Kira noted the earnest look in the young engineer's pleading eyes. She nodded in agreement.

"You're absolutely right. It can never hurt to have backups and redundancies in place. Why don't you write a list of what you think would be good to have on the ship, and Asa and I will see what we can find once we dock at Coriolis?"

She talked a bit further with Adhan and Aisha and then left them to tinker with the engines. Once back on the bridge, she addressed Asa. "Just talked to Aisha, and she was really rattled about her dream. Don't know what happened but she mentioned some additional backup systems she'd like to have for the ship. Have to agree that it's better to be safe than sorry."

She looked down to Kua from the viewports, thinking about the planet's many contradictions. She couldn't help be drawn in by the beauty and mystique of the jungle. The humidity was good for her skin, but bad for her hair. She marveled at the Monolith and the city that had risen up around it, and yet, with partially Dabari heritage she felt uncomfortable among those who were at best unfriendly to the Firstcome. With her name, she would pass there for a full Zenithian easily, but the attitude of the Hegemonists still made her ill at ease. She could do trade there, but she was careful in selecting her trade partners as Neo-Zenithians.

She was glad that their immediate destination was Coriolis.

In reply to Kira Cerise (msg # 22) and Adhan Hatem (msg # 20):

Aisha looked from one to the other, grateful for their acceptance. She still felt ridiculous - what she'd seen was deeply irrational - but taking practical action would help.

As the Star cruised closer to Coriolis, Adhan and Aisha rigged some simple backups to protect the ship in case of emergency reactor shutdown, and to make it easier for a single operator - anyone with basic knowledge of the ship's systems and reactor - to launch a priority restart.

Work done, Aisha hooked herself into the Bulletin feed and the latest research publications, looking for hints of any newsworthy findings or rumours while they'd been gone.

As Aisha scanned the Bulletin feed for the past couple of novenas, she found that the most popular rumor in the scientific community was the strange happenings around Xene, the gas giant on the other side of the asteroid belt. Previously considered interesting only by the astronics of the Foundation, it suddenly became a popular topic after a series of strange signals had been received from the depths of the planet. The discussed origins of these signals ranged from a physical anomaly to a rift in spacetime, with the other Horizons, the Portal Builders, the Icons and the Dark Between the Stars proposed as the possible culprits. Naturally, not a shred of evidence was currently avaible to back any of these claims.

Back on the bridge, Kira had put on her padded pilot jacket and her goggles, which she was convinced gave her a dashing and rakish appearance. She eased up on the controls as the huge space station hovered in front of them. "Coriolis Station, this is the courier ship Nameless Star, registration number 180924609, requesting permission to land. Over."

She glanced back at Asa. "We're good to go, Captain. Board is green."

https://ibb.co/mJ40ZJj
This message was last edited by the player at 18:15, Wed 22 June 2022.

"If we're all clear, then go ahead and bring 'er in, with the steady hand that you always do," she said. While some leadership was necessary to maintain an operation like this one, she thought of herself as a first among equals. When she gave commands, she usually tried to include some positive reinforcement when doing so.

Kira slowed the ship down as they approached Kua's orbit and their destination. The planet grew in size, first a pin's head, then a small ball of emerald green and white. As more and more details of the planet's surface became visible, the station appeared from behind the planet, locked in geostationary orbit over the Monolith directly below. It reminded Kira of a small child tethered to its parent as she opened the hailing frequency and sent out a docking request.

"Nameless Star, this is Coriolis Station, request received, please stand by," came the usual reply. There was a long pause, and Kira frowned at one point, wondering what the holdup was, when the comms cracked back to life. "Nameless Star, this is Coriolis Station, docking permission granted. Please proceed to the Neoptra spaceport, landing pad thirteen, repeat, Neoptra, landing pad thirteen. Transmitting coordinates now. Please confirm, over."

As the necessary data poured onto her screen, Kira responded. "Coriolis Station, this is the Nameless Star, coordinates received, thank you. Proceeding to the Neoptra spaceport, landing pad thirteen. Nameless Star out."

Soon Kua filled the ship's viewports, bathing the bridge in a soft green-tinted light. Coriolis metamorphosed from a seemingly fragile toy into a multimillion-ton juggernaut stretching over six kilometers from the top of the Spire to the bottom of the Cellar. Following it like an ever-present shadow was the skeletonlike framework of the Net, the station's cargo handling terminal bustling with activity. Kira sometimes imagined that it was a huge spider web surrounding the station, with a monstrous arachnid waiting somewhere on the other side, clicking its mandibles in eager anticipation.

