Jetsam on the Tides of Fortune

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Far out in the Rim lies the planet Nathania. At least, that's it's official name. Nobody calls it that now. They simply call it what they call the one town big enough for a spaceport on the planet, which, though it was once called Hawke City, it's now called Hawke's Folly, after the leader of the first settlement party, Nathan Hawke.

Most travelers avoid Hawke's Folly if they can help it. There's nothing there of value. But it's the only fuel stop that side of the Rim, so the settlement will never disappear entirely. The fuelers who serve the spaceport will always be there, as will the bars and... other establishments... that serve the space travelers and the fuelers. There's also some religious settlement way out past the farms, but that's about it.

Other than fuel platforms, bars, and... other establishments... the other industry that manages to survive on Hawke's Folly is the used ship sales lot, where woeful captains who didn't save enough cash for the expensive fuel to travel to next, distant port, must sell their ships and either settle on Hawke's Folly or hope for passage off-planet as a lowly crew member, perhaps even on their own former ship, picked up by some shrewd bargain hunter.

It is a scorching hot, dry, and dusty day, as usual. An Orca-class small freighter, recently purchased, is being fueled on one of the fueling platforms. The new owner of the ship watches the fuelers work. Even though he doesn't have a crew yet, he knows it won't take long since he's published the "Crew Wanted" advertisement on the local screens. Folks are always looking for a way to get off Hawke's Folly.

[Tyrael]

Cole (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheetview.php?sheetid=127845)

A lanky figure in a sweeping trenchcoat strides up to the freighter. A beat-up leather hat rests on his head, tugged low to obscure his face slightly. An enormous rifle is slung over his back in a harness that also looks to carry something long and thin, alongside its many other pockets. A revolver rests on his belt, partially concealed by the billowing coat.

The figure stops short of the freighter and plants his hands on his hips, staring up at it. As he tilts his head back to get a better view, his face is revealed as a pleasant-looking young man in his late twenties. He turns his head to glance at the ship's wing, and the angle suddenly reveals that the left side of his head's blown to gorram hell. The skin's gone, seemingly burnt off with large patches of black charring, the muscles clearly visible and exposed. His left ear's not much more than a withered hole, and the eye on that side of his face is a strange sort of grey color.

Cole nods to himself and comments aloud, "Ain't much of a looker, this boat."

[Ezeze]

Alegra Rios

"Yi Dwei Da Buen Chuo Roh!" If the landing deck hadn't exactly been peaceful before, it sure wasn't now. A small ship had landed only minutes ago, and a ramp extended down to the earth. Now, three men walked out - the first was carrying a trunk, struggling under its weight despite his generous forearms. He had the easy job. The next two had an arm each of a struggling, kicking, cursing woman. She was well dressed in a white blouse, billowy bright orange skirt and matching chiffon scarf. Her curly black hair was tied back, and the sword at her hip was just noticeable enough. Normally, she'd be lovely. Right now, she just looked angry. "Bei Bi Shiou Ren!" Between dodging her feat and keeping her fists from their faces, they managed to drag the woman to the end of the ramp and dump her unceremoniously in the dust. She pushed herself to her feet, leaning on her trunk, and hurled more curses after the men until they ascended their ramp and closed the bay firmly behind them. The woman continued to grumble, only barley audible to those next to her as she tried to brush the sand from her clothing.

Translations
Yi Dwei Da Buen Chuo Roh - Big stupid pile of stinking meat
Bei Bi Shiou Ren - shameless dirty little person

[Connington]

Warren Everett. (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheetview.php?sheetid=128701)

Everett stood staring at his newly bought ship, wide eyes and unsteady grin giving an image from the front very different from the back, where one could see only a tall man in a dark blue coat, hands clasped behind his back as he stood with military precision.

Hearing the people behind him, he turned. He grimaced and had half a mind to turn back when he saw the man's scarred face, but he brought his emotions under control. He shook the man's hand while the young woman brushed the dirt off of her, and then took her hand, giving it a polite kiss. "Now" he said "Are you too looking for work, or for passage? I've got a fine ship here under her cover of dust, and I should have an equally fine crew very shortly."

[UserClone]

Maxx Williams (http://www.thetangledweb.net/forums/profiler/view_char.php?cid=25850)

"And what kind of crew would that be without the best captain that money could buy?" asks of Everett an attractive and rugged man in his forties.

"Name's Williams. Maxx Williams," he says, offering his hand to shake.

Maxx cuts a dashing figure, with his square jaw, solid build, and buzzcut gray hair. It's clear he's been in the military, judging only by his posture, standing straight at attention without even meaning to. His clothes are all neatly pressed, and the gun-cases he carries are of the finest quality, and so speak for themselves.

[King Tius]

Dr. Eugene Roe (myth-weavers is acting up right now, sry)

A wiry man dressed in an aviator jacket and nice slacks comes walking towards the ship. The doctor's bag in his one hand and the army patch on his coat give him away as a medical practitioner from the get-go. A thin trail of cigarette smoke sneaks its way up passed cold blue eyes and slicked black hair. The man walks up to the first person standing around he finds (not necessarily Warren) and asks simply. "This ship need a doctor?"

[Tyrael]

Cole Raynor

Cole shrugs amicably towards Warren. "A bit of both, if you'll have me. I'm a fair shot and don't talk back to orders."

[Connington]

As Maxx introduced himself, Everett spoke up. "Ah yes, this is Maxx Williams, he'll be serving as the ship's captain and head of security. You immediate boss, for those of you looking for work. I should introduce myself more properly. I'm Everett. I'm the ship's owner. I'll be onboard the ship, but mostly handling financial matters. Cargo, passengers and the like.

As the scarred face man explain his situation, Everett nods understandingly. "Of course, of course. Well, if your willing to come around and look intimidating on most jobs, I do suspect you can get yourself free room and board. No pay, but you've got your freedom to turn down a job, and the usual passenger perks. Never did catch your name by the way."

Finally, Everett turned to the doctor in the aviator jacket speaking to the young woman who had recently been dumped here. Glancing at the military patch on his jacket, he nodded to himself. A real catch, military trained doctor like that. "Son, I'm glad to see you're keen for work, but the young miss isn't hiring. I don't think she's even all that eager to get hired herself."

[UserClone]

"What's your background, soldier?" asks Maxx, when he sees the man's jacket and standard-issue doctor's bag. "You a war vet?"

[King Tius]

Dr. Eugene Roe (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheetview.php?sheetid=127832)

To Warren: "Would that put you in charge? I'd like to offer my services. I'm a licensed physician and can hold my own out in the black. May I have a look at your medical facilities?"

To Maxx: The Good Doctor smiles at Maxx's question. "Technically, yes, I'm a vet. Trained as a combat medic and went on to medical school after the war. You don't shoot medics in a firefight and I find that a lot of vets still keep to that notion, thus the patch."

[UserClone]

"In my day, we shot who we were ordered to shoot. Nowadays, you shoot who you gotta. Just bear in mind everyone hasn't got your sense of fair play, doc."

With that, Maxx turns to the attractive woman who has all the luggage. "Help you with that, miss?"

[Ezeze]

"I..." Alegra sighs "yes, thank you. Staying on this old rock isn't a notion I'm overly fond of. If you're taking on passengers..." She trails off, looking down with her arms crossed over her stomach. "So long as you understand I'll be paying with credits." She emphasizes the last word and glares over her shoulder at the ship that she was on, until recently.

[UserClone]

Maxx looks over Alegra's shoulder at the boat with a dubious eyebrow raise.

"Hm. Well, you and Mr. Everett there can discuss a price while I put your things in the cargo hold. The quarters aren't really big enough for this kind of luggage."

With that, he picks up both her huge bags, straining with his left arm, but his right, which has the bigger bag, is taking the weight with ease.

[Levyathyn]

Sean

The man squints under the glare of the sun as he watches the motley crew approach the old boat. He looks around at the other ships and their crews, but none of them seem to be hiring, save this tub. Shrugging, he shoulders his bag and walks up to the ship. Nodding to the men in charge, he stands still and quiet, his eyes watching the crowd around himself for potential threats.

He wears simple mechanic's pants with a slightly dirty sleeveless shirt; He could have just stepped out of a repair shop. His black jacket is worn but dark, and when he moves, a holster can barely be seen strapped under his shoulder. He moves sharp, like a military man, but seems far too used to going unnoticed. He volunteers no information about himself, but listens intently as the owner discusses terms.

