Tenjee Data Link
---Event Logs, Phase One
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Turn
000001: Jantus You have come
to the Dreevan City of Delan for minor component replacements and the
potential for work that will take you closer to the Core. For what seems like
the one-hundredth time, you wonder if perhaps there is too much Denuvian
pride wrapped up in the micro-technology operating your ship’s navigational
systems. Though most of the ship’s stations are fairly brilliant, the
navigation grid occasionally fails and is fairly tedious to manage overall,
requiring almost constant
updating. From what
you’ve seen on Dreeva, it is clear that the Fey-ar Syndicate has dominated
maintenance support for this world’s high-tech shipping industry, as every
single component you’ve priced has borne their corporate logo. The city
itself is set in a valley, surrounded by rain forests and misty green
mountains. Coffee plantations are scattered across the surrounding
mountainside. Those who farm here live at a leisurely
pace. According to a
man you exchanged brief words with earlier in the day—a older Hythen merchant
who runs a general store in downtown Delan—a group of Thrak-mar are looking
for a pilot to make a well-paying shipping run immediately. You agree to talk
it over with them and a meeting is
scheduled. Later that
day, you find yourself standing in a back room behind the supply store.
Seemingly, the room has been in disuse for a while. Several bags of dried
concrete line one wall and a tinted hemispherical window looks out into the
wet cobblestone streets of Delan. A noise—the scurrying of many delicately
clawed feet—catches your attention and you turn to face the room’s entrance.
Your potential partners have
arrived. The room
quickly fills with Thrak-mar, apparently a family group of traders. You count
nine in all, of varying ages. Hunched, dark and hairless, they are just over
a meter in height. Some of them titter back and forth softly. Your
linguistics wetware passes along their conversations—mostly chatter concerning
shipping dates or complaints about weather and animal traffic in the city.
They are tiny by your standards, but you guess that if they needed to they
could move very fast and very
nimbly. One of the
Thrak-mar steps forward, looking up at you along his drawn, whiskered snout.
He is wearing a damp yellow duster, the edges of which drag the floor of the
store. “My name is Cheekre Fik, of the Cheekre family collective farm. As you
have been told, we have an urgent shipment of flash-frozen coffee beans that
must reach Wiss within the next 2 months. Normally, we are not this
disorganized, but one of our shipments was lost in transit. How, we do not
know…only that it did not arrive. By the time we were notified, it was almost
too late. The trip to Wiss takes, as you must know, nearly eight Core weeks.
And this client is very important to us. We need a pilot who can start
immediately—today if possible—and who will deliver our cargo as soon as he
arrives on Wiss. We are willing to pay 5,000 credits…nearly twice the normal
price. If you accept, your money will be waiting for you at the dock in the
Temple City of Visdal.” As he finishes speaking, you note that all of the
Thak-mar are regarding you with identical, mouse-like expressions. At the end
of Fik’s speech, one of the younger farmers activates a translator built into
the head of a short wooden staff. As unobtrusively as possible, he extends it
up toward your head high above, waiting for some comment. |
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Turn
000001 Reply: Jantus I stand
quietly and scowl for a moment while I ask myself a few
questions. "What
happened to the last
shipment?" After this
brief introspection (I don't want to look to desperate for work), I lean
forward and speak softly into the translator: "I will be happy to
deliver this shipment for you. Meet me at my loading pad tonight
with your cargo, and I will get underway."
As soon as our
meeting has ended, I will begin a brief search Delan for small shipments or
passengers that may be headed the same direction. Something that I would have
passed over earlier as not cost-effective would now do nicely to add a little
more profit to the run. |
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Turn
000001: Hip-hop Dreeva isn’t a
bad planet as worlds go, but it suffers from a condition that has become all
too familiar to you: not enough swamp land and not enough Grentins of the
fairer sex. You find yourself stranded in the Dreevan City of Delan after
your previous employer (for who you ran a mean nav grid) lost his ship for
not paying his debts. Now he has taken up herding on a Trifka milk-dog ranch.
He invited the entire crew to join him, toiling away for years to work off
his debts in hopes of getting his ship back. But the second he did, Meyers,
the ship’s Ban-tal engineer, punched his lights out. Meyers wandered off
then, muttering something about calling his sister to send him fare for an
off-world shuttle. That’s the last you saw of either of them. You hadn’t
worked long for Benka (the milk-dog herder) anyway, but losing your job and
getting stranded on a world with virtually no other Grentinites is a drag.
And, of course, you knew absolutely nothing about your old boss’s financial
woes until the ship was impounded upon
landing. From what
you’ve seen on Dreeva, it is clear that the Fey-ar Syndicate has dominated
maintenance support for this world’s high-tech shipping industry. The city
itself is set in a valley, surrounded by rain forests and misty green
mountains. Coffee plantations are scattered across the surrounding
mountainside. Those who farm here live at a leisurely pace. The streets are
lined with sidewalk cafes, mostly frequented by farmers of various races.
Occasionally, someone herds a pack of milk-dogs through the streets (which
always looks odd, as the milk-dogs, being the canine producers of the Chain’s
most tasty milk, cannot resist herding themselves, according to canine
instinct). It rains a lot here, though, so not everything is
bad. Though you
aren’t sure where you should go at first, your feet seem to have a will of
their own and you soon end up back at the spaceport at which you arrived. The
ship on which you worked, the Kimmie Drak’val, sits on a docking pad. Tall
cranes are nestled up against it and many technicians are working it over,
prepping it for sale. A number of armed guards stand about idly, smoking long
thin cigarettes and talking about getting laid. You see a number of other
ships sitting about—sleek couriers, blunt mining vessels, heavily modified
freighters and others less
recognizable. Nearby you can
hear the sounds of a band playing high-pitched horn songs from within the
docking yard's drinking establishment, causing you to wonder whether they
serve anything remotely like the bug-blood concoctions you know and love so
well. |
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Turn
000001 Reply: Hip-hop I headed for
the bar at a leisurely pace, sure that no place in the galaxy could serve the
food that I was so used to, and if they did, it wouldn't be worth the price
of admission. But alcohol, that was another story. A couple
of sidelong glances at the ship I'd come to know so well marked my passage to
the bar, and as the sounds of the band intensified it occurred to me that I
hadn't had any real food in almost 2 days. I scanned the bar,
looking for anyone interesting or familiar.... |
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Turn
000001: Core Dump Space is
beautiful…empty yet filled at the same instant. Stars like faint powder,
stars like halogen lights. Formations of dust and gas made up of millions of
shades of the color red. And through the thick transparent plate of the drifting
escape pod, your appreciation of these things is perhaps finer that ever
before. You had taken
a “security and services” position aboard a luxury transport bound for the
Vinge desert planet of Wiss. It sounded great at the time—part protection,
part grunt work and part entertainment. The woman who had hired you on for a
tour with the Ecleese, a medium size star yacht, had been impressed with your
capabilities, but once she’d heard that you were a proficient chess player
she’d hired you immediately. Throughout the cruise, you’d spent long hours
competing with the members of a contest-bound Ellesh chess team. Their
whistling voices still echo in your head, “Just one more game, Core…just one
more.” Sitting across from a floating opponent whose physical make-up largely
resembles a set of organic bagpipes was interesting at first. But after
watching them manipulate the pieces with their hanging tendrils for several
days, you began to wonder just how long the trip was going to take.
