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The guard blinks. "Coordinates?" he asks.
~Igneous~
I lean forward, eyes widening. I activate my earpiece. "Decanus Mahja, meet me at the captured pirate captain's cell. We have new information." I begin my walk down. |
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Scarlett:
"Oh, of course, you're a grunt. I'm sorry. Shall I talk slower for your expendable little brain?"
I pause and laugh before explaining, "Yes, your Captain wanted to know where I recieved my orders, I'm going to give them to him, if he's nice." |
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~Igneous~
I reach the door. "That will be all, legionnaire." I stand in the doorway, hands clasped neatly behind my back. "And your offer is, madam?" |
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Selene:
"A favour for a favour. I want my ship back, and repaired. Replacements for my crew would be nice...if you have some non-Saoritin aboard. Name your favour, or two if you do have the spare crew." |
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~Igneous~
I shake my head. "No crewmembers, I'm afraid. What are these coordinates that you have to offer?" |
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Selene:
"You're afraid? Oh...that's almost cute."
I blow a mock kiss, "Take me to a terminal and give me time to find it, I had to follow a series of instructions from Kladin to Y'mark and then out onwards. This client really didn't want to be known, I hate it when they do that." |
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~Igneous~
I nod and gesture for her to follow, leading her, with a couple guards, to a nearby terminal in a small barracks. "Make yourself at home." |
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Scarlett:
I look around, "You really don't go in for luxuries at all do you? and...can't I do this in a place a little quieter? It's hard to think, especially with all of you around, more than I can stomach of your race." |
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~Igneous~
I glare down at her. "You should be lucky that you haven't been shot on account of piracy." I whistle and point my thumb in the direction of the door behind us. Those in the barracks, excluding two guards and myself, leave. |
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Scarlett:
I let something drop from my sleeve and into my palm, pressing it against the side of the terminal, hoping the signal would pass through the casing, and inform the ship of my hasty plans.
I bring up a starmap, flicking through it, doing my best to make it look like I'm following an erratic pattern, occassionally zooming down to planet level and pointing out various ports. I take my time, muttering to myself quietly. |
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~Igneous~
I grumble, "We don't have all day." The terminal acknowledges an upload in a discreet box in the lower left-hand corner. |
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Selene:
I count to myself, slowly reaching up to 10 before answering. "Nor do you have your co-ordinates." The lights cut out and I bolt for the door, swinging around the captain and praying he doesn't respond fast enough.
Reaching the door I sprint towards the hangar, seeing that some of my crew members were in cells whose doors Anselm had opened for us, startled but following me back.
We reach the airlock, and the emergency lighting comes on just as I go for one of the guards. |
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~Igneous~
I curse loudly, angered. "Get them, you idiots!"
The guard is knocked unconscious against the wall and crumples to the floor. The second that was posted at the airlock raises his rifle, just in time to be mobbed by the following crewmen and have his weapon pilfered.
I run around the corner, pistol drawn, with several others following behind me. "Open fire!" |
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Selene:
The crew and I run back to the ship, grabbing both weapons from the guards we tackled and what remained in the airlock storage. It was all simply a matter of time, would we siphon off enough power from the ship to be able to jump before they got aboard? Either way, the ship would reach its destination, I couldn't change its course now.
I pick up a gun and take point, aiming to hit as much as possible as many times as possible, just wanting to slow them down more than kill them...not that I happened to mind their deaths.
"Captain! We're disengaging and jumping, you can try and board and end up in an unknown location or pull back now. Thanks for the company!" |
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momoismeJoin Date: 2011-01-23
Post Count: 9809 |
(... Son of a...)
(Seriously reconsidering joining this RP) |
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~Igneous~
I snarl. "Pull back! Pull back!" I activate my earpiece. "Navigator Thiele, get a tracker on that frigate. I don't care where it goes. It can enter the Firstworld Sun for all I care. I'll be right up." The airlock door has sealed, and the tube is being brought in to prevent the obvious damage. "And get the cannons warmed up! Quickly!" |
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momoismeJoin Date: 2011-01-23
Post Count: 9809 |
(*Shakes head* Here goes...)
~Asha~
I step out of the shades of the ship, off the ramp. The sun glints sharply off the sand and makes the metal of the other ships gleam. Jarik steps off next to me, smiling widely.
"Good to be back, ai?" he asks.
I look out at the sand for a minute before nodding. "Yeah... Good to be back..." |
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Selene:
"Good choice Captain! See you in the void!"
I turn around, heading to the main bridge, pointing people to stations, "Anselm, you know where to take us love, let's get going!"