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob 'Fire it Up' Bitts (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheetview.php?sheetid=108740)


"Why is it so bright?" He must of chanted that for the past hour as he rode on the back of the mule across the barren waste. He adjusted his sunglasses, again cursing that the station he hopped off of last only had blue-tints, instead of anything of actual use. The guy driving the mule gave a gruff laugh, "Tell me about it... after how much we packed away, your lucky I can keep this thing moving. How's that headache coming?"

Jacob snorted, "Right smooth... vibrations of this small pulser-engine though... keep it right at bay. How much longer til we reach that junk-yard you told me about?" The man waved a hand dismissively and didn't reply as he just laid on the throttle some more.

About another hour later, and an entire pack of cloves, the mule came to a turbulant stop. "Shoulda let me drive, you old coot. I'd be more then happy to adjust that throttle bar, it's giving to much on the up-push." The old man gave a howl, "That'd be a story for meh friends... tell'em I got chauffeured around by 'Fire it Up' himself. Nah, you paid for the ride with them stories last night... been far to long since we had freshness in that home of mine. You get off this rock, you don't deserve this place." Jacob smiled kindly and rolled off the mule, grabbing up his rucksack as he looked up to the old man, "Keep it safe going back, you drunk." The old man gave a wailing howl of laughter and launched off back the way he came.

Jacob watched the man speed off, and pulled out a fresh pack of smokes and lit up. "D**m this day... my heads killing me." He turned around and caught sight of the Mako-class and let out a long whistle, "Well... how to do you like that." He lowered his blue-shades and started walking forward as he rattled off different Orca-class parts, throwing his large brown trench over his shoulder so as to not catch some sun stroke. As he gets close he sees the volume of folks standing around and talking. Waiting a few minutes he approaches, " 'lo, folks. This boat going up?"

[Bonecrusher Doc]

The conversation of those gathered around the Jetsam is temporarily drowned out by the high-pitched whine of a spaceship engine. A shuttle is landing, not 400 meters away from the Jetsam. The fuelers take one look at it, then quickly hurry to finish their work and wheel their carts away.

The shuttle is smaller than the Jetsam, but there is not a scratch on its gleaming skin. Boldly emblazoned on jump doors on either side is the emblem of the Alliance. The shuttle is sleek, with no extraneous parts except for a black, man-sized pod mounted under either wing. From the uncomfortable-looking manner with which nearby pedestrians walk faster about their business, it would appear that Alliance ships are not a common sight in Hawke's Folly. The whine dies down and conversation may continue, as the last remaining beads of stratospheric moisture on the newly arrived shuttle steam into the dry air.

[Ezeze]

Alegra shields her eyes from the sun and glares at the ship. "Maybe we're better off talking terms inside."

[Tyrael]

The scarred man nods and holds his hand out to Everett. "Nydus. Cole Nydus. Been a freelance marksman for the past 10 years."

Cole glances over to Dr. Roe. "A veteran, huh?" His good eye stares at Roe penetratingly. "By your dress, I'd peg you as an Independant..." His voice carries an undertone of something that's not quite bitterness, but not far off from it.

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob 'Fire it Up' Bitts (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheetview.php?sheetid=108740)

Jacob turns to look at the arriving ship, and quickly looks away. He coughs as he adjusts his glasses and taking a long drag on his clove, "Excuse me... who owns this boat? I believe I have some business for him." He doesn't look back at the newly arriving ship... not once. His eyes remain straight to the group of people.

[Levyathyn]

Sean

Idly shifting to the side, Sean seems to disappear into the shadow of the large Orca. Making sure his attention, and his face, are turned way from the newcomers, he casually zips up his jacket.

[King Tius]

The Good Doctor glances at Nydus and smiles: "War's over my friend. Just a doctor."

[UserClone]

Having placed the bags where they belong, Maxx returns from inside the Jetsam, and with a sidelong glance at Everett, he asks, "What's all this about?" He nods his head towards the shuttle. More quietly, he mutters, "That shuttle's not exactly long-range. Where there's a shuttle, there's a mother ship, most usually."

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob 'Fire it Up' Bitts (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheetview.php?sheetid=108740)

Jacob tilts his glasses down and looks to the man, Maxx, walking around with a bit of authority, "Excuse me, you the owner of this boat?"

[UserClone]

"Wish I could afford that, Son. No, I'm her captain. You looking to sign on with us?" asks Maxx with an enthusiastic and genuinely disarming smile.

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob 'Fire it Up' Bitts (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheetview.php?sheetid=108740)

"Yes, sir. I'm a pilot by trade, but I am just as qualified as a mechanic. Though, mind if we step inside, it's burning up out here."

And I want to get out of sight of those Fed's. His thoughts remained up in his head as he gave a smile back, pushing his shades back up as he took another drag off his cigarette.

[UserClone]

"Certainly, young man. By the way, what's your name?" asks Maxx, moving closer.

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob 'Fire it Up' Bitts (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheetview.php?sheetid=108740)

Jacob let his ears do the work of listening for the sound of hatch/dock opening on the other ship as he held out a hand, "Names Jacob... this is a good boat you got here. Orca-Class.... fine ship. Only flown one once, but they handle like air on a breeze." He smiles as he moves towards the entrance hatch... obviously wanting to get inside.

[UserClone]

"Well let's head on in, then. Ah, one thing Jacob..." as he trails off he catches up to Jacob, snatching the cigarette out of his mouth, and stomping it out on the cement ground. "No smoking."

After a tense moment, Maxx's smile returns as quickly as it had evaporated.

"Say, how would you like to see some pictures of my baby girl...?"
They disappear into the boat as Maxx shuffles in his back pocket for his wallet.

[King Tius]

The Good Doctor heads in to the Flotsam and goes to inspect the medical bay. He pulls out a clipboard from his medical bag and begins writing a list of all the current supplies in the bay. He then checks the list for any items that are glaringly missing and makes note of them.

Does he find anything noticeably missing?

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob 'Fire it Up' Bitts (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheetview.php?sheetid=108740)

Jacob seems rather caught off guard at the plucking of his smoke as he looks down at it's stomped prone mutilated form as the boot comes off of it. For a second, he considers plucking it back up... or lighting another in defiance. He can still hear the engines of the Alliance-ship winding down and forces a non-chalante' smile over his face, "No thanks, Captain... perhaps once we get to know one another. Anywho... what are you looking for around here? I prefer piloting... got a rather good name out of it. However, I don't want to disrupt your crew if you already have one... like I said, I'm an adequate engineer also."

[UserClone]

"Jacob, huh? Jacob...what did you say your last name was?"

[Connington]

Everett stands surveying the hustle, quietly annoyed at the number of people assuming that Maxx was the man to speak to. Even if the man was going to run the ship, it was still his ship...

Seizing on the young woman walking into the ship he stuck up a conversation. After a little discussion of price, and a suggestion that she charter one of the shuttles, he asked a question. "If I may inquire, why was a fine young woman such as yourself all but forced off of a ship in a place like this?"

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob 'Fire it Up' Bitts (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheetview.php?sheetid=108740)

Now successfully on board Jacob comes to a halt at the question and turns to the man fully, "I didn't... for good reason. There's a Scout-Grade Alliance ship out there... nick-named them 'Snatch-and-Grabbers' when I was doing my time, especially this far out on the rim, only good they do. My last name is Bitts... Jacob Bitts. Recognize it?" He pulled his shades off and tucked them into his shirt pocket.

[UserClone]

"Oh...Mr. Bitts. I see. Well, your reputation precedes you."

You somehow get the idea that he's less than pleased about this.

"I'm going to need to confer with Mr. Everett as to whether we can take you on, I'm afraid. Listen, you're familiar with Orcas, I'm sure. Why don't you go and have a look in the engine room? I'll be there shortly."

With that, Maxx departs.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Once back outside with Everett, he exclaims, "Damn!" Then he murmurs to Everett directly,
"That kid in there says he's Fire-It-Up Bitts! Look, if you haven't heard of him, he's a renowned pilot. And even if it isn't really him, imagine the cojones. I want him. Say yes."

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob 'Fire it Up' Bitts (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheetview.php?sheetid=108740)

Jacob's hand comes up quick and grabs Maxx by the bicep. His grip is very fluid, ready to break at any resistance. The second Maxx looks back at him, he lets go, "Listen... if you don't want me... that's fine. I'll walk away, and we can both go on our ways. Just... just don't turn me into that Alliance ship. I don't want trouble, and I surely don't want to conjure any upon you or this ship. So... please, think about it." Letting out a breathe he watches Maxx walks off.