There was an abundance of tugboats and other small vessels, scurrying to and fro, servicing the larger ships. The group couldn't help noticing the prominent Hyperion Logistics logo on one of the haulers docked at the Net, smaller vessels transporting cargo to Coriolis as well as the planet surface below. As Kira angled the Star towards Neoptra's landing bay, the autopilot lighting up the optimal trajectory, she noticed that there was repair work being performed on one of the Net's struts on the ship's starboard side. The distance was small enough that she could actually see the glitter of welding torches and even the tiny bright yellow exosuits of the construction workers.

Suddenly a miniature flash of light from that direction caught her attention. She turned her head and saw the quickly dissipating sphere of a small explosion near the repair site. Almost at the same time Adhan cried out. "Debris incoming, direct collision course! No, wait... that's not debris, that's one of the construction workers!"

They knew that a collision with a spacewalker wouldn't even dint the Star's armor. It was much riskier to perform sudden maneuvers in the confined space of the Net. Given the velocities involved, however, it would likely prove lethal for the construction worker, if he were still alive. "Twenty seconds until impact," Adhan barked, his fingers dancing on the sensor displays.

Adhan ran a quick calculation. If they could get the Star out of the worker's trajectory, what would he hit next? Would there be more time for a rescue intercept, or for the worker to stabilize himself if he recovered?

"Ya Ibn el Sharmouta!" cursed Kira as she began to tilt the Star enough that they wouldn't suddenly gain a new and somewhat messy hood ornament. She was grateful for the ship's sleek design and the newly installed turbo projector.

"Strap in, folks!" she shouted to the rest of the crew. "This could get interesting!"

https://ibb.co/k28qRRV
This message was last edited by the player at 23:38, Wed 22 June 2022.

Adhan, pressed for time, ran a quick and dirty calculation of the worker's trajectory. It was next to impossible to take everything into account, given the time constraints, but it seemed to him that at the current angle the poor fellow might be able to clear the Net without hitting anything else on the way. What happened after that was in the hands of the Icons and the station's rescue teams.

"Ten seconds, people!"

"Aisha!" Farah shouted, hitting the intercom button. "Evasive action, hold on down there!"

The Nameless Star was sleek, and it was certainly speedy, but it was no fighter craft in terms of handling. Kira began to tilt the ship, at the same time engaging its maneuvering jets to move out of the poor construction worker's way. "Talk to me, Adhan," she said through clenched teeth as the sudden velocity change pressed her into her seat. "Five, four..." the man counted down, his eyes glued to the sensor display. "Too close... two, one..." Kira shut her eyes involuntarily and thought she heard a barely audible thump somewhere to the ship's starboard side. She looked at Adhan, who was shaking his head. "His vector's changed, he definitely hit us," he said. "Looks like a glancing hit, but still..." he trailed off, the ramifications very clear.
This message was last edited by the GM at 17:49, Fri 24 June 2022.

"Faceless One watch over him," she said quietly her voice strong, but with a mournful character about it. On the bridge, her face was a mask betraying little emotion, though the facade had cracks in it. Clearly, this course of events upset her.

"What in the blazes was he doing out here?"

Adhan wordlessly scanned the sensor readouts, with faint hope that he would find anything resembling good news.

Kira wrestled with the controls to bring the Star back on course.

"Coriolis Station. This is Nameless Star. We might have had a collision with an errant dock worker. Suggest you send a medevac team to this location immediately!"

Aisha's voice rang through the intercom.

"Evasive action?? We're docking! What in Icon's name is going on up there?"

"Acknowledged, Nameless Star, please stand by." After several seconds of uncomfortable silence, the comms came back to life. "Nameless Star, we have a target lock on the worker, dispatching rescue crew to intercept ASAP. Please proceed according to your flight plan and report to the Guard at the spaceport. Coriolis Station out."

The mood on the bridge was somber as Kira brought the ship in for the landing. Thankfully, there were no further complications as she guided the Star to their designated landing pad. As the ship's landing gear planted itself firmly on the pad's surface, Kira launched the powerdown cycle and busied herself with post-flight diagnostics.
This message was last edited by the GM at 10:06, Sun 26 June 2022.

Farah was the first to unbuckle herself from her seat. She scrolled through something on her communicator and tapped in a short message as she approached Asa.

"Captain, is there anything you need help with, or do I have permission to leave the ship?" The lenses in her cybernetic eye whirred softly as she regarded the other woman, her tagelmust making it impossible to get a read on her facial expression. "I got a message from the orphanage, they need some help," she said, never one for long-winded explanations.

