Steph looks at her screen and studies Krrsh for a long while. Into the com she says, "He is an actual pirate, and trying to save his skin. He might prove to be helpful to us. We don't know how to get into Theev. We might need his information one of these days. Ask him what his skills are beside being a pirate?"
Jerry looks the vargr up and down, trying to appraise the creature's veracity.
"That's nice, but we are more interested in Ferrik. Where would he be lying low?
"I don't know. That's why I'm telling you about Theev. Miria will be there. She'll know where he is. Find Admiral Darokyn or maybe one of the gangs Ferrik's tried to join and maybe you can find Miria."
"And why would you want to join us instead of just being dropped off at some port?" Byron asks again.
"I'm broke," Krrsh says. "And I haven't got a home. Or any possessions besides the clothes on my back. And I've only got one skill, and that's crewing a ship. And I don't have the stomach for the life of a trader. And if you people are mere traders, I'm a voskyrin."
"Let my companions and myself discuss your offer," replies Jerry.
He moves aside, motioning Byron and Steph to go with him. He speaks quietly with them.
"This is a good lead. Should we let him stew until the others get here? Or, strike while we have him on the ropes? Do we need a engineer's mate assistant or a junior mess steward?"
As the others watch and listen to the delayed interrogation, Killian decides to rummage around the computer system of the ship to see what he can find on their soon-to-be companions, as well as anything else he might locate.
Electronics (Computer-2 + Edu-4):
"I don't trust him. He would turn on as fast as he is willing to turn on his old companions. If we take him on it should not be somewhere important and it should have eyes on him." Byron says with a scowl.
Jerry is a baron (which may mean much or nothing in the Floating Palace, since he is the baron of a place over which Drinax no longer holds any sway). He survived a civil war on Paal, from which he barely escaped with his life, and even then the freighter on which he made his escape carried a Chamax egg which bust into life and attacked. Jerry was the sole survivor. After limping back to Drinax, he joined the Scholar's Tower, but was involved with some fairly shady experiments (details unknown) that left him in hot water with both the Scholar's Tower and the Vespexers. His command of many sciences isn't well known, but he holds several degrees.
Byron was a former police officer whose criminal investigation uncovered corruption in his own police force. He was forced out, became a Marine officer and participated in planetary assaults on Vorito and Ergo. He was Princess Rao's personal pilot for awhile and considered a master of the blade.
Steph is a former Drinaxian scout who was cashiered when her ship was shot down by mercenaries in the employ of the People’s Resistance of Asim. She became a smuggler, but that career ended in a serious injury. She is a competent administrator and negotiator.
Daneel is an expert mechanic and electrical engineer who served for many years on various far traders. When his ship Dogged Discovery was seized for legal troubles, no stain attached to him and he went on in that career until chosen by King Oleb for the new mission.
Ray is a boisterous, loudmouthed Vespexer. There's not a lot of information on her. She's supposedly a master scout and survivalist as well as a former trader and pirate.
Siete bounds up out of his chair. He paces. His face contorts as he imitates a mentally challenged person. "Duh...Should we keep him?"
Siete walks over to see what the Killian was up to. He looks over the Doc's shoulder. "You got into their personnel files?" Siete laughs. "Cool."
Siete grabs a chair and sits next to Killian. "Hey man, look up their IQ tests."
Killian moves slightly allowing Siete to see the screen.
"I do not believe in limiting people by their intelligence only. Some excel in scholarly pursuits, while others are more physical in their endeavours. We need all of them to make a good crew...and all are equally valuable."
With a few taps, he brings up Siete's bio.
"Yes, we will need all of their skills to locate your sense of humor." Siete looks under a dish on the table.
"We're going to be pirates, my friend. You need to stop giving everyone the benefit of the doubt." He smiles broadly. "Ya know, except me. I got your back." He pauses, "I owe you my life."
The doctor slightly blushes at the light rebuke from his friend.
"You are right, of course. It is something I will work on, but I cannot surrender my humanity...it is what makes me...me!"
Jerry turns back to the vargr.
"We'll keep you," the former noble states.
"For now. But you're going into a low berth until we need information."
Jerry summons the marines and instructs them to secure the vargr.
"Wait, what? No! I can be helpful!" says Krrsh as he is dragged away by Afaar'iy and Bull.
Thumper (the female Marine) reports "Captain, we've looked over the station. There's nothing here worth taking. It's unsafe, sir, and I recommend we depart as soon as possible."
Thirty minutes later, Dr. Hargek signals Jerry. "Captain, the freeze went well and the vargr is in suspended animation."
Byron takes the helm and turns Nemesis down the gravity well on an intercept course towards Increase at 3G. At their combined velocities it will take 36 hours to rendezvous with Sal and the new recruits.
Everyone on both ships gets some sleep, has some breakfast and gets to watch the delicate docking process as Sal Dancet maneuvers the smaller Increase up to Nemesis's docking ports. If Siete was looking forward to seeing a harrier again, he is disappointed. Nemesis has her holographic hull running and she looks like a largish yacht instead of the sleek predator he knows she is.
Inside, the ship is opulent and tasteful, more richly decorated and lavish than most actual yachts.