Once he's out of sight, he pulls out a clove and lights back up as he heads towards the engine room. Most of these ships are mass produced, and since there wasn't a custom-signature on the outside, Bitts was sure the place was laid out like normal. Once he gets to the Engine Room he begins going over a mundane check of the Engine and systems patched in.

[UserClone]

Maxx calls over his shoulder as he hears the lighter, "I said no smoking, Mr. Bitts.". He continues on without having turned around.:smallwink:

[Tyrael]

Cole Nydus

War's over, my friend. Just a doctor. Roe's words echo in Cole's mind. What's left of his face twitches slightly as the voices of his other doctors float up from his past. ...but we're unable to cover your reconstructive treatment due to your insurance plan. Sorry, soldier. For you, war's over.

Cole's head droops and he shakes himself slightly, chasing away the ghosts. He raises his gaze again, his eyes distant and reflective, and steps aboard the ship, his long coat billowing around his footsteps.

[Ezeze]

Alegra is about to answer Everett when Maxx interrupts. She smiles, and there is laughter in her voice when she comments "I thought the hiring of a crew would be more organized than this. It's been an education already."

[Bonecrusher Doc]

The jump doors open on the side of the Alliance shuttle facing the Jetsam. A squad of eight armed and armored Alliance troopers files out by twos sharply. They move out in a route step toward the administrative building for the spaceport. The last helmeted head turns and lingers in the direction of the Jetsam for a few seconds, apparently giving the ship and personnel a close look, before facing front again.

[Connington]

Alegra is about to answer Everett when Maxx interrupts. She smiles, and there is laughter in her voice when she comments "I thought the hiring of a crew would be more organized than this. It's been an education already."

"Usually, it would be." he said"But we're a tramp freighter, which means things in general tend to be less organized. Besides that, something about this planet puts people in a mind to travel outwards, so I'm told. As soon as we can find a ship's engineer, we'll be moving ourselves."

[Levyathyn]

Sean Mathis

Unsure as to whether or not he had been permitted on board, Sean slinks in behind the rest of the 'crew', hoping he an at least go on unnoticed until the Alliance passes by. He ignores the ground crew of the scout ship as he slips inside, his eyes quickly adjusting to the darkness of the silvery ship. He slings his duffel down and unzips his jacket as he examines the ship around him. He's unfamiliar with the make, but it felt comfortable. and it was all he would have. Down the darkened corridor, he notices two of the men in quiet but apparently intense conversation; Deciding to not try his luck just yet, Sean moves on, wandering basically without intent, hoping only that the ship leaves before the Alliance comes calling. Frowining slightly, he decides to look helpless and find someone in charge, to get his quarters straightened out.

[Levyathyn]

[roll0]
[roll1]

Like that, right?

[Forgotten T.S.]

[roll=Perception (Visual)]1d12

Yep. This is the correct format. Thing doesn't count special characters into account.

[Forgotten T.S.]

[roll0]

Let's see how this goes...

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob bangs away at the engine room with the bare tools he had available to him, and shrugs as he comes to the conclusion it's in decent shape. Not spectacular... but decent. With that he sits on his heels til Maxx gets back to him. In the mean time, he lights up a fresh clove.

[Connington]

"That kid in there says he's Fire-It-Up Bitts! Look, if you haven't heard of him, he's a renowned pilot. And even if it isn't really him, imagine the cojones. I want him. Say yes."[/COLOR][/B]

"I know the name Maxx. Also heard he was gunned down by the Feds two months ago on Verdenna, and six months before that he had crashed his ship on some black rock. Hire him. If he doesn't live up to his legend, I'll whisper some discreet words in the Alliance's ear. Nothing specific, but enough to get the kid hot under the collar.

We're almost off this Feh Feh Pi Goh of a planet, and I'm not stopping because of who our pilot is."

[UserClone]

With a wry smile, Maxx returns to his boat, and as he gets closer to the engine room, his smile reverses into an indignant frown.

Snatching the cigarette from the man's very lips with one hand, he stretches his other out to Bitts for a handshake.

"Looks like we aren't wanting for a pilot anymore, Bitts. And like I said, no smoking."

With that, he smushes this second cigarette beneath his boot, and gestures towards the crew's quarters, leading Jacob to his new room in silence, unless the younger man has a response.

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob 'Fire it Up' Bitts (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheetview.php?sheetid=108740)


Jacob didn't let the man have a chance to smush his clove this time, and instead smushed it himself as the man got close. He smiles rather coyly, but otherwise said nothing in response to the rule, that he was obviously going to break. "Checked out your engine-room. Rather thread-bare expect a crowbar and hammer... parts are all well maintenanced for now. You guys are going to need to pick up some tools, if you want any half-way decent mechanic to change the spark plugs."

As they got closer to the quarters he was being assigned he spoke up, "Might want to place me as close to the bridge as possible... as well, there's my compensation to discuss. I'll consider this first flight free of charge, as you are getting me off this rock. After that, I gotta get something to feed myself."

[UserClone]

"This far out in the black, beggars can't be choosers, son. Of course we all have to eat, and you'll be paid fairly as any crew member will. I'll see to it that Everett doesn't get the chance to pinch pennies when it comes to that, or when it comes to any safety-critical parts or tools. Beyond that, there're no guarantees.

"And by the way, you'd better keep it cool, if you're really Bitts. The boss man knows all about you, and he'd rat on you for a nickel if you ceased suiting his needs, if you know what I mean."

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob 'Fire it Up' Bitts (http://www.myth-weavers.com/sheetview.php?sheetid=108740)


Bitts stops instantly, "Well, if that's the case, I'll take my leave now. By the way, I'm not your son. Thanks for the chance, but it sounds like this won't go well." With that, he spun on his heel, put back on his blue-tinted sunglasses and started walking back the way he came.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Just then, an amplified voice echoes throughout every room of the Jetsam. Those familiar with the technology recognize the use of the ship's hull as a sounding board. There is someone outside with what is known as a "targeting megaphone."

"Everyone in the ship, disarm yourselves and come out with your hands on your head! You are surrounded by Alliance law enforcement! I say again, come out unarmed with your hands on your head! You are surrounded by Alliance law enforcement and deadly force IS authorized!

[Tyrael]

Yes! Something exciting!

Cole Nydus

Cole glances up from his task, having been occupying himself all this time by stowing his sniper rifle in his new bunk and getting his duffel squared away. The scarred man pokes his head up onto the common deck. "Alliance don't have a reason to come calling on us, do they?" he asks the room in general. "I've got nothing to hide, though. We gonna be nice neighbors and say hello, or make them get off our lawn?"

[UserClone]

Maxx's eyes go wide at this new development. He then collects himself enough for, "Look, I'm not about to let your talent go to waste, and I've no quarrel with you. We hide you on our boat, and you pilot it for us, as least as far as we need to go to get another pilot. Deal?"

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob stopped, a panic'ed look crossing his face as the voice comes out. He heard Maxx's offer behind him, and was already whipping together an escape plan, "I'm familiar with the standard layout of this ship... and so are those soldiers out there. Has this one been modified with any additional panic rooms or secret storage? If not... I'm better off attempting to lie, and hope they don't bother scanning me."

[Connington]

Everett drew and threw down his gun carefully, then put his hands on his head, walking calmly and assuredly down to find and chew out the nearest Alliance officer that dared to interfere with his daily business.

[Levyathyn]

Sean

Hearing the announcement, Sean heaves a sigh and sets his duffel down. He had finally stumbled onto the rooms; He would just have to hope no one minded him claiming one. Silenty, he reaches under his jacket and slides a newtech pistol out, gleaming and aquiline. Checking it, he slips it back into it's holster and leaves the room.

[King Tius]

The Good Doctor emerges from sickbay with a long list in hand. He has taken his jacket off and his shoulder holster is empty. He still carries his medical bag, however, and heads towards the cargo bay. He exits the craft carefully, keeping a wary eye on the soldiers.

[Tyrael]

Cole

Getting no response to his query, Cole shrugs to himself, tugs his hat on, and goes out to meet the soldiers along with the rest of the crew.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Maxx thinks quickly. On the bridge, under an instrument panel, he remembers a man-sized space that most ships would have full of advanced computing equipment. He had just been looking at it, and was disappointed at how empty it was. In fact, Maxx's screwdriver is still up there... but if he hides Bitts in there, he would be bolting the cover back on and Bitts would have no way of getting out on his own... essentially buried alive if Maxx didn't come back for him...

