three ships--so wrap your heads around moving to a new ship!  Plus there're a few minor repairs to make--oh!  And we're gonna be taking advantage of all this free water-ice around us and make a lot of fuel.  So, I hope none of you are allergic to shoveling snow!"

     "When we do drop down to Astrogo you'll all get at least forty-eight hours of Liberty--some of you have been cooped up aboard ships for quite a while, so you will get to stretch your legs a bit.  Maybe we'll buy some high-quality consumables for all ships, when we sell some of our salvage, down there.  Which reminds me--Captain Grudge!  I want at least two tons of that ship's hull material, once it's been processed, placed aboard Vultan.  We'll have a use for it, later."

     "Now, it's no secret that, when we leave Pallindrome, we'll be heading for Planet Torpol.  That's a few jumps away, and we're gonna be making a best-time transit with only a few short stops along the way.  Anybody wants to walk away whenever we do make a stop, just speak up.  But once we set down at Torpol I'm expecting a stay of several days--and all of you will be free to explore the pleasure pits of Torpol to your hearts content during that time."

     "But hear me now!  It would be better for any of you who participated in the raid on Torpol, under Captain Redthane's command, to keep your mouths shut about that!  'Cuz...while I feel for all'a you like you were my brothers ... just like my actual Brothers, I will toss you out the airlock if the Torpol Law Enforcers grab you.  When we get to Torpol, you ain't never been to Torpol!  Got it?"

    "We're going to give all of you the rest of today--and tomorrow--to wrap your heads around all this newness.  But first, let me fill you in on the new Command Structure..."

     Varca bows his helmet covered head, then reaches up and removes the helmet, tucking it under his left arm.  When he looks back up, his pale skin and bright red eyeballs are quite evident.

    "My name is Varca Lexand and I'm your Commander.  Any of you Bad-Asses think you've had a hard life--if you recognize what this means..." Varca points at his eyes, "...then you know that your hardships are equal to a Play Date, where I come from."

     "Next in the hierarchy are First Captain Theodore, commanding Vultan, and Scholar Zhouth.  All three of us speak with one voice; I make the plans, Captain Theodore runs all space operations, and Scholar Zhouth acquires our information and intelligence."

     "Captain Theodore was, for many years, an Imperial Navy Officer.  He served under, and was mentored by, Admiral Jaimei Darokyn--perhaps you've heard?  Captain Theodore came out of Retirement and left his homeworld by request, to take out Ferrick Redthane.  I should warn you that, like his mentor, he isn't a very...forgiving...person."

     "Scholar Zhouth...well...Zhouth used to work in those super-secret laboratories that The Imperium denies that they operate.  He's an outstanding researcher who's extremely committed to gathering any information he seeks.  As a joke, I often call him quiet and bookish.  But people--I've seen him at work and as a Vespexer, I tell you...he scares me."

     Varca raises his right hand to point at Krrsh, "Second Captain Grudge, there, is in command of Mercifuge.  Now, some of you may think Captain Grudge looks familiar--and you'd be correct to think so--it's a familial resemblance.  Captain Grudge once had a twin brother that you might have known.  For reasons which he wishes to keep private, Captain Grudge never wants to hear his brother's name mentioned in his presence.  I suggest you all heed that request, as I have given him permission to knife anyone who ever speaks of his brother.  Be warned."

     Varca next points at Ghent,

     "Third Captain Ghent will command Janal Torsk.  Captain Ghent smiles a lot.  It's been my experience that folks who are really good with knives smile a lot..." Varca pauses to give a big smile, "...and I'm told Captain Ghent is extremely good with knives."

     "Also, as Vultan is the flagship of this outfit, you should take it for granted that any member of the command staff of that ship has my ear--because they do.  So, treat them as a Senior Officer to yourself."

     "Okay, one last opportunity for questions, and we'll wrap this up..."

