The next morning some of the crew went for a hunting expedition (which was more of a shooting expedition with no intention of killing anything) while the rest stayed in the bar and around the ships.
Upon returning Lady Nitrane found that she had received an invitation. It was a gold edged card, carefully written out with meticulous penmanship, inviting her to dine with Captain Torsa of the Imperial Treasure Ship Martin II. Did he have a thing for her? Had she gone overboard by talking to him for such a long time the evening before?
The day was drawing to a close, leaving little time to prepare. Nitrane chose a simple but elegant dress and asked Unter to accompany her as her bodyguard. She chose not to take electronic lock openers or other devices in case of detection, and then crossed the flat expanse of the spaceport and arrived at the treasure ship.
At the hatch she was met by a guard and accompanied up to Captain Torsa's quarters. Unter meanwhile was escorted to the galley for his meal.
Torsa greeted Nitrane cordially and kissed her hand. He led her to an end of the room where some memorabilia were strategically placed. She took in the scene as aperitifs were offered to her. Taking a moderately alcoholic one she realised that there were pictures of ships on the sideboard but no family. Torsa's conversation was smooth and practised - he was clearly used to speaking in noble circles - but there was something that Nitrane picked up. He was apprehensive about something that he was carefully trying to hide.
The couple moved from the end of the room to the table, where Torsa slide Nitrane's chair under her at her end of the table and took his position at the other end. Soup was followed by fowl, and then a roast haunch, but Nitrane was more interested in finding out what Torsa was up to.
Lady Nitrane mentioned it was terrible luck that the ships had gone missing, but Torsa took it that she felt bad for him rather than the missing (presumed dead) crews. She then tried a slightly clumsy attempt at flattery but he seemed to be aware that it was less than honest and she ceased that line of conversation.
Over the dessert Torsa got more and more agitated and eventually asked if he could be quite blunt. Did Admiral Slayed think poorly of him?
Nitrane managed to successfully stifle her huge guffaws when she realised that was the whole purpose of the evening. Torsa wanted to know if Slayed liked him or not! She told him that Slayd didn't hate him at all, and in fact had talked about Torsa the night before. The captain seemed entirely heartened and more or less dismissed Nitrane - her usefulness at an end.
Leaving the captain's quarters Nitrane bumped into First Officer Jagad who had been waiting for her. Jagad asked about the meal with Torsa and as Nitrane rolled her eyes and suggested it was less than pleasant Jagad asked if Nitrane wanted a coffee and that she had a coffee machine in her quarters where they might be able to talk more privately.
Entering the First Officer's quarters Nitrane took in that Jagad was a tidy person but not afraid to be feminine. There was indeed a coffee machine and Jagad promptly made one. With nowhere else to sit she motioned Nitrane to sit on the bed and brought the coffee over.
Talk turned to the treasure ship and the predicament that it was currently in. Jagad gushed that it was such a good party the night before and how difficult it was to meed new people who were interesting - most times in port the locals were underwhelming and the port officials somewhat overawed by Imperial Navy people.
As Nitrane was mentioning that she and her ships had been hunting pirates not long before Jagad reached up and tucked one of Nitrane's stray hairs behind an ear and smiled. That stopped Nitrane in her tracks as she looked into Jagad's eyes and realised it was no pure happenstance that saw Jagad waiting for her outside the captain's quarters.
Some time later (maybe eight hours).
Unter wondered for the hundredth time what was taking Nitrane so long. He'd seen many crew he'd recognised from the night before, but when they started coming in for their next meal he hoped that the eight hours of so that Nitrane had been busy was worth it.
Nitrane stirred and got out of the bunk, dressed and bade Jagad a fond farewell. She went to find Unter and with him returned to the Harriers to tell Slayed that he should be expecting an invitation. Slayed laughed and waved a gold edged invitation to breakfast with Captain Torsa.
Slayed dressed in his Drinaxian officer uniform rather than the Imperial one and went across to the treasure ship. Eagle eyed crew on the Harrier saw that it was Torsa who met Slayed at the hatched and bowed to the approaching man. They entered the ship.
Some time later (probably an hour).
Slayed emerged and strode purposefully back to the Harrier. The PCs asked what had happened and he held up a single finger to motion them to wait. He pressed the button and the cargo door slowly closed, and when it did so Slayed laughed his head off.
Torsa was interested to know if the Drinax Harriers could escort the treasure ship on its journey to Byni. It would be travelling at Jump-2 anyway and it seemed, with such good fortune, that Slayed could indeed accompany the Imperials.
What's more, Torsda had insisted that Slayed accompany him on the treasure ship and Jagad suggested in strong terms that Nitrane also travel on the treasure ship so Slayed was not alone. Torsa agreed and the two of them were to embark in an hour as they were leaving shortly.
Nitrane and Slayed packed bags, went to the treasure ship, were assigned staterooms and prepared for take off.
To be continued....
Thursday, 2 August 2018
Saturday, 14 July 2018
Nitrane's Arunisiir Shindig
Lady Nitrane looked at the fuel technician, looked at the rest of the party then turned again to the technician and told him that she'd forgotten that they had already refuelled at a gas giant and therefore did not need any fuel. He shrugged and walked away.
Heaving a great sigh of relief the travellers considered their situation. They needed to get lots of supplies for their ships, and still thought that they should get out of Arunisiir spaceport as quickly as possible. However, seeing as many of the Harrier crews had been 8 weeks or more since their last shore leave, and there was cargo to sell, it seemed likely that they would stay on Arunisiir for a few days. Lady Nitrane kept an eye on the treasure ship along with Unter, and decided that the imperials were back to a normal level of security.
As it was approaching evening when they arrived the crew of all three Harriers went to the bar to let their hair down. Lady Nitrane took the role of hostess and entertainments officer, keeping the men and women of the crew occupied. Unter kep order, ensuring no rowdiness broke out, and Slayed wrapped up proceedings and ensured that everyone returned to the ships in good order.
The next day, Captain Slayed went with the other two ship captains to resupply the ships, and to buy additional supplies as a contingency against needing to stay on station some more. After than he went to the trading station and sold the cargo that had been in the Harriers' cargo bays for the past three or four months.
Meanwhile, continuing the efforts to give the crew a short but intense break, Lady Nitrane decided that a party would be in order. She arranged the bar to provide staff and alcohol for the party, and organised food, cookers and tables for the evening. The three ships were positioned as they had been on Paal, with all three cargo holds arranged in a three sided triangle. One would hold the bar, another would be where food was cooked, and the third for tables and chairs.
As things were being arranged, Nitrane saw First Officer Jagad heading to the bar and asked if she and the officers from the treasure ship would be interested in attending. Jagad's eyes immediately widened in pleasure and she gushingly accepted. She had been so bored on this uninteresting planet and this would be a delightful send off. Nitrane asked about what had happened while she and the travellers were 'away' and Jagad told her about the escorts being downed by an unknown assailant. Nitrane told her that the party were from Drinax and flew the flag from time to time, even this far out, and also were pirate hunters. Jagad accepted this and was impressed, although not as impressive as the Imperial Navy of course. With that she thanked Lady Nitrane for the invitation and with a much more lively stop started toward the bar, then changed her mind and returned to the treasure ship, waving at Nitrane on the way past.
