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“Well anyway,” you yawn. “I’m going to have to let you go for now. Take care of yourself, Sergeant.”

“You too,” Sarah nods. You cut the call and put your communicator away. Standing up, you feel like you could pass out right now. You make your way upstairs and fall into bed, and within about five minutes, you are asleep.

---

You awaken to the sound of the intercom next to your bunk buzzing. Flipping the talk switch on you groggily raise your head and speak. “Hello?”

“Hey Captain,” it’s Tom’s voice on the other end. “We’ve got about five minutes until we exit FTL and make contact with our old friend.”

“Thanks for letting me know,” you reply. “I’m going to get a cup of coffee and then I’ll meet you on the bridge.” You get out of bed and throw some clean clothes on, heading downstairs. The wardroom is mostly empty, aside from Virgo, who sits at the bench reading a book.

“Morning, Captain.” He nods at you. “Sleep well?”

You raise an eyebrow at him as you get your coffee. “About as well as ever,” you shrug. Not even taking time to put sugar in it, you begin drinking the bitter liquid as you head up to the bridge.

Tom leans back in his seat, feet propped up on the empty spot on the control panel where some old instruments used to be. “Captain,” he nods as you arrive on the bridge. You notice that Corrigan is also here, sitting tiredly at her station.

“What time is it?” You rub your head as you sit down.

“That’s relative,” Tom replies. “Better to gauge time by when most of the crew go to sleep. In which case, most of the crew has been asleep for about six hours.”

“I see,” you say. “How long was I out?”

“A little over eight hours,” Tom says as he removes his feet from the dash and leans in toward his controls. “Anyway, we’re about to disengage from FTL, buckle in.”

You all secure yourselves, the sounds of three buckles clicking into place. Just as you do, the ship begins to shudder and the light outside begins to change. Suddenly, the warped light returns to normal, causing you to blink at the brightness of the nebula in which your ship now sits. These are the Fields of Minerva, which coincidentally are shaped like a skull.

“Captain, there’s a call on the short-range radio.” Tom looks back at you.

“Right,” you nod, answering the call.

A familiar voice crackles over the speakers. “You’ve got a fast little ship, Captain Starwind,” Blackheart says with a chuckle. “You wouldn’t happen to have some tricks up your sleeve that I don’t know about, would you?”

>”Just a damn good navigator.”
>”That’s a trade secret.”
>”Secret alien technology.” (joke)
>”Let’s meet up and get this over with.”
>Write-in.

>>998395
>Write-in
It never pays to keep a lady waiting for too long you know?

>>998407
seconding

>>998391
Last anon for old thread, I actually just picked this up, so I'll be going through the backlog first and coming here

>>998395
>>”Just a damn good navigator.”

>>998395
>>”That’s a trade secret.”

>>998395
This >>998407

> fast
> little
What did she mean by this? Has she got a hidden camera in our room?

>>998395
>>”Just a damn good navigator.”

>>998395
>>998407
this

File: TT-900M Razor.png (140 KB, 625x372)

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“Well it never pays to keep a lady waiting too long, you know.” You grin to yourself.

Blackheart chuckles over the radio. “How gentlemanly of you,” she says. “Anyway, I’m on my way to your location now. It’ll be about five minutes until I’m in a position to dock with your vessel.”

You look out the window and see something strange. The nebula gas off the starboard bow of your ship begins to move as though a very small ship is moving through it, but there’s no ship to be seen. “Tom, are we getting any readings on our radar?”

Tom frowns, seeing the same anomaly you’re seeing. “No sir, there’s nothing.” You can tell that he’s about to say something else, but everyone’s attention is diverted as a red one-seater phases into view where the gas is moving. “Holy shit, sir. Optical camouflage.” He swears to himself. “No, optical camouflage wouldn’t be enough to keep them off of our radar. It’s got to be some kind of stealth system.”

“Very observant,” Blackheart’s voice crackles over the speaker. “Stealth drives are useful for someone like me. The Iron Hand has a similar system.”

“Nice fighter,” you reply as she does a close flyby. “I’m not familiar with the model though.”

“It’s a TT-900,” she replies proudly. “Vintage.” You catch a better view of the craft as she passes your ship again. It is much smaller than the fighter you used to fly, with long wings and a massive gun slung underneath its body in a spherical turret. The paint definitely isn’t original either. “Give me a second, I’m doing a long-range scan to check for any unwanted guests.”

As soon as she does another pass, Blackheart’s fighter swings into position at your forward airlock and a small tube extends from the bottom of the fighter.

“Extending our docking tube,” Tom says as he presses a button. A tube pops out from the forward airlock and meets up with the tube from Blackheart’s fighter. “Alright, we’re locked and docked.” Tom stands up and stretches. “I’ll head down to engineering and get the cargo, you go and meet Blackheart.” You nod at Tom and stand up as he looks over at Corrigan. “If it seems like she’s going to try anything funny, you blast that little red mosquito off our hull.” She nods as you and Tom leave the bridge together.

You immediately head over to the forward airlock as Tom heads downstairs to retrieve the gold. You arrive at the airlock just as the inner door opens and Blackheart steps out into the airlock room. “Hey there,” she smiles.

>”Good morning.” (friendly)
>”Tom should have the gold here in a couple minutes.” (straight to business)
>”So why the fighter? Is your ship off doing something else?”
>”Want a tour of the Bad Habit?”
>Write-in.

>>998617
>>”Good morning.” (friendly)
>”So why the fighter? Is your ship off doing something else?”
>”Want a tour of the Bad Habit?”

>>998617
>”Good morning.” (friendly)
>”So why the fighter? Is your ship off doing something else?”
No touring the ship, keep this professional. And I'm not sure the crew would like having a pirate in their midst.

>>998617
>>”Good morning.” (friendly)

>>998617
>”Good morning.” (friendly)
>”Want a tour of the Bad Habit?”

>>998617
>”Good morning.” (friendly)

>>998617
> good morning
> want a tour? Or at least had to the ward room for a coffee or something, don't just stand around the airlock.
Don't you guys want to show off our canine crewmember and our pet elf?

Should we ask if she wants to buy some of those guns wet salvaged too?

>>998617
>”Good morning.” (friendly)
>”Want a tour of the Bad Habit?”

>>998617
>>”Good morning.” (friendly)

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You lean against the bulkhead behind you. “Good morning,” you say. “Want a tour of the ship?” You point a thumb over your shoulder. “Might take Tom a while to get the cargo ready for you.”

“Sure,” she replies. With that, the two of you head aft toward the wardroom.

“These are our crew staterooms,” you say as you walk down the corridor between the staterooms. The two of you enter the wardroom and you gesture to the coffee pot. “Help yourself to some coffee if you want.”

“Thanks,” she replies as she gets a cup from the shelf and fills it up. “So how long have you had this ship?”

You both sit down as she drinks her coffee. “Not long. A little over a week, actually.” You stretch, rubbing the stiff spot on your shoulder where there are still pins from your old injury. “The ship is over seventy years old though.”

“Well how about that,” Blackheart says. “I’d be willing to bet they used it as a missile boat during the Border Wars.”

“I think so,” you reply. Blackheart finishes her coffee and puts the cup in the sink, then the two of you continue your tour. “Down there is engineering,” you point to the stairwell leading to the engineering areas. “It’s kind of cramped, so I don’t think we should head down there.” You smile sarcastically. “Besides, it might draw the ire of my chief engineer.”

“Fair enough,” Blackheart chuckles. “If there’s one thing I know about engineers, they don’t like having their domain disturbed.”

The two of you head aft through the empty room. “This was the CIC,” you say. “These crates have some other cargo we pulled from that shipwreck.”