[Connington]

Walking up to the nearest officer that looks to be in command, Everett begins protesting, trying to get a feel for the situation, while also giving the the officer a hard time. "Sir, what is the meaning of this? We've done nothing wrong, given you no cause to arrest us, especially in such a uncivilized manner. I demand to be referred to the officer who gave the arrest order at once."

[UserClone]

"Look. There's a spot on the bridge I can hide you where they'll never look, but you gotta trust me to let you out when the coast is clear. Now it's not like we can go anywhere without a pilot anyway, but the choice is yours. Make it snappy, or those Feds'll get suspicious."

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob was already spinning on his heel and making his way for the bridge. "Sounds shiney to me." He will quietly make his way to the bridge, and after seeing the spot indicated, tuck himself into the confined space, "I'll give you four hours... if no one comes for me... well, I'll assume the worst happened." He shrugs and watches with stone eyes as Maxx seals him in.

[UserClone]

As soon as he is finished hurriedly closing off the hidden compartment, Maxx rushes to the cargo bay, then gets ahold of himself and nonchalantly strolls out of the ship.

Flashing his signature smile (and his uniform jacket), he asks, "There a problem here, officers?"

[Bonecrusher Doc]

The eight alliance troopers form a 3/4 circle around the ramp of the ship. Their weapons are at the low ready; not so threatening as drawing a bead on their targets, but only an instant away from it.

Seven of them stand still as stone. The eighth is a sergeant, for those that recognize the insignia. He looks at Everett when he speaks but then ignores his demand. He looks at each person as they come off the ship, and looks at a small computer display strapped to his left forearm. He stops in front of Maxx.

"Alliance Law Enforcement. Are you Maxx Williams?

[UserClone]

"Maxx Williams. Captain. 2-3-0-7-9er-4-9er-7-5-2. So what's this all about, soldier?"

[Bonecrusher Doc]

The sergeant presents Maxx with a small electronic paper reader that has a Special Arrest warrant for him. For the charge, it says "Other."

Sergeant:
"We just need you to come with us for questioning right now. The rest of your party are free to go about their business. Please walk with us to the administrative building.

The two closest soldiers step towards Max as if to escort him. No handcuffs come out. The other soldiers still keep their eyes on the rest of the persons from Jetsam, but do not raise their weapons.

[UserClone]

"Hold on there, brother. Is this an arrest? On what charge? I'm afraid I fought for Unity so people would have rights, not so you could just go around arrestin' folks willy-nilly."

[Tyrael]

Cole

Cole keeps silent. It's no skin off his nose, and he figures he doesn't have any particular reason to stick his neck out for someone he only just met.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Sergeant

"Sir, these are special circumstances, and for now all you need to do is answer some questions. That is all I will discuss here openly. I assure you though, I have the authority to detain you by force if you do not come willingly now. This is your last chance."

The sergeant reaches back to his belt and produces a pair of handcuffs.

[UserClone]

"That won't be necessary. And I assure you, you'll be hearing from my lawyer. What's your badge number?" asks Maxx as he finally complies.

[Ezeze]

Alegra stands in the officers' sights at the front of the ship. She crosses haughtily with a look of disdain and disgust, so that anyone watching just her might think that she was looking at cow dung and not more than half a dozen armed soldiers.

"He's allowed council, isn't he?" She steps down and brazenly loops her arm around Maxx's, flashing the captain a small smile. "I'll be coming with him."

[roll0]
[roll1][roll2]

[Ezeze]

Wait, +2 steps means from d12 to d12+d4, right? in that case, I should have rolled
[roll0][roll1]
Edit: and I got worse... That hardly seems fair.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

The sergeant hesitates a moment, then shrugs. "Why not. As long as you cooperate." The Alliance soldiers proceed back to the administrative building with Maxx and Alegra, and post two guards outside the door of the building, leaving the rest of those gathered about the Jetsam free to go about their business.

FlWiPig and Chain standby for PM, the rest of you please continue.

[King Tius]

The Good Doctor lights up a cigarette and watches the Captain leave. He then heads back to the medical bay and begins an extremely thorough cleaning process that will take several days.

[Forgotten T.S.]

In his small little box, Jacob pulls a clove out and lights up, angling his body so the smoke will drift down a small access-pipe, as opposed to drifting up through the venting of the hatch. "What a gorram day."

[Tyrael]

Cole Nydus

Cole shrugs to himself and heads back onto the ship. Flopping onto his bunk, he puts up his heels and stares at the ceiling, whistling to himself.

Basically I'm just going to wait until the next Plot thing happens. Cole doesn't really have much to do right now.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Time passes, and Jacob's joints ache from his cramped quarters. He listens for the sound of Alliance troopers on the ship, but hears nothing except perhaps a snatch of someone whistling.

[UserClone]

"Wow, what a stroke of luck this is! You know, you could find decent work aboard Jetsam, I'd wager."

This is the first intelligible statement that Cole can hear as Maxx escorts Alegra aboard the ship.

"Listen, I want to talk more about a possible business arrangement, but Everett will want in on the action, too, obviously. I assume that'd be ok...?"

"Anyhow, I gotta go let Bitts out before anything else."

Maxx approaches the panel, and smelling a whiff of that thick, malodorous smoke, he stops mid-stride. His muscles tense, then after a moment relax.

Squatting in front of the vent, looking in through the slits as he unscrews the panel one screw at a time, he says, "Look, slick. I know you think smoking's a real gas and all, but I need you to not EVER do it again inside the guts of the ship. You need to go take a break once in a while? Fine. But keep it in your room. I don't want to know about it, and I DEFINITELY don't want it catching delicate instruments on fire. Are you getting my wave?"

[Ezeze]

As innocent as Maxx's words sound, Alegra looks gravely offended.

She steps between him and Bitts, daring to get right in his face. "As I said before, captain" she spits the word like a curse "I am paying in credits. If that's a problem, we aren't doing business."

[UserClone]

"I...wait, what? OH! Oh no, ma'am, I do apologize." :smallredface: Maxx wrings his hands a moment, then continues. "That isn't, well, what I mean to...Not US. Not ME, I'm a married man! No, I meant, perhaps we could take you further hubward, and to some nice core world with rich, fancy clients for you, and perhaps you could do something for us, like, I don't know, speaking on our behalf, should you see any business needs doing. I mean, there's only two things I generally refuse: bounty hunting and Reaver-killing. The former is undignified and uncivilized, and the latter...well I just ain't that desperate. Never will be."

[Ezeze]

"... Oh." Alegra runs a few fingers through her hair in the awkward moment that follows. "Of course. I'd be happy to speak on behalf of the ship." She smiles "though I think you have to go further hubward whether I am on board or not - we're about as far out on the rim as you can get."

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob rolled his eyes, 'This guy is a real pain, think I'll hop off the second we hit another world. Not sure how someone this finicky can survive out here.' Still, Jacob continues smoking as he listens to the screws being removed, and as the hatch shivers he smothers the cig and looks up at Maxx as he gets himself out.

"You must be talking to someone else, as my name isn't 'slick'. Not sure what your issue is with smoking, but if it's this bad... like I said earlier, I'll take my leave now." He brushes himself off as he looks out one of the exterior windows to check on the Alliance ship, "As for equipment on fire? You must be out of your gorram mind, if you think that's how I operate, or that's how smoking works."

[UserClone]

"Wait. Look, it's obvious we're not going to find another pilot. And I'd wager you aren't going to find another boat. Can't we just get along at least until we reach another world?"

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob keeps his eyes locked outside, thinking of his own fond memories of flight school when he got to pilot real ships, as opposed to his career, "I agree... sorry, I'm a bit nervous, and I smoke a bit more when I'm nervous. Normally it's only a pack a day, gorram Alliance spooked me, however... I smoke, and it's not something I can confine. Dangerous addictive habit, they say... but one I like... like flying. So... let me smoke, and I'll do my best to keep the smoke from drifting towards you or others, and I'll air push any room I'm in to keep it from building up the smell. If that's shiny, think we'll be ok." He reached into a pocket and tossed a small piece object made of plastic to Maxx.

"That's my old Alliance Military ID... should satisfy you and whoever else that I really am, who I say I am."

[UserClone]

Maxx's eyebrow shoots up as he looks at the ID, in such a comically exaggerated way that looks as though someone invisibly yanked upwards on a string attached to his upper eye area

"...Shiny."

The captain extends his hand to his new pilot.