The evening approached and the crew that had volunteered to be cooks and waiters for the guests were put through a trial run and everything went smoothly. Selecting appropriate music (something bluesy and rock and roll-y seemed the most appropriate) the travellers returned to their Harrier to dress for the evening. Captain Slayed wore his admiral uniform now that the cat was out of the bag. Similarly Sparrow wore his officer uniform. Unter and Nitrane decided that he'd wear his bodyguard tuxedo while Lady Nitrane picked out an elegant but not too dazzling number befitting a hostess.
The guests arrived, most of the treasure ship officers were there; First Officer Jagad, Second Officer Halbinar, Astrogator Osho, and Chief Engineer (Acting) Polo were known the travellers. Lead Pilot Smirh, Cargo Chief Niven and Tactical Officer Grimbold were not. In addition a number of crew from the treasure ship also came. Lady Nitrane greeted everyone and saw too it that people were having fun. Unter took up a position near the cooking area and supervised. Unter was located near the bar, supposedly supervising but more often than not testing. And Captain Slayed was to be found at one of the tables talking and laughing with whoever came and sat near him.
After a while Jagad and Osha came to see Lady Nitrane to give thanks and to tell her that they had to go back to the ship. Jagad was very keen to speak with Nitrane again and hoped she could so so before the treasure ship left.
A little later, after night had fallen and the party was in full swing, a solitary figure was seen approaching. It was Captain Torsa, marching proudly up to the party. Lady Nitrane immediately noticed and went to meet him. Torsa was wearing his dress uniform and identified some personal marks of nobility amongst the imperial navy insignia.
Torsa greeted Lady Nitrane civilly and proceeded to walk to the bar, where a colourful pyramid of cocktails was being poured. Torsa got a small sherry. At the cooking area he observed the cooks and their delicious seared slabs of meat. He did not partake. Lastly he checked the seating area and saw that Captain Slayed was settled in talking to anyone who wanted to chat. Only then did he engage Lady Nitrane in a polite and reserved conversation.
After a short while, Lady Nitrane realised that he was looking at Captain Slayed from time to time. She adjusted her position so that Slayed was visible over her shoulder and watched Torsa intently. Expecting disgust or disdain, instead she saw envy and longing. It seemed that Captain Torsa had been informed that Captain Slayed was in fact Admiral Slayed (Imperial Navy, retired). While Slayed led a crowd of people in song, recounted tall tales, led a conga line, and was the life of the party, Torsa was not approached by anyone and got at best an acknowledging nod from one or two people.
The conversation with Torsa continued, with Torsa looking over her shoulder at Slayed, and Nitrane using her diplomatic skills to ensure Torsa was engaged. A useful idiot, he started opening up to the mission they had at hand. It transpired that their next stop would be Acrid when they left, but when she coyly asked about the contents of the vault he smiled and said that he couldn't possibly tell her that.
It was then that she realised he was looking at her more, with the longing she'd seen on his face before, and not at Slayed. He said that he would very much like to speak with her again before they left. Captain Slayed at this point came over, bejeweled admirals jacket unbuttoned and having wished many of his audience a good night as they hurried back to the treasure ship. Captain Torsa stiffened and gave a slight formal bow as a laconic and relaxed Slayed firmly shook his hand. Torsa at this point thanked Lady Nitrane for the evening and turned to go.
"Tosser" said Slayed as the captain marched away, back straight.
With the party over for the Imperials, the crew relaxed and settled in for a few more hours of cards, drinking and laughing. They were advised that due to their sterling work they could choose what they wanted to do the next day. Some wanted to go hunting, others wanted to do some damage to the stocks of alcohol in the bar.
The travellers retired to their Harrier to discuss what would happen next.
To be continued.
(What your ships look like compared to other ships)
Heaving a great sigh of relief the travellers considered their situation. They needed to get lots of supplies for their ships, and still thought that they should get out of Arunisiir spaceport as quickly as possible. However, seeing as many of the Harrier crews had been 8 weeks or more since their last shore leave, and there was cargo to sell, it seemed likely that they would stay on Arunisiir for a few days. Lady Nitrane kept an eye on the treasure ship along with Unter, and decided that the imperials were back to a normal level of security.
As it was approaching evening when they arrived the crew of all three Harriers went to the bar to let their hair down. Lady Nitrane took the role of hostess and entertainments officer, keeping the men and women of the crew occupied. Unter kep order, ensuring no rowdiness broke out, and Slayed wrapped up proceedings and ensured that everyone returned to the ships in good order.
The next day, Captain Slayed went with the other two ship captains to resupply the ships, and to buy additional supplies as a contingency against needing to stay on station some more. After than he went to the trading station and sold the cargo that had been in the Harriers' cargo bays for the past three or four months.
Meanwhile, continuing the efforts to give the crew a short but intense break, Lady Nitrane decided that a party would be in order. She arranged the bar to provide staff and alcohol for the party, and organised food, cookers and tables for the evening. The three ships were positioned as they had been on Paal, with all three cargo holds arranged in a three sided triangle. One would hold the bar, another would be where food was cooked, and the third for tables and chairs.
As things were being arranged, Nitrane saw First Officer Jagad heading to the bar and asked if she and the officers from the treasure ship would be interested in attending. Jagad's eyes immediately widened in pleasure and she gushingly accepted. She had been so bored on this uninteresting planet and this would be a delightful send off. Nitrane asked about what had happened while she and the travellers were 'away' and Jagad told her about the escorts being downed by an unknown assailant. Nitrane told her that the party were from Drinax and flew the flag from time to time, even this far out, and also were pirate hunters. Jagad accepted this and was impressed, although not as impressive as the Imperial Navy of course. With that she thanked Lady Nitrane for the invitation and with a much more lively stop started toward the bar, then changed her mind and returned to the treasure ship, waving at Nitrane on the way past.
The evening approached and the crew that had volunteered to be cooks and waiters for the guests were put through a trial run and everything went smoothly. Selecting appropriate music (something bluesy and rock and roll-y seemed the most appropriate) the travellers returned to their Harrier to dress for the evening. Captain Slayed wore his admiral uniform now that the cat was out of the bag. Similarly Sparrow wore his officer uniform. Unter and Nitrane decided that he'd wear his bodyguard tuxedo while Lady Nitrane picked out an elegant but not too dazzling number befitting a hostess.
The guests arrived, most of the treasure ship officers were there; First Officer Jagad, Second Officer Halbinar, Astrogator Osho, and Chief Engineer (Acting) Polo were known the travellers. Lead Pilot Smirh, Cargo Chief Niven and Tactical Officer Grimbold were not. In addition a number of crew from the treasure ship also came. Lady Nitrane greeted everyone and saw too it that people were having fun. Unter took up a position near the cooking area and supervised. Unter was located near the bar, supposedly supervising but more often than not testing. And Captain Slayed was to be found at one of the tables talking and laughing with whoever came and sat near him.
After a while Jagad and Osha came to see Lady Nitrane to give thanks and to tell her that they had to go back to the ship. Jagad was very keen to speak with Nitrane again and hoped she could so so before the treasure ship left.
A little later, after night had fallen and the party was in full swing, a solitary figure was seen approaching. It was Captain Torsa, marching proudly up to the party. Lady Nitrane immediately noticed and went to meet him. Torsa was wearing his dress uniform and identified some personal marks of nobility amongst the imperial navy insignia.