Blackheart looks into one of the crates whose lid is ajar. “Rifles?” She looks at you. “Wait, was it a military shipwreck?”

>”Does it matter?”
>”Yeah.”
>”No.”
>Write-in.

>>998796
>”Does it matter?”

>>998796
>>”Does it matter?”

>>998796
>>”Does it matter?”

>>998796
>>”Does it matter?”

>>998796
>”No

>>998796
> Yeah, you didn't hear about it from me though
She is going to patch the ship up, put some fake license plates on it and go round conning people. Fun.

“Does it matter?” You cross your arms.

Blackheart frowns, seemingly thinking of something else. “It might…” She steps back from the crate, looking at the other crates. “Yeah… Definitely military crates. Federal by the look of it. That’s troubling.”

“How so?”

“Because there’s only one Federal military wreck near Neptune.” She grimaces before speaking. “These are from the Wales, aren’t they?”

You try to dodge the question, but you can tell that your facial expression has given it away. “Why would it matter?” You take a step back.

Blackheart looks at you for just a moment, then back to the crates. “Look, I’m not superstitious,” she begins. “But I’ve heard stories about the Wales. Heard that some bad stuff went down there.” She crosses her arms, only it looks far more defensive than inquisitive. “You haven’t had anything… Weird happen since you brought this cargo aboard, have you?”

“Weird?” You raise an eyebrow. It was certainly not the word you’d use to describe the last couple of days, but you supposed it would be an appropriate description.

“Weird like… Seeing things that shouldn’t be possible. People who aren’t really there, stuff like that.” She glances at the doorway behind you. Wait, is she talking about ghosts or something?

>”The cargo isn’t haunted, Blackheart.”
>”There was a guy who survived two years without food or water aboard the wreck.” (mention Albatross)
>”One of the crew was cryogenically frozen and we rescued her.” (mention Samantha)
>Mention Samantha and Albatross.
>”What, you mean the ghosts? I wouldn’t worry about them.” (joke)
>Write-in.

>>998952
>>”One of the crew was cryogenically frozen and we rescued her.” (mention Samantha)

>>998952
>"The only weird things that have come aboard since are the ones I let aboard.

>>998952
>”What, you mean the ghosts? I wouldn’t worry about them.” (joke)
>Mention Samantha and Albatross.

>>998952
>>”The cargo isn’t haunted, Blackheart.”
>>”What, you mean the ghosts? I wouldn’t worry about them.” (joke)
No on mentioning Samantha. Not unless Samantha herself wants to be known to this women.

>>998952
>”What, you mean the ghosts? I wouldn’t worry about them.” (joke)
>”The cargo isn’t haunted, Blackheart.”

>>998952
Hey Zap, you ever play Eve Online?

>>998952
> joke
I agree with not mentioning Sam or vampbro, if only to avoid a lecture on loose ends

>>998993
I do. I'm not very good at it since I only started when they made it free though.

Have some errands to run. Be back in a couple hours.

>>999071
Hahaha. I've been playing since 2015, but really got into it around March last year. It's great. You join a corp yet?

Same guy, swapped devices

>>998952
>>>”One of the crew was cryogenically frozen and we rescued her.” (mention Samantha)
>>998964
>"The only weird things that have come aboard since are the ones I let aboard.

These.

HOWDY DOODY BITCHES, GLAD TO JOIN THIS, FINALLY

>>998952
>”What, you mean the ghosts? I wouldn’t worry about them.” (joke)
>”One of the crew was cryogenically frozen and we rescued her.” (mention Samantha)

>>998952
>>”What, you mean the ghosts? I wouldn’t worry about them.” (joke)

>>998952
>”What, you mean the ghosts? I wouldn’t worry about them.” (joke)
I'm torn if whether if we should mention albatross or not, but if the votes are tied consider my vote for telling about it.

>>998952
>”What, you mean the ghosts? I wouldn’t worry about them.” (joke)
>[Make sure none of the other crew can hear this next part for 100% sure] I can understand why people might think its cursed though, some terrible things went down on that vessel. It appears the crew was able to put off dying of starvation longer than would be possible on rations, if you catch my meaning."

As a note man, half the images in the archives, even ones under spoiler are broken

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“What, you mean the ghosts?” You look over to see Blackheart’s good eye go wide at the mention of such things. You can’t help but grin. “I wouldn’t worry about it. They seem mostly harmless.”

Blackheart stutters for a moment, looking absolutely horrified. “Y-you mean it’s actually haunted?” She takes a step back, almost hitting the wall.

“Joking,” you say. “It’s not haunted. At least as far as I can tell.” You chuckle to yourself.

“That’s not funny,” Blackheart frowns, pointing at you.

“I thought you weren’t superstitious,” you reply.

Blackheart looks absolutely beside herself. “Well yeah, but you see some strange things when you spend enough time in space. It’s not that unbelievable that it could be possible.”

“Well I promise the cargo isn’t haunted. Or at least it doesn’t seem haunted.” You stifle another laugh.

“So what went down on the Wales anyway, I’m assuming the gold is from it too.” Blackheart gets serious again.

“Nothing good,” you begin. “Their engines were disabled and they only had enough food for about a month. Some of the crew survived for almost a year,” you look over at her grimly. “I think you can put two and two together.”

Blackheart shakes her head. “Shit. That’s grim to think about.”

“Yeah,” you nod. “Anyway, it seems like most of the crew had no idea about the gold. The captain and chief engineer were keeping it a secret from the crew.”

“That sounds pretty bad. How did you find out?” Blackheart steps back toward the crates, peering inside at the rifles again. “I mean, that seems pretty detailed.”

>”I found a survivor who told me.”
>”Various artifacts throughout the ship. As well as a partially-readable ship’s log.”
>”You don’t want to know.”
>”I found the gold by accident, if that’s what you mean.”
>Write-in.

>>1000002
That's odd... Must be a problem with the archives. I've never seen it happen before though.

>>1000027
>>”Various artifacts throughout the ship. As well as a partially-readable ship’s log.”
>>1000046
Apparently they still link to 4chan and didn't get re-saved into the archive directly.

>>1000027
>>”Various artifacts throughout the ship. As well as a partially-readable ship’s log.”

>>1000063
>>1000046
Maybe bring it up to the guy who runs suptg?

>>1000027
> various artifacts
Didn't we find a journal?

>>1000027

>”I found a survivor who told me.”
>”Various artifacts throughout the ship. As well as a partially-readable ship’s log.”

>>1000027

>”I found a survivor who told me.”
>”Various artifacts throughout the ship. As well as a partially-readable ship’s log.”

We're the most honest one in this whole damn quest.

>>1000027
>”I found the gold by accident, if that’s what you mean.”
>”Various artifacts throughout the ship. As well as a partially-readable ship’s log.”

Only reveal what's necessary. She may be the best waifu, but she's still a pirate.

I'll be honest, I want to see how much this universe values a trustworthy and honest man. With all the deciet, trickery, and danger of betrayal I want to see if they find value in a man who wears his intentions on his sleeves and won't work to hard to deceive you.

>>1000337
THANK YOU

Honesty is always the best policy, even if you get screwed over. Allen ain't no snarky edgelord who lies to people. He's a straightforward man.

>>1000337
They get played and fugged over ;(

>>1000347
That's fucking naive and you should feel ashamed of your lazy thinking.

“Mostly via artifacts,” you explain. “Stuff left by the crew, written records, and even a partial ship’s log.”

“Interesting,” she replies. “Only a partial log?”

“It was damaged. My first officer has been trying to decode it for the past couple of days.” You sigh, wondering if you should tell her the whole story. However, you decide against telling her about Albatross and Samantha right now.