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob looks over his shoulder and notices Maxx holding out a hand. Nodding he turns bodily towards him and takes his hand in a firm grip, "Deal stays the same otherwise... I'm free til the next planet, after that... we'll sit down and negotiate fees." He smiles and lets go as he picks his rucksack and brown coat out of the hole he was in.

"How about that room? I saw a couple quarters on the way up that were close... and, you know, I only suggest close to the bridge, because you want to keep me close to the steering wheel in case I gotta jump in the seat." He shrugged and took a couple steps to the exit and stopped, "So, what was that entire hubub with the feds about?"

[UserClone]

"Oh, nothing. Just a case of mistaken identity."

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob nods slightly, but says nothing more as he exits the bridge, and looks for an available bunk closer, if not next to the bridge.

[Levyathyn]

Sorry, real life hit me really hard.

Stepping into the room, and nodding quietly, Sean steps over to Maxx. "Ah, excuse me. I more or less filed in with the rest of these guys." He says, calmly. "I'm still not sure if I've earned my place on board, but if I have to pay to get off of this rock, I will." He says.

[UserClone]

"Pay? You just said the magic word, Mister...?"

[Ezeze]

(ooc: We want to get this boat off the ground?)

[Tyrael]

I'd love to! I'm ready anytime, just waiting for something significant to happen. What's our lovely GM say?

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Though the ship's expendable supplies are woefully humble, Folly is no place to go shopping. With everyone settled in to their new dormitories and the ship fueled, the ground crew gives an "uppercut" signal to the bridge, signifying that they are clear to depart the pad and please make room for another customer. Each passenger/crewmember straps in and the Jetsam leaps into the black, small smiles of satisfaction of the pilot and engineer's faces as everything operates properly.

The first stop is three full days' travel across some very desolate space, but fortunately it's a bit more civilized. Saint Ive's is another small planet, and much of it is frozen tundra, but the equatorial region took well to the terraforming and actually attracts a few adventure tourists, thanks to its dense forests, wild rivers, and impossible ski slopes. A few of the mining towns there are of good size and some folks have even managed to become wealthy. You can find jobs and cargo on Saint Ive's, and fly to many other places... but first you have to get there.

Once the last navigational corrections are made, folks either relax or wander about the ship till they get hungry. Time to make friends, or it's gonna be a long three days.

[Tyrael]

Cole Nydus

The merry chop-chop of cutting knives rings through the ship's galley as Cole and the Good Doctor work together to prepare that night's dinner. "...So then the guy grabs the waitress and says, 'Let's see you try that with a pineapple!' Which is totally uncalled for, I mean, how would that even fit, you know? Besides the obvious. So of course, I haul off on him, one thing leads to another, you know how it goes."

The scarred man smiles a bit at the memory. "Anyway. So what we gotta do here is chop the onions nice and fine, almost mincing them, you know? Throw in some butter, let those saute for a few minutes. Anyway, while I do that, you see what you can do about those hamburger patties."

He gets to work on the onions, his good eye screwed up tight against the fumes as he explains, "My mom did a lot of cooking with me as a kid, you see."

[Bonecrusher Doc]

A thud echoes along the ductwork that runs above the galley where Cole is cutting onions, but the exhaust fan doesn't skip a beat and there are no further noises.

[Ezeze]

Alegra wanders the ship, bored out of her mind. Without really paying attention she finds herself in the cockpit, and slips into a seat next to Jacob. She smiles at him pleasantly. "Hi."

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob lounges back in the pilots seat in the cockpit, a pillow resting behind his head as he surfs through the various cortex channels listening in on scrambled waves, and different broadcasted shows. In fact... Jacob could always be found in the cockpit unless he was getting food or using the restroom. All of his personal effects had been setup there, and he seemed to have made the place his bunking area, not having liked the space between the regular bunks and the cockpit. He has a blanket folded over an armrest, and several pictures put up. Some of him in the Alliance Military, some of him standing next to a large shipment of medical supplies and giving a big thumbs up, and one of him even burning his old uniform as he played a ukulele. He's even got some action figures setup, and a teddy bear stowed ontop of the comm-station.

A large box of clove-cig's, and an ash-tray sit right infront of the console he's at, and he's currently puffing away when Alegra walks in. He smiles, and hits a small button, and Alegra can hear a small hiss as a breeze comes through the room pulling all of the smoke out, as well as the smell of vanilla and firewood.

"'ello there miss. Not often I get the pleasure of company when I'm driving." He smiled wide as he spun his chair around to face her properly, "Don't think we've been introduced. I'm Jacob Bitts, otherwise known as 'Fire it Up' Bitts. What brings me the pleasure of your company, Ms....?"

[Ezeze]

"Miss Rios, if you want to be formal." She crosses her legs and rests her hand on her knee. "Alegra, if you don't. Personally, I'd prefer the latter." She looks out across the blackness in front of them, dotted by the occasional star. "The view must get boring up here, all alone..."

[Forgotten T.S.]

He gave a large smile and leaned back, "It's great... there's something about all of this that just... quiets the mind. Besides... have you ever seen a star from only a gigametre away? It's absolutely beautiful..."

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Sorry to hear things aren't going well Lev. Hope they get better.
Sean is now an NPC...

At about the same time, various persons aboard the ship realize that they haven't seen Sean for quite some time - more than two 8-hour shifts. The doors to the bunks are always closed, but no-one knows if he's actually in there or not.

[Ezeze]

She shrugs. "I think it's a waste. I mean, here we are, traveling at speeds measured by comparing them to the speed of light, and it feels like we're crawling at a snails pace. Going sixty on a bike, when you're barely above the ground, feels so much faster."

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob shrugs, "True... you can't feel the wind til you are in atmo... that's when flying ships get to be fun. I trained to be a fighter pilot..." he turned a little and pointed to a picture of himself in military fatigues hoping out of a flight simulator, "Nothing beats the adrenaline... the fast paced explosion."

He cocked a smile as he looked back to her, "If you don't care for all of this... what brings you up here?"

[UserClone]

Captain Williams does his rounds, this time including a particular eye out for Jacob. As he gets to the galley, he finds Cole chopping onions.

"Mister Nydus, I hope you're finding 'er to your liking?"

[Tyrael]

Cole Nydus

Cole's good eye snaps up from his work, and he lays aside the knife long enough to tip his hat respectfully.

"Yessir. Got no complaints. Doctor's helping me make onion burgers for supper tonight."

[UserClone]

"Real onions? How the hell did you get those out here? Resourceful, Mr. Nydus. I like that." Maxx flashes his signature smile, at the same time approving and authoritative, while still being disarming. "By the way, have you seen Mister...say, what is his last name anyway? Sean, that is."

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Alegra gets up to go the head, and on the way there something catches her eye. Protruding from underneath one of the catwalks is a boot, and as she leans over to see better, she realizes it's Sean lying there, eyes wide open, pale as a ghost, and his neck at a bizarre angle. He does not appear to be breathing.

[Connington]

Everett sat on his bunk, thinking things over. They had made their first interplanetary voyage on this ship, and arrived in one piece. They had passengers, but no cargo. And this was the planet to fix that. Their had been trouble with the Alliance, but it looked clear, for the moment. More pressing was Sean's disappearance. There weren't too many places to hide on a ship. He had a bad feeling about that.

[UserClone]

Everett's reverie is interrupted by Maxx's knocking on the door. Everett allows him in, and the Captain enters, closing the door behind him.

"Everything seems to be smooth sailing, except one thing: I can't seem to find this Sean guy.

"I mean, I know he paid his way, and in advance to boot, but I still don't like the idea of his snoopin' around our boat, know what I mean?"

[Tyrael]

"Real onions? How the hell did you get those out here? Resourceful, Mr. Nydus. I like that." Maxx flashes his signature smile, at the same time approving and authoritative, while still being disarming. "By the way, have you seen Mister...say, what is his last name anyway? Sean, that is."


Cole Nydus

Cole smiles at the compliment, but shakes his head in response. "Nope, haven't seen 'im. I'll tell him you're looking if I do, though."

[Ezeze]

A woman's scream can be heard through the ship.

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob blinks in immediate surprise as he spins in his chair, the disruption knocking the teddy-bear off the comm-station as he looks around. In the same action his hand moves over and he taps on the bridge-control, bringing up the security grid for the ship, along with the cameras. Spinning back around he starts going through the cameras looking for anything out of place as he slams a fist on the comm-release to send out a message across all open comm-stations on the ship, "This is your pilot speaking... I'm hearing a whole lot of hollerin'. Running through camera's now, but if anyone would like to save me time and just... you know, tell me what is going on... that would be nice, you know?" With that the comm-squeaked off.