Still, things
had not actually gone wrong until you received a request, from the room of a
Vinge cleric named Tillish, to locate an escaped pet running loose on the
ship. The Vinge have always annoyed you, not just in their haughtiness, but
also because of the fact that their religion teaches that granting sentience
to a machine or otherwise inorganic life form is a major sin. In an attempt
to appease a paying passenger, though, you started searching the ship, first
jacking into the nearest com port in order to use the ship’s interior motion
tracking system to find the animal. Locating a small moving organic creature
in the life-pod bay, you headed out. It was only after you’d entered the pod
to grab the cat-like thing that you felt a twinge of alarm. ‘The Vinge do
hate sentient machines,’ you thought to yourself with a mild wave of
paranoia. The cleric’s pet slipped from your reaching hand and darted out of
the pod just as the door started to hiss shut. The hatch sealed itself
tightly just as you reached it, and to your cool, mechanical annoyance, you
could see the Vinge cleric standing just out side the hatch. His host
creature, a tall, stilt-walking avian wearing flowing robes, opened its black
beak in a mocking laugh. The Vinge itself--curled in an octopodal grip around
the host’s throat--showed no sign of even being alive as it willed the
dark-feathered avian to punch the ejection system, throwing the pod out away
from the ship. As you tumbled out of view of the escape pod socket, you
wondered whether the cleric was technically proficient enough to disable the
pod’s alarm—the very signal that would alert the crew to the launch and
facilitate your rescue. ‘Probably,’ you thought with a mental sigh. |
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Turn
000001 Reply: Coredump I flick on my
homing beacon and start playing 4d virtual chess while I wait to be picked
up. |
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Turn
000002: Jantus You know that
there are many different races on Wiss, despite the significance of the Vinge
presence. The client receiving the shipment you’ve agreed to carry could be
anyone. Including the Vinge, in fact. (It seems that the tastes of the
psionic starfish-like creatures change depending upon their hosts. So some of
them drink coffee, some of them soak in mud baths, some are allergic to
sunlight, etc; it all depends on the host
creature.) The last
shipment—the one that never arrived—could have simply been stolen. It could
have been dumped for some reason. Or caffeine-addicted pirates could have
microwaved the pilot to a bloody crisp. At this point, it’s
unclear. After the
Thrak-mar file out, you begin walking back to the space dock, thinking it the
most likely location for would-be passengers or people desiring the quick
shipment of some cargo. Out in the cobblestone streets it starts to
rain...big fat drops of liquid warmth. Not quite the same as the weather back
home. At the docking
yard, you see (reassuringly) the Nezbixx sitting on its pad. Other ships are
scattered about, their odd shadows growing longer as the day fails—sleek
couriers, blunt mining vessels, heavily modified freighters and others less
recognizable. You see an impound crew (according to the ‘keep clear’ markers)
working on a freighter called the Kimmie Drak’val. Tall cranes are nestled up
against it and many technicians are working it over, prepping it for re-sale
you suppose. Someone failed to pay a bill on
time. A number of
armed guards stand about idly, smoking long thin cigarettes and talking about
getting laid. Nearby you can hear the sounds of a band playing high-pitched
horn songs from within the docking yard's sole drinking establishment. |
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Turn
000002 Reply: Jantus If there is a
bulletin board here I check for hitch-hikers, then make my way to the bar for
something to drink and a cigarette. My body seems to be immune to the
effects of the standard human variety, but it gives me something to do with
my hands. While sitting there I mentally turn up the sensitivity of my
translator and eavesdrop on nearby conversations.
The I assume there
is an incoming/outgoing flight board. If so, I update it
with: Ship:
Nezbixx Hang out for a
while and then head for my ship. |
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Turn
000002: Hiphop On a sign
outside the bar, blood red neon tubes spell out “Wendy’s” in Galactic Common.
The bar itself is a sunken affair, set into the paved surface of the dockyard
like an almond half-embedded in a chocolate bar. The roof, low enough to look
out across, is a miniature forest consisting of antennas, smokestacks and one
limp flag. A steady rain continues to fall. Everything
glistens. As you get
nearer to the bar, the atmospheric lifters driving a nearby ship override the
music as the ship lifts up off the ground. Glancing to your left, you see the
ship—a tilted crescent trailing a number of long, curving tubes. It hovers
above the docking pad, several hundred meters away, then rotates slowly as it
starts to ascend, rising up to a great height before stabilizing. For just a
second it sits in place high above, shedding the rain in sheets, before
accelerating away into the twilight. You watch for a second as the glow from
the ship shrinks to a tiny twinkle amid the faint, early-evening stars.
A wet stone
stairway leads down toward the door of Wendy’s. You pause before entering the
door, standing in the sunken entryway. The neon sign crackles and hums just
over your head. Turning to the sides, your eyes are inches above the ground,
giving you an odd, ant’s eye view of the docking yard. Enjoying the last
splatters of rain, you enter the bar. Inside you see
a number of booths and tables, all angled toward a central stage lit with a
deep blue light. On the stage a Trifkan woman dances sensuously, her dark fur
wet with sweat, her pointy nipples erect and peeking from her fur. Humans
occupy several of the tables—apparently workers from the docking yard. At one
of the booths, someone sits with his back to you, thickly robed and hooded. A
couple of blue-skinned Hythe sit playing a gambling game against one wall.
The bar snakes it way along two walls. Two human women are tending the
bar…both lightly dressed. A stirring layer of smoke hangs over the room. |
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Turn
000002 Reply: Hiphop I sauntered to
the bar with a sidelong glance at the hooded figure. "What's he
all about?" I think to myself. I ran my eyes over the more
attractive of the two humans tending bar, and lick my lips with my extended
amphibian tongue, drawing a smile, but not much more. I ask her
if she sells cigarettes, and if she knows where I can find some work on a
ship headed out of this dismal hell hole.... |
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Turn
000002: Core Dump The pod was
clearly meant for four or so human sized occupants, so you have a bit of room
to maneuver. You play chess and wait, realizing that because of your
extremely long ‘life’ span, if you drift out beyond the Chain worlds, you
could be playing for long enough to ascend to god-hood as it is measured on
the galactic chess ranking system. The pod is
little more than a tin can. But in fact, it’s not even metal, but a super
tough, super lightweight plastic. It has a small amount of food rations and
water (useless to a sentient mech, naturally) and an oxygen recycler. The pod
is gunmetal gray, though the inside has been painted bright green and
white—presumably to cheer up any lost starship-ejection survivor during the
last days before his death due to starvation. The com panel, it seems, has
been tampered with, but given your expertise, I’d would be a breeze to fix,
even without a full toolset. |
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Turn
000002 Reply: Core Dump I turn my
optical display to "gray scale" so I don't puke oil into my servo
mandibles and turn to the task of repairing the com panel.