“So you found the stuff they left behind… I can imagine that it wasn’t pretty.”

“No, it wasn’t,” you agree. “Anyway, let’s head up to the bridge.” You motion for her to follow you so that you can get on with the tour.

You both arrive on the bridge rather unceremoniously. “Seems homey,” Blackheart says as she steps into the small room. “Uh, why are those gauges missing?” She points to the area where Tom was resting his feet earlier.

“Not sure,” you shrug. You then point to Corrigan, who gives a small wave to the both of you. “This is my weapons officer, her name’s Corrigan.”

“Nice to meet you, Miss Blackheart.” Corrigan stands up from her chair and gives a polite bow.

“Hey,” Blackheart responds, shaking Corrigan’s hand. She then steps back and looks at your chair. “Reminds me of my days in the RPDF.”

“The what?” Corrigan speaks up curiously.

“Oh,” Blackheart replies. “The Reznor’s Pride Defense Force, it was the group I was with before I became a no-good pirate,” she says with a grin.

“Captain, Blackheart,” a voice behind you makes the both of you turn around. You see Tom standing there with the bag full of gold. “I got your cargo.”

>”Well, let’s get this over with.” (finish the deal)
>”Are you sure you can’t do any better?” (try to haggle)
>”Tom, you’re interrupting. I was just about to show Blackheart my quarters.” (joke/flirt)
>”Blackheart, how much would you be willing to offer us for those rifles downstairs?”
>Write-in.

>>1000351
I'm immersing myself in the character. Allen might not be naive, but he's honest, even if he does withhold the truth temporarily.

>>1000361
>”Tom, you’re interrupting. I was just about to show Blackheart my quarters.” (joke/flirt)
HERE WE GOOOOOOO

>>1000361
>>”Blackheart, how much would you be willing to offer us for those rifles downstairs?”
Why not see if she can make a better or at lest equivalent deal compared to what we already planned.

>>1000361
>>”Blackheart, how much would you be willing to offer us for those rifles downstairs?”

>>1000361
>>”Blackheart, how much would you be willing to offer us for those rifles downstairs?”

>>1000361
>"Hey Tom did you give your word and/or a definite quantity regarding your contact?" The find out if we're somewhat committed and possibly screwing over Tom before we make an offer option. If not:
>”Blackheart, how much would you be willing to offer us for those rifles downstairs?”

>>1000414
Actaull make that *Hey Tom for our other business
Or something that doesn't make it sound like we're reconsidering the gold deal. Best not to have confusion and be a class act all the way through.

>>1000361
>”Blackheart, how much would you be willing to offer us for those rifles downstairs?”

>>1000361
>”Tom, you’re interrupting. I was just about to show Blackheart my quarters.” (joke/flirt)

About the rifles. I think we should ask if she could use them first then offer to sell them. If she is just going to on-sell them then we could probably get a better price on NA. Um, not sure of the legal status of these guns or of selling them though.

>>1000365
Yeah and we have probably been in enough fucked up situations to know that moral absolutes cause more trouble than they solve. The read to hell is paved with good intentions and all that.

>>1000361

”Tom, you’re interrupting. I was just about to show Blackheart my quarters.” (joke/flirt

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I'm going to call the session for tonight. I'll run tomorrow at around the regular time.

Mood music:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFSm9vfwtNw

How good of a pilot do you think Blackheart is?

>>1000517
On parity or slightly better than us

>>1000517
Later Boss.
>She probably came tearing across space, ramming through debris and rocks.

Nah, probably as good as we were, or maybe on the same skill level as Warwick.

>>1000361
>”Tom, you’re interrupting. I was just about to show Blackheart my quarters.” (joke/flirt)

We'll sell the rifles on New Albany, pirate pussy beats money.

>>1000517
I dunno but she is not very good a keeping her identity secret if she is going to spill her lifes story to every random strange crewmember she comes across.

>>1000517
She was part of the Reznor's defense force, which probably had at least a few fighter craft, though whether she got any flight time or training is unknown. How the quality of any supposed training in a small pdf and her own natural skill plays into that I have no clue. She's a captain now and still has a relic fighter (so some passion for flying is likely there) that she came in so... I'm going to guess she's in the upper 20% but not super fantastic. Although if you told me she was anything else, from crap (Not much experience, mainly crew piloting things, no pdf flying) to top gun (sweet ass classic fighter and pirate captain, combined with PDF training being good and her being a successful pirate period) I would not be surprised.

Still catching up with the backlog and wondering, did elf ever make that call home when we went shopping?

>>1000517
I would guess that she's above average, definitely. she couldn't have gotten up that far with just wits and strategy.

>>1000568
She's just proud of her service, Anon.

>>1000570
Yeah, she got a chance to phone home.

Man this makes me miss stardust quest, hope that comes back one day

>>1001581
Same here man, same here

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Due to having to help my friend with his car troubles, the session will be later than I'd planned. Expect it in around 2 hours. Assuming his car isn't more fucked up than I think it is.

>>1002320
I'll sing a song for ya.

AS I WALK THROUGH THE VALLEYYYYYYYY

You think back to the crates of rifles in the empty room. You figure that you may as well see about getting them off your hands too. “Blackheart,” you look over at her. “How much would you be willing to pay for those rifles downstairs?”

“The rifles?” She raises an eyebrow. “How many do you have?”

“A hundred in total,” Tom says. “But I plan on keeping five aboard the ship in case we need to arm the crew at some point.”

“I see,” she nods. “I’m assuming they’re .308?”

“Yeah,” Tom says. “Battle rifles, old-school.”

Blackheart frowns, humming to herself as she seems to calculate the worth of the rifles. “Well the best I could do on those rifles would be about ten thousand, since I’d be buying them in bulk.”

Tom sighs. “Those rifles are worth twice that amount,” he says.

Blackheart nods. “Rifles are worth more individually than in bulk,” she says defensively. “I’d have to find some way to get rid of them in large quantities. Do you have any idea how difficult it is to find someone in need of a hundred rifles?”

Tom looks over at you. “Sir, the buyer on New Albany is offering thirty thousand for them,” he says. “It’d be enough to totally overhaul the Bad Habit’s engines.”

Blackheart looks apologetically at you. “Hey, I’m sorry that I can’t be making that kind of investment on guns.” She puts her hands up defensively. “They’d sit in my cargo hold for a year while I sold them ten at a time.”

Tom frowns at Blackheart, then looks over at you. “Up to you, sir. But I’d suggest going with the buyer we already have lined up. He’s reliable.”

>”We’ll sell them on New Albany.”
>”You’ve got a deal, Blackheart.” (sell the rifles for 10,000)
>”Tom, who is this buyer exactly?”
>Write-in.

>>1002864
>”We’ll sell them on New Albany.”
I'm interested on who this buyer is (is this the first we have heard of it?) but no point discussing it in front of blacheart. Lets just give her the gold, ask about a diplomatic pouch to avoid searches and tell her about the federation ships heading to NA.

>>1002864
>”Tom, who is this buyer exactly?”

>>1002864
Welcome back, boss.

>”We’ll sell them on New Albany.”
No hard feelings, right?

>>1002864
>>”We’ll sell them on New Albany.”

>>1002864
>”We’ll sell them on New Albany.”

"Just wanted to open the offer up to you as well. Thank you for the consideration."

>>1002864
>>”We’ll sell them on New Albany.”

>>1002864
>>”We’ll sell them on New Albany.”

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You frown, considering your options. Though you feel somewhat unsure about Tom’s nameless buyer, the cash could really come in handy. “We’ll just sell them on New Albany,” you say. “No hard feelings, right?” You look over to Blackheart, who shrugs casually.