OOC1: "command staff" = Player Character
OOC2: I say this often "Varca Lies."  Well...maybe it's more accurate to say that "Varca Equivocates" ("...uses ambiguous language so as to conceal the truth or avoid committing oneself...").  In his 1st Term (as a Thief) he tried to be a Con Man (he wasn't very good at it) as well as a B&E specialist (he's better at that).  So, as an "Equivocator" Varca often tells people what he thinks that they want to hear in order for them to do what he wants.  Thus, he tells a group of "Bas-Ass Pirates" that he & his buddies are bigger "Bad-Asses", because he thinks that's what they want to hear in order for them to follow us.  See?  It's all very complicatedly simple...

Teddy nods when he is mentioned, letting the pirates know who he is. He smiles inwardly at the lies Varca tells.

Zhouth had changed back into an ordinary (by his standards) outfit by the time the assembly was called, and he had settled himself somewhat off to the side of the proceedings, tapping away at his comm in the perfect (if still eye-rending) image of someone for whom research and knowledge came before all other concerns.

Except for the moment that Varca declared that Zhouth scared him. That prompted a several seconds long fumble with the comm as it threatened to fly from his grasp even as he threw a skew-eared look of mixed shock and disbelief the Vespexer's way. Somehow he managed to regain control of the device just before he looked back at it, though it was several moments of silent breath-catching before he started working on it again.

And we're taking this show on the road...

=============================================================================


The assembled multitude takes it all in with large grains of salt. For the most part, they are used to threats... it's what happens afterwards that concerns them. No shootings or stabbings does send a wave of relief over them.

A few smile at Captain McFarlane when he nods.

"Would you rather we call you Commander Bad Ass or Commander Varca?" one of them calls out, which causes a few chuckles.

At mention of Grunge and his brother, several of them give Grunge a speculative look which brings forth an assortment of shoulder shrugs, shakes of the head, and agreeing nods. It's hard to tell who's buying what, though.

Varca's comment on Ghent generally causes a wary look.

It's his comment on Zhouth, though, that seems to scare them the most!


=============================================================================


"Copy that, Vultan," Palindrome Space Force command responds to Ghent's reply. "You had us worried there for a bit. We were naturally concerned about potential pirate activity."

"Astrogo can handle all three ships. Let me officially welcome you to Palindrome."

By this time, salvage and refueling estimates had solidified and command had figured out what it was going to do, so landing requests had been specifically requested. And clearance given.


=============================================================================


Ghent is asked to distribute the salaries and bonuses to the crew... with Zhouth's assistance since he's the official quartermaster.





Since each ship had a full compliment, the monthly pay for each ship should be 21,000Cr. However, Mercifuge is missing its XO, so 6,000Cr less this month. On the other hand, Torsk is paying an extra 8,000Cr to the 4 marines, even if they are in coldsleep for the trip.

The 4 crew of the Mercifuge each get a sign-on bonus of 1,000Cr promised to them back on Theev.

The 9 crew of the 2 ships each get 1,000Cr for 'ice breaking', and the winning team gets 6,000Cr.


=============================================================================


Two tons of the salvaged Harrier are transferred to the Vultan for future 'investment'.

Once all salvage and refueling operations have been completed, the three ships lift off from the ice moon and follow the landing vectors to Astrogo--Palindrome's downport; there is no highport.

It is a poor, low population world and the small Class-B starport reflects that. In fact, it's a wonder that a starport even exists. Yet clearly enough trade passes through to support it, mostly on its way to and from Theev. The entire city is Startown--extraterritoriality. There is very little else outside the city or anywhere else on the thin atmosphere planet.

Since the Janal Torsk is now the only ship flying with an empty cargo hold, it can't hurt to see if anything is available on Palindrome. Turns out there's a lot of cargo passing through the system. It's generally not high-ticket items and the local tariffs can be a bit daunting.

After all the extra fuel, the Mercifuge can still haul 40 tons.
The Janal Torsk has room for 64 tons.