Torsa greeted Lady Nitrane civilly and proceeded to walk to the bar, where a colourful pyramid of cocktails was being poured. Torsa got a small sherry. At the cooking area he observed the cooks and their delicious seared slabs of meat. He did not partake. Lastly he checked the seating area and saw that Captain Slayed was settled in talking to anyone who wanted to chat. Only then did he engage Lady Nitrane in a polite and reserved conversation.
After a short while, Lady Nitrane realised that he was looking at Captain Slayed from time to time. She adjusted her position so that Slayed was visible over her shoulder and watched Torsa intently. Expecting disgust or disdain, instead she saw envy and longing. It seemed that Captain Torsa had been informed that Captain Slayed was in fact Admiral Slayed (Imperial Navy, retired). While Slayed led a crowd of people in song, recounted tall tales, led a conga line, and was the life of the party, Torsa was not approached by anyone and got at best an acknowledging nod from one or two people.
The conversation with Torsa continued, with Torsa looking over her shoulder at Slayed, and Nitrane using her diplomatic skills to ensure Torsa was engaged. A useful idiot, he started opening up to the mission they had at hand. It transpired that their next stop would be Acrid when they left, but when she coyly asked about the contents of the vault he smiled and said that he couldn't possibly tell her that.
It was then that she realised he was looking at her more, with the longing she'd seen on his face before, and not at Slayed. He said that he would very much like to speak with her again before they left. Captain Slayed at this point came over, bejeweled admirals jacket unbuttoned and having wished many of his audience a good night as they hurried back to the treasure ship. Captain Torsa stiffened and gave a slight formal bow as a laconic and relaxed Slayed firmly shook his hand. Torsa at this point thanked Lady Nitrane for the evening and turned to go.
"Tosser" said Slayed as the captain marched away, back straight.
With the party over for the Imperials, the crew relaxed and settled in for a few more hours of cards, drinking and laughing. They were advised that due to their sterling work they could choose what they wanted to do the next day. Some wanted to go hunting, others wanted to do some damage to the stocks of alcohol in the bar.
The travellers retired to their Harrier to discuss what would happen next.
To be continued.
Saturday, 7 July 2018
Return of the prodigal travellers
The Harriers returned to the sky after stripping the Patrol Cruiser of its easily salvageable items and burying the crew. The next concern was the Gazelle still in orbit above the spaceport. They didn't have long to wait to see what would happen next as their sensors picked up the Gazelle coming over the horizon with full sensor sweeps as it appeared to be searching for the downed ship.
The Harriers pulled back, allowing the Gazelle to be drawn all the way around from the starport. The Gazelle did not detect the Harriers and when the party opened fire the imperials were taken entirely by surprise. After two rounds of pounding, the party watched as the imperial ship crashed in to the planet surface, its hull falling apart, life support all but destroyed.
With nothing to salvage, and no more navy ships in orbit, the travellers decided to move closer to the spaceport, the better to keep an eye on the treasure ship.
On the first day the scout ship Whistlestop, crewed by Yan and his robot Bucket, left Arunisiir and jumped away. The next four days were uneventful, with no traffic in or out. Unfortunately the supplies on the ships were running out, leaving the option of having one ship return to the port for supplies, or to land and go hunting and gathering.
At this point the Harriers decided to go closer still to the spaceport, but one miscalculated and was detected by the spaceport sensors. Three times the ship was challenged to identify itself, but three times refused to acknowledge the request. After the third time 24 missiles were launched and streaked towards the Harriers, which were in close proximity to each other.
With barely enough time to react, the Harriers instantly initiated electronic countermeasures and all missiles were destroyed. In the explosions the ships returned to the side of the planet away from the Arunisiir spaceport, hoping that the attackers would assume that the ship was destroyed.
With supplies running short a decision needed to be made. Clearly the spaceport was on high alert, but something had to be done. It was decided that the Harriers would move away from the planet to outside the 100 diameter range and then make a long sweep around to approach the spaceport as if they had just arrived. At the appropriate moment the transponders were all turned on, and they started down to the planet.
Almost immediately they were hailed by the spaceport and asked their identity and purpose. The three Harriers were identified as yacht/traders under the command of Captain Slayed. Their purpose included that they had trade goods to sell. The spaceport control tower advised that an incident had taken place and that it would be necessary to do a full search of the ships on landing, and that permission to land was based on that being accepted.
Lady Nitrane asked what the incident was, and the person talking to her admitted that at least one ship had been shot down. He abruptly stopped discussing it, and directed the Harriers to land.
Knowing that a search was imminent the decision was made to check for suspicious goods on board. This meant jettisoning the recently acquired battle dress and FGMP-15 weapons obtained from the marines on the Patrol Cruiser. Hoping to find them again, Sparrow took note of the location, direction and speed.
Upon landing the travellers saw the repair ship landed close to the treasure ship. Also the newly arrived trader was located near the spaceport control centre. Landing close to where they had been berthed previously, the three Harriers were approached by Imperial marines and officers waiting for the hatches to open.
Lady Nitrane, incensed that there were imperials conducting the searches, contacted the control tower to find out what was happening. In short, the control tower explained that due to the circumstances of multiple ships disappearing, and the overwhelming weaponry of the imperials, the navy had taken charge of security at the spaceport. It came down to the ship not being serviced, and the travellers not being able to purchase supplies, unless they subjected themselves and their ships to a search as had been explained as they approached the planet.
Very reluctantly they agreed and opened the hatches. Captain Slayed assembled all crew and presented their papers. Second Officer Halbinar, who the party had previously met, conducted the ID checks while the marines performed searches of all three ships. They had, Slayed advised them, jumped to Exocet at an agreed time to meet with their other ships, and then as they had some cargo to deliver, returned to Arunisiir. Other than a slight discrepancy in the cargo manifest of one ship, which Captain Slayed explained away, the crews were cleared.
Unfortunately, the need to check ID did give one vital piece of information away. As she finished the checks, Second Officer Halbinar saluted Slayed and said "thank you Admiral" and walked back to the treasure ship.
As they looked at each other and considered what to do, the Arunisiir spaceport technicians approach the party and asked "need refuelling?" At which point the realised that their tanks were full, which might be hard to explain given they had just gone to great lengths to explain that they had jumped from Exocet.
To be continued.
The Harriers pulled back, allowing the Gazelle to be drawn all the way around from the starport. The Gazelle did not detect the Harriers and when the party opened fire the imperials were taken entirely by surprise. After two rounds of pounding, the party watched as the imperial ship crashed in to the planet surface, its hull falling apart, life support all but destroyed.
With nothing to salvage, and no more navy ships in orbit, the travellers decided to move closer to the spaceport, the better to keep an eye on the treasure ship.
On the first day the scout ship Whistlestop, crewed by Yan and his robot Bucket, left Arunisiir and jumped away. The next four days were uneventful, with no traffic in or out. Unfortunately the supplies on the ships were running out, leaving the option of having one ship return to the port for supplies, or to land and go hunting and gathering.
At this point the Harriers decided to go closer still to the spaceport, but one miscalculated and was detected by the spaceport sensors. Three times the ship was challenged to identify itself, but three times refused to acknowledge the request. After the third time 24 missiles were launched and streaked towards the Harriers, which were in close proximity to each other.