“It’s no big deal. Makes sense to go with the better offer.” She points to the bag of gold. “Anyway, can I have a look at the gold before I hand over the cash? I need to check something.”

Tom sits the bag on the floor in front of her, unzipping it slowly. Inside are all of the gold bars. She carefully picks up the bar on top and looks at it closely.

“Definitely the real deal,” she says. “And they don’t have trackers, right?”

“None to speak of,” you nod. “I had my engineer go over them with a scanner.”

“Good to know,” she nods. “Tracking devices could pose a serious problem. Anyway, these are the old Series-80 ingots. They switched from half-kilo bars to quarter-kilo after the War. And now they don’t even use gold to back their currency. It’s platinum now.”

“Didn’t know that,” Tom replies. “So that means that these are a lot more traceable than we assumed.”

“Sort of,” Blackheart says. “These types of ingots were used when the Treasury Department needed to move large amounts of money at once. They used one-ounce bricks when they funded rebels and things like that.”

“This doesn’t change the price or anything, does it?” You raise an eyebrow.

“Of course not,” Blackheart says. “I just felt like giving you guys some insight into what you found.” She pulls out a brick of cash, counting it in front of you. “Here’s thirty thousand,” she says. You take the cash as she picks up the bag, weighing it in her hand. “You know, I always forget how heavy this kind of stuff is.” Tom heads over and sits in his seat. You and Blackheart head downstairs toward the forward airlock.

>”Nice doing business with you.” (ends conversation)
>”So tell me more about your fighter. How’d you end up owning it?”
>”How’d you lose your eye?”
>”Do you know any ways that I can prevent people from searching my ship?”
>Write-in.

>>1003181
>”So tell me more about your fighter. How’d you end up owning it?”
We're a pilot, we can talk shop.

Also:
>”Do you know any ways that I can prevent people from searching my ship?”

Fucking Port Authorities.

>>1003181
>>”So tell me more about your fighter. How’d you end up owning it?”
>”Do you know any ways that I can prevent people from searching my ship?”

>>1003181
>”Do you know any ways that I can prevent people from searching my ship?”
>”So tell me more about your fighter. How’d you end up owning it?”

>>1003181
>>”Do you know any ways that I can prevent people from searching my ship?”

>>1003188
seconding

>>1003181
>”Do you know any ways that I can prevent people from searching my ship?”
>”How’d you lose your eye?”

>>1003181
>”So tell me more about your fighter. How’d you end up owning it?”

>>1003181
Supporting >>1003188

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“Do you think you could help me avoid getting searched?” You look over at Blackheart.

“There’s not a whole lot I can do,” she sighs. “Unfortunately probably cause can override any kind of diplomatic authority in the case of suspected contraband. The most I could suggest is installing some kind of smuggler’s hold somewhere if you want to hide illicit goods.”

“You don’t have anything like a diplomat’s bag or something?” You raise an eyebrow.

She frowns. “Deputy Diplomats aren’t protected by the same rights regarding transport of goods and cargo,” she says. “While I could use my status as an ambassador to prevent searches, if the authorities have a warrant, a deputy has to follow the local laws.”

Well that’s unfortunate, you think to yourself. Still, it was worth mentioning. You decide to change the subject.

“So tell me about your fighter,” you say. “I know it’s vintage, but how’d you get a hold of it?”

Blackheart grins, sitting the bag down and leaning against a bulkhead. “That story goes back quite a way,” she says. “I had some piloting experience during my time with the RPDF, but it was mostly with transport craft.” She stretches. “My first time flying a fighter was right after the War. I ended up getting on the bad side of some drug-runners, so I had to split before they could catch me. I stole an old Astra and got out faster than they could chase me.” She smiles distantly, chuckling a little. “From that point on, I was hooked.”

You know exactly what she means. Originally, you weren’t thrilled by the prospect of being a pilot, but the moment you got to fly for real, it all changed.

“Anyway,” Blackheart continues. “The Astra ended up getting destroyed when I had to crash-land, but by then I knew a guy who specialized in vintage fighter parts. I called him up, and he told me that he had something to show me. I arrived, and there was my new fighter, only it was in about thirty pieces. He sold me the incomplete fighter, as well as all the parts, and I did the restoration myself.”

“I never would’ve figured you to be a gearhead,” you say with a grin.

“I wasn’t,” she laughs. “I had no idea what I was doing at first, but I read up on everything I needed to know, plus I had some help from a few friends.” She sighs. “I managed to get it put together and flying within about six months.”

“How’s it handle?” You know a thing or two about those vintage fighters. Most of them fail to achieve the same specs as modern ones.

“Originally it handled like a fat hog,” she admits. “But I put a lot of aftermarket parts on it to bring it up to racing-spec. Not to mention all the illegal upgrades to make it stealthy and dangerous.” She crosses her arms smugly. “It’ll out-fly anything that it can’t out-fight.”

>”That all depends on whether you can fly your machine right.” (question her piloting ability)
>”Who’s this guy that you got the fighter from? I’m looking for some parts of a vintage fighter.” (inquire about Allie’s project)
>”Was this all before you became a pirate?”
>Write-in.

>>1003480
>>1003488
>”Who’s this guy that you got the fighter from? I’m looking for some parts of a vintage fighter.” (inquire about Allie’s project)
>Write-in
"Maybe we could have a race, one day, if I get a fighter of my own."

>>1003480
>>”Who’s this guy that you got the fighter from? I’m looking for some parts of a vintage fighter.” (inquire about Allie’s project)

>>1003488
>”Who’s this guy that you got the fighter from? I’m looking for some parts of a vintage fighter.” (inquire about Allie’s project)

>>1003488
>>”Who’s this guy that you got the fighter from? I’m looking for some parts of a vintage fighter.” (inquire about Allie’s project)

>>1003488
>>”Who’s this guy that you got the fighter from? I’m looking for some parts of a vintage fighter.” (inquire about Allie’s project)

>>1003488
>”Who’s this guy that you got the fighter from? I’m looking for some parts of a vintage fighter.” (inquire about Allie’s project)

>>1003480
>>”Who’s this guy that you got the fighter from? I’m looking for some parts of a vintage fighter.” (inquire about Allie’s project)

File: Your mental image of Valia.jpg (561 KB, 3500x2447)

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“You mentioned that you knew a guy who was basically the go-to for old fighters,” you say. “I’ve got a friend who needs parts for a vintage model. Could you tell me where to find him?”

Blackheart grins slightly. “Well normally I wouldn’t just go giving this guy’s address out to somebody, but since you’re a friend, I think it’ll be okay.” She leans forward. “His name’s Lee, and he has a shop on Valia, in the Polar regions. He’s a mean old bastard until you get to know him though, so don’t expect the warmest of welcomes.”

“Sounds like a lot of old mechanics I know,” you nod.

“He fits the stereotype of a crotchety old mechanic to a T,” Blackheart chuckles. “Still, he’s got an ample supply of parts. Valia used to be a boneyard world.”

“Really?” You raise an eyebrow. Boneyard worlds were common until just before the War. Basically, they were entire planets where old starships would be left when they weren’t needed anymore. The Federation did away with the program and scrapped most of the boneyards during the war to get materials for new ships, so you’re surprised that an actual boneyard world still exists.

“Like I said,” Blackheart warns. “Lee’s not too friendly. And he might run you off if he doesn’t like you.” She grins. “Take a bottle of scotch with you to smooth things over. And not the cheap stuff either, he can tell.”

“So I’ve got to bring some top-shelf scotch or this guy might tell me to get out,” you muse. “Charming.”