Everyone on the planet pretty much works for Princess (this month's preferred title) Yemar whether directly or indirectly. That includes the starport's Cargomaster Glick Lindstrom. His palms are the ones you want to grease if you want something done. Isn't that right up Zhouth's alley?

You are able to sell the 20 tons of Harrier salvage as uncommon raw materials at 20,000Cr per ton, for a total of 400,000Cr. The starport does build starships.


=============================================================================


Once the ships have landed, the crews can disembark for shore leave. Heading into Startown, there are two sectors--Dirt and Gloss. Dirt is where the bars are while Gloss is the 'upscale' section. Buying any gear in Gloss costs 200% market value with only a 50% chance of an item even being available.

Dirt is where you'd get drugs and 'illegal' substances though nothing is really illegal on Palindrome.

The noteworthy bars include:

Crusty's: 32 varieties of native seafood; it's an acquired taste, but the splan is a delicious delicacy.

Armageddon: amateur UFC nightly; go 3 rounds vs. local champs Ugor or Derox for free drinks.

Seventh Laser: you aren't having fun yet if you haven't shot something!

Tarlton's Hole: always described as 'smooth'; best whiskey.

Crimson Bull: mechanical bull named Crimson; win 100Cr if you can ride it for one minute.


=============================================================================


Varca is walking down the ship's corridor when he passes a person he doesn't recognize. The heavyset man tries his best to be inconspicuous and just walk on by but can't pull it off.

"Who the hell are you and how'd you get on my ship?" demands Varca as he stops the man.

"Kazgar, sir. For passage off Theev, you said you were hiring me to run the starport engineering on a place called Asim."

"I've just been keeping out of the way; didn't want to go cold, so I've been dimming on Nirvanitol most of the time."


=============================================================================

If anyone's looking to get paid as Crew of the Vultan (above and beyond normal expenses), now's the time to speak up!

Other things that need to be dealt with while on Palindrome include:

#1: Crew reassignments.

#2: Restock and resupply all three ships.

#3: Purchase any 'extra' luxury items for the crews.

Perhaps no one was more surprised than Viridian that Grunge had stepped up into the Captain's role with unexpected competence although still a little weak on authority. On his own initiative, he'd contacted starport authority and had the power-water-waste umbilical connected to the Mercifuge. He didn't even balk at the high cost; sometimes you just had to bite the bullet.

It had been an interesting four days down (up?) on the icy moon named Cool Blue. He wished he could claim he'd been inspired to do the Ice Breaker competition, but it had really been more of a practical necessity. That ice wasn't about to jump into the fuel processors on its own!

And that way, no one had to keep watch on these new not-quite-trusted-yet crew. Well, not exactly.

Other issues were now someone else's problem!

As he exited from the ship, he met up with some of the Vultan's crew.

"Kira! Rayjay! Rejji!" he called out to them. "Are we looking for fun or trouble? Not looking good for either, if you ask me."

"I like to think I can do Smooth with the best of them but the idea of shooting a laser inside a bar--at the owner's invitation--seems like too unusual an opportunity to pass up."

"How about it? Anything catch your interest?"

"I'd invite the Doc along... you know--just in case... but I think he's going to be busy medically re-certifying everyone."

Kira smiles, happy for a chance to stretch her legs. "You know what? I'm up for anything tonight, especially if it involves seafood! I've heard the splan at Crusty's is a must-try. Let's kick off our shore leave with some exotic cuisine and see where the night takes us!"

Teddy was hungry, his first thought was taking Ingrid to a fancy restaurant when she could get away from engineering for long enough to eat.

7 Int + Broker.

Rayjay had been looking over the local market's cargo manifests when he heard Viridian in his ear. He honestly wasn't sure if they could turn a profit on the assorted cargo, but it was quite convenient, almost suspiciously so that all the cargo on offer could be fit into the two ships without leaving any behind.

"Fun is fine in my book, last time I went lookin' for trouble I woke up in intensive care heh-eheheh." He chuckled deeply at his internal joke. Good times, even if he could barely remember it.