My right thigh
panel slides open and presents me with my electronics tools. I attach the
appropriate tools to their anchors on my fingers and attempt to jury-rig
it. If successful,
I'll listen through the normal communications bands for a friendly broadcast
and try to make contact. If not, I'll go back to chess. Also, while scanning
the local vicinity for friendly broadcasts, I am trying to fix my location. |
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Turn
000003: Jantus A hundred
meters before you reach the bar, you hear the roar of a ship lifting off. It
is a tilted crescent trailing a number of long, curving tubes. The ship
hovers above the docking pad, a good distance away, then rotates slowly as it
starts to ascend, rising up to a great height before stabilizing. For just a
second it sits in place high above, shedding the rain in sheets, before
accelerating away into the twilight. You watch for a second as the glow from
its engines fades away amid the faint, early-evening
stars. On a sign
outside the bar, blood red neon tubes spell out “Wendy’s” in Galactic Common,
giving the door an odd cast to your eyes. The bar itself is a sunken affair,
set into the paved surface of the dockyard. The roof, low enough to look out
across, is a miniature forest consisting of antennas, smokestacks and one
limp flag. A steady rain continues to fall. Everything glistens. A wet stone
stairway leads down toward the door of
Wendy’s. Inside you see
a number of booths and tables, all angled toward a central stage by a dim
light. On the stage a Trifkan woman dances sensuously, her dark fur wet with
sweat, her pointy nipples erect and peeking from her fur. Humans occupy
several of the tables—apparently workers from the docking yard. At one of the
booths, someone sits with his back to you, thickly robed and hooded. A couple
of blue-skinned Hythe sit arguing over a gambling game against one
wall. The bar itself
snakes it way along two walls, tended by two human women; both lightly
dressed. Some of the
humans have tuned in an athletic competition on the holographic display
system and are watching it unfold in the center of the room. From the robed
figure’s face—shrouded by the hood and further covered by some sort of
breathing apparatus—regular puffs of greenish smoke settle over his
table. Behind the
door, there is a small terminal. Calling up today’s log, you don’t see anyone
headed in your direction. Struggling briefly with the small keypad, you enter
your flight information, then head toward the bar. The only other person up
at the bar is the tall amphibian. One of the human bartenders watches you as
you move closer. |
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Turn
000003 Reply: Jantus I move up next
to the amphibian at the bar and order a non-impairing drink, since I am
flying in a few hours. I turn to contemplate the game for a few
moments, and then ask the amphibian, "Do you know the rules of this
sport?" |
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Turn
000003: Hiphop The winding
bar is slick and black, pitted in places from years of abuse. While one of
your brains provides you with a cheap thrill by registering the curvaceous
bartender, the other allows you to briefly wonder about the tales the bar
could tell—probably mostly of vomit, assholes spilling drinks and lame alien
pick-up lines. Across the bar, one of the human girls—the one wearing the
silvery bra and the shortest black skirt you’ve ever seen—says, “Wow…what a
tongue. What can I get for you, green stranger?” When you ask her if she
sells cigarettes, she replies, “You might say that; Dreevans grow the best
coffee beans and the finest tobacco leaves of anyone in the Chain. You must
be new here.” She hands you a gold foil package from under the bar, loaded
with twelve thin smokes. She points to a transaction slot and says, “Swipe
your card and they’re yours…” When you bring
up the subject of off-world work, she smirks, “This is the place…just about
everyone stops off here if they’re looking for help. If you hang out for a
couple of hours, and your credentials are good enough, you should be able to
find some leads.” Glancing
around the room, you notice that the Hythe gamblers, sitting on the floor
against one wall, have started to argue. Some of the humans have tuned in an
athletic competition on the holographic display system and are watching it
unfold in the center of the room. From the front of the robed figure’s
face—shrouded by the hood and further covered by some sort of breathing
apparatus—regular puffs of greenish smoke settle over his table. |
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Turn
000003 Reply: Hiphop I wandered
over to the holo-screen to see who was playing. As I sauntered in
that direction I reached into the pocket of my tan bermuda shorts and pulled
one of the few matches I still have leftover from the box I bought a week ago
and struck it against a table edge as I passed by. I glanced at
the hooded figure to see if he would make comment about my using his table,
but I wasn't really sure if he'd noticed me. I lit the thin cigarette
and sat down nearby, glancing back and forth from the powerball game to the
hooded figure...I had little cash left, so I was in a hurry to find
something, anything, to do.... |
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Turn
000004: Jantus After entering
your flight information, you move over to the bar to make your purchases. The
human girl, wearing a silvery brassiere and a black microskirt, passes you
your drink and a small, foil-wrapped package of thin cigarettes. “Swipe you
card,” she says, indicating a transaction slot.
While you’re
doing this, the green amphibian makes his way closer to the holographic
display. As he passes the hooded figure’s table, the amphibian drags a match
against the side of the table. Your auditory implants pick up a faint hiss
coming from beneath the hood. Green smoke continues to drift forth from the
hooded figure’s mask, but otherwise he makes no
motion. Clutching the
cigarette with his long green fingers, the amphibian takes a drag (which
looks vaguely comical against his wide, lip-less mouth) and takes a seat near
the holographic display. His attention appears to be loosely fixed on the
game. You walk
closer and ask, “Do you know the rules of this sport?” |
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Tenjee
Turn 000004 Reply: Jantus As I ask this
question I keep a keen eye on the hooded one. In my culture, striking
that match on a Denuvians table is a challenge to his personal space, and
would probably be rebuked or acted on in some way. I put one of my cigarettes
to my lips and ask the amphibian "Got another match?" |
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Turn
000004: Hiphop As you’re
turning away from the bar, you notice that a very large, blue-skinned alien
of unknown origin has entered the room. As you’re reaching for your matches,
the alien is entering information into the terminal positioned to the left of
the entrance (which you’ve only just noticed). Your guess is that the
terminal is related to job postings and upcoming flights.
The alien is wearing
a black flight suit, dripping with rain. The sleeves of the suit are adorned
with various insignia and mission patches. The alien is, by your estimate,
two and a half meters tall and absurdly muscular. His skin is a uniform shade
of cobalt and his eyes are black. He appears to have no hair whatsoever and
there are two data jacks protruding from his skull, just above the temples.
He moves over to the bar and buys a pack of smokes and a non-mind-altering,
non-reflex-impairing drink from one of the human
girls. As you move by
the hooded figure, striking your match against his table, you can barely
discern a faint hiss coming from behind the breathing mask. Otherwise, there
is no indication that the figure is even aware of you. As you light your cigarette
and sit down near the holo-display, the blue-skinned alien walks over near
you. Apparently interested in the holographic athletic competition, he asks,
“Do you know the rules of this sport?” And as he speaks, you can see that his
mouth is lined with ridges of bone, rather than the teeth possessed by many
humanoids. |
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Tenjee
Turn 000004 Reply: Hiphop "Actually,"
I said without looking up, "I don't even know what the sport is." I
had seen enough of this guy to know that I didn't want trouble with
him. If he had a job though, that would certainly put an immediate end
to a couple of problems that I was having just at the moment. I made a
mental note not to forget to ask about pay and dove in head
first. |
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Tenjee
Turn 000005: Jantus When you ask
him about the game, the amphibian doesn’t look up at you. With his huge,
bulging eyes, it appears he does not have to. "Actually, " he says,
"I don't even know what the sport is... But I noticed you at the
terminal a second ago. You looking for some hired help?" |
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Tenjee
Turn 000005 Reply: Jantus To buy a
little time to think, I take a long drag on my cigarette, hold it, and blow
the smoke out slowly, while contemplating the floor. The fact that the last
shipment vanished doesn't really worry me, but just in case something goes
wrong, It would be good to have help. But then, for all I know, this could be
the guy who swiped the last shipment. This job is paying well, so I could
afford the help. Four weeks is a long time to spend in solitary confinement.
"It depends," I say. "What can you do?" |
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Tenjee
Turn 000005: Hiphop Sitting in
front of the holographic game field, you answer the blue skinned alien’s
question about the sport and ask him about work. Before answering he asks you
for a match. You get the impression that it might be a remark aimed at your
actions earlier...scratching your match against the hooded one’s table. You
offer him a light and he inhales deeply, dragging the smoke past his blue
lips and gazing thoughtfully at the floor. Finally, he
responds with, “It depends...what can you do?" |
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Tenjee
Turn 000005 Reply: Hiphop I took only a
second before answering. "I'm a
navigator." |
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Tenjee
Turn 000006: Jantus The amphibian
sitting before you hesitates only a second before replying, "I'm a
navigator." There's something about the way he says it that implies to
you that he takes some pride in his abilities; his confidence makes it
sound as if guiding starships through the great dark void might be
something at which he excels. Just then one of the teams on the holo-display
scores a goal and the group of humans nearby explode into cheering and
yelling. |
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Tenjee
Turn 000006 Reply: Jantus "What a
coincidence" I think to myself, "Just when my
navigation Ignoring the
cheering humans and snuffing out my cigarette, I turn
to "My
Navigation computers are unstable, and the previous ship making
this "I don't
know if you have ever travelled in a Devonian ship, but
I'm "Do you
want the job?" |
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Tenjee
Turn 000006: Hiphop About the same
time that you answer the blue-skinned alien, someone scores a goal and the
humans nearby explode into cheering. Seemingly oblivious to this racket, the
blue-skinned alien snuffs out his cigarette and levels his gaze at you.