[Ezeze]

With a few seconds to calm down, Alegra speaks more clearly. "I... I found Sean..."

[UserClone]

"That was a woman's scream, Bitts! Where's Allegra?!" shouts the Captain in no particular direction, knowing that ship's surveillance will pick it up and that Fire-It-Up can pass along the info via the PA.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Bitts sees Allegra on the screen, and recognizes her location as the catwalk near the dorms.

[Tyrael]

Cole jerks in alarm, whipping the onions off the stove and on to a cooling surface, and then takes off at a sprint, careening through the ship up to the cockpit, where he bursts through the hatchway.

"What happened?" He demands.

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob stares at the vid-screen for a hard moment as he hits the comm-PA again, "Attention, all hands. We have a... dead guy, on the catwalk above passenger dorms. I repeat... a dead guy. That is all." He turned off the PA and opened up a channel to the comm-station the Captain was using, "Get that cap?"

Jacob looks to the guy comes barrelling into his room... well, he supposed it was still the bridge no matter how roomy he made it, "Dead guy. Dorms. Go."

With that, Jacob turns back around to his station, and begins to all out scan as far as the ship-sensors would allow, making sure there were no vessels anywhere near. He should been alerted the moment another ship came within a megametre, but... some ships were smaller and harder to detect then the passive scans performed. As well, he scanned any signals coming out of the ship, making sure not alliance alerts were going out, or anything else. His paranoid side was lit up.

Speaking of which... he reached up and grabbed a clove.

[UserClone]

"Loud and clear, Bitts," calls Williams.

Arriving at the grisly scene, Maxx comments, "Yeah, that's him."

Bending down to investigate, he closely scrutinizes the body, trying to figure out if anything was stolen, how long he's been dead, and what exactly killed him.

[Ezeze]

"I'm sorry I screamed. He just... Caught me by surprise."

[Tyrael]

Cole dashes out of the cockpit and sprints towards the dorms as fast as he can. Once he arrives, he looks around and down at the corpse. "Dead? What happened?"

[UserClone]

"Your guess is as good as mine. You wanna go get the doc for me, soldier?"

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Looking more closely at Sean, non-medical persons observe he is white as a sheet, his neck is at a funny angle, there are some red marks on his neck, and he is not moving (including his chest not rising/falling).

If the doc is going to examine him, he should make some rolls and I'll provide more detailed information/diagnosis.

Maxx notices that Sean does not seem to have a weapon on him anywhere, but whether it was stolen or just left in his dorm remains to be determined... not everyone carries their weapons with them at all times during interstellar space travel.

[Forgotten T.S.]

As he's tapping away at the different monitoring stations, he rewinds the security feed of where Sean is, and tries to determine a cause of death.

--------------------



DM: No remarks for other stuff? How... boring.

[King Tius]

What rolls should I make?

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Here's Doc Roe's Medicine check: [roll0] And now that I've rolled for you, hope you don't mind if I speak for you as well - I assume you would want to share this knowledge.

Doc Roe, after examining the man, realizes what happened.
"He's dead. And he was garroted. Strangled and his neck broken. But not with rope. Some sort of cable, or a metal hose, perhaps."

All assembled look around and do not see such a murder weapon anywhere nearby.

[Ezeze]

"Could it have been an accident? He got tangled in cords or some such? I mean, I don't think anyone here..." She looks around nervously.

[King Tius]

"Nope. This here is murder, plain and simple."

[UserClone]

Maxx's eyes harden and his lips purse. "Bitts. Run a full scan. Again. I want you to tell me for certain where everything is on this boat that has a heartbeat, and I want to know by the time I get up there."

Maxx hastens away to the cockpit.

[Forgotten T.S.]

Bitt's doesn't respond as he performs a full scan of the ship, ontop of his security feed watching.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Bitts finally finds the footage he's looking for... several hours ago, Sean looking up at the ductwork in this location, seeing something, trying to look closer, and a man jumps down from out of duct and swiftly and expertly dispatches Sean with a piece of conduit. His hand-to-hand combat looks professional. The man scrambles up the railing on the catwalk and back into the ductwork, replacing the vented covering.

Then the scan of the ship finishes. There is one heartbeat not accounted for... and it is in the engine room. Bitts switches to a live feed of that room on the security system but does not see anyone in the view of the camera.

[Forgotten T.S.]

Bitts curses as he reaches into his jacket, and clicks the safety off of his pistol. Just as Maxx walks into the room, he turns from the console, "We got some guy in the venting... he killed Sean. We got someone in the Engine Room, but I can't pull him up on camera... he's probably doing his best to not be seen. I'm going to stay here and trace him... I'll also lock down the shuttles." As he gives Maxx a full description of the guy, he pulls out a small comm-box transceiver from a drawer and tosses it to Maxx, "I'll keep you updated on where he's going."

With that, Bitts goes about locking down the shuttles, and putting the entire ship on Lock Down.

[King Tius]

The Good Doctor runs to the med bay and grabs his nine-shooter.


"I'll come with you. If this man is a professional, you shouldn't go alone."

[Tyrael]

Cole Nydus

Cole nods and hefts his own pistol. "Let's do it."

[UserClone]

Maxx expertly snatches the comm-box out of the air and nods to Jacob.

"Gentlemen. Eyes open and stick together. Nydus, I want you to go to the med bay with the doc. I'll go and get Allegra and escort her back here to the cockpit. Bitts, you lock the two of you in here and...well, just don't let any visitors in. Boys, I'll meet you in sick bay."

[Connington]

Everett slips out his pistol. "You know, he might not be on the ship. Might have gotten out . Bitts, I want a scan of the local space. Look for something small." he falls into the column of searchers though, clearly too cautious to assume anything.

[UserClone]

"Everett, why don't you come with me to go get Allegra? Better to stick together."

[Connington]

"Fair enough, let's escort the good lady to the cockpit."

[Forgotten T.S.]

"Already ran a scan of local space... no small craft that these systems picked up. He's on the ship... or atleast, something with a human heartbeat is sitting in the Engine Room." He didn't bother rolling his eyes as he pulled out a clove and lit it up.

"I'm not going to bother locking down the doors shipwide, Cap. Guy is using ventilation... locking down the doors would only keep everyone from moving as fast as he can. He knows the ship design rather well."

[Ezeze]

"What are you boys talking about?" Alegra draws her sword. "I'm coming with you."

[UserClone]

"Good point," says Maxx into the comm-box, with a slight smile. Hm. This guy's good. It's nice to have people with a clear head in a crisis, he thinks to himself.



-------------------------------------------

Maxx sighs at Allegra. "Look, just stay behind me, okay? It's not exactly good for business when our passengers go getting themselves killed, savvy? One of you dead is more than enough."

[Connington]

"Still Madam, it might be best if you went to the cockpit. To protect Bitts. If you insist however, you can accompany us in the search."

[Forgotten T.S.]

Bitts voice comes over the comm-box, "I can take care of myself."

Back in the Cockpit, Bitts smirked and shook his head as he watched the others walk along, listing through the Comm-box.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

The engine room is directly aft of the crew dorms, where Sean's body still lies. There is only one door to the engine room, and it is open. The killer cannot be seen through the open doorway, nor on the feed to Bitt's screen, but the heartbeat sensor still indicates he is in that room.

http://fc08.deviantart.com/fs29/f/2008/066/b/d/Orca_Class_Freighter_Schematic_by_tiuseht.jpg

[UserClone]

"Lock and load, men. Let's do this. Keep your backs to each other, and keep eyes on the ceiling and floor. Bitts says he's moving through the air ducts."

[Ezeze]

"Are you sure using guns in the engine room is a good idea?"

[Forgotten T.S.]

Bitt's voice comes over the Comm-Box, "No, it's not. I think the guy's unarmed... but he's pretty spry based off the tape."

[UserClone]

"Good. Maybe you better keep that sword handy after all, miss Allegra."

[UserClone]

Maxx leads the way, gun in hand, cocked and loaded.

[Tyrael]

Cole follows closely behind.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

A man steps out into the doorway and swings a heavy pipe at Maxx's head.

[roll0]
[roll1]
[roll2] (Basic)

Maxx manages to jerk his head out of the way in time, but the pipe still connects with his chest.

Oof!

As Maxx's breath is knocked out of him, he feels a sharp pain in his ribs, but he manages to stay on his feet and bring his weapon to bear on his assailant, who is already back in his fighting crouch and winding up for another strike.