"But if you're lookin' for funds, you'll need to track down t'e Captain. But in t'e meantime I t'ink I'll look for t'e Ghent myself and 'ave 'em double check t'ese market manifests. After t'ough, I'm more t'an game for t'is Smoot' place ya' talked about." He said, barking down the hall at his fellow crew before hopping out of his station to go track down Ghent and see what he thought about the cargo on offer.
This message was last edited by the player at 18:56, Sun 09 Apr 2023.

Not even Ingrid could stay wrapped up in engineering all the time, and now that the Vultan was docked at a starport, her responsibilities as the chief engineer were just about zero.

Teddy still has to drag her away from electronic reams of tech schematics but that goes easier on an empty stomach.

The closest thing to a 'fancy' restaurant in Astrogo is the Purple Traggle. It serves quality comfort food but wine starts at a 1,000Cr a bottle since nothing is made locally and it all has to be imported. It is advised you stay away from the znak--a 'would-be' wine equivalent made from the local zinzin 'fruit'--unless you have a cast iron stomach.

The Purple Traggle's claim to fame is the pair of live traggles they keep on display. The native purple creature is kind of half-aardvark, half-chicken, making it rather disturbing to look at for very long but kind of like a trainwreck that you can't look away from. The challenge is can you finish the meal before you have to leave.

A meal for the two of you costs 200Cr. You could pad that a bit if you wanted to with a fancy desert such as throam (pickled fish egg flambe with boom-boom sauce), but all the meals are a standard price.

"Laying down a covering field of autofire... now that's smoooooth," the Army Vespexer replied. "Once you get used to drinking rotgut, you kind of lose your taste for the finer things in life. Destroys your taste buds."

"An army marches on its stomach which doesn't much care about how it tasted getting there."

"Shoot'em up's fine, but I wanna ride that bull! Hell, I wanna break that bull! Almost like it's a personal challenge! Don't worry--I'll pay for it!"

Seafood it is then to start with. All you can eat buffet miniature jumbo shrimpshish. About the only thing locally produced--the seafood. Fishing with a grav sled and grenades could be interesting, too."

"The last time I went looking for FUN, I wound up in intensive care!" Viridian tosses back to Rayjay.

"I think you and I have different definitions of 'fun' and 'trouble', Rayjay! The sad part is... I don't even remember her name. Oh, I'm sure it'll be on the EMT report... if I ever get back to Sheebah. I'm sure she's the Queen of Sheebah by now anyway with ten kids and a hundred grand kids. Just hope none of them are mine!"

"I'm sure they don't sell anything poisonous," Viridian added to Rejji's comment. "Not intentionally, anyway."

"Of course, since nothing's really illegal here... except death and taxes... assassination by blowfish is probably an option."
This message was last edited by the player at 23:01, Sun 09 Apr 2023.

Kira leans back in her chair and nods. "So, let's start with some fine local seafood at Crusty's and then maybe take a shot at that mechanical bull at the Crimson Bull. Sounds like good fun to see who can last the longest on that beast. I'm game if y'all are. And hey, maybe we can even find some trouble along the way. Wouldn't be a proper shore leave without a little bit of excitement, now would it? Oh, and fair warning, I'm pretty darn good at riding things, so y'all better bring your A-game!"

The three of you head to Crusty's, which seems to be wall-to-wall fish tanks. The designs of some of them are very creative, not a few of which are meant to accommodate the creature it's intended to support.

The menu splits the 32 edible native seafood into mild, spicy and atomic categories... apparently representing both the intensity of the flavor and 'proper' method of preparing it.

OOC: Feel free to make up your own names for things...

In reply to Rayjaynul Brown (msg # 120):

It did not take long for Rayjaynul to find Ghent and Zouth pouring over the available cargo and ship credits; they were still at the stage of trying to piece together the crew for the next month, and Ghent was already negotiating with the port authorities to get better prices. Ghent had pretty much ignored any duties that were above 10%, which left several larger number items out of the running, leaving a lot of cargo room going empty.