The Scholar's Revenge tilts away and fires all engines, before engaging the interstellar drive and flying off towards the edge of the core systems, the Vulpa system specifically - home to the planet of Rannaka, a world enclosed in a net of cities, with what space that wasn't urban being used to generate resources - be it food, power or minerals. It was a busy hub of a world, shipments from mining and power operations on the other planets in the systems usually coming her first. An easy place to be tracked to, but harder to find once you're there. |
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momoismeJoin Date: 2011-01-23
Post Count: 9809 |
~Asha~
I start to drag plasteel boxes off the ramp and onto a hydrolifter. Jarik climbs into the front while I hang on to the back.
"Alright!" I shout to Jarik over the roar of the engine. "Let's go!"
He drives toward the tradepost, thirty kilometers out. |
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~Igneous~
I curse loudly, but I regain my composure when I reach the bridge. "Full status report."
Thiele, my female navigator, responds, "The frigate is speeding away, in the general direction of the outer systems. We're plotting a course to follow it, sir."
"Full speed as soon as you compute it. Ziethen, what about the ship's lighting. What happened?"
"Sir," begins the lanky, male operations officer, "An AI invaded our system, apparently from a signal that was last pinged at the terminal in the same room in which the lights went off. It's gone now, sir."
"Course detected!" announces Thiele. "Beginning maneuvers." |
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Selene:
The Scholar's Revenge moves into orbit around Rannaka, sliding into mag-clamps in a small berth hidden on the planet-side of the large central orbiting station. It was good to be back here, so much trade going on that no-one notices your arrival and barely logs it.
Half of us leave the ship, looking for new crew and to sell on what goods weren't taken. Repairs needed to be done too, but they simply required time - we had the people skilled enough anyway.
I walk off to the markets with a couple of the crew, I needed a replacement for my weapon for a start, and I knew just the person... |
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momoismeJoin Date: 2011-01-23
Post Count: 9809 |
~Asha~
A few hours later, Jarik and I are unloading rations and such in the cargo bay. I have a good deal of chips from trading(and extorting).
Jarik settles into the co-pilot seat, relaxing for the first time since we landed. "Where to, Asha?"
I grin at him and show him a holopad. There's a note for a job on it. "Vulpa. This one pays better than any for a while."
He chuckles slightly and nods, facing the front window. Takeoff is smooth, a good sign. |
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~Igneous~
The Aeternam Revival drops out of lightspeed. "Position, Navigator Thiele?"
"Orrac system, sir," she responds. "Mining settlements and the like. Mostly corporation planets with less government influence than most."
"The nearest fortified planet is owned by the Kavaltajia," I growl. "A little too close for comfort. Most of the locals here won't enjoy the presence of a heavy cruiser. Keep searching for the ship. What's the nearest planet that would provide hospitality and a place to hide?"
Thiele sighs. "The Vulpa system is the next one over, sir. If she's nearby, then she's on Rannaka."
I curse. "She could be anywhere on that planet." I then activate my earpiece. "Mahja! I want a scan of every inch of Rannakan land where the firms won't realize we're intruding. Get the gunboats up and running; we don't want government interference. No cruiser."
Her voice sighs over the link. "We can't just waste it from orbit?"
I chuckle. "Perhaps later. If a war breaks out, I'll let you give the order. I promise." I break the connection and order us brought into the Vulpa system, just close enough to be within gunboat distance.
Twelve angular pods fly out from the ship. Missile launchers and laser cannons are visible on the surface, as well as, of course, the stubby, protruding wings. On the inside, six Saoritin pilot each gunboat, soon soaring in silence over the planet. |
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momoismeJoin Date: 2011-01-23
Post Count: 9809 |
~Asha~
"Ah Rannaka..." I growl. "Home of the unintelligible map..."
Jarik growls, wrinkling his nose. "And the stink of Kavaltajia..."
I nod in agreement. We start unloading boxes to the hydrospeeder and set off for the city. |
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Selene:
Deep in the markets and industrial area of the central station I duck under an arch and into a crowded shaft -- it went up further than the normal eye could see and was criss-crossed with walkways, gantries and suspended containers. The 'ground' was just as crowded, and consoles from the ground often had wires that trailed up into the 'hanging mess'. Music can be heard coming from above, the recorded voice of a couple singing a romantic duet and the slight sound of someone singing over the female sections.
Selene smiles, "Li, come down from that nest of yours! I've been missing you!
Sure enough, a figure comes down to meet her, jumping and flipping from container to container with barely any sound or movement of the boxes, she was just under average height, slim and in a dark bodysuit. A visor wrapped around the top half of her face, composed of various useful components and decorative twists of metal smoothing over the edges to give something of suprising elegance. Her eyes shine out from behind this, one red, the other blue with the light from a fitted info-lens. "It's been too long 'Lene, are you for me or 'Sundr?"
I smile, memories rushing back, "Both of you really, I need information and I could do with your husband for replacing my blade, Saoritin stole it, long story."
(Evening all!, Invite?) |
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