I used d6 as Maxx's agility roll. Maxx takes 3 Stun and 2 Wound damage. He can attack now. Cole may also attack. Just make the standard skill roll for whatever weapon you are using, and I will apply the modifiers (Cole will take a penalty for standing behind Maxx). You may wish to declare a Dodge to the assailant's next attack, or choose All-Out Attack. Because the combat is taking place in the doorway, nobody else may attack but you may do other actions if you wish.

[Ezeze]

There is the rasp of steel on leather as Allegra draws her sword from its ornate sheath. She hisses "get out of the way." As beautifully decorated as her sheath and its belt are, the sword is clearly much more business-oriented.

[Tyrael]

Cole

Cole doesn't waste any time, simply levels his pistol and fires.

[roll0]
Did I do that right?

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Maxx senses Cole's weapon behind his ear and drops to a crouch, allowing Cole to get a clear shot, while simultaneously drawing a bead on the enemies right knee and squeezing the trigger.


Still trying to figure out the combat rules here - they're harder than I thought, and I don't see a good example of a battle in the book.
I think I forgot to include a Strength attribute roll in addition to the enemy's skill roll of Melee Combat. That's OK, we'll say he suffered a couple step penalty for jumping out of his hiding place. Anyway,
Here is Cole's attribute roll: [roll0]
We already have his skill roll (Guns).
Here is Cole's weapon damage roll: [roll1](Wounds)
And here is the enemy's defense against Cole's shot (he is choosing to Dodge. Supposed to be declared before Cole's attack roll but that's kinda impractical in PbP): [roll2] + [roll3]
Here is Maxx's roll - 1 step penalty for two actions in one turn (dropping and then firing) and then another 1 step penalty for a called shot to a limb: [roll4]+[roll5]
Here is the enemy's defense against Maxx's shot (I'm guessing he can only Dodge one attack, so I'll use Innate Defense:[roll6]
And the enemy's "Average Endurance" roll to avoid incapacitation:[roll7] + [roll8]



Cole's attack roll of Agility + Gun skill = 6 + 9 = 15.
Subtract the enemy's defense roll of 7 and you get a Basic Damage of 8. That divides into 4 Stun Damage and 4 Wounds. Add to that another 2 Wounds from Cole's Weapon Damage roll, and the enemy takes 4 Stun + 6 Wounds.

Maxx's attack roll is 10. Enemy's defense is 5. Result is 5 basic damage which splits into 3 Stun and 2 Wounds. Weapon Damage is an additional 6 wounds (see OOC).

With two simultaneous explosions of blood, the man goes down on his back, his right knee crumpling unnatural-like. His improvised weapon drops from his hands and rolls away from him on the floor.
As soon as the man goes down, the room starts to fill with steam coming from a hose at the far end.

[Ezeze]

Allegra grimaces. "I told you... I assume someone on this ship knows how to fix it?"

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob starts running a diagnostic check on the engine from the Bridge, but goes ahead and sends it down to the terminal in the Engine-room. Flipping some switches, and pulling a lever, he puts the ship into stall, and let's it drift as he shuts down all non-essential systems, and then the engine.

Through the comm-box, "I'm on my way."

[UserClone]

"DOC! Do what you can." Maxx moves out of the doorway, further in towards the source of the steam, to see if there's a valve of some kind he can turn to cut the steam off.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Maxx searches around and finds a valve on the pipe, screws it shut, and the scalding hot steam hisses to a stop.

Cole and Alegra stand to the side as Doc Roe comes into the engine room. At a quick glance, the unknown intruder is very still, very bloody, and probably dead. Maxx's back is to the doctor and, still full of adrenaline, he does not yet show much injury.

Maxx will notice as soon as he calms down that it hurts pretty bad to take a deep breath (where he got hit in the ribs), as well as his face hurts from first-degree steam burns he got looking for the valve.
When Bitts gets there he will see that the engine diagnostic check he ran came back with no alerts, and as far as he can tell all numbers are in the normal range.

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob comes racing through the hallway, and jumps right over anybody crouched in the doorway observing the body, and the body. He lands on the otherside and checks the computer terminal with a frown, "That's... odd. Nothing showing up off. What happened to the steam venting? Why isn't it going off anymore? Did someone touch something?"He moves over towards where he had observed the malfunction and starting going over the area with a fine-tooth comb.

------------



[roll0]

[roll1]

[UserClone]

"I cut off the flow of steam with this valve, here. Why, is that bad?"

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob blinked at the man, "It... could be. Everything in an engine matters. Steam releasing means it needed to relieve pressure from another area, or it got winged with a bullet and needs patching. If you cut off the pressure... that means it could be building up somewhere else... and could release again... violently."

He gets back to work looking stuff over.

[UserClone]

"Well, take care of it. I'll expect a report as soon as you're through."

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob rolls his eyes discreetly as he works. 'Figures. Break the engine, pawn the work off on someone else.'

[King Tius]

The good doctor first examines the unconscious intruder to determine if he can be saved. He will then give Max a quick once-over for triage.

Medical expertise + Search
Intruder: 1d12+1d8
Maxx: 1d12+1d8

[UserClone]

((each die needs its own roll tags. You can't roll more than one die type without going like this: [roll0]+[roll1] and [roll2]+[roll3]))

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Thanks for the rolls, I'll use 'em. Please humor me and try to keep OOC stuff in spoilers or in the OOC thread.

Doc Roe whips out his trauma shears and cuts the shirt off the assailant on the floor. Tossing aside the billfold and pistol belt (no pistol) that he finds, he determines the assailant's heart is no longer beating...but perhaps he may be able to revive him if he acts quickly. He glances at Maxx to make sure he's alright, sees the way Maxx is holding himself and breathing, and figures he has either a bruised or broken rib but looks like he will survive for the moment... have to tend to him soon though, just in case he's worse than he looks and ends up with a collapsed lung...

Bitts has no time to worry about everyone's bumps and bruises - he's making sure the engine isn't about to explode! He keeps running different diagnostics and looking at the damage but can't seem to figure out what exactly was damaged. He stops messing with computers and gauges and tries a new angle - carefully tracing the damaged hose to find its origin and destination. Finally he realizes that having the valve shut will not cause any sort of pressure build-up and relaxes a bit. Next he figures out what the damage means.
No hot water in the sinks and showers unless this hose is repaired appropriately.

[UserClone]

"Roe, can any of us help?"

[Forgotten T.S.]

Jacob, always loving a cold shower stands up, "Looks like everythings ok... for now. If anyone notices anything strange, let me know." He could use the hot-water later has a bargaining chip to get out of other chores... or perhaps steal a kiss from the pretty lady.

'You gotta play the long game...'

Jacob makes his way out of the room, hoping over the body and the doctor, and heading back up to the bridge. From there, he'll start everything back up, and continue their course of travel.

[Ezeze]

Allegra looks curiously over the doctor's shoulder, trying to get a look at the man's face. "Why would someone have stowed away on the ship and wait until we were in the black to attack? Do you think he was with the alliance?"

Awww, are Bitts and Allegra going to flirt now? :smallbiggrin: It could serve as a good excuse for him to stay on the ship, eh?

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Doc Roe quickly picks out the medical implements he wants from his bag.

Not sure which patient Roe is going to work on here first, so I'm just stalling while I wait for somebody's next post on that topic.

Bitts has no trouble starting everything back up and getting the ship on course again. and the familiar hum of the engine resumes.

[UserClone]

After a few minutes, assuming that Bitts has made his way back to the cockpit, Maxx will say into the comm box, "Well, where's my report? What's wrong, and is it fixed?"

[Forgotten T.S.]

"I said everything looked fine, right now, didn't I? Do you want a full written report, in triplicate, in standard Alliance Military De-brief format, or something? I'm not a full-time mechano-master. I know how a ship works... and I got a bit of smarts in my head to fund the learnin'. However... my place is behind the wheel of a boat... not in her belly."

[King Tius]

The Good Doctor goes to work on the intruder. After doing just enough to keep the man alive, he looks to those assembled and says:

"We need to move him to the infirmary. Let's go."

[UserClone]

"Fair enough," says the captain into the comm-box. Cripes, this kid's a wise-ass, he thinks to himself.

Snapping to attention at Roe's sudden proclamation, Maxx puts his considerable strength to bear, lifting the man's shoulders and cradling his head while Doc Roe takes his legs.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Maxx and Doc Roe get the intruder to the infirmary, leaving his identcard and pistol belt behind on the floor of the engine room. At one point while helping to carry the intruder, Maxx feels such sharp pain in his ribs that he starts to lose his peripheral vision, but he shakes his head and makes it to the infirmary, where he leans against a wall to watch Doc Roe try to save the unknown man.