“Too bad they don’t have more spice, we could have tried to smuggle in some illegal stuff and out from under their security sniffers,” Ghent had said out loud, just as Rayj came in.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:57, Sun 09 Apr 2023.

Kira excitedly peruses the menu, her eyes lighting up at the variety of bizarre and unusual dishes. She decides to sample a bit of everything, ordering the tender Xylophibian eel coils with a zesty, ambrosial glaze from the mild section. From the spicy category, she chooses the sizzling Nebulaxian tentacle snaps, which are deep-fried and served with a side of crispy kelp. Finally, she can't resist the challenge of the Vorlaxian Supernova Quarkstinger – a whole quarkstinger , infused with a sauce so hot it's rumored to make even the most fearsome pirates weep.
This message was undeleted by the player at 02:19, Mon 10 Apr 2023.

The cargoes listed weren't meant as 'convenient' lots, but what would actually fit in the ships' cargo holds.

Shuffling the NPC crews around is something that should be done off-screen/behind the scenes. This isn't really one of those minutiae role-playing games where that should be role-played out, though it can, of course. In this case, I think it just drags the game out too much.




It takes a bit of convincing for Ghent to work the Cargomaster into an advantageous contact with 'favored trade' status agreements and assurances that the Vultan will return to Palindrome. In the end, he's willing to knock 10% off those high tariff cargoes. 'First time buyer' discounts and things like that.

Zhouth was clearly alarmed by that suggestion, and promptly waved his hands side to side as he exclaimed, "No, no, no! No illegal stuff like smuggling!" He calmed slightly as he continued with the explanation, "The Vultan and its operations have to stay completely above-board. Mission specification and all that. A little flirt with the legally gray here and there, maybe, only when there's really good reason to risk reputation for it."

Then he added with a smile, "If our subordinate ships get into slightly-dodgy things when we're not around to supervise, well, that's another matter. But right now we are, so image first."

"Looks like we're the odd men out," Taliesa said to Collyn as they exited the ship. "We're part of that first group of recruits they needed to fly the ship. I'm not quite sure what that makes our status, but we still fill a few niches."

"So you and Donio up for a little shore leave? Doesn't seem to be much to do for entertainment here... everyone seems to hunker down in their little cubicle and vej out on vids."

"Want to see what we can stir up?"

In reply to Kira Cerise O'Neill (msg # 127):

Viridian wasn't as thrilled with the seafood as Kira, but sampled the grilled fillets of the three large sea creature species not on display.

"This brobdingnagian is rather tasty, especially with the triple shimshi sauce," he pointed out to Kira and Rejji. "Not too keen on the gwhael... don't think the bickery marinade does it justice. Maybe it just needs ketchup!"

"Woah! The atomic tachysaur's way too strong for me! You actually like stuff that strong?"

As he ate, he read the various data displays that explained the various dishes, fishes and plants grown locally.

"I'll be sure to catch up wit' ya t'ree before too long, certainly wouldn't want to miss a bull ridin' competition 'tween t'e two of ya." He said with a hearty chuckle, not sure which would put on the greater show before excusing himself in turn.

Before walking in on a legally questionable meeting between Ghent and Zhouth it would seem. "Not sure 'ow t'e two are related, but good to 'ear. Take it ya two 'ave been pourin' over t'ose cargos on offer? Any catch ya eye?" Rayjay asked as he entered the shared space, clearly in agreement on the spice front if nothing else.

Ingrid is delighted by Teddy's offer, smiling brightly at her fiancée. "Sure, I'd be glad to have a nice meal. Unless you'd like me to make you something." She too a moment to regard her reflection in a some nearby metal. "Although I should change first, I don't think they'd let me in to a swanky restaurant looking like this."

OOC: TOO MANY NUMBERS!!!  Just tell me how much money we have left after we pay everyone 1 Months Pay, plus all those bonuses.
     I'm suggesting that we then divide the remainder between 3 equal Ship Accounts and "Treasure" money that we gotta hand over to Oleb.