"My name is Jantus, and I am captain of the light transport Nezbixx. I
can offer you 10% of what I make, plus bonuses for any hardships encountered
for a two week voyage to Wiss. The catch is that we will leave in a few
hours.” He studies
you. “My Navigation computers are unstable, and the previous ship making this
flight has been lost, so if you take the job, you may be earning your money.
I don't know if you have ever travelled in a Devonian ship, but I'm sure
someone of your stature will find the accommodations
comfortable.” There’s a
pause before he speaks again. “Do you want the job?" |
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Tenjee
Turn 000006 Reply: Hiphop I finished my
smoke with a flourish and jumped into the questioning. “First, are we the
only crew? Any passengers or other crewmembers? Having never worked with
Devonian tech, I don't know if you need other crewmembers or not. Second,
unstable does not sound like a good situation for the nav computers. What's
up with them? And can I take a look at them before we bounce out into an
asteroid field? Third, what previous flight was lost? And are you supposed to
find them? And finally, well...that's it really. I'm ready." |
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Tenjee
Turn 000007: Jantus The amphibian
takes another deep drag from his cigarette and then answers with occasional
puffs of smoke punctuating his speech. "Ten percent? Not bad. Actually I
don't think I've ever worked on a Devonian ship before. But it shouldn't be a
problem. Leaving soon isn't a problem either; I'm practically desperate to
get off this rock. I do have three questions
though..." He finishes
his smoke with a flourish before asking the questions. “First, are we the
only crew? Any passengers or other crewmembers? Having never worked with
Devonian tech, I don't know if you need other crewmembers or not. Second,
unstable does not sound like a good situation for the nav computers. What's
up with them? And can I take a look at them before we bounce out into an
asteroid field? Third, what previous flight was lost? And are you supposed to
find them? And finally, well...that's it really. I'm
ready." Facing you
askance, he seems to be regarding you with one eye. Mostly black with flecks
of gold, the eye is huge, bulbous and somehow very aware, as if its owner
possesses some secret inner wisdom. |
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Tenjee
Turn 000007 Reply: Jantus "Yes, we
are the only crew. The Nezbixx can be piloted by one with the neural
interface, but not many non-Devonians have had the jacks and implants
installed. Still, having other skilled crew members on board will make my job
easier. I have put out a notice for last minute passengers, but it's unlikely
that any will respond soon enough to make the flight, so it may
be “The Nav
computers are not faulty, they just need constant attention and updating. You
are free to evaluate the system and recommend any modifications you would
like to make, but the newer systems are expensive, and I don't have the
credits to upgrade any time soon. "We are
making this rushed flight carrying a cargo of coffee because the original
carrier vanished without a trace. Whatever happened to them is anyone’s
guess. This is not a rescue mission, but if we do come across the previous
flight, we could make something extra on the
salvage..." With that I
stand up, take a last look around the bar, and look back at the amphibian.
"If all this is copacetic, please meet me at the launch pad in two hours
for loading and flight prep. If you have any special dietary or environmental
needs, let me know. The Nezbixx environmental settings are typical
carbon-based standard atmosphere and 1g, moderate temperature, although the
passenger cabin you will have can be adjusted to just about anything short of
full aquatic environment. Her galley is stocked with standard
protein/carbohydrate foods, with high mineral
concentrates." "And now
I have a question of my own. What should I call
you?" Soon after he
answers, I will leave Wendy's and head for the Nezbixx to await the arrival
of the Thrak-mar. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000007: Hiphop The
blue-skinned man in front of you replies: “The Nav
computers are not faulty, they just need constant attention and updating. You
are free to evaluate the system and recommend any modifications you would
like to make, but the newer systems are expensive, and I don't have the
credits to upgrade any time soon. "We are
making this rushed flight carrying a cargo of coffee because the original
carrier vanished without a trace. Whatever happened to them is anyone’s
guess. This is not a rescue mission, but if we do come across the previous
flight, we could make something extra on the
salvage..." With that he
stands up, takes a last look around the bar and looks back at you. "If
all this is copacetic, please meet me at the launch pad in two hours for
loading and flight prep. If you have any special dietary or environmental
needs, let me know. The Nezbixx environmental settings are typical
carbon-based standard atmosphere and 1g, moderate temperature, although the
passenger cabin you will have can be adjusted to just about anything short of
full aquatic environment. Her galley is stocked with standard
protein/carbohydrate foods, with high mineral concentrates."
"And now
I have a question of my own. What should I call
you?" Soon after you
answer, he leaves Wendy's, heading for the docking pads. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000007 reply: Hiphop I'd told the
Devonian my name, and finished another cigarette before I finally reached my
decision. Actually, that's not true, I'd reached my decision almost the
instant the conversation started. The Devonian was the best shot at getting
some work I'd had in weeks, and he dropped into my lap without me having to
do any work. That was a sign. A good sign. I went back to
the hovel that I'd been sleeping in, that some planetary native had
humorously named Rooms Without a View. I gathered my gear and headed to the
launch pad. I was hoping that Jantus would be there early as well and I'd get
a shot at the Nav computers before I put my life in their hands... |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000008: Jantus Lighting
another smoke, the large amphibian says, “The name is Hiphop.” Within the dim
enclosure of the bar stall, the match turns the areas around his face any
number of interesting shades of green. The light dances in the glassy orbs of
his eyes. “I’d love to work with you...the Nezbixx sounds like a good ship.
I’ll see you at the pad in a little while. I just need to pick up some stuff
back at my hotel, Rooms Without A View.” He stands and makes a little waving
motion with one webbed hand. Then he moves through the bar toward the door.
When he opens it a gust of wind and rain sweeps in, dispersing some of the
smoke and stale air, and temporarily dropping the
temperature. A minute or
two later, you follow him out into the rainy night, almost oblivious to what
the Dreevans call weather. You cross the docking yard, following the
pedestrian service striping on the concrete toward your ship’s pad. She
stands in a field of light, illuminated by a number of inwardly facing light
poles. All across the yard there are similar scenes...ships of all shapes
scattered between pockets of darkness like galaxies between the great
voids. You enter your
passcode to open the hatch and move into the ship, finding everything in
working order, just as you left it. Dropping off the components you picked up
earlier in the day, you set about making ready for the sudden
trip. A while later,
the outer hatch starts to beep, signaling the arrival of a visitor. Cycling
through the external monitors until your small view screen shows the area
outside the hatch, you see a party of poncho-garbed Thrak-mar standing
huddled in the rain. Apparently the weather bothers them a great deal more
than it affects you, even though this world is their home. They have a series
of hard plastic crates between them, held inches above the ground by
corner-clamped lifters. When you greet
them at the hatch, Fik smiles up at you. “Hello, Captain Jantus. I hope your
ship is ready...” You exchange pleasantries with the stooped rodent and
complete some necessary electronic forms. It seems that several organizations
on Dreeva and Wiss, as well as a few from other places, will be splitting up
a small part of the Thrak-mar’s money. Your fee is only part of what they are
paying. Finally, after the contracts, docking fees and tax records are
complete, Fik says, “On Wiss, our agent at the dock in the Temple City of
Visdal will pay you for delivery. He will meet you at your appointed landing
bay.” You direct the
Thrak-mar in the process of loading the crates on board. Afterward, they
deactivate their lifters, lowering the crates to the floor of your cargo
hold. They remove the lifters and take them outside. Fik waves to you. “Good
luck, Captain...” The Thrak-mar follow him away into the night. When they are
gone, you go back into the Nezbixx and shut the hatch.
