Session 10. Chasing Strays.
Score: 489 | 8/10/19 |
Getting Some Distance
4.22.20. Lynx transmitted from his Starstriker XX interceptor that he would catch up, and he zoomed out of the closing cordon of TA ships. O zipped out of the area without complications also. Kojiro went speeding past a slow-fly academy training ground, and his ship was powered down remotely by the authorities. He ejected, and their tractor beam guided him in. Rather than try to fight his way clear or run from the security, Kojiro bribed the security team, who let him go.
As he piloted his interceptor towards the Witching Hour berth, O checked in electronically only to discover that the Witching Hour had logged a departure as an escort mission, under Captain Ulixes. He arrived at the berth first, bringing his stealth drone along with him from the assault on the Caravan XX.
Flavius jumped on the frictionless public transit, and headed for the Witching Hour, arriving the same time as Kojiro. O and Kojiro were shocked to see Flavius alive and eight years younger, wearing a dress toga uniform of the Wolf Legion. Still, they got over it, because their capacity for surprise was somewhat deadened by their adventures. Slipping away from the berth before they were detected, they headed to the Bloodbath, a seedy tavern with decent computer connections.
Research
O hacked into the TA official network to find that 22 casualties from the assault on the Caravan XX were confirmed, 32 suspected, and the Starhook combat hub was part of the debris. Finding out that Lars and two more Strays were certainly dead was a blow to Flavius, who acquired sufficiently potent recreational drugs to numb his feral senses.
O cleverly sifted Silknet's communication assets and isolated a signal that may belong to the cyborg lion, contacting him. Silknet was grouchy about the destruction of the Starhook combat hub, but O apologized to him for all the inconvenience, and Silknet agreed to look into the bureaucracy around the Witching Hour departure, reporting back in 2 hours.
Next, O again hacked the TA secured network to look for the Strays, but this time he was detected; the Exilic spacers needed to relocate, but a drunk and surly Flavius was a throat-punching angry wolfman drunk. Together, Kojiro and O talked him down, and he sullenly retracted his claws and hunched low, and the spacers slipped out of the Bloodbath just as a team of TA security agents entered.
As the spacers settled into the Fountains park, Silknet contacted them with the information. A Gestalt Digital cover was used, some sophisticated slicing in the computers, to cover the Witching Hour launch. "Captain Ulixes" was headed for the Syzaan Moon, an outpost at the edge of the Baraylia Conflict in the Dabree Sector.
Outbound
As part of their assault plan, Flavius had contacted a contact from his time soldiering, a young former aristocrat named Philhomina, captain of the Blossom. Since they already arranged discreet one-way passage out of Crayfish Point, they rendezvoused with her and boarded the Blossom. The beat-up looking freighter had a luxury penthouse as its interior, and Phil was something of a smuggler. The Blossom's tesserarch system was enhanced next-gen, allowing them to arrive at the Syzaan Moon ahead of the Witching Hour even though they started hours behind.
During the trip, Kojiro enjoyed the luxurious surroundings, and O set up the algorithms and reports for the investigations he left at Crayfish Point to inform him about where Salmarand was now, and anything that could be found about his operations, methods, and history. Flavius had private time with the captain in the cockpit, which he found enjoyable and relaxing.
Syzaan Moon
Arriving shortly before the Witching Hour, the spacers discovered the Witching Hour was slated to dock at the VIP club run by the corp that handled the boarding platform off the shoulder of the moon, some distance from the orbital ring. Realizing they wanted to get into the exclusive area, they got a contact for Danforth the Tailor from Philhomina, and O checked the visitors to see if there was anyone who might grant them a pass to visit.
They found Danforth the Tailor in an unobtrusive corner of the space station, and the tailor used his bots and hygiene chairs to make them presentable enough to pass in posh settings, tailoring clothes for custom fit.
Meanwhile they saw a familiar name on the list of guests with permits to the club: Clyde Lew. They contacted her, and she was in a playful mood. She agreed to issue her guest passes to them on the condition the cover story was they were massage experts, and she would get a good backrub out of it. O agreed to use his psychic powers to assure a quality relaxation experience, and she granted them access on her account.
Moving fast, the spacers accessed the secured station and traveled by crystal ball up to the VIP club, in time to reach the Witching Hour platform as the battered ship came in for a landing. They also met Salmarand there, and his two big bodyguards.
O apologized for turning down the chance to work with Salmarand, who said he'd reconsider and might renew the offer; in the meantime, Salmarand was there to meet his new mercenary team. He warmly greeted Captain Ulixes, who was surprised to see Flavius; does this mean the Exilic spacers reconsidered the job offer?