     "Y'know," Varca says "it occurs to me that any cargo we pick up along the way, if we can't sell it for a profit, we can always turn it over to Drinax as 'booty'.  At least we'll re-coup a percentage of what we spent--and I believe that our 'contract' calls for the valuation of everything that we hand over, to be made in accordance with local values.  Some of this stuff would sell at higher prices, back home."


     Varca heads into Dirt.  He's looking for weapons, but not just a gunshop--he's looking for a custom Weaponsmith.  But he does walk into the first weapon shop he runs across.

     "I'm looking for some Snub rounds.  Specifically, I'm after Ball, Frangible, Tranq and Explosive rounds.  Got any?  Also, there's an extra hundred for you if you can tell me where to find someone who either carries, or can manufacture, a couple of dozen crossbows--maybe more.  Modern crossbows..."


     Varca will, ultimately, end up at Tarlton's Hole, sitting in a dark corner, where--after they refused to serve him a glass of milk with a double-shot of vodka--he will occasionally pop open his faceplate to sip at a whisky ("...with no bloody 'E'...").


     "Kazgar!  Dragon's Teeth, man!  I'd forgotten all about you!" Varca exclaims, "My apologies, I'm glad you made it aboard.  So, what, have you been sleeping in a powered down cryotube?  No, no no, we must do better for the soon-to-be Chief Engineering Administrator of the Asim Starport!"

     "Come, let's get you better settled." since this happens aboard Vultan, which is one of the few locations where he does not always wear his helmet, he is not wearing it now.  So, he taps a small button on the left forearm of his Suit,

     "Varca to Ingrid.  I found a stowaway, and now he's a passenger.  We need to find a proper bunk for Tuan Kazgar--he's going home with us to run the Starport on Asim."


     Everyone aboard Vultan (PC & NPC) should be getting paid for the (primary) Job they fill.


     The three Captains can deal with that...except Varca insists that Redthane's former XO be assigned to Vultan as Theo's new XO.


     We could/should replace our everyday dishes & linens with stuff that's monogrammed with Vultan's name & icon.

     Wild Idea: This is a Pirate Port, right?  How about Aaron & Ghent go out and look for a deal on a "recovered" AutoDoc?  We can replace the steel table and Medkit, down in the Coldsleep Cabin, with an actual AutoDoc--hopefully at least of TL11.  (if we can find one on the cheap)
     Just make sure there's nobody still in it, please...

In reply to Ingrid Gustavdottir Sigar (msg # 133):

"Take your time dear, we have all night!" he said with a grin, lightly pinching her bottom with a giggle. "Tarleton's Hole sounds good, best whisky on the planet, smooth they say. Maybe we can work on setting a date for our upcoming nuptials?"
This message was last edited by the player at 16:35, Wed 12 Apr 2023.

TMI?


=============================================================================

After eating at Crusty's, Kira, Rejji and Viridian head to the Crimson Bull to ride the mechanical bull. Since no one's posted doing this, you can just write up the result you want, or continue role-playing it out. The TN is 10 for the 'mild' setting, TN 12 for 'wild' setting. It requires an effect of 2 to ride it for 1 minute.

About half of the NPCs show up there as well, try their skill and luck, but none make the minute.

=============================================================================

Varca goes looking for a weapons dealer and finds Deadshot business. He has the snub rounds Varca is looking for... at twice the cost.

When he asks about crossbows, he's introduced to Torvol Jenks, another customer.

It's impossible to hide the elation and joy in Torvol's eyes.

"There was this order, you see, for composite crossbows... some sort of fad wilderness club on Asim," Torvol explains, "but then the fad passed, the club never formed, and there's been no renewed interest. So, I've been sitting on all these crossbows and bolts for... awhile. Paying the warehouse fee is killing me!"

"I can let you have the whole lot at half-price just to take them off my hands!"