[King Tius]

The Good Doctor glances over at Maxx and scowls. "You need to lie down. Immediately."

He then proceeds to treat the injured intruder.

[Ezeze]

Allegra leans over curiously and picks the man's identcard. "What kind of assassin carries identification on him?"

[UserClone]

Maxx almost resists, but decides he is a bit too tired (...or do I mean faint?) and sits down on the edge of the other operating table.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

The identcard Allegra picked up has a photo matching the intruder. He is apparently a civilian named "Carl Jin." She scans it in the ship's computer, knowing there is slim chances that their limited library will find a match, but she gets one instantly. The previous owner never erased the last crew profiles, and Mr. Jin was evidently the ships' engineer up until arrival on Folly. Other than his name and employment information, there is nothing else except for his place of birth and date of birth: Hera, 36 years ago.

Doc Roe, having already prepared the sick bay, loses no time in getting to work on his first patient. The blood volume lost so far he knows he can deal with...but the heart is in asystole; there is no shockable rhythm. He gets up close and personal, cracking open the man's chest, massaging the heart in his hand while pushing what lifesaving drugs he has, pausing to do a hasty repair on a major blood vessel before massaging the heart again, but after 30 minutes he determines he cannot save the man. Without taking the time to close up the dead man's chest (he'll tend to the niceties later) he changes gloves and moves on to his second patient, Maxx.

Maxx has two ribs that are bruised and one with a very slightly displaced fracture. Doc Roe does a nerve block and a minor surgery to fix the broken bone, and administers some healing accelerators from his meager supply. Doc gives Maxx some oral painkillers and instructs him to stay on bedrest for the remainder of the flight, and to avoid full-contact sports and similar activities for a few days after that.
Maxx is "on the mend" and will need two days to be back to 0 Wounds. That's the best I can figure out with these darn confusin' rules.

[Ezeze]

(ooc: That was impressively detailed. Your name isn't just ironic is it, Doc?)

Worried, Alegra begins sorting through what bits and pieces of the ship's history she can coax out of its computer. What could have happened to motivate an engineer to murder? Or, worse, what if he hadn't been the killer?

She doesn't have any ranks in Technical Engineering, so it's just a straight Int roll, aye?

[roll0]

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Allegra finds only the same minimal information on the other members of the previous crew, none of whose names ring a bell. However, she manages to find the heartbeat sensor application and runs it again to double check to make sure there is no-one else on the ship. Apparently there was just the one stowaway.

[Forgotten T.S.]

Bitts leans back in his pilots chair as he takes a long drag on a smoke, "Weird stuff... weird stuff. Wonder if I'll hang it or not." He rolls his eyes as he asks the smoke in front of his face the question.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Maxx takes some time alone in his room with the ship's manifest, going through the numbers, trying to figure out how much they have to make at their next stop to break even.

[Ezeze]

Allegra decides to take her newly-acquired information to Bitts, figuring he might be able to coax more about the past crew out of the computers.

[Forgotten T.S.]

Bitts shrugs as he takes the Ident-Card, "I'll look... but don't hold your breathe. IF there's anything, it might be Captain-locked." He smiles and will search the cortex on the ship for any left-over files. Then break then down into what he can, and can't get into.

For the rest of the flight, he'll sit in the bridge, playing with his toys, and smoking. In the wake of the pointless death, Bitts isn't feeling to personable, only showing up for meals, or seeing people as he goes to the restroom for a shower or to relieve himself.

[UserClone]

Maxx takes his meals in his room, where he intends to follow doctor's orders unless something else drastic happens. He makes it clear, though, that his door is open if anyone should need something from him.

[Ezeze]

Allegra is intent on finding out why this man attacked them. If the ships computers fail to find anything, she attempts to search the cortex, and then goes to take a closer look at the corpse its self.

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Bitts' computer search on Carl Jin finds little - the previous captain must have kept his personnel records on pen and paper! - except that Jin did a three-year stint as a mechanic on an Alliance cruiser during the end of the Unification War.

Allegra finds nothing of interest on the man except a tattoo on his right shoulder - a skull with the words, "Forever Vigilant." What is interesting, however, is what she does NOT find - no money, no gun, just a pistol belt with half a box of ammo in it.

Doc Roe stitches up Mr. Jin's body, places it and Sean's body into body bags, and puts them in the ship's small freezer, which is fortunately empty of food items at this time.

The steam hose that produces hot water for the ship appears to be an easy fix, but it needs a new part. Rather than improvise and risk scalding themselves, the crew toughs it out by heating water on the stove and then washing up frontier style in their dorms.

Finally the Jetsam lands in Saint Ive's City, the pleasant equatorial city on Saint Ives. There are two spaceports - one for the ritzy tourist craft, and one for the less visually appealing freighters. The tourist pad costs money to dock there, so Maxx has no choice but to go to the more blue-collar side of town. There will be bulletin boards there advertising work anyway... and probably some characters near the bulletin boards who have jobs that need done that might be considered less than legal.

Bitts sets her down gently and vents in some warm air that smells nicely of "Mediterranean" vegetation.

[Tyrael]

Doc Roe stitches up Mr. Jin's body, places it and Cole's body into body bags, and puts them in the ship's small freezer, which is fortunately empty of food items at this time.


((What. :smallannoyed:))

[King Tius]

???????????

[Bonecrusher Doc]

Bitts lowers the ramp whoever is ready to venture out onto Saint Ive's. Maxx tells the port ground crew over the local comm frequency to fuel up the ship, and winces as he visualizes the exchange of credit.

[Tyrael]

Umm, Bonecrusher Doc? Am I suddenly dead or something? :smallconfused: I know I've been inactive due to the start of school, but...

[Forgotten T.S.]

OOC Note: It has been fixed. No worries. Sure it was just a typo on the GM's part. All fixed now!


Bitts lowers the ramp, and sends a buzz to everyone, "We have docked. Everyone who wants to get some fresh air... well, here you go." With that, he sends a buzz to the Captains comm-box, "Cap... I'll be waiting in the bridge, if you wish to talk about my stint here. As per our agreement. Just like to add, I appreciate the help back there. I know I haven't said that yet. So, thanks." With that, the comm cuts off, and Bitts kicks back.

[UserClone]

Maxx, feeling better after all that much-needed rest, gets up and stretches, attaching his good arm. He then walks up to the cockpit and addresses Bitts.


"Mr. Bitts, I want to thank you. You've done a bang-up job as a pilot, and a hell of a mechanic as well. You'll be missed...that is, unless you'd like to keep flyin' with us after all...?"

[Ezeze]

Alegra stays on board at first, alternating between refusing to leave her room, pacing to the window for a stint, then returning.

[Forgotten T.S.]

"As we talked about... I'd be willing to stay on. However... we'd need to work out my compensation and such finery. Despite my resume'-shattering renown, I am not high-priced, or even mid-priced. Hell, if I could find a boat worth sticking to, or a crew loyal enough not to sell me out to the Alliance, I'd sink every last cred I got into her. Perhaps a few set back for some smokes." He ***** a grin as he leans back in the chair.

"I just need to find that. Whether I've found it yet or not, needs to be seen by my twinkly eyes. So... if you want me to stay on board, offer me something in fair compensation and benefits. I'm doubtful I've got you in a vice... what with being your only pilot and engineer on board." His grin doesn't falter, but eyes do twinkle at the joking reminder of his importance.

[Ezeze]

Alegra peeks into the cockpit. "Maxx?" She steps inside, then seems to notice Jacob and smiles slightly. "Bitts."

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt. I just needed to know how long we were going to be on Saint Ives."

[UserClone]

"Well, we've got some fueling and minor repair to take care of, plus Everett'll need some time to make his contacts and get his next job...so I'd say we'll be sticking around about a week or so, if nothing drastic comes up," he says, directing this last somment at Jacob with his eyes, sporting a smile at reminding Bitts of the importance of his own anonymity. "Is that all, Miss Rios?"

[Forgotten T.S.]

Bitts smiles to Alegra, and tips an invisible hat, but says nothing as he watches their exchange.

[Ezeze]

"Is that all, Miss Cole?"

Alegra's last name is Rios. Was that on purpose?

[Ezeze]

((This game dead, then? :smallconfused: Pity...)

[UserClone]

((Seems to be. Agreed.:smallfrown:))