With barely enough time to react, the Harriers instantly initiated electronic countermeasures and all missiles were destroyed. In the explosions the ships returned to the side of the planet away from the Arunisiir spaceport, hoping that the attackers would assume that the ship was destroyed.
With supplies running short a decision needed to be made. Clearly the spaceport was on high alert, but something had to be done. It was decided that the Harriers would move away from the planet to outside the 100 diameter range and then make a long sweep around to approach the spaceport as if they had just arrived. At the appropriate moment the transponders were all turned on, and they started down to the planet.
Almost immediately they were hailed by the spaceport and asked their identity and purpose. The three Harriers were identified as yacht/traders under the command of Captain Slayed. Their purpose included that they had trade goods to sell. The spaceport control tower advised that an incident had taken place and that it would be necessary to do a full search of the ships on landing, and that permission to land was based on that being accepted.
Lady Nitrane asked what the incident was, and the person talking to her admitted that at least one ship had been shot down. He abruptly stopped discussing it, and directed the Harriers to land.
Knowing that a search was imminent the decision was made to check for suspicious goods on board. This meant jettisoning the recently acquired battle dress and FGMP-15 weapons obtained from the marines on the Patrol Cruiser. Hoping to find them again, Sparrow took note of the location, direction and speed.
Upon landing the travellers saw the repair ship landed close to the treasure ship. Also the newly arrived trader was located near the spaceport control centre. Landing close to where they had been berthed previously, the three Harriers were approached by Imperial marines and officers waiting for the hatches to open.
Lady Nitrane, incensed that there were imperials conducting the searches, contacted the control tower to find out what was happening. In short, the control tower explained that due to the circumstances of multiple ships disappearing, and the overwhelming weaponry of the imperials, the navy had taken charge of security at the spaceport. It came down to the ship not being serviced, and the travellers not being able to purchase supplies, unless they subjected themselves and their ships to a search as had been explained as they approached the planet.
Very reluctantly they agreed and opened the hatches. Captain Slayed assembled all crew and presented their papers. Second Officer Halbinar, who the party had previously met, conducted the ID checks while the marines performed searches of all three ships. They had, Slayed advised them, jumped to Exocet at an agreed time to meet with their other ships, and then as they had some cargo to deliver, returned to Arunisiir. Other than a slight discrepancy in the cargo manifest of one ship, which Captain Slayed explained away, the crews were cleared.
Unfortunately, the need to check ID did give one vital piece of information away. As she finished the checks, Second Officer Halbinar saluted Slayed and said "thank you Admiral" and walked back to the treasure ship.
As they looked at each other and considered what to do, the Arunisiir spaceport technicians approach the party and asked "need refuelling?" At which point the realised that their tanks were full, which might be hard to explain given they had just gone to great lengths to explain that they had jumped from Exocet.
To be continued.
Saturday, 30 June 2018
Imperial Navy Blues
The Gazelle took up station much like the other escort had held many days before. The Patrol Corvette joined it, but the repair ship landed. Time passed. The two imperial ships were in geosynchronous orbits about the space station so there was little chance of the traveller's Harrier being detected as they were right on the horizon.
After a few hours the Patrol Corvette also landed. And a few hours after that it was up in orbit again, although this time it was in a higher orbit than the Gazelle, and unlike the other imperial ship it was moving.
Some careful sensor scans later it became clear that the patrol corvette was making a scanning sweep of the planet, and that it was likely that the Harriers would be noticed.
Making a plan on the spur of the moment the travellers moved the ships around the far side of the planet such that they would not be detected by either imperial ship as the patrol corvette made its first few orbits of the planet. The idea was to pounce on the patrol corvette once it was on the other side of the planet from the gazelle, and take it out without the other ship knowing.
When the time came to engage the enemy the Harriers had the element of surprise and this time, with the corvette not picking them up on sensors they killed the crew with radiation damage, leaving it still in orbit. Boarding the ship confirmed that there were no survivors strong enough to put up a fight and a crew was transferred to pilot the ship down to the planet surface and hide it.
In no time all the travellers' crew was burying the bodies, covering the ship, and transferring to the Harriers anything that might prove useful. This included the ships logs and records, battle dress and weapons from the marines, and a full cargo manifest. Other items such as the ships boat and gcarrier were ignored for now, and a more thorough search of the ship for salvage (or to repair it sufficiently to keep it) were postponed.
The Harriers took off again, and observed that the gazelle was still in place. What to do next. Hmmm.
To be continued.
After a few hours the Patrol Corvette also landed. And a few hours after that it was up in orbit again, although this time it was in a higher orbit than the Gazelle, and unlike the other imperial ship it was moving.
Some careful sensor scans later it became clear that the patrol corvette was making a scanning sweep of the planet, and that it was likely that the Harriers would be noticed.
Making a plan on the spur of the moment the travellers moved the ships around the far side of the planet such that they would not be detected by either imperial ship as the patrol corvette made its first few orbits of the planet. The idea was to pounce on the patrol corvette once it was on the other side of the planet from the gazelle, and take it out without the other ship knowing.
When the time came to engage the enemy the Harriers had the element of surprise and this time, with the corvette not picking them up on sensors they killed the crew with radiation damage, leaving it still in orbit. Boarding the ship confirmed that there were no survivors strong enough to put up a fight and a crew was transferred to pilot the ship down to the planet surface and hide it.
In no time all the travellers' crew was burying the bodies, covering the ship, and transferring to the Harriers anything that might prove useful. This included the ships logs and records, battle dress and weapons from the marines, and a full cargo manifest. Other items such as the ships boat and gcarrier were ignored for now, and a more thorough search of the ship for salvage (or to repair it sufficiently to keep it) were postponed.
The Harriers took off again, and observed that the gazelle was still in place. What to do next. Hmmm.
To be continued.
Fast times at Arunisiir Port
The Harriers arrived in Arunisiir and headed to the planet. On the trip a Gazelle class escort was detected, although it seemed that the Harriers had not been detected. Captain Slayed directed two of the Harriers into position on the opposite side of the planet while the party landed to see what had happened.
The spaceport gave permission to land, and the Harrier headed to the surface of the planet. On drawing close it became apparent that the treasure ship was at the space port, but had clearly landed heavily. The ground was cracked in places, and soot and fire damage was visible on the aft of the ship. Landing a little way away the party considered their options.
Day 1
The spaceport authorities seemed to be represented by a lone Aslan who stalked up to the ship. Meeting him the party discovered that he considered himself the owner of the land and so demanded that the party pay him say 100Cr per ton of ship. Captain Slayed, fresh from his authoritative command of the situation with Klowaaar on Paradise, used the same alpha male approach and made this newcomer, called Ekaft, stand down and sullenly trudge off without payment.
Goff headed out to the salvage yard to see if there was anything interesting, while the others headed to the bar. There, Slayed met Chief Engineer (acting) Polo who eventually opened up and admitted that there had been an accident on the ship and there had been many fatalities. It might be possible to be hired on to help out in the engineering bay, but any prospective employees would have to be vetted by the captain (she rolls her eyes at this) before they could start.
Lady Nitrane and Unter remained in the bar while Slayed went to find Goff.