________________________________________________________________
Byron heads down to meet the people that Sal is bringing at the air lock. He is still wearing his armor and weapons since he already had it on and was not sure why Sal was being used to bring people to them.
Siete gets ready to transfer to the Harrier. Nemesis is it's name. Decent name for a pirate ship he thought. His hands were busy packing; his mind was busy seeing that sexy beast slip the void.
Once in the cargo room, the scout puts his duffle in his bike. "You're beautiful too baby." Says Siete, while stroking her lines. He disengages the mag locks, and the bike silently wakes up. It hovers soundlessly. Siete engages his helmet. A stream of nanites form a shell from components stored in the back of his armor. The HUD blinks to life.
"Engage Auto-Pilot" The AI assisted driving program takes control of the vehicle. "Follow. One meter trail." The bike follows like an obedient puppy as Siete heads to the airlock.
"That's not right. Aw man, you guys suck." grumbles Siete while looking out the viewport. "They got her ship wrapped." Siete sighs.
Daneel follows the Vargr as he is dragged off to the low berths. Before the doc puts Krrsh under, Daneel tells him, "Don't worry, I'll talk to the captain and make him see reason. We'll have you out of here in no time."
Towing a single humming grav-assisted suitcase containing his worldly belongings Marco checks on Killian. "Need a hand? I can help you move if you brought more than a toothbrush with you. Course, if you've still got a bunch of drones that's not so useful." He shrugs.
"Anyway, how'd you get dropped into this? A good tech and doctor should be able to write his own ticket, and I know you're good."
Killian smiles at the offer of help and nods towards a small black case sitting on the bed.
"Well I have seen many strange things while working at the Medical Institute on the Palace and it leads me to believe that perhaps out here in the ruins of an ancient empire there just might be a cure to my condition...and if not, well this gives me a great opportunity to see the galaxy!"
He maneuvers the grav-chair out of the room and follows Marco out to the umbilical linking the two ships.
"What about you my friend? What brought you out here? Adventure...money ...or fame?"
Marco picks up the case and heads out. "Fame? Retiring from this we'll need money for new faces, less you like the idea of bounty hunters dropping in for your birthday. Maybe your eighty-whatever birthday, even. No, I'm in this for money and a job which advances faster than getting lucky on a free trader and realising that reaching captain is still decades off."
Maneuvering adeptly through the brief moment of zero-G in the umbilical he stops abruptly on the Nemesis' deck. "We on the right ship? Thought this was only a yacht on the outside!"
"Welcome to the Nemesis," states Jerry.
"I am Jeremiah Xavier Jaramillo-Smith, although my companions usually simply use 'Jerry'. I have, for lack of anyore more suited, served as the commander of this motley group."
He looks around at the new arrivals.
"We didn't know that Sal was heading out this way, but it's good to add you to our team. I am from the Floating Palace, myself, and knocked around doing a number of things before signing on to this venture. I will let my companions introduce themselves."
Jerry pauses for a moment.
"Do you have any recent news from Drinax? Did Sal give you any messages?"
"Nothing that I can repeat." Says Siete in reference to Sal. The scout moves to inspect the ship. He stops. "Permission to come aboard, sir."
Siete moves in to inspect the ships walls. As far as Siete was concerned He was last on a Harrier less than a year ago. The march of time evident on the Nemesis turned a memory into nostalgia. "You're older but still sexy." He says to the ship. "I'm Siete. I'm a time misplaced meat popsicle, and I think we can fix this ship back to glory."
Daneel takes a good look at the armored figure and his bike. "You a mechanic?" Then he looks around at the others, "Where is Sal, anyway? She said she'd fill us in when she got here."
"Oh, I'm Daneel."
Steph enters the bay with her ever attached computer. "I'm Steph your pilot and defacto Quarter Master. Nice to meet you all. This ship is more special than she looks. We like to keep her dressed on the down low, and don't often let people know how fast she can fly. She does need some upgrades and repairs. We'll get the credits for that one of these days."
She looks at the three new crew with interest. "I don't suppose any of you actually know how to be pirates do you? We're terrible at pirating, and thinking about the logistics of having a pirate fleet is keeping me up at night."
She grins her face lighting up and her glasses sparkling. "Ray and Byron are good at fighting. If they were in charge, everything would end in a fight. Me I'd try to talk my way through it. The Captain is a good leader, and Daneel is our current mechanic, and she keeps this ship together."
"You a mechanic?" Then he looks around at the others, "Where is Sal, anyway? She said she'd fill us in when she got here."
"Oh, I'm Daneel."
Siete smiles"Not in the way, you think."The scout touches a panel of 'a mounted vibrasword squad in action' reliefs and it pops out and aside. The others were unaware that was a possibility."The crabs fixed pretty much everything, but I do know my way around."
Byron leans against the bulkhead and watches the new additions letting the others do the talking.
Killian floats out of the access port and down to the deck plating of the new ship. His chair quietly makes noise as it settles to the new micro-gravitational differences between ships.
"I am Squire Doctor Killian Yuan of the Drinax Medical Institute. Permission to come aboard Captain?"