Docking complete, Aisha finished up post-flight diagnostics and started the reactor shut down procedure. She looked around the mess that was engineering and kicked a couple of loose cables out of the direct path to the door as she started up to her cabin, shutting the door to engineering behind her.

As she reached the passenger cryobeds, she activated her comms.

"I guess I'll wake the passengers hey? And you want me to grab the cargo Asa or is that all you today?"

"Farah, I would ask that you stay with me until the merchandise is delivered, and then be free to go on your leave. This was the job, and when it is complete, our leaves can begin properly," she said.

"Yes, please wake the passengers Aisha, if they did not receive the communication of our arrival. We need to get them off the ship so we can get about our business. As far as the cargo, once we have made good on the job we took, we can deal with that - we will unload it when we find a customer."

She appreciated the extra birr that they brought, though not the inconvenience at times. This was one of the times she would have wanted to get on with things.

"I can start looking for deals on some promising cargo if you want, Captain. Or help Aisha with the passengers or you with cargo, if either of you need any extra hands." Adhan stretched in his chair and unbuckled his harness, but seemed in no hurry to get up and move.

"Yes, that's a good idea - do that. Find us some people interested in our cargo," she said. She would handle the haggling, but Adhan had a way of tracking down the best information.
This message was last edited by the GM at 05:46, Tue 28 June 2022.

"Of course, captain," Farah nodded brusquely at Asa's response. "I will be in my cabin. Let me know if you need help with anything." With that the woman headed towards the hatch leading below.

Aisha couldn't help a small shudder as she stood in front of the cryopod containing the first passenger; the one who, in her dream, had burst and released the monster. Looking into his sleeping face though, all she could see was the face of a tired man who looked a little older than he'd claimed to be.

Hearing the reply from Asa, she started the passenger revivification process, checking and double-checking the read-outs on each of the cryopods as she became the procedures. She buzzed the bridge as she did it.

"Tammam, commencing. Kira, you better head down here sometime before they get too warm."

Moments later, Kira came bouncing down the companionway and entered the cryo room. She was carrying a first aid kit from the medlab over her shoulder and still looked a bit rattled from the surprise encounter earlier.

"Thanks for starting the procedure, Aisha," she said and started preparing for the groggy and no doubt irascible passengers to wake up. "How are you holding up?" she asked the young engineer while she monitored the process.

Before starting the revival process, Aisha made sure to check all vital signs and make certain that everything was in the green. Satisfied with the data on the three readouts, she went through the cryobeds one by one and punched in the necessary commands.

The first pair of chambers contained two men that were returning to Kua after a pilgrimage to Mira. The first one was a tall long-haired man with a somewhat rotund build and a very unremarkable face. According to the documents, he was thirty-five, but Aisha couldn't help thinking that he looked much older. Looking at him took her back momentarily to her dream, too vivid for comfort, and she shuddered involuntarily.

The second man was in his late twenties, with short hair already tinted gray despite his age. From the way the two men had conversed back on Mira, it had seemed that he was the older pilgrim's apprentice of some sort. He had rather pleasant facial features, marred to a degree by an amateurish tribal tattoo on the side of his neck. Glancing down, Aisha noticed another tattoo, a thorny floral design, snaking down the length of his left arm.

Their third and final passenger was an unpleasantly puffy-faced corpulent woman around fifty. She had claimed to be a trader returning to Coriolis from Mira after a deal gone bad. As Aisha tapped the control display, a warning popped up on the screen. Aisha stared at the message. Systolic blood pressure? I'd better wait for Kira to come down and take a look.

Kira entered the room less than a minute later. Aisha pointed her to the screen, and she took a quick look before overriding the warning and continuing with the revival process. There were some irregularities in the woman's blood pressure, but nothing major enough to worry about. Kira checked the readouts for the two other passengers before returning to the older woman's cryobed, keeping a close eye on her vitals as she chatted with Aisha.

* * *

Adhan, meanwhile, logged into the station's network and headed for the virtual marketplace. Ore was always a popular commodity on Kua, so it didn't take the man long to find several prospective buyers. He put together a short list for Asa to peruse and sent the information to her communicator. With the easy task finished, Adhan started looking for prospective buyers for the liquid helium, which was a more specialized type of merchandise. They had picked it up back on Mira because they had been in a hurry and with a half-empty cargo hold. The price had seemed reasonable enough, so they had decided to take the risk.

An hour later he was still without a single contact, so he finally gave up, created a lot on the marketplace and left Asa's contact information. He considered using the remainder of the time to search for lucrative lots, but then realized it would not be very practical without knowing what their next destination would be.
This message was last edited by the GM at 14:18, Thu 30 June 2022.