In the bar the more people caught their eye. One was a scout who was loudly proclaiming is awesomeness, and was sitting next to a battered robot. It turned out that the scout, called Van, had saved the day, and was gladly receiving drinks from any who would buy them for him. As Nitrane and Unter approached he said in a mock-exasperated voice that he supposed he could recount his heroics just one more time. This he did, at great length, and in summary all he had really done is jump back to Fist to tell the authorities and then return, but to the crew of the treasure ship he was a hero. His robot, called Bucket, sat impassively through this.
Slayed in the meantime had found Goff and broached the subject of what to do with the Imperial Treasure Ship. Initially the conversation skirted around the desire on the part of the party to make off with whatever was in the treasure ship vault, but it turned out that Goff disliked imperials and had also worked out that the party were more pirate then philanthropist, which he didn't mind. After all, he had been a friend of Lady Yemar for 'more years than she'd care to remember'.
Back at the bar two imperial crew members had joined the small crowd around Van, and proceeded to loudly join in. They were called O'Leary and Ilin, and they were gunners who liked a drink. Lady Nitrane and Unter took them to another table and discovered from them that the ship was looking for engineers. At this point Slayed returned after his talk to Goff and the imperial crew noticed his bearing and demeanour and decided enough was enough.
With not much else to do, the party headed to the ship, all except for Slayed who headed to the trading offices to get a feel for what might be available for sale. After making contact with a couple of traders he too headed to the ship to make plans.
Day 2
The next day, the crew decided to head to the treasure ship and offer the services of engineers for the purpose of helping repair the ship. It had been discussed that some kind of sabotage might be appropriately pulled off in order to make the ship mis-jump (although where to find it afterwards) or to stop it jumping (more plausible) or even pay with the manoeuvre or power plant to blow at a specific time. With no specific plans in place it was decided to at least get someone on board to look around.
Approaching the ship the marines on duty stopped the party and asked their business. Slayed said he had some crew who might be useful in the imperial ship repairs. The marine radioed in and a short time later Second Officer Halbinar disembarked and met with the party. Yes, the services of experienced engineers would be appreciated, but they'd have to see the engineer and personally check their identity and their expertise levels. It was agreed that some time later the engineers would approach the treasure ship for these checks.
Before the scheduled meeting, the party, and Slayed in particular, decided to have a look around the space port. Noting the System Defence Boats and many missile turrets, their state of repair and effectiveness was a significant point of interest. It seemed that this planet, which was nominally TL6, still managed to mount an effective missile defence, although the SDBs were significantly less impressive, merging low and moderately high technology in their construction.
At the appointed time, the party and Goff approach the treasure ship. Goff is first interviewed by Second Officer Halbinar, and then Chief Engineer (acting) Polo asks some questions about his experience and capabilities, which Goff seems to have passed as they agree he can start work the next morning.
That evening is spent planning what Goff might be able to do to the treasure ship drives. One approach was to make the ship mis-jump, another to prevent it from jumping at all. With there being no actual working jump drives any tampering might be found when they were repaired. Alternatives were discussed but without someone on board to take advantage of the situation there was not a lot that could be done effectively.
Day 3
Goff reported for duty in the morning and boarded the treasure ship. The rest of the crew had an uneventful day. They purchased supplies for the three Harriers for 4 weeks each, putting the supplies for the other ships in the cargo hold.
Other than that, the party got into a routine of visiting the bar and speaking to whichever crew they found there.
Day 4
The next morning the spaceport was woken by a ship buzzing low over the port then heading back up to orbit. This unusual event was made more interesting by the realisation that it was a scout ship that was last recorded on the ships logs in Theev, and belonged to Hrol Irontooth, a proper pirate's pirate. It was known to the party that Hrol's flagship is a 1,200 ton Halaheike-class pocket warship.
In addition, the Harrier picked up a short, encrypted message coming from the treasure ship to the scout as it buzzed the port. It seemed that the pirate had someone on board the treasure ship. Could the drive explosion have been sabotage?
Deciding to try to use this to the party's advantage, Slayed approached the treasure ship and demanded to see the captain. The marine on duty was persuaded to fetch the first officer, and First Officer Jagad, when she arrived, was persuaded to allow Slayed to see the captain.
On arriving in his office there was a long delay while the captain finished some essential paperwork and then focused his gaze on Slayed. As the information was relayed to the treasure ship captain that a possible saboteur was on board it became quickly apparent that the message was not at all welcome. the captain flatly refused to believe that a message could have come from his ship, and furthermore there was no chance that some upstart vagrant ship captain like Slayed could tell him otherwise.
At this point Admiral Slayed informed the captain that he had been in the Imperial Navy, to which the captain asked what rank. Slayed refused to answer. The captain asked to see his ID to confirm who he was. Slayed refused to hand it over. At that point the captain asked that Slayed be escorted out and resumed his paperwork. Slayed made a snide comment about the importance of pushing bits of paper around and left, escorted by First Officer Jagad and the marine.
While Slayed got the impression that Jagad sympathised he was informed that there would be no more access to the treasure ship for him.
Day 5
The next morning Goff was refused access to the treasure ship due to the unsavoury company that he kept. This seriously curtailed some of the plans that had been considered. Now, any information about the treasure ship, its cargo, how to open the vault and what its destination or route would be would have to be gleaned from talking to and befriending people in the bar. Slayed's assumption that the captain had the means to open the vault would also be harder to test or put into practice.
At this point there were discussions about what to do about the Gazelle escort ship in orbit. It was decided that when the repair ship arrived, presumably with the other escort, it would be easier to proceed without there being two escorts.
A message was sent to the other two Harriers to carefully and stealthily attack the Gazelle, fleeing should there be difficulties. They sprung into action. Approaching from over the horizon, the Harriers got a sensor lock and fired their particle barbettes before the Gazelle even knew they were there. They fired again, the Gazelle diving for the relative safety of the planet surface where they would be in range of protective missiles. The imperials fired wildly, now knowing where the Harriers were.
The Harriers increased speed, chasing the Gazelle and firing again. And again. And then the Gazelle impacted with the ground and the Harriers returned to the other side of the planet. Job done.
Back at the spaceport the travellers were making themselves conspicuous. LAdy Nitrane was sunbathing on the wing of the Harrier. Slayed and Sparrow were playing ball, and Unter was shirtless riding backwards on a bicycle. They did not hear the Gazelle crash but they found out that they had been successful when the Harriers reported in, and at the same moment activity around the treasure ship burst into frantic action.
The turrets on the treasure ship were activated and all marines brought out onto the apron. Other crew ran to the central spaceport offices and seemed to be demanding vehicles, as soon enough they were heading out in the direction of the crashed escort. A strange tension filled the air.
Some time later the vehicles returned, the crew somewhat dejected looking. The ship was still on a heightened level of alertness for most of the day but it eventually relaxed as no further threats were detected.
Day 6
The next day things seemed to be more or less returned to normal, which was slightly odd given that clearly the threat had not been eliminated. Sparrow went to the bar as it opened and found the treasure ship's astrogator Osha there, already drinking. She seemed to be a little shaken up by the events of the previous day.
Sparrow got talking to her and they seemed to hit it off. Osha had the distinctive gills and blue skin of a Dolberg native. She started talking about her life growing up on Dolberg and how she joined the navy. After a while, and noticeably more relaxed, she observed the time and made her goodbyes, voicing a hope that they could meet again soon, or as soon as her shore leave came around again.