Killian will take an unobtrusive scan of the new crew just to see what is what with them.
"Interesting!" Killian murmurs and gives a slight nod to the engineer.
Daneel returns Killian's nod, then waits to see if the captain intends to let the strangers board.
Marco nods to Steph, "Never been a pirate, but I've persuaded a pirate to back the hell off with a good shot from a beam laser once and I've dealt with the seamier side of starports. Logistics though, the Squire's your man there, got a mind like no one I've ever met."
He looks at Jerry and spreads his arms "Good enough, or is there a hazing ritual? If not, where do we drop our bags?"
Steph gives Jerry a look waiting for him to give permission for her to assign berths.
"As I said, welcome," Jerry responds.
"Get squared away ... Steph can tell you which berths are available. How about an hour to stow your gear, find out where the heads are and then we'll assemble for a meeting to bring you up to speed," the erstwhile commander continues.
"While you are doing that, I will be crafting a message for Sal to take back home. Some of you might want to do the same," Jerry continues.
"See you in 60."
Jerry walks to his cabin, opening the door and ensuring it is closed before he sits down at his desk. He opens the communication panel, ans sends a hail to the Increase.
"Sal, this is Jerry Smith of the Nemesis. Do you have time to talk?"
Sal's face appears as a hologram above Jerry's desk. "Hi there," she says. "Thank you for getting them off my ship. How're you doing?"
Killian waits until he is shown his new quarters.
"Can I see your medical bay now? I would like to stow my work gear before I settle in. Your name is...Steph? Are you our second in command?"
He waits and watches the woman as she answers his many questions.
Siete brings his bike to the cargo hold. Unfortunately the bike docks were covered with cargo boxes. He works up a sweat re-arranging the cargo. Siete taps a panel and a docking station opens up. He slides the bike into the docking station and it blends into the wall.
The scout squares away his bunk and then heads for the galley. He gets acquainted and sets out to prepare a meal for the ship.
Byron changes out of his armor and showers down before heading to the mess to practice his carousing skills.
"We are chasing down these raiders and now have a good lead. We are going to be out of contact for the next while," replies Jerry.
"But, enough about work. I was hoping that you would take an opportunity to visit the ship ... I wanted to see you," he continues. "Now, Sal, I don't know how long it will be until we are in the same sector again."
"Enough of that, though. I am going to send you a note. Can you get it to the Palace?"
While he waits for a response, Jerry starts writing a briefing note on the progress of their investigation. Unsure of the security, he does not include anything about the secret route to Theev.
The chow was the perfect balance between savory and sweet. Siete leans back in his chair and relaxes his stomach. An involuntary burp escapes his lips like a tunneling prisoner. "Excuse me."
"In 882 Third Imperium, a couple of egg-heads created the first molecular printer. It was supposed to be some sort of teleportation, but it couldn't print anything living. The military though, saw the potential. The creation of the Harrier program developed soon after. Huge molecular printers created fully integrated ships, atom by atom."
"Some other genius figured out where repair and resupply depots for the unique needs of the Harrier should be located. Probes were built which combined a computer core, nanites, and a molecular printer. The probes were to seek metal heavy asteroid or small moon. Once at destination, it would establish R & R depot."
"Only a handful were launched before the attack...And I know where they went."
"We are chasing down these raiders and now have a good lead. We are going to be out of contact for the next while," replies Jerry.
"But, enough about work. I was hoping that you would take an opportunity to visit the ship ... I wanted to see you," he continues. "Now, Sal, I don't know how long it will be until we are in the same sector again."
"Enough of that, though. I am going to send you a note. Can you get it to the Palace?"
While he waits for a response, Jerry starts writing a briefing note on the progress of their investigation. Unsure of the security, he does not include anything about the secret route to Theev.
"I'd like that, Jerry," says Sal with a bright smile. "Can you come over to Increase? Or should I come over there?"
The food doesn't entirely sit well with Marco, as his first experience with spices came late - just a few years ago in fact. He burps uneasily. "I might be able to help some too. Free traders don't always have the wherewithal to do full annual overhauls on their own credit, you know? There's a buddy system for trading parts which you can grease along by contributing to in advance. Happens I turned a lot of cash into parts when I got off planet, and should be possible to call some favors back in now if we need repairs done."
Byron sits down at the table with a bottle and a bunch of glasses and starts pouring some drinks out. "So how did you find yourselves invited to this little party?" Byron asks the two new members in the mess.
"Sorry, Sal ... I wish that I could," replies Jerry with a nearly inaudible sigh.
"I decided to not give the newbs any time to get into trouble. So the harsh commander scheduled an all hands meeting for ... about 45 minutes from now. Which doesn't allow enough time to do more than hand deliver the message back to the Palace."
Jerry rubs his chin as he thinks for a moment.
"When we are done with this, we are likely to be visting Drinax. Do you know your schedule for the next while?"
After he eventually signs off, Jerry stares at the blank screen for some time before calling up his notes for the all crew meeting.
Sal sighs. "I understand. No, I'm catch-as-catch-can. I'll be somewhere on the Drinax Main, most likely. See you next time! [i]Increase out."
Sal's image winks out.