A short time
later, as you are putting the finishing touches on your liftoff preparations,
there is another beeping at the hatch. Expecting your new travelling
companion, you almost open the hatch, but think twice. Stepping over to the
external monitor, you see a surprising sight. Outside the ship, standing
motionless just in front of the hatch is the hooded figure from Wendy’s
Bar. The hooded
figure stands slightly bowed, with his dark cloak pulled tight around him.
His rebreather is barely visible within the depths of his hood...puffs of
green mist drift forth and dissipate into the wet night air. He seems to be
waiting for you to answer the door... |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000008 Reply: Jantus As soon as the
Thrak-mar have left, my first task is to determine if they are being honest
about the nature of their cargo. If possible to do so without damaging them,
I will open a few crates at random and examine the
contents. When the
visitor comes calling, my first step, as a precautionary measure, is to jack
into the nearest terminal and raise the Nezbixx's internal gravity to
Devonian normal. I will then open the hatch to see what this visitor wants.
"I am Jantus, captain of this ship, but I suppose you know that
already." I give a stony grin. "Who are you and what can I do for
you?" |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000008: Hiphop Lighting
another smoke, you say, “The name is Hiphop.” Within the dim enclosure of the
bar stall, the match turns the areas around your face any number of
interesting shades of green. The light dances in the glassy orbs of your
eyes. “I’d love to work with you...the Nezbixx sounds like a good ship. I’ll
see you at the pad in a little while. I just need to pick up some stuff back
at my hotel, Rooms Without A View.” Jantus nods, so you stand and wave,
making your way outside. As you open
the door, a gust of rain and wind hits you, causing you to blink and drop
your clear inner eyelids. It has gotten a bit colder, mostly due to the wind,
you surmise. The streets
leading to your hotel are all but deserted. Back at your room, you gather
together your gear and make ready to head for the pad. A while later, after
paying your bill, you head for the docking yard, looking for the Nezbixx. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000008 Reply: Hiphop I searched
until I finally found the ship I was looking for, the Nezbixx. Funny name,
but probably Devonian I surmised. I searched around for Jantus... |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000009: Jantus As you crack
the case on the first crate, a cloud of chilly white air escapes. There is a
small device set into the lid of the crate that functions to keep the
contents cool. Inside the crate there are numerous blocks of coffee, dried
down into a hard modular shape. Each dark block is sealed in a silvery
translucent bag that has been vacuum-shrunk to the shape of the block.
Opening several of the crates, you find that each has similar contents. Each
block could contain virtually anything, but on the surface it does seem to be
coffee, Dreeva’s major export. You reseal the
crates. A little while
later, you raise the gravity inside the ship and open the hatch to address
the hooded visitor. He is nearly immobile as he listens to your
greeting. Then he
speaks. Regular puffs of greenish air drift down from his breather as he
responds. “I am of the Sikkar...I seek immediate passage to the world of
Wiss. I will provide payment.” Then he continues to stand, as if he had never
spoken. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000009 Reply: Jantus "Please
wait here" I say, and I leave the hatch open while I return to the
nearest terminal, jack in, return gravity to "normal", and search
for any information regarding
"Sikkar". Unless I
discover information that makes me wary of taking him on board, I return to
the hatch to negotiate payment. "If you
want to hitch a ride, the fee is nominal (I offer whatever would be a fair
rate, since I don't have a good feel for the Tenjee monetary system) If there
are special dietary and/or environmental needs, we will have to work
something out, since we will lift off within the hour and time for
preparation is limited." "Welcome
aboard the Nezbixx" and I stand aside and motion him in. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000009: Hiphop By the time
you reach the docking yard, the rain is really coming down. You trek across
the field, passing by a number of ships, all sitting on illuminated landing
pads. You finally spot the Nezbixx in the
distance. You turn the
corner and move around a small building that sits in the middle of the
docking yard. On the other side, you begin moving along the walkway that
leads to the Nezbixx’s pad. As you draw closer you are able to discern a
figure standing before the open hatch. It appears to be the hooded figure you
saw earlier at Wendy’s Bar. Just as you notice him, he takes a step forward
and moves into the ship. The hatch closes behind him. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000009 Reply: Hiphop Hmm....this I
find interesting. The hooded figure was the most interesting in the bar, and
now he's here. The blue guy mentioned that he didn't really need anymore
people to run the ship...I wonder if he was hired for something else. I made
my way over to the hatch where hoody entered and look around for some way to
communicate into the ship that I've arrived... |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000010: Jantus Your ship's
terminal gives you access to a localized database of information collected
from throughout the Chain. Due to the scope of what it covers, it often only
provides topical information. Still, it does at least have rudimentary
entries for just about everything. Once in a while, when the Nezbixx is in
for maintenance, someone uploads the latest updates to the database, keeping
your ship's data as current as possible. For more detailed queries, you
occasionally send a request via ship communications to a planetary
information database (though this often takes a
while). You jack
in, alter the gravity and do a quick search for the word
Sikkar. In your head,
the Nezbixx responds: "Unknown search subject. There is no information
on the subject 'Sikkar'." It offers a number of variants--close
spellings--but you see nothing that actually seems to
match. Returning to
the hatch, you offer him the trip for 500 credits. The rain outside is coming
down now, flashing brightly as it passes from the darkness of night into the
sphere of illumination surrounding your ship. The hooded figure stands
passively in the downpour. "I
accept," he says quietly. One gloved hand comes forward from beneath his
cloak, offering a featureless transaction card. "You may subtract your
fee from this..." You welcome
the thin stranger aboard and he enters the ship, moving through the airlock
and into the cargo bay. As he enters, you realize that he is roughly your
height, though he seems to stoop at times. Slung over his shoulder there is a
single bag of dark leather. After retrieving his debited transaction card, he
makes his way into one of the passenger berths, trailing a thin green mist. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000010 Reply: Jantus Close the
hatch behind the Sikkar. I watch him head to his berth wondering what is
underneath that cloak. I head to the cockpit. I patch the
Nezbixxs' comm system into the local communications network, attempt to
locate someone at the "Rooms Without a View" hotel, and ask them to
pass the following message along to the guest 'Hiphop'. "Cargo and
unexpected passenger now aboard, ship is prepped and ready for liftoff when
you arrive. -Jantus" I then switch
over to the spaceport flight controllers and log my flight plan as well as
request clearance for takeoff. While the engines are warming up I head
towards the galley and fix a big sandwich of whatever meat this planet
provides, and sit listening to ship-to-ship chatter of orbiting vessels while
I eat. Not looking for anything in particular, just being
voyeuristic. After I've
eaten, made all the pre-flight checks, and logged my flight plan, I begin to
pace through the ship. "Where is that navigator" I mumble, and I
stop to stare at the Navigation computer. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000010: Hiphop As you draw
close to the Nezbixx, you can see that she’s been well cared for, despite her
obvious age. You think to yourself that she’s seen some significant action,
though you’d imagine most of it involved things like dodging asteroids and
hauling cargo up out of stormy atmospheres. Still, you find yourself
approving as you study the contours of the wedge-shaped freighter. At the
outer hatch (which probably leads into the cargo hold), there is a small
intercom buzzer. You press it and identify yourself. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000010 Reply: Hiphop "This is
Hip-Hop," I barked into the intercom. Then after a second’s thought I
added, "The guy you hired to run the Nav computer?" I admired the
ship's craftsmanship as I waited patiently for a response. Almost
absent-mindedly I lit another cigarette... |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000011: Jantus Someone on the
staff of the "Rooms Without a View" hotel answers your call. She is
an elderly blue-skinned Hythean female whom licks her fangs as she talks; you
can see her tail whipping back and forth behind her throughout the brief
call. “He just checked out,” she says in accented Chain
common. After closing
the call, you log your flight plan and receive take-off clearance. The
engines hum to life and the ship runs through its diagnostics without fail.