=============================================================================

After doing his shopping, Varca heads for Tarlton's Hole.

"Whiskey Man, he is a friend, he's nearly with me all the time.
He always joins me when I drink and we get on just fine."

Although better quality than what he's used to drinking, Varca just finds the local whiskey a bit off.

"Mind if I join you?" Pelgryl, Theodore's new XO, says, stepping up to the table.

"Quite an operation you've got going. The scale isn't very big yet, but it's easy to see where it could go. Redthane never had those kind of aspirations. Sometimes that's enough though."

=============================================================================

Someone needs to decide what cargo is being purchased and post it.

That should also cover what money remain. Although not exactly sure how this was being done, Zhouth had already budgeted for 3 months of operating expenses, so that's already covered.

Any of the Vultan PC and NPC crew collecting their monthly salary... make sure you add it to your character sheet.

=============================================================================

Somewhat strangely, the rest of the NPC crew behave themselves while on shore leave. A few drunks, some new tattoos, souvenirs, and food and drugs for the jumps is all you see.

=============================================================================

Taliesa, Donio, and Collyn manage to get into a fight at Vex... not quite a bar but close enough. It's just really off the beaten path. Generally, only 'scum' go there, but you never know... They somehow manage to get arrested! After paying the 5,000Cr damages and the 1,000Cr fine, they are released. The Vex owner bans you from the place.

=============================================================================

Teddy and Ingrid spend the evening at Tarlton's eating dinner. It's as much the atmosphere, ambience and not-Vultan locale as the different cuisine that makes the place appealing. Ingrid may like cooking and doing those domestic things, but it's always nice NOT doing them, too.

Since this seems to be one of her fields of expertise, she is asked to purchase a double set of everyday dishes and such. No point in wasting the 'good stuff' on the crew.

=============================================================================

Since no one has jumped on a post about acquiring an autodoc for the ship, this can be dealt with off-screen/behind-the-scene. Finding one is difficult but purchasing it is easy. It'd normally cost twice the standard here on Palindrome, but because it's a second-hand, 'used', preowned autodoc, you can get it for normal cost.

Once Aaron and Ingrid go over it, though, the Tech-15 knowledge, resources and equipment are able to fine tune it from years of abuse and neglect until it's as good as new.

=============================================================================

Pelgryl is Captain McFarlane's new XO.

Apparently Ghent hired a new comms officer for the Torsk. Someone named Uhura.

=============================================================================

Before long, it's time to leave Palindrome. The three-ship fleet does a synchronized jump, but even if you calculate the astrogation coordinates out to ten thousand places, the vagaries of space won't allow super-precise re-emergence, but the ships won't collide with each other.

You exit Jump-space to an immediate alert.

The Way Station refueling facility is Jump-1 from Palindrome and Jump-2 from Borite. Since your ships didn't need to refuel there, they didn't plot a course too close. The alert is the presence of another ship in the area. Sensors quickly locate it refueling at Way Station. It's the Subsidized Merchant SM Haul Ass.

Vultan carries its own extra fuel and just transfers fuel from its auxiliary tanks to  the main fuel tanks.

Mercifuge is in the same situation.

Only the Janal Torsk needs to get refueled by the Mercifuge. But, the Mercifuge is designed for that, so after docking together, the fuel transfer is made without incident.

After a collective sigh of relief, the fleet jumps out of Way Station for Borite.

=============================================================================

Anticipating a potential encounter when you emerge in real space again, you are almost disappointed that no other ships are detected in the system. The wet garden world has no starport but you can set down near any community to refuel from the sea and deal with the inhabitants.

The first thing that happens is Varca uses the Vultan's sensors to access the satellites in orbit around the planet. After the download to the Vultan's computer, there has been no Oghman raid since you were last here. The Oghman warlords have to work themselves into a minor frenzy to go raid, mainly because there's not always a lot to gain.

Not surprisingly, there's no record of the Vultan having ever been here before. The mask program is function as it is supposed to.