Blackheart laughs. “I know, right?”

>”So how did you even meet Lee anyway?”
>”Let’s get this gold aboard your ship.” (ends conversation)
>”If I ever get around to finding myself a starfighter, you want to race sometime?”
>”Can you tell me anything else about Valia? I’m not familiar with the place.”
>Write-in.

>>1003715
>”Let’s get this gold aboard your ship.” (ends conversation)

>>1003715
>>”Let’s get this gold aboard your ship.” (ends conversation)

>>1003715
>>”Can you tell me anything else about Valia? I’m not familiar with the place.”

>”So how did you even meet Lee anyway?”

>>1003715
>>”If I ever get around to finding myself a starfighter, you want to race sometime?”

>>1003715
>>”Let’s get this gold aboard your ship.” (ends conversation)

>>1003715

>”If I ever get around to finding myself a starfighter, you want to race sometime?”

>”Let’s get this gold aboard your ship.” (ends conversation)

File: New Albany approach.jpg (99 KB, 600x450)

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You point to the airlock room door. “Well let’s get this gold aboard your ship. I’ve taken up enough of your time.”

“Well I didn’t have much else planned for today,” she shrugs as she picks up the bag of gold.

You wave as she climbs into the airlock tube and enters her fighter. “See you around,” you say as the airlock closes. You peer out the small window and see her fighter fly away, engaging the stealth system again.

Heading back up to the bridge, you sit down in your chair and re-count the cash as Tom preps the ship for a second FTL jump. You use the calculations that Samantha made yesterday to base the jump off of, and Tom estimates that it will take about eighteen hours to reach New Albany.

The next few hours aren’t all that eventful. You cook breakfast for the crew, then talk with them a while as you all eat. Cynthia again mentions that the magnetic coolant pump is pulling harder than it should, Corrigan and Solfrid talk about the differences in Imperial and Psirinean culture, and you and Tom discuss your plans for when you land on New Albany. He wants you to go with him to deliver the rifles to the buyer after you get the cargo unloaded.

After breakfast is done, you watch some TV. The Empire has apparently remilitarized the outer-Jovian station to make up for the damage done to the Naval shipyard a few days ago. The Federation, meanwhile, has unveiled four new heavy cruisers that will be assigned to protecting the near-Earth space. You can’t help but notice how cosmetically similar to Imperial ships they look.

The next morning, you wake up to the sound of Tom calling over the intercom, and you head into the bridge to see a small terrestrial planet with rings.

“Well,” Tom says as he points out the windows. “There it is, New Albany. We’ll be landing in less than an hour.”

“Sounds good,” you nod. “Let me know when-” You are cut off by the sound of a transmission coming over the Q-band.

“Attention all ships in range of this transmission,” an automated voice says. “There is a class-3 travel warning for the planet of New Albany. Civilians are advised to bring personal protection with them at all times. This message will repeat.”

Tom looks over at you, grimacing. “Well that’s not promising.”

File: Liftoff.jpg (47 KB, 900x348)

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And that's it for tonight! I'll be running tomorrow, then I'll be taking a break on Thursday and run again on Friday.

Mood Music:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqyposaQWnI

Who do you think the buyer for those rifles is going to be?

File: and you thought the Rebel(...).jpg (887 KB, 945x803)

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>>1003924
Rebels

>>1003924
Some guy making a personal militia. Since he's former marine, might not be a anti-government hut entirely, but one of those overzealous patriots who think that outside forces have taken over the nation they know and love and theyre the only ones who see the truth and have taken it upon themselves to "save" the country

>>1003924
A faction within the rebels that aims to off all the other factions once the rebellion wins.

Alternatively, a Federal official planning a false flag operation to provoke extreme retaliation against the rebels.

File: Watson City.png (3.82 MB, 1920x1080)

3.82 MB PNG

Landing on New Albany was a relatively easy affair considering the state of things planetside. All you’d had to do was give them your ID and state your business and they cleared you to land in Watson City.

You look out over the terrain as the Bad Habit flies low over the planet’s surface. Watson City apparently sits on the edge of where the tundra gives way to farmland. However, upon getting closer to the city, you are assigned a specific flight corridor via radio, and you realize that the dark, bare terrain isn’t tundra.

You see earthworks and craters stretching for miles. The barren area that stretches all the way to the horizon is a battlefield. You assume that the flight corridor is to keep your ship from wandering into AA fire.

“Christ,” Tom says as he looks out at no-man’s land. “Looks like the defenses on Pallus.”

“Yeah,” you nod. “That’s a bad sign. Guerillas wouldn’t be capable of something like that. This looks more like a full-blown civil war.”

Tom glances over at you. “I’m not noticing any fighting on the ground though. The militias might have pushed the rebels back.”

You don’t talk much more as the ship pulls in to Watson City. The city itself is about ten miles behind the lines. As the Bad Habit lands, you get Tom and Virgo and unload your main cargo. You receive 15,000 standards for your cargo, which you promptly stash away with the cash from your deal with Blackheart. You figure that you’ll wait until you’re off-planet to do anything with it. Watson City is a rather depressing place, it hasn't stopped raining since you touched down, and doesn't appear to be stopping any time soon. You see groups of armed men walking around every now and then, probably militia.

“Captain,” Tom walks up to you. “I just got off the phone with our buyer. He’s sending a truck to get the crates. He wants us to ride along so that we can oversee the deal personally.”

>”Alright.”
>”Why can’t your buyer just come along with his truck and pay us here?”
>”This is too sketchy. Tell your buyer that the deal’s off.”
>Write-in.

>>1005619
>”Why can’t your buyer just come along with his truck and pay us here?”
I don't want to get kidnapped.

>>1005619
>>”Why can’t your buyer just come along with his truck and pay us here?”

>>1005619
> Why can't they come here?
I think it's about time you told us what is going on. He wants us to head into unknown territory with unknown parties and no friends on the ground to call on? We will have zero leverage if they want to ransom us, beat the codes for our ship out of us out whatever
Tell them to put the money on the truck and we can oversee the deal personally just fine, from right here.

>>1005619
>”Why can’t your buyer just come along with his truck and pay us here?”
Also did Mr.Murder disembark?

File: Tom 1.jpg (20 KB, 400x300)

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“Why can’t your buyer just come along with his truck and do the deal here?” You cross your arms.

Tom puts a hand up defensively. “He’s just a private guy, sir. Look, I was in the same unit with him when I was a Marine. He’s trustworthy.”

“I don’t like this,” you reply. “This guy who I’ve never met wants me to meet up with him in an unknown location. It smells like an ambush.”

Tom frowns. “I know it does, but that’s why I packed some extra firepower.” Tom pulls a machine pistol out from under his jacket and you catch a glimpse of some frag grenades on a bandolier. “I’ve always got an ace up my sleeve, sir. If the deal goes south, we take cover and I toss a grenade into one of the crates.”

You gesture for Tom to stop speaking as he puts the machine pistol away. Looking back, you see your strange passenger disembark and walk over to you.

“Captain,” he nods. “Thank you for your service.” He hands you the fare. 5,000 standards in total. He then walks away without saying another word.

“That guy was a weird son of a bitch,” Tom sighs. “Glad to have him off the ship.”

You decide to get back to the topic at hand. “We still don’t know where the deal is taking place,” you say sternly.

Tom grins. “That’s the thing I was just getting to,” he says. “He gave me a location. It’s a warehouse just south of town, near a large grain processor.”

You raise an eyebrow. “Any other landmarks? High ground, things like that?”