As you’re eating, the ship-to-ship chatter is as boring as it usually is. You
hear no further sounds from your passenger; he appears content to stay within
his room. Suddenly the
hatch intercom bleeps and you hear Hiphop’s voice. “Hey, Jantus, open up...” |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000011 Reply: Jantus Briefly check
the monitor to see if he is alone, and if he is I open the hatch. I will
offer to help him load his gear if he has any, seal the hatch, and then lead
him to the passenger berths. "This one is occupied by the Sikkar" I
say, and try to gauge his reaction, "He is a passenger who signed on at
the last minute and will be travelling to Wiss with us". I will lead
Hiphop on a brief tour of the Nezbixx, winding up in the cockpit at the
Navigation/copilot station. I strap into
the pilots seat, plug the interface jacks into my temples, and engage the
ships PA system. "Prepare for lift-off. We will be spaceborne in a
few minutes, and will immediately move out of the system and enter warp space
as soon a possible." Even though there is only one passenger, I like to
fly by the book. I
"think" the ship up into the air, hover at about 500 meters and do
a slow spin looking over the other ships in the port. I turn the ships nose
up sharply and begin to accelerate into an orbital arch, mentally looking for
a navigation plan created by Hiphop to lock the ship onto. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000011: Hiphop You study the
Nezbixx. She is roughly wedge-shaped and is divided into three segments:
command, transport and engineering. The entire vessel is 150 feet long and
100 feet wide at its widest. It is a uniform slate gray with the red
triangular Crest of Denuva painted on the front of the command section. The
engines are contained in twin external cylinders that run one quarter the
length of the ship. A second’s
time passes before the hatch slides open. Jantus helps you carry in your
gear, then seals the hatch behind you. Due to the Devonian design of the
ship, there is plenty of room to move about, relative to many of the small
freighters on which you’ve been employed. The entire ship is awash in a ruddy
light, perhaps better for Devonian eyes, and the gravity field seems slightly
higher than that to which you’re accustomed. Jantus leads
you back to the passenger berths—small enclosures dedicated to providing
sleeping quarters for one passenger each. As you pass one of the doors, which
is closed, he says, “This one is occupied by the Sikkar... He is a passenger
who signed on at the last minute and will be travelling to Wiss with
us." You’ve never heard the term Sikkar. Then Jantus
gives you a brief tour, showing you the various areas of the ship, including
the cargo bay, recreation and galley hall and two airlocks (complete with
spacesuit hangars containing two Devonian sized suits). The tour ends
pointedly at the NAV station and co-pilot’s seat. He tosses you a set of
special goggles. When you strap them on, the readouts suddenly become much
more parsable as the red light is filtered out. As you settle in and begin
plotting your course, Jantus moves over to the pilot’s seat and jacks in to
the control console. A few minutes
later, Jantus’ voice comes over the ship’s com system, “Prepare for lift-off.
We will be space-borne in a few minutes, and will immediately move out of the
system and enter warp space as soon a
possible." When you’ve
completed the NAV plan and have logged it in, Jantus takes off, slowly
lifting the ship to about 500 meters. On your screens, the wet launch pad
drops away as the ship rises into the night sky. Jantus appears to be
controlling the ship through his neural link. The ship slowly rotates in
place, giving you a good view of the docking yard and all the other craft
currently in residence. Then the Nezbixx turns upward sharply and accelerates
until it reaches orbit. Finally, you feel her pulling away from Dreeva’s
gravity, moving out into the openness of space. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000011 Reply: Hiphop I felt silly
asking, but it'd been bugging me since I heard it, so as usual, I just leaped
and didn't bother looking. "What's a Sikkar? I don't think I've ever
heard that term before. Is he the hooded guy who got here just before me? Oh,
and by the way, can I smoke on deck?" |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000012: Jantus A very short
time after giving Hiphop the tour, settling in and making your announcement,
you notice that he is working quickly at the NAV station. At first, watching
him work out of the corner of your eye, it almost seems as if he is plotting
the course in a half-distracted fashion; he appears to be simultaneously
plotting a course and studying his surroundings. Tucking away your worries
for further consideration, you warm up the
Nezbixx. Minutes later,
the ship’s system pings you with notification of the course heading. Checking
it over, you are impressed. For what seemed—due to body language—a half-ass
effort, the NAV entry is perfect as far as you can tell. It rates a very high
efficiency rating and there is an alternate route logged in as well that
seems to be a contingency plan accounting for any anomalous occurrences.
Thorough work in record time. You take off
slowly, lifting the ship to about 500 meters. On your screens, the wet launch
pad drops away as the ship rises into the night sky. Controlling her through
your neural link, you rotate the ship in place, panning across the docking
yard and all the other craft currently in residence. Then you turn upward
sharply and accelerate until she reaches orbit. You stretch your shoulder
muscles as you feel her pulling away from Dreeva’s gravity, moving out into
the openness of space. While you’re
running things, Hiphop turns your way and asks sheepishly, “What's a Sikkar?
I don't think I've ever heard that term before. Is he the hooded guy who got
here just before me? Oh, and by the way, can I smoke on deck?" |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000012 Reply: Jantus "I was
hoping you would know what a Sikkar was, there was no data on them in my
computers, but that doesn't really mean anything". Pause briefly while I
instruct the ship to move out of the planetary system where we can warp
safely. "My guess
is that he will stay sequestered in his cabin until we land, so I'm not
really worried about it." I pull out my datajacks, unstrap my flight
harness and turn my seat to face the navigator’s station, "It's fine to
smoke on board the Nezbixx, as long as you have one for me." I flash him
my cracked-sidewalk smile. "Outstanding
work on the navigation console, Hiphop," I say while lighting one up
(assuming he gives me one) "Where did you pick up skills like
that?" "The
Sikkar is not the only question mark on board, I'm also unfamiliar with your
race. Where are you from?" During the
conversation, when we reach a safe point in deep space, I again switch on the
PA. "Prepare for warp" I bark, and manually engage the warp drive,
ripping space to shreds around us... |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000012: Hiphop As he’s doing
so, he says, “I was hoping you would know what a Sikkar was. There was no
data on them in my computers, but that doesn't really mean anything". He
pauses briefly while instructing the ship to move out of the planetary
system. "My guess is that he will stay sequestered in his cabin until we
land, so I'm not really worried about it."
He pulls out
the datajacks, unstraps his flight harness and turns in his seat to face the
navigator’s station. "It's fine to smoke on board the Nezbixx, as long
as you have one for me." He flashes a cracked-sidewalk
smile. After you give
him a cigarette, he lights it up. "Outstanding work on the navigation
console, Hiphop. Where did you pick up skills like
that?" "By the
way, the Sikkar is not the only question mark on board, I'm also unfamiliar
with your race. Where are you from?" During the
conversation, when the ship has reached a safe point in deep space, he
switches on the PA system and barks, "Prepare for warp." He
manually engages the warp drive, ripping space to shreds around the Nezbixx. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000012 Reply: Hiphop "I'm
Grentinian." I said with the practiced ease of one who has answered a
question more times than they care to remember. "It's a swamp-covered
planet that I don't remember very well since I left it when I was six. The
city I was from sold me to a slaver for a ship with an FTL drive. The slaver
later told me that it was non-functional and the ship itself was mostly just
a burnt out husk. My people are desperate for technology since not many of
them have the creativity to make their own. I'm sure I wasn't the first or
last of my race who was sold for technology." I paused to take another
hit from the smoke. “I learned nav computers and ship security from slavers
and pirates over the next few years, but now I just freelance, whatever I can
get. I'm glad you came along, there just wasn't much else to do on that
god-forsaken planet." I let my
information sink in and finished off the cigarette. "Not sure about the
Sikkar though. I saw him in the bar, but didn't get a chance to get chatty
with him. Hope he's not trouble..." |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000013: Jantus With the ship
moving along at light speed, following the course laid in by your new
navigator, the two of you chat. With the practiced ease of one who has
answered the questions more times that he can count, Hiphop says, in answer
to your question, "I'm Grentinian. It's a swamp-covered planet that I
don't remember very well since I left it when I was six. The city I‘m from
traded me to a slaver in exchange for a ship with an FTL drive. The slaver
later told me that it was non-functional and the ship itself was mostly just
a burnt out husk.” Hiphop chuckles to himself. “My people are
desperate for technology since not many of them have the creativity to make
their own. I'm sure I wasn't the first or last of my race who was sold for
technology." He pauses to
take another hit from the smoke. “I learned NAV computers and ship security
from slavers and pirates over the years. Now I just freelance, whatever I can
get. I'm glad you came along, there just wasn't much else to do on that
god-forsaken planet." He finishes
the cigarette, simultaneously studying the NAV console in that weird way...as
if he were doing two things at once without any slow-down in either task.