That night the party discussed the fact that they'd been on Arunisiir for nearly a week and that soon enough there would be questions about why they were still there. The questions seemed so worrying that the plan was made to pretend to jump to Exocet (where the party had been before) but in reality to stay stealthed in orbit around Arunisiir and observe from afar. They said their farewells and informed the relevant authorities of flight plans and took off. They headed out towards the 100d limit but made a large loop around the planet and returned to the opposite side from the spaceport whereupon they landed and distributed supplies to the other Harriers.
Day 7
Establishing a routine of one ship up and two ships down, one day on station and two off station, the travellers began waiting for things to happen.
Nothing else happened that day that the Harriers could detect.
Day 8
A ship was detected arriving and landing. It registered as a type of trading ship.
Day 9
Nothing happened
Day 10
A ship took off, identified as the far trader Hopeful Wanderer
Day 11
Another ship took off, this time the far trader Fafnir.
Day 12
Nothing happened
Day 13
Nothing happened
Day 14
Three ships arrived. A Gazelle Escort, a Patrol Cruiser, and a Fleet Tender. The Imperials had finally arrived! What had happened at the space port was anyone's guess, but at last things were happening.
To be continued...
The spaceport gave permission to land, and the Harrier headed to the surface of the planet. On drawing close it became apparent that the treasure ship was at the space port, but had clearly landed heavily. The ground was cracked in places, and soot and fire damage was visible on the aft of the ship. Landing a little way away the party considered their options.
Day 1
The spaceport authorities seemed to be represented by a lone Aslan who stalked up to the ship. Meeting him the party discovered that he considered himself the owner of the land and so demanded that the party pay him say 100Cr per ton of ship. Captain Slayed, fresh from his authoritative command of the situation with Klowaaar on Paradise, used the same alpha male approach and made this newcomer, called Ekaft, stand down and sullenly trudge off without payment.
Goff headed out to the salvage yard to see if there was anything interesting, while the others headed to the bar. There, Slayed met Chief Engineer (acting) Polo who eventually opened up and admitted that there had been an accident on the ship and there had been many fatalities. It might be possible to be hired on to help out in the engineering bay, but any prospective employees would have to be vetted by the captain (she rolls her eyes at this) before they could start.
Lady Nitrane and Unter remained in the bar while Slayed went to find Goff.
In the bar the more people caught their eye. One was a scout who was loudly proclaiming is awesomeness, and was sitting next to a battered robot. It turned out that the scout, called Van, had saved the day, and was gladly receiving drinks from any who would buy them for him. As Nitrane and Unter approached he said in a mock-exasperated voice that he supposed he could recount his heroics just one more time. This he did, at great length, and in summary all he had really done is jump back to Fist to tell the authorities and then return, but to the crew of the treasure ship he was a hero. His robot, called Bucket, sat impassively through this.
Slayed in the meantime had found Goff and broached the subject of what to do with the Imperial Treasure Ship. Initially the conversation skirted around the desire on the part of the party to make off with whatever was in the treasure ship vault, but it turned out that Goff disliked imperials and had also worked out that the party were more pirate then philanthropist, which he didn't mind. After all, he had been a friend of Lady Yemar for 'more years than she'd care to remember'.
Back at the bar two imperial crew members had joined the small crowd around Van, and proceeded to loudly join in. They were called O'Leary and Ilin, and they were gunners who liked a drink. Lady Nitrane and Unter took them to another table and discovered from them that the ship was looking for engineers. At this point Slayed returned after his talk to Goff and the imperial crew noticed his bearing and demeanour and decided enough was enough.
With not much else to do, the party headed to the ship, all except for Slayed who headed to the trading offices to get a feel for what might be available for sale. After making contact with a couple of traders he too headed to the ship to make plans.
Day 2
The next day, the crew decided to head to the treasure ship and offer the services of engineers for the purpose of helping repair the ship. It had been discussed that some kind of sabotage might be appropriately pulled off in order to make the ship mis-jump (although where to find it afterwards) or to stop it jumping (more plausible) or even pay with the manoeuvre or power plant to blow at a specific time. With no specific plans in place it was decided to at least get someone on board to look around.
Approaching the ship the marines on duty stopped the party and asked their business. Slayed said he had some crew who might be useful in the imperial ship repairs. The marine radioed in and a short time later Second Officer Halbinar disembarked and met with the party. Yes, the services of experienced engineers would be appreciated, but they'd have to see the engineer and personally check their identity and their expertise levels. It was agreed that some time later the engineers would approach the treasure ship for these checks.
Before the scheduled meeting, the party, and Slayed in particular, decided to have a look around the space port. Noting the System Defence Boats and many missile turrets, their state of repair and effectiveness was a significant point of interest. It seemed that this planet, which was nominally TL6, still managed to mount an effective missile defence, although the SDBs were significantly less impressive, merging low and moderately high technology in their construction.
At the appointed time, the party and Goff approach the treasure ship. Goff is first interviewed by Second Officer Halbinar, and then Chief Engineer (acting) Polo asks some questions about his experience and capabilities, which Goff seems to have passed as they agree he can start work the next morning.
That evening is spent planning what Goff might be able to do to the treasure ship drives. One approach was to make the ship mis-jump, another to prevent it from jumping at all. With there being no actual working jump drives any tampering might be found when they were repaired. Alternatives were discussed but without someone on board to take advantage of the situation there was not a lot that could be done effectively.
Day 3
Goff reported for duty in the morning and boarded the treasure ship. The rest of the crew had an uneventful day. They purchased supplies for the three Harriers for 4 weeks each, putting the supplies for the other ships in the cargo hold.
Other than that, the party got into a routine of visiting the bar and speaking to whichever crew they found there.
Day 4
The next morning the spaceport was woken by a ship buzzing low over the port then heading back up to orbit. This unusual event was made more interesting by the realisation that it was a scout ship that was last recorded on the ships logs in Theev, and belonged to Hrol Irontooth, a proper pirate's pirate. It was known to the party that Hrol's flagship is a 1,200 ton Halaheike-class pocket warship.
In addition, the Harrier picked up a short, encrypted message coming from the treasure ship to the scout as it buzzed the port. It seemed that the pirate had someone on board the treasure ship. Could the drive explosion have been sabotage?
Deciding to try to use this to the party's advantage, Slayed approached the treasure ship and demanded to see the captain. The marine on duty was persuaded to fetch the first officer, and First Officer Jagad, when she arrived, was persuaded to allow Slayed to see the captain.
On arriving in his office there was a long delay while the captain finished some essential paperwork and then focused his gaze on Slayed. As the information was relayed to the treasure ship captain that a possible saboteur was on board it became quickly apparent that the message was not at all welcome. the captain flatly refused to believe that a message could have come from his ship, and furthermore there was no chance that some upstart vagrant ship captain like Slayed could tell him otherwise.
At this point Admiral Slayed informed the captain that he had been in the Imperial Navy, to which the captain asked what rank. Slayed refused to answer. The captain asked to see his ID to confirm who he was. Slayed refused to hand it over. At that point the captain asked that Slayed be escorted out and resumed his paperwork. Slayed made a snide comment about the importance of pushing bits of paper around and left, escorted by First Officer Jagad and the marine.
While Slayed got the impression that Jagad sympathised he was informed that there would be no more access to the treasure ship for him.