Tom crosses his arms. “It’s flat ground for miles around. No positions where a sharpshooter could take up a position. I had Corrigan snap a few pictures of the site from the air when we were flying in.” He hands you some photos. The warehouse in question looks more like a ruin than a building, with one side completely fallen in.

You sigh, handing the pictures to him. “I still don’t like this. Is there any way you can call him up and ask him to meet us here instead?”

Tom shakes his head. “He said it’d have to be at the warehouse. I can ask Virgo to come along if you want.”

>”The deal’s off.”
>”Bring Virgo along with us.”
>”Fine, we’ll do this.”
>Write-in.

>>1005768
>”Bring Virgo along with us.”

Always bring friends when you're about to die horribly.

>Write-In
Tell the girls to lock the ship and not let anyone in until we get back.

>>1005768
>>”Bring Virgo along with us.”

>>1005768
>>”Bring Virgo along with us.”

>>1005777
Oh, and make sure that Samantha has a rifle. She's the only military one left on the ship.

>>1005768
>>”Bring Virgo along with us.”

Also make sure everyone is armed and we bring a gun.

>>1005768
>”Bring Virgo along with us.”

>>1005768
I don't understand why he is sending transport for the guns but not paying us till we go to him. We have already agreed in a price. Does he not trust his subordinates to check the merch?
> being Virgo along
If it was anyone else I wouldn't. Ask tell the guy that he has a shit business sense.

Also make sure Corrigan and Solfrid have guns (or bow) and know the location of the meet. If wet don't come back they can send this guys location to his enemies or something.

>>1005796
If we do, make sure she does what Corrigan tells her.

>>1005809
Am I bad for completely forgetting that Elfgirl existed and could shoot?

>>1005768
>”Bring Virgo along with us.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVoCJJFuS60
Gotta have friends of the space magic variety for our disputed border adventures!

>>1005817
> sadspaceelf.jpg

>>1005907
You misunderstand, Virgo is coming along to unload the crates.

>>1005930
We need to tell him exactly that ahaha!
"Glad to go along with you captain."
"Of course Virgo, unloading those crates is hard work you know!"

>>1005768
>”Bring Virgo along with us.
>Write-in.
Have Cynthia Sam and Corg armed and ready. No one boards the ship until we get back

File: ural_43206.jpg (136 KB, 600x400)

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“Go get Virgo,” you say. “And tell the girls to lock up the ship until we get back.”

“Right,” Tom nods and heads up into the ship. A few minutes later, he returns with Virgo. “Ship’s locked up until we return. Nobody’s getting in without the girls’ permission.” You notice the gun crates levitating behind them as they walk.

“Could you tell me what’s going on now?” Virgo looks confusedly from Tom to you. The crates come to a stop and gently settle to the deck.

“We’re taking these crates of guns to a buyer,” Tom says. “They’ve requested that we go personally to ensure the delivery is successful.”

“Fair enough,” Virgo nods. “I assume you’re both armed?”

Tom pulls out the machine pistol and shows it to Virgo. “Captain, you’ve got your service pistol on you, right?”

“Always,” you reply.

The three of you wait, sitting on the crates, for about fifteen minutes before an ancient military truck rumbles up to the cargo ramp. “You gents from the Bad Habit?” The driver calls out to you.

“That’d be us,” Tom replies. “You the Major’s boys?”

“Who?” The driver raises his eyebrow. “The guy who hired us to transport your cargo didn’t give us a name. Just an address.”

“Well I guess you’re the guys then,” Tom replies. The three of you load the crates with Virgo’s help, then all pile into the back of the truck with them. The truck’s engine starts up and it rumbles down the street toward its destination.

“I don’t like this place,” Virgo says as he looks around the city. “It reeks of war and death.”

“We won’t be here for long,” you reply.

>”So Tom, who is this Major?”
>”Did you bring a weapon, Virgo?”
>Remain silent.
>Write-in.

>>1006081
>”So Tom, who is this Major?”

>>1006081
>”So Tom, who is this Major?

>>1006081
>>”So Tom, who is this Major?”

>>1006081
>”So Tom, who is this major pain in the ass?”

>”Did you bring a weapon, Virgo?”
Captian, I am the weapon.

>>1006081
>>”So Tom, who is this Major?”

>>1006081
>>”So Tom, who is this Major?”

>>1006098
Changing to the first part.
>”So Tom, who is this major pain in the ass?”

>>1006081
>”So Tom, who is this Major?”

>>1006081
>”So Tom, who is this Major?”
He didn't send his own men to pick us up. I guess that's a good thing.

Allen needs to channel his inner Archer.

"So, Tom, who exactly is this Major PAIN IN MY ASS?"

>>1006289
Oh god. And I don't watch that show

>>1006304
You should. It's freaking hilarious.

File: This is what MSOF looked like.jpg (471 KB, 1800x1466)

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“So Tom,” you lean back. “Who is this Major? You said he was part of your unit when you were a Marine.”

Tom frowns. “Major John Leland Carter,” he begins. “The guy was part of the Rangers initially, then he went on to be a platoon commander for MSOF. There aren’t a lot of reliable sources regarding his time with them, but he ended up leaving the MSOF and joining up with the 22nd Marine Assault Division. That was my old unit.” He frowns, lighting a cigarette. “Anyway, I kept in touch with him after the War ended. Not really sure why he’s here, but I guess we’re going to find out.”

Virgo is the next to speak up. “I’ve heard the two of you mention MSOF before. What exactly was it, some kind of commando unit?”

Tom chuckles mirthlessly. “The Marine Special Operations Force,” he says. “They were the most dangerous group of men in the galaxy. Their total force strength never exceeded five thousand, but the presence of twenty of them could turn the tide of a battle.” He leans forward, lowering his voice. “The entire unit got shitcanned about a year after the War. There was a big scandal when they screwed up a hostage rescue. All the hostages, plus ten MSOF operators, were killed.” He shrugs. “They found evidence that the unit’s commander might have been linked to the extremists that took those hostages, so they hunted him down.” He looks away, sighing. “Rumor has it that they killed him, but the operation’s details are still classified.”

“So what ended up happening to the rest of the operators?” Virgo raises an eyebrow as the truck turns onto a smaller road leading toward the edge of the city.

Tom shrugs. “Same thing that happens any time an elite special forces unit is broken up. Most of them ended up in other units, some of them became mercenaries, and others went off the grid entirely.”

“Off the grid?” Virgo frowns. “That’s pretty difficult nowadays, isn’t it?”

“Exceedingly,” Tom nods. “But if anyone could do it, it’d be a member of MSOF.”

>”How do you know so much about MSOF? You were mentioning things I’ve never heard before.” (pry, roll a 1d100, LOWEST of three)
>”So Major Carter was part of MSOF. Why did he leave?”
>”Are you sure we can trust this guy, Tom? He’s starting to sound like the perfect mix of a soldier and a spy.”
>Stay silent.
>Write-in.

>>1006383
>>”So Major Carter was part of MSOF. Why did he leave?”

>>1006383
>"Is the Major off the grid?"

>>1006383
>”So Major Carter was part of MSOF. Why did he leave?”
>Write-in
What'd he do after he left?

>>1006383
>”So Major Carter was part of MSOF. Why did he leave?”
>”Are you sure we can trust this guy, Tom? He’s starting to sound like the perfect mix of a soldier and a spy.”
He sounds like a guy who would bust weapons smuggling

>>1006383
>>”So Major Carter was part of MSOF. Why did he leave?”

>>1006412
It's not smuggling, it was on a wreck. It's 'salvage'.

>>1006383
>>”So Major Carter was part of MSOF. Why did he leave?”

>>1006383
>”So Major Carter was part of MSOF. Why did he leave?”