"Not sure about the Sikkar,” he says. “I saw him in the bar, but didn't
get a chance to get chatty with him. Hope he's not trouble..."
A short time
into the flight your console goes off, indicating a nearby distress beacon. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000013 Reply: Jantus "Damn,"
I mumble while plugging the jacks back into my cranium. "We are on a
tight schedule, but we can't ignore a distress signal." I cut in the
sublight engines and drop out of warp speed. "The
trouble is every two-bit pirate knows we won't ignore it, so let's keep our
eyes open." With that statement, I look at Hiphops bulbous eyes and
wonder if I've just offended him. "I'm energizing the ship’s defensive
and weapons systems." "Can you
get a bearing and distance on that signal Hiphop? Are there any other
ships out here?" I again switch
on the ships PA. "We are making a brief unscheduled stop to investigate
a distress signal. We will get back underway as soon as
possible." I turn to
Hiphop and in a low voice "If the Sikkar leaves his cabin, help me keep
an eye on him" As the ship
cruises to the origin of the SOS, I seal up my flight suit, all except the
helmet, so I can jack in when necessary. |
|
Turn
000003: Core Dump The days pass
slowly... You manage to
fix the pod's com panel within the first day. After that it's chess and
stargazing. Your calculate your location at roughly half a day from Dreeva.
The luxury liner on which you were working had dropped out of light speed
before continuing toward Wiss in order to allow the passengers to take 3d
holopics of a large, highly metallic asteroid that had been passing through
the region. Tumbling along, it sparkled and shined whenever light played upon
its craggy slate surface. You're
considering shutting down completely to conserve power when the pod's com
panel starts to bleep; a ship has come into range. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000003 Reply: Coredump If this ship
broadcasting an id, Coredump will attempt verify that it is not a Vinge ship
out to pick him up and finish him off. If it is an unknown or friendly
id, I'll hit the distress signal. If no id is
available, given the amount of time that has passed, Coredump will hit the
broadcast button anyway. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000013: Hiphop With the ship
moving along at light speed, following the course you’ve laid in, you chat
with Jantus, telling him of your home world and your past. The ship seems to
function well. However, a short time into the flight your console goes off,
indicating a nearby distress beacon. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000013 Reply: Hiphop I checked the
beacon and then asked Jantus to take a look... |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000014: Hiphop "Damn,"
Jantus responds while plugging the ship’s control leads back into his
datajack. "We are on a tight schedule, but we can't ignore a distress
signal. The trouble is every two-bit pirate knows we won't ignore it, so
let's keep our eyes open." He gives you a sidelong glance and cuts in the
sub-light engines. The Nezbixx drops out of warp speed and on the displays,
you see space returning to normal, growing darker. The stars once again
become twinkling pinpoints of light. "I'm
energizing the ship’s defensive and weapons systems," says Jantus.
"Can you get a bearing and distance on that signal? Are there any other
ships out here?" Over the PA,
Jantus says, "We are making a brief unscheduled stop to investigate a
distress signal. We will get back underway as soon as
possible." He then turns
to you and says in a low voice, "If the Sikkar leaves his cabin, help me
keep an eye on him." As the ship
cruises to the origin of the SOS, he seals up his flight suit, all except for
the helmet. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000014 Reply: Hiphop I check for
other ships in the area and ask Jantus, "What are you going to
do?" |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000004: Coredump The pod is
rolling along through space, vast darkness above, below and to all sides...an
endless gulf. By now accustomed to the pod’s constant tumbling, you hit the
com switch, attempting to initiate voice communications with the ship that
just slowed to sub-light speeds. As the pod
rotates, you get a brief view of the approaching craft. At first it’s a tiny
glint in the distance. But as you adjust your eyes, magnifying to the x100
scale, you begin to make out more detail. The ship is apparently a
light freighter. She is wedge-shaped and looks to have seen quite a bit of
use, if the scoring and tarnishing along her sides is any indication. The
entire vessel is only 150 feet long and 100 feet wide (at its widest point,
toward the rear). It is a uniform slate gray with a red triangular crest
painted on the nose. Before you can
make out any other details, the pod continues its rotation, blocking your
view of the oncoming ship. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000004 Reply: Coredump Coredump hits
the com switch and says, "This is Ecleese life pod to approaching craft.
Requesting assistance. Please reply." Though I have
a commanding voice by default (part of the foreman programming), I normally
alter it to a deeper mellow tone to match my character. The metallic quality
is only slightly noticeable, usually not over a com system. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000014: Jantus As a dozen
potentially threatening scenarios are racing through your head, the ship's
com system chirps and a message comes through into the cockpit. An incredibly
composed voice says, "This is Ecleese life pod to approaching craft.
Requesting assistance. Please reply." That familiar
feeling courses through you with icy suddenness--the blood-rushing buzz
associated with those brief flashes of action that punctuate the long periods
of calm in a spacer's life. Hiphop turns
back toward the main body of the ship to check on things, then calmly looks
back at you. Angling his head, he seems to be regarding the flashing com
indicator with one bulbous eye. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000014 Reply: Jantus I reach over
and open the channel. "Ecleese life pod, this is Denuvian transport
Nezbixx. What is the nature of your emergency? We are closing on your
position. Please advise us of any hazards or threats in this region." |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000005: Coredump The response
to your broadcast comes almost immediately. A deep voice echoes through the
pod. "Ecleese life pod, this is Denuvian transport Nezbixx. What is the
nature of your emergency? We are closing on your position. Please advise us
of any hazards or threats in this region." The pilot sounds a bit
wary. As your pod
tumbles around again, you can see the Nezbixx standing off a ways from your
location. Due the angle of your rotation, you are looking at the ship from an
odd angle, but she appears to have come to a halt. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000005 Reply: Coredump Coredump
responds, "Nezbixx, this is Ecleese Pod One. I am unaware of any threats
in the area. You are the first ship I've encountered. Limited sensor
capability. Zero flight control. Low life support. I am adrift. Please
assist." |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000015: Jantus Slowing the
ship to a halt, you establish visual contact with the life pod. Your scanners
indicate no life forms on board. Another transmission, an answer to your
previous inquiry, comes only seconds later. "Nezbixx,
this is Ecleese Pod One. I am unaware of any threats in the area. You are the
first ship I've encountered. Limited sensor capability. Zero flight control.
Low life support. I am adrift. Please assist." |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000015 Reply: Jantus "Stand by
for grappling, Ecleese pod one." "C'mon
Hiphop," while rising from my seat. "Let's move the coffee into
another hold and bring that pod on-board." I rush down to
the lower deck, casting a quick glance towards the Sikkar’s cabin, then start
moving coffee crates into the smaller bays and sealing them off. "There
are no life readings on that pod," I explain to Hiphop while we work.