Day 5
The next morning Goff was refused access to the treasure ship due to the unsavoury company that he kept. This seriously curtailed some of the plans that had been considered. Now, any information about the treasure ship, its cargo, how to open the vault and what its destination or route would be would have to be gleaned from talking to and befriending people in the bar. Slayed's assumption that the captain had the means to open the vault would also be harder to test or put into practice.
At this point there were discussions about what to do about the Gazelle escort ship in orbit. It was decided that when the repair ship arrived, presumably with the other escort, it would be easier to proceed without there being two escorts.
A message was sent to the other two Harriers to carefully and stealthily attack the Gazelle, fleeing should there be difficulties. They sprung into action. Approaching from over the horizon, the Harriers got a sensor lock and fired their particle barbettes before the Gazelle even knew they were there. They fired again, the Gazelle diving for the relative safety of the planet surface where they would be in range of protective missiles. The imperials fired wildly, now knowing where the Harriers were.
The Harriers increased speed, chasing the Gazelle and firing again. And again. And then the Gazelle impacted with the ground and the Harriers returned to the other side of the planet. Job done.
Back at the spaceport the travellers were making themselves conspicuous. LAdy Nitrane was sunbathing on the wing of the Harrier. Slayed and Sparrow were playing ball, and Unter was shirtless riding backwards on a bicycle. They did not hear the Gazelle crash but they found out that they had been successful when the Harriers reported in, and at the same moment activity around the treasure ship burst into frantic action.
The turrets on the treasure ship were activated and all marines brought out onto the apron. Other crew ran to the central spaceport offices and seemed to be demanding vehicles, as soon enough they were heading out in the direction of the crashed escort. A strange tension filled the air.
Some time later the vehicles returned, the crew somewhat dejected looking. The ship was still on a heightened level of alertness for most of the day but it eventually relaxed as no further threats were detected.
Day 6
The next day things seemed to be more or less returned to normal, which was slightly odd given that clearly the threat had not been eliminated. Sparrow went to the bar as it opened and found the treasure ship's astrogator Osha there, already drinking. She seemed to be a little shaken up by the events of the previous day.
Sparrow got talking to her and they seemed to hit it off. Osha had the distinctive gills and blue skin of a Dolberg native. She started talking about her life growing up on Dolberg and how she joined the navy. After a while, and noticeably more relaxed, she observed the time and made her goodbyes, voicing a hope that they could meet again soon, or as soon as her shore leave came around again.
That night the party discussed the fact that they'd been on Arunisiir for nearly a week and that soon enough there would be questions about why they were still there. The questions seemed so worrying that the plan was made to pretend to jump to Exocet (where the party had been before) but in reality to stay stealthed in orbit around Arunisiir and observe from afar. They said their farewells and informed the relevant authorities of flight plans and took off. They headed out towards the 100d limit but made a large loop around the planet and returned to the opposite side from the spaceport whereupon they landed and distributed supplies to the other Harriers.
Day 7
Establishing a routine of one ship up and two ships down, one day on station and two off station, the travellers began waiting for things to happen.
Nothing else happened that day that the Harriers could detect.
Day 8
A ship was detected arriving and landing. It registered as a type of trading ship.
Day 9
Nothing happened
Day 10
A ship took off, identified as the far trader Hopeful Wanderer
Day 11
Another ship took off, this time the far trader Fafnir.
Day 12
Nothing happened
Day 13
Nothing happened
Day 14
Three ships arrived. A Gazelle Escort, a Patrol Cruiser, and a Fleet Tender. The Imperials had finally arrived! What had happened at the space port was anyone's guess, but at last things were happening.
To be continued...
Monday, 28 May 2018
Back in home for tea?
Goff turned his attention away from the green scenery on the screens and asked the party what they wanted to see him for.
Lady Nitrane passed him plans to the space station, and pictures, and explained what the party had found. He considered the plans, asking some basic questions before noting that there was an unusual aspect to the station. Why, for example, did it have such a large amount of space set aside for laboratories, and also why so much manufacturing capability.
After the party made their case for Goff to help them with their genuine Sindalian Empire station, Goff pondered the opportunity and in short order said that he would help them. Of course he'd have to see it for himself, and he had four conditions:
1. A reserved docking bay for his use only.
2. 1000 tons of cargo space, near the docking bay, for his use only.
3. The freedom to pick his section heads, from people he knows and trusts
4. 10% of the manufacturing capacity for one year, to do with as he pleases.
The party agreed to these terms, while asking if any of the people he wanted to hire were on the way to the station. No, they were not.
Goff led the party back to the elevator and down to the vehicle, where he advised that the trip back would be a long one, and promptly fell asleep.
On arriving back at the lounge Goff told Bran and the others that he was going on a holiday. Their faces fell.
Back and the docking bays, Goff advised that his should would be able to follow along with the party ships and so he could be on the Harrier to get to know the party better. His ship, he explained, was quite automated.
Leaving The World the party headed to Paal, and then to Pourne and Clarke.
On Clarke the party met with Keeper Malos, the dour sullen gentlemen the party had worked with previously. He was glad to see them, in his own way, and said that he had some news that might interest them.
Apparently an Imperial Treasure Ship had experienced an explosion and was to be found on Arunisiir, a world only 2 jumps from Clarke. If the party were quick they might be able to take advantage of the situation. He had also acquired the ship specs in case they were interested.
A quick decision was made to follow the lead, although to Goff the change of plans was couched in terms of helping the Imperium, to which Goff replied that the Imperium were no friends of his.
Goff left his ship on Clarke, and the Harriers went via the gas giant in the Blue system on to Arunisiir.
TO BE CONTINUED
Lady Nitrane passed him plans to the space station, and pictures, and explained what the party had found. He considered the plans, asking some basic questions before noting that there was an unusual aspect to the station. Why, for example, did it have such a large amount of space set aside for laboratories, and also why so much manufacturing capability.
After the party made their case for Goff to help them with their genuine Sindalian Empire station, Goff pondered the opportunity and in short order said that he would help them. Of course he'd have to see it for himself, and he had four conditions:
1. A reserved docking bay for his use only.
2. 1000 tons of cargo space, near the docking bay, for his use only.
3. The freedom to pick his section heads, from people he knows and trusts
4. 10% of the manufacturing capacity for one year, to do with as he pleases.
The party agreed to these terms, while asking if any of the people he wanted to hire were on the way to the station. No, they were not.
Goff led the party back to the elevator and down to the vehicle, where he advised that the trip back would be a long one, and promptly fell asleep.
On arriving back at the lounge Goff told Bran and the others that he was going on a holiday. Their faces fell.
Back and the docking bays, Goff advised that his should would be able to follow along with the party ships and so he could be on the Harrier to get to know the party better. His ship, he explained, was quite automated.
Leaving The World the party headed to Paal, and then to Pourne and Clarke.
On Clarke the party met with Keeper Malos, the dour sullen gentlemen the party had worked with previously. He was glad to see them, in his own way, and said that he had some news that might interest them.
Apparently an Imperial Treasure Ship had experienced an explosion and was to be found on Arunisiir, a world only 2 jumps from Clarke. If the party were quick they might be able to take advantage of the situation. He had also acquired the ship specs in case they were interested.
A quick decision was made to follow the lead, although to Goff the change of plans was couched in terms of helping the Imperium, to which Goff replied that the Imperium were no friends of his.