> the presence of twenty of them could turn the tide of a battle
tewntygoodmen.gif

>>1006421
To an extent yeah. Just hope we filed off the serial numbers, if some fed gets a hold of one and runs the numbers, they could see it came from the wales, and wonder if someone took off a certain long box in addition to gun

“If Major Carter was part of MSOF, why did he leave?”

Tom grimaces. “The Major never said why he left, but there were always stories, you know how rumors can go around…” He takes a long drag of the cigarette before continuing. “Allegedly he was sent on a secret operation into Imperial territory before the War, and he learned something that made him quit. Nobody knows what the operation was, but a lot of people say that he was supposed to neutralize a former comrade that had gone rogue.”

“I see,” Virgo says. “The Major was tired of following orders he didn’t agree with, so he got out to save his sanity.”

Tom shrugs. “That’s just one rumor though. Another is that he screwed something up and was forced out, but I’m not so sure I believe that one. The Major’s a stone-cold operator. He doesn’t make mistakes.”

“So what ever happened to him after the War?” You raise an eyebrow. “He still with the Marines?”

“No,” Tom says. “He quit right after the end of the War. I’m not sure what he did for work, but I’d assume he was living behind a gun from the moment he got out of the military.” He shakes his head. “People like the Major, they forget how to be civilians. All they know is war, so they keep chasing it.”

“So he’s probably doing mercenary work here,” Virgo says.

“Maybe,” Tom nods. “Could be part of the militias too. Or he could be doing clandestine work for the Federation. I don’t really know to be honest.”

“You think this could be some kind of sting operation?” You look over the wooden sides of the truck bed and notice that you’ve left the city behind. Ahead of you, the grain processor lies about five minutes down the road.

“Doubtful,” Tom says. “Technically, these rifles aren’t illegal. And they can’t prove that we’ve acquired them through less than legal means. They wouldn’t have anything on us from a legal standpoint.”

The truck pulls up to the warehouse slowly, then grinds to a halt as the driver honks the horn twice. “Alright gents,” the driver says. “This is the place.”

You and Tom hop out as Virgo unloads the crates. The truck drives off rather quickly as the three of you approach the doors of the ruined warehouse.

File: The son of a farmer.png (458 KB, 550x550)

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“That’s far enough,” a voice says from the upper floor. You look up to see a man in torn jeans and a red flannel shirt with an old, bolt-action hunting rifle in his hands. “State yer’ business.”

“We’re here to see the Major,” Tom calls out. He points to the crates as Virgo sets them down gently next to the three of you.

The man sighs, then calls into the warehouse. “They’re here with the cargo. Open the doors and get the Major.” The heavy-looking doors swing open and several men walk out carefully, grabbing the crates by their handles and gesturing for you to follow them inside.

A young man dressed in jeans and a white shirt approaches you. He has an old .22 slung over his back and a bandage on his neck. “Follow us. We’ll take you to the Major.” Despite not looking older than sixteen, the kid has the expression of a hardened soldier.

>”Who are you people?”
>”If the Major wants to meet with me, he’ll meet me out here.”
>Follow him.
>Write-in.

>>1006629
>>Follow him.

>>1006629
>>Follow him.

>>1006629
>Write-in.
(To Tom and Virgo)
"I don't like the look of this, no matter how much you liked him, Tom."
>Follow him.
But stay on your guard.

>>1006629
>>Follow him.

>Whisper" Tom I am not liking the looks of this."

>>1006629
>Follow him.

>>1006629
>Follow him.
>Write-in
"If you don't mind me asking, why make us come all the way out here when it would be better for both of us if we just left the goods at port and just wired the money."
I really don't like this. And really, an old .22?

>>1006629
>Follow him.

File: Spoiler Image (396 KB, 2048x1344)

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The three of you follow the kid as he leads you into the warehouse. As you walk forward, you lean toward Tom and speak quietly to avoid catching the attention of anyone else. “I’ve got a bad feeling about this.”

Tom merely nods. “I can see why,” he whispers. “Still. These guys are a joke. I’ve only seen two guns among them.” As you enter, you see several dozen people in the main area of the warehouse, most of them gathered around fire barrels or sitting in small groups. Many of them are dressed similarly, like civilians. And you notice that none of them are armed.

“It’s not much further,” the kid says. He points to the small office off to the side of the main room. “He’s set up shop in here.” You all walk over to the door, and the kid announces your arrival as you all enter. “Major, they’ve arrived, sir!”

The office is sparsely lit by a lantern on a desk. A man wearing olive drab fatigues sits at the desk smoking a cigar. He could be twenty or fifty and you wouldn’t be able to tell the difference. He raises an eyebrow as he stands to greet you, running a hand through his blond hair. He looks at you, then at Tom.

“Well bloody hell, McMurdo,” he says with an Australian accent. “You’ve gained weight since your injury.” His eyes go wide and you can immediately tell that the left one is a prosthetic. Tom grins back at the man and shakes his hand.

“Good to see you too, Major.” Tom then gestures to you. “This is my captain.”

The Major looks you up and down, as if inspecting a soldier. “You’ve arrived just in time, Captain. Major Carter, at your service.” He sticks out a hand. You shake his hand and he grins slyly at you. “Now, let’s go inspect those rifles, yeah?”

>”I’d like to get paid first.”
>”Sure.”
>”Why couldn’t you have just sent men with money to collect the rifles from my ship? I feel like this was more difficult than it needed to be.”
>”So what’s the deal with this place? You certainly don’t seem like an organized militia.”
>Write-in.

>>1006872
>>”Why couldn’t you have just sent men with money to collect the rifles from my ship? I feel like this was more difficult than it needed to be.”

>>1006872
>”Sure.”
>Write-in.
"Sooo... I guess you guys are the ones fighting the militia then?"

>>1006872
>”Sure.”

>>1006872
>”Sure.”
>”Why couldn’t you have just sent men with money to collect the rifles from my ship? I feel like this was more difficult than it needed to be.”
OUR GUNS, WE CAN BITCH IF WE WANT TO

>>1006872
>>”Sure.”

>>1006872
>”Sure.”
>”Why couldn’t you have just sent men with money to collect the rifles from my ship? I feel like this was more difficult than it needed to be.”

>>1006872
>”Sure.”
Um, guys. He clearly didn't send one of his men to get the product because they know nothing about guns and he wanted to confirm they were good before paying. Still, he could have came himself. Wearing a wig or something.

File: Are you SURE about that.gif (5.74 MB, 720x404)

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>>1006935
>because they know nothing about guns

>>1006989
I lol'd

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“Sure,” you nod. The four of you exit the office, walking over to where the crates now lay. “But if you don’t mind me asking, why didn’t you just send your men to get the crates at my ship and send the cash all in one go? It seems like that would’ve been easier.”

The Major nods slightly as you all reach the crates. “That it would,” he begins. He reaches down and gently removes the lid from one of the crates. “I take it you haven’t seen what the militias do to suspected sympathizers?”

You shake your head. “We just landed.”

“Right,” the Major continues. “Let’s just say it isn’t pretty. They hunt down basically anyone who they think might be connected with the rebellion, then they kill them. And even though my people are all dressed in regular civilian clothes, they’d stick out in the city.” He grimaces to himself and reaches into the crate, gingerly hefting a rifle into his hands and looking down the sights.

“So I assume you’re with the rebels who are fighting the militias?” You cross your arms.

“Aye,” he nods. “Most of these folks are farmers who lost their land and livelihoods to the militias. Everyone here has a special bone to pick with them.” He sighs. “I take it you saw the battlefield outside of the other side of the city?”

Tom nods. “But it didn’t look like there was any active fighting going on there.”