He then uses long-range sensors to determine that the old abandoned station is in orbit around the gas giant Threnjar. It'll still be years before it spirals down into  the planet on its own.

Setting down to refuel, Varca begins his Plan. He trades his crossbow cargo for foodstuffs. The Borites are more than happy to give Varca as much food as they can since it means less for the Oghmen.

Next, he introduces the concepts of advanced 'primitive' agricultural techniques--things that were invented and developed before technology. They use some, but the Oghman raids have kept it to being less than it could be.

It may take visiting several communities, but you can half fill the now-empty cargo holds of the ships with foodstuffs.

=============================================================================

When refueling is done, it's liftoff, transit, and jump-2 to Torpol.

This message was deleted by the player at 13:21, Fri 14 Apr 2023.

Rayjay would certainly support Ghent's recommendations to accept most of the 0-10% taxed cargo, save maybe for the bobble heads.

In reply to Rayjaynul Brown (msg # 138):

Teddy invites Pelgryl to sit with them and makes small talk to get to know the man a little, discuss what is expected of him and other such things, he seemed a competent man.

"We'll make friends at the Palace if we bring some of this along rather than selling it all on the way. Not that we can't sell some of it, but keep a few crates in the back?" Zhouth observed as the exchanges were being made.

In reply to Zhouth (msg # 140):

     "Agro-products are always welcome at Drinaxi markets." Varca agrees, "What the Palacers don't use will be passed on to the Vespexer Bunkers, down on the surface."
This message was last updated by the player at 20:58, Fri 14 Apr 2023.

“Well, cargo wise we have everything 15% and under for a grand total of 4,020,960 credits if my sheet is correct, thanks to my negotiatin’… I just don’t know if we have that much to spend.”
This message was last edited by the player at 22:13, Fri 14 Apr 2023.

Back on Palindrome at the Crimson Bull...


After eating way too much seafood, the little group headed to the Crimson Bull. Apparently because he had the least experience in these things, they others let him go first.

Once the operation and rules were explained, Vridian paid his 10Cr for a ticket to ride, chose the mild setting, and climbed on.

19:07, Today: Viridian Starfire rolled 11 using 2d6+1 ((6,4)).

22 seconds later he was on the mat!

"And you think this is fun?" he said as he got up.

Ingrid squeaked when Teddy pinches her rear. "Teddddy!" she responded, giggiling. "It sounds lovely, I'll get ready to go."

She enjoyed the dinner, the chance to dress up and relax a bit, away from the clatter of the engine room. She chatted happily with her future husband, both about shipboard life and about small aspects of the Sword Worlds, as Teddy was the only other crew member who really knew her homeworld. "By the time this is all over, we'll sampled half the cuisine in the galaxy" she joked. It was a welcome respite before the hard work of preparing for another jump.

Back on Palindrome at the Crimson Bull...


"Not bad for an amateur," Rejji chides Viridian. "Let me show you how it's done!"

He buys his ticket, climbs on Crimson, and selects Wild.

01:19, Today: Rejji Harrasyn rolled 12 using 2d6+3 ((5,4)).)). First ride.

"Almost got it!" Rejji exclaims as the bull manages to shake him off just before the bell. He does manage to land on his feet, though.

01:20, Today: Rejji Harrasyn rolled 14 using 2d6+3 ((6,5)). Second ride!

“Sometimes I think life is just a rodeo,
the trick is to ride and make it to the bell.”

"Oh, yeah! Okay, so I didn't break it," he comments to the accolades from the bar's other patrons. "Proved my point and had fun doing it!"

"Just goes to show you that even on a dirt ball like Palindrome you can find something to do to entertain yourself."

In reply to Ghent Bel-Andis (msg # 142):

"'opefully, t'ough t'at beggars to question, 'o exactly is t'e Master of Finance, and 'ow much does t'e vessel 'ave for cargo." Rayjay said seconding Ghent's conclusion.