Goff left his ship on Clarke, and the Harriers went via the gas giant in the Blue system on to Arunisiir.
TO BE CONTINUED
Monday, 21 May 2018
Getting Goff
The travellers arrived in the The World system near a gas giant, on the scanners was the huge space station that they had been told the legendary engineer Goff could be found on.
The station was enormous, about 50 kilometres in diameter and 10 km high. On opposite sides of the station were cubic protuberances about 3km on a side. This thing was huge, and the robotic voice that answered them when they hailed the station directed them to one of the side cubes. "Follow green" they were told.
Getting closer the party could see tiny dots darting around which the sensors identified as fighters. Closer still the opening that they were being directed to came into view. It was a full half a kilometre across and seemed to pass through to the other side of the cube. Green lights were visible.
Entering the enormous docking bay the travellers saw dozens of docking stations, four of which were already occupied (by a refuelling barge, a large savager, a system defense boat of some kind, and a far trader). Three green lights highlighted the docking ports that the Harriers could connect to. These were in a line, and when the party emerged from the ships they could see that they were along a single corridor. A person was waiting for them, grimy overall and an air of someone who works hard..
He introduced himself as Teppic, and asked them what they were doing at the station. Lady Nitrane told him that they were from Drinax and were flying the flag so to speak. They were also interested in talking to someone called Goff who they had been told was interested in old Sindalian ships. Teppic was vaguely interested, but kept walking as he took them to the common lounge area.
Emerging into a large common area the party could see tables and booths, a bar and various games machines. Through an open hatch a food preparation area could be seen. The five or six people already there were interested in the arrival, but in a half-hearted way, as if they were used to strangers arriving.
Teppic offered the party a drink, but really only had beer so that's what the party ordered. The rest of the crew of the Harriers were filing in now too, and Sparrow was tasked with keeping them in order.
The party were approached by another person, this time an older man with white beard, but with similarly greasy and worn overalls. He introduced himself as Bran. He said he'd heard that they wanted to talk to Goff. He wasn't expected back for a few days, he said, but it might be possible to take the party to him if it were urgent. Upon deciding that they might take him up on the offer he said his brother would be awake in about an hour and that he would take them.
Eventually Bran's brother Garn woke up and groggily came to see the party. He offered to take them to Goff, which meant putting on overalls with black pants and red shirt so that the robots that patrolled the engineering levels did not catch them and take them to the holding cells.
The trip involved taking a flat transportation pod, a bit like a mining cart, through the depths of the station to the dark levels. For the first hour Garn was quiet and didn't say much, but as he woke up he got more talkative.
Eventually reaching their destination, Garn and the travellers disembarked and put on torch headbands to light the way. Garn explained that the dark levels were so named because the lighting rigs had been salvaged centuries before.
After some time Lady Nitrane saw a light ahead which turned out to be Goff himself.
Goff was poking about under a large cylinder which had a panel removed. He grunted when the party got near but did not look up. "You!" he pointed at Lady Nitrane. "Hold this!". To Unter he said, "Get that wrench. No! Not that one, the heavy one! Now hit this as hard as you can just here." Luckily Unter hit true, and Lady Nitrane's arms only tingle for a bit.
He checked that the panel was on correctly and started packing up. When Lady Nitrane started talking he cut her off. "Plenty of time for that when we get there.". With that he led the party (telling Garn to make his own way back) to a small vehicle, into which he dumped his gear.
When everyone was aboard he adjusted some instruments and laid back. The vehicle started driving and Goff had a nap. Some time later they arrived at an elevator shaft and Goff got everyone out and into the lift, then pushed the up button. The lift arose for quite some time before stopping and opening up into a large dark room. Goff exited the lift and started waving his hands around until sensors detected him and turned on the lights.
The room had a wall of screens which seemed to be showing countryside. He hopped up on a chair, still staring at the screens and sighed. "Lovely isn't it" he said.
TO BE CONTINUED
The station was enormous, about 50 kilometres in diameter and 10 km high. On opposite sides of the station were cubic protuberances about 3km on a side. This thing was huge, and the robotic voice that answered them when they hailed the station directed them to one of the side cubes. "Follow green" they were told.
Getting closer the party could see tiny dots darting around which the sensors identified as fighters. Closer still the opening that they were being directed to came into view. It was a full half a kilometre across and seemed to pass through to the other side of the cube. Green lights were visible.
Entering the enormous docking bay the travellers saw dozens of docking stations, four of which were already occupied (by a refuelling barge, a large savager, a system defense boat of some kind, and a far trader). Three green lights highlighted the docking ports that the Harriers could connect to. These were in a line, and when the party emerged from the ships they could see that they were along a single corridor. A person was waiting for them, grimy overall and an air of someone who works hard..
He introduced himself as Teppic, and asked them what they were doing at the station. Lady Nitrane told him that they were from Drinax and were flying the flag so to speak. They were also interested in talking to someone called Goff who they had been told was interested in old Sindalian ships. Teppic was vaguely interested, but kept walking as he took them to the common lounge area.
Emerging into a large common area the party could see tables and booths, a bar and various games machines. Through an open hatch a food preparation area could be seen. The five or six people already there were interested in the arrival, but in a half-hearted way, as if they were used to strangers arriving.
Teppic offered the party a drink, but really only had beer so that's what the party ordered. The rest of the crew of the Harriers were filing in now too, and Sparrow was tasked with keeping them in order.
The party were approached by another person, this time an older man with white beard, but with similarly greasy and worn overalls. He introduced himself as Bran. He said he'd heard that they wanted to talk to Goff. He wasn't expected back for a few days, he said, but it might be possible to take the party to him if it were urgent. Upon deciding that they might take him up on the offer he said his brother would be awake in about an hour and that he would take them.
Eventually Bran's brother Garn woke up and groggily came to see the party. He offered to take them to Goff, which meant putting on overalls with black pants and red shirt so that the robots that patrolled the engineering levels did not catch them and take them to the holding cells.
Eventually reaching their destination, Garn and the travellers disembarked and put on torch headbands to light the way. Garn explained that the dark levels were so named because the lighting rigs had been salvaged centuries before.
After some time Lady Nitrane saw a light ahead which turned out to be Goff himself.
Goff was poking about under a large cylinder which had a panel removed. He grunted when the party got near but did not look up. "You!" he pointed at Lady Nitrane. "Hold this!". To Unter he said, "Get that wrench. No! Not that one, the heavy one! Now hit this as hard as you can just here." Luckily Unter hit true, and Lady Nitrane's arms only tingle for a bit.
He checked that the panel was on correctly and started packing up. When Lady Nitrane started talking he cut her off. "Plenty of time for that when we get there.". With that he led the party (telling Garn to make his own way back) to a small vehicle, into which he dumped his gear.
When everyone was aboard he adjusted some instruments and laid back. The vehicle started driving and Goff had a nap. Some time later they arrived at an elevator shaft and Goff got everyone out and into the lift, then pushed the up button. The lift arose for quite some time before stopping and opening up into a large dark room. Goff exited the lift and started waving his hands around until sensors detected him and turned on the lights.
(ignore what's on these screens)
The room had a wall of screens which seemed to be showing countryside. He hopped up on a chair, still staring at the screens and sighed. "Lovely isn't it" he said.
TO BE CONTINUED
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