The Major sits the rifle down and rubs the back of his neck. “That’s because the battle there is over. Our forces got pushed back and dispersed. Except for those of us holed up here.” He gestures to the rest of his men. “The militias don’t know we got through.” He picks another rifle up and checks the chamber, moving the charging handle back and forth. “These are nicer guns than we’ve been able to get before. Hopefully we’ll be able to arm ourselves, plus anyone we recruit over the next few weeks.”

>”If you don’t mind, I’d like to get paid and get out of here.” (ends conversation)
>”What started all of this anyway? I thought the militias were supposed to defend the citizens.”
>”I would’ve expected rebels to be better armed. I’ve only seen two guns among you so far.”
>”The Federation has sent a battlecruiser here. Did you know about that?”
>Write-in.

>>1007235
>>”The Federation has sent a battlecruiser here. Did you know about that?”

>>1007235
>”The Federation has sent a battlecruiser here. Did you know about that?”
Pretty much the only thing I think Allen would say. Other than leaving, that is.

>>1007235
>>”The Federation has sent a battlecruiser here. Did you know about that?”

>>1007235
>”I would’ve expected rebels to be better armed. I’ve only seen two guns among you so far.”
>”The Federation has sent a battlecruiser here. Did you know about that?”
Hit and run, boys, hit and run.

But if you touch our girl I swear to god.

>>1007235
>”The Federation has sent a battlecruiser here. Did you know about that?”

>>1007235
>>”The Federation has sent a battlecruiser here. Did you know about that?”

>>1007257
Seriously, tell her about our qte Sargent.

>>1007235
>”I would’ve expected rebels to be better armed. I’ve only seen two guns among you so far.”
>”The Federation has sent a battlecruiser here. Did you know about that?”

>>1007235
>”I would’ve expected rebels to be better armed. I’ve only seen two guns among you so far.”
>”The Federation has sent a battlecruiser here. Did you know about that?”

>They hunt down basically anyone who they think might be connected with the rebellion
Well thanks for dragging us out here to the rebel base. You are a real good friend.

>>1007301
That last bit is a good point

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“The Federation sent a battlecruiser here,” you say. “Did you know about it?”

The Major nods solemnly. “The Geomancer, right?” He frowns. “They landed last night when the storm rolled in. I’m not sure which side they’re on though” he pauses. “They haven’t intervened yet, which makes me think they’re waiting for something. If they were going after the rebellion, they would’ve attacked central HQ by now. And if they were going against the militias, they’d be making arrests already. I’m stumped as to why they haven’t acted yet.”

“Could they be waiting for a rebel attack as justification?” Tom speaks up.

“Not likely,” the Major replies almost instantly. “They wouldn’t need justification from a legal standpoint. We’re considered rebels from the perspective of the local governments. But the Federation might make the decision that the local governments are abusing their power. It’s happened that way before.” He frowns. “That’s why I’ve forbidden any attacks against Federal troops. We don’t know whose side they’re on yet.”

“So you’re not even the top guy in this rebellion?” Tom speaks again.

The Major chuckles to himself. “Not quite. Central HQ is at Thunder Mountain, near the South Pole. But I’m in charge locally.”

You frown. “So what’s going to happen now? You’re cut off and you’ve only got a small force here. I don’t see how you’ll manage to take the militias down like this.”

The Major grins slyly. “It isn’t about winning pitched battles,” he says. “It’s about disrupting every aspect of their operations. We make it too difficult for them to keep operating, and they hand control back to the people.”

>”I’ve heard rumors of people going missing under strange circumstances. Is there any truth to that?”
>”It seems a bit odd that you’d just tell me where your main base is. What if I were a spy or something?”
>”I’d like to collect my pay and get going, if you don’t mind.” (ends conversation)
>”How did you end up commanding rebels?”
>Write-in.

>>1007451
>”I’ve heard rumors of people going missing under strange circumstances. Is there any truth to that?”

>>1007451
>”How did you end up commanding rebels?”

>”I’d like to collect my pay and get going, if you don’t mind.” (ends conversation)

Tell our sarge to call us if anything happens.

>>1007451
>>1007459
I'll support this.

>>1007451
>>1007459
This. I don't like hanging around in a warzone any longer than we have to.

>>1007451
>”I’ve heard rumors of people going missing under strange circumstances. Is there any truth to that?”

>“It’s about disrupting every aspect of their operations. We make it too difficult for them to keep operating, and they hand control back to the people.”
This is an imperial world right? If so then with the civil unrest on triton they will not give up this planet no matter how much grief you put them though. It would set too much of a precedent. More likely they would just bring in the real soldiers.

>>1007481
>This is an imperial world right?
Nah this is a Federal colony.

>>1007481
>>1007488
They're sending our precious Sargent to the hive world.

Fuck the Federation.

'S enough to make me rethink not encouraging her to go AWOL with us.

>>1007451
>It seems a bit odd that you’d just tell me where your main base is. What if I were a spy or something?”

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I'm gonna call it here for tonight so that I can try to readjust my sleep schedule to something more healthy. I won't be running tomorrow, but I'll run on Thursday at around the usual time.

Mood music:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elDEfYiF1pk

Whose side do you think the Marines are going to intervene on?

>>1007573
Night baws

>>1007573
The Militia.
I doubt you're nice enough for them to help the rebels.

>>1007573
I hope to god its the rebels, but with the admiral being how he is, he might false flag an attack on the militia as Rebels with imp backing

>>1007516
I'm guessing he trusts Tom, and we're ostensible an outside party. That and we just solved his stuck behind enemy lines with only spit and harsh language problem. Or the General area of the main base/rebel lines isn't unknown to most parties.

>>1007573
whatever side it is, I bet it's going to be a false flag operation.

>>1007573
Probably the side they can gain the most clout and resources from. I would 100% call it for the militia if it wasn't so tempting to look at what is gained. Kill a few influential militia members and you have control of the gov., the insurgency you were going to have to put down is now a non-issue, and you get alot of influence considering a rebel gov. would be more reliant on the alliance to succeed and have legitimacy. On the other hand if the front lines have shifted against the rebels, well no one backs a lame horse. That and they are rebels, so the feds might be leery of them. I'm betting on the militia but wouldn't be shocked if it was the rebels. That or they just institute federal direct rule until "the situation is resolved".

>>1007573
If I was them I would point at the local governer or militia leader as the bad guy, for oversteaping authority or seting up his own little regime or whatever. Maybe have a token fight or two then string them, literaly or figuratively depending contempory mores I guess. Wouldn't solve the root of the issue but it would defuse the conflict and they would look like heroes from outside.

>>1007573
The militia. Federation has consistently been the bad guys in this quest.

>>1006383
I frigging hope hes not speaking loud enough to be heard by the driver.

>>1007618
Isn't the common thing about colonies being colonies is that they are still lacking the infrastructure and and economic worth to be accepted into the federation. As being directly ruled leads to being accepted as a full member, the Central government is expected to send economic and practical aid to the state in times of crisis, like this. As a colony, they can leave their hands off of it and are not obligated to send aid, thus lessening the drain on the federation. It would make more since to Back a side, let that side win and form stronger ties with them so when the colony is ripe for the picking, it's easier to pass a planetary vote to apply for membership into the federation

Quick update for everyone:
Since this thread is already on page 5, I'm just going to make a new thread tomorrow.

>>1012048
See you then Zap

>>1012048
Alrighty

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Another quick update:
Due to spending all day fixing a broken pipe at a friend's house, I just got home. I'm going to put the new thread up tomorrow instead of tonight.

New Thread!
>>1020010
>>1020010
>>1020010