"So if it's some type of robot on board we may have salvage rights over
it. If anything, we can probably salvage that capsule itself. Also, this
gives us a chance to contain whatever is in that pod, and shoot it right back
into space if it proves troublesome." When the main
cargo hold is cleared, I seal the bay, depressurize the room and lower the
ramp into the vacuum of space. I make my way
back to the bridge, jack in to the control console and begin a delicate job
of piloting the Nezbixx over the pod and swallowing it. "Ecleese Pod
One, we are preparing to receive you into our main cargo bay. Please do not
exit the capsule until we have sealed the ramp and pressurized the
room." As soon as it
is safely inside, I lock down the bridge and run down to the main bay.
Peering at the capsule through the tiny viewport in the airlock, I slowly
bring gravity up to normal in the chamber, and pressurize the
room. I motion for
Hiphop to follow, enter the cargo deck and head for the escape pod hatch.
"Welcome aboard the Nezbixx." I attempt to open the pod. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000015: Hiphop As if to reply
with action, he reaches over and opens up a com channel. A measured
voice responds immediately. "Nezbixx, this is Ecleese Pod One.
I Meanwhile you
run a scan of the area. You detect no other ships, though Jantus slows
the ship to a stop. Through the screens scattered through
the Jantus runs a
quick scan. It seems to indicate no life forms on board the
Then, rising
from his seat, he says, "C'mon Hiphop. Let's move the coffee
The two of you
rush down to the lower deck. Passing the Sikkar's cabin,
you When the main
cargo hold is cleared, the two of you exit the loading bay.
The two of you
make your way back to the bridge. Jantus jacks into the He punches a
few pads on the console, locking down the bridge, then
says, "Welcome
aboard the Nezbixx," Jantus says. He reaches to open the pod. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000015 Reply: Hiphop "I gotta
question," I asked as we entered the cargo bay. "If it's just a
mech, and there are no life-forms, why did it bother telling us it's life
support systems were low? Couldn't a mech survive almost indefinitely without
the normal life support...?" |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000016: Jantus You and Hiphop
have repressurized the cargo bay and have entered. Standing
There is a
release bar fitted into the face of the door. You're about
to |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000016 Reply: Jantus "Unless
it considers power as life support." I say, and release the pod hatch. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000006: Coredump Some time
passes after your last communication with the Nezbixx. Through the pod's
tinted portal, you can sometimes see the ship. On one of the pod's rotations,
you note that she is moving closer. A rotation later you see that she is
almost on top of you. Then space goes away as the open mouth of the Nezbixx's
cargo bay swallows the pod. The bay doors
slowly pull upward into place beneath you and lock. Artificial gravity
gradually pulls the pod down to the floor of the bay. Immediately your
enclosure begins to hum with the deep vibrations of the larger vessel. It is
a comforting sound. Through the
small, upturned portal (which you suspect is only transparent from your
direction), you can see two spacers standing two meters away from the pod.
One is very large and blue-skinned, wearing some sort of fine, black chain
mail. There are neural datajacks protruding from his head. The other is also
large, but is green. He has bulbous eyes and looks amphibian. They seem to be
discussing the pod, but you cannot hear them. There is a
release bar on the inside of the pod door. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000006 Reply: Coredump Coredump
replaces all of his tools, bangs three times on the pod door, turns the
release bar and tugs the door inward (assuming that's the way a spacepod door
would open ((vacumm sealed and all)). |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000007: Coredump You easily
pull the door aside and emerge from the pod. Standing in the cargo bay, you
are face to face with the two spacers who have “rescued” you. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000007 Reply: Coredump Coredump,
climbs out of the pod and states, "Greetings. Coredump, at your service.
I suppose I am in your debt." He holds his hands away from his sides in
a casual but mechanical gesture, that illustrates he is carrying no
obvious weapons. He examines each
being closely. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000017: Jantus Just as your
hand reaches the release bar, someone from inside the pod bangs three times
hard on the inside of the door, as if to signal you. Then the door swings
inward. From within, a
very broad-shouldered mech climbs out into the bay. Standing before you, it
is apparent that the thing was once an NZ-34 heavy equipment mech. It states,
"Greetings. Coredump, at your service. I suppose I am in your
debt." The mech holds its hands away from its sides in a casual but
mechanical gesture, illustrating that it is carrying no obvious
weapons. Given the
circumstances and the articulation of its greeting (very odd for the normally
imbecilic NZ-34), you suspect that it been heavily modified, perhaps even to
the point of sentience (and thus legal citizenship). It is bipedal and
human-shaped, though extremely large. The skin is metallic gray and has been
pseudo-organically contoured in places. It examines
both you and Hiphop closely, its eyes moving independently in their sockets |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000017 Reply: Jantus "Welcome
aboard the Nezbixx. I am Jantus and this is Hiphop," motioning towards
the amphibian. "We are currently en route to the Wiss system under a
tight deadline. "I am
curious to find out how you got out here. While firing
questions at him, I look the pod over to see if the systems on board the
Nezbixx can be used to recharge it. "Please
join us in the galley in a few minutes so we can learn a bit more about each
other." I head back
for the bridge, unlock the consoles, and get us back underway. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000016: Hiphop "Unless
it considers power as life support." Says Jantus. Just before his hand
reaches the pod’s release bar, however, someone from inside the pod bangs
three times hard on the inside of the door, as if to signal. Then the door
swings inward. From within, a
very broad-shouldered mech climbs out into the bay. Standing before you, it
is apparent that the thing was once an NZ-34 heavy equipment mech. It states,
"Greetings. Coredump, at your service. I suppose I am in your debt."
The mech holds its hands away from its sides in a casual but mechanical
gesture, illustrating that it is carrying no obvious
weapons. Given the
circumstances and the articulation of its greeting (very odd for the normally
imbecilic NZ-34), you suspect that it been heavily modified, perhaps even to
the point of sentience (and thus legal citizenship). It is bipedal and
human-shaped, though extremely large. The skin is metallic gray and has been
pseudo-organically contoured in places. It examines
both you and Jantus closely, its eyes moving independently in their sockets |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000016 Reply: Hiphop Odd, I thought
to myself. "There's something you don't see everyday," I
whispered to Jantus. “Anyone else
on board?" I asked it casually. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000008: Coredump The
blue-skinned being says, "Welcome aboard the Nezbixx. I am Jantus and
this is Hiphop," motioning towards the amphibian.” "There's
something you don't see everyday," Hiphop whispers to Jantus. Then he
asks you, “Anyone else on board?" “No,” you tell
him. “Only me.” Jantus says,
"We are currently en route to the Wiss system under a tight deadline.
Please join us in the galley in a few minutes so we can learn a bit more
about each other." He looks over the pod again, then heads for the front
of the ship. You follow
Hiphop to the galley. Shortly thereafter, Jantus rejoins you. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000017: Hiphop Jantus says,
"Welcome aboard the Nezbixx. I am Jantus and this is Hiphop." He
motions towards you with one large blue hand. "There's
something you don't see everyday," you whisper to Jantus. Then you ask
the mech, “Anyone else on board?" “No,” Coredump
replies. “Only me.” Jantus says,
"We are currently en route to the Wiss system under a tight deadline.
Please join us in the galley in a few minutes so we can learn a bit more
about each other." He looks over the pod again, then heads back for the
bridge. You lead
Coredump to the galley. Shortly thereafter, Jantus rejoins you. |
|
Tenjee
Turn 000018: Jantus Regarding the
mech, you say, "Welcome aboard the Nezbixx. I am Jantus and this is
Hiphop." "There's
something you don't see everyday," Hiphop whispers to you. Then, in a
louder voice, he asks, “Anyone else on board?" “No,” Coredump
replies. “Only me.” You tell
Coredump, "We are currently en route to the Wiss system under a tight
deadline. Please join us in the galley in a few minutes so we can learn a bit
more about each other." You look over the pod again, then head back for
the bridge. Hiphop leads
Coredump to the galley. Shortly thereafter, with the ship once again
underway, you rejoin them. |
|
End
of Phase One |