Interlude 6.4: The Megnat Spaceport (Planet Gavarle)
Send everyone a message that says:
help Starbeard enter bar and kill idiot who try mug Starbeard but now everyone fight and fire arround also cops
come quick
also fire is both gun and flame
bar is burn and people shoot and is all chaos help
Then find a better cover and hiding place while avoiding any atacks with my high dex. If it is safe, shoot from cover to the closest ones.
(Dex isn't going to help dodging blaster shot, everyone be aware of that!)
[Combat +2] [4] -Success-
Starbeard analyzed the situation, and noticed the counter had a reinforced section. He moved there, and started exchanging fire with the other groups. He thinks he landed a hit on one of the men from the leftmost group. No time to check though, the heat of the battle didn't allow that.
Fortunately, it seems the gunfire weren't focused on him alone. He had no idea why, but he wasn't going to fret over it.
Suddenly a huge explosion shook the whole bar. Starbeard crouched and held on to his cover, managing to resist the blast. His ears were ringing and his vision a bit blurry.
There was light, a wall had been blown up by a grenade [quite illegal!].
"Telling a shady man in a tavern exactly where my ship will soon be in space sounds like a good way to get attacked by pirates.
But then again, if we're attacked by pirates, maybe the more 'colorful' members of the crew will start to take things seriously. That, or die. Both possibilities are honestly nice."
Katerina takes a deep swig of the drink before continuing.
"They want an escort to Xoa, wherever that is... They need protection from Riperius."
Upon hearing Starbeard's text(?), Katerina immediately disables her comm device.
"A fair judgement. And I do appreciate the trust you put in this shady fellow."He knocked on the table two times, beckoning Katerina to come closer so that their conversation wouldn't end up in unwanted ears. Katerina did as instructed, approaching a little. The man started talking in a soft and very audible manner.
"Now to business. I will ask an initial 5000 Credits for these informations. The Xoa System is located at the inner edge of the Small Outer Stream. You could see this region as an archipelago of uncharted systems, there are countless systems such as Xoa there. I will give you a shortcut to get to Xoa once the deal is done, you should save a good number of jumps following it. And of course, you will minimize danger.
Now for the systems surrounding Xoa, and surrounding the path you should take. They are not in Alliance territory, and you can find a good amount of space fauna dwelling around these. Do watch out for swarms of Xamesh Wraiths, the Small Outer Stream is part of their migration path. These normal space critters are not a big danger on their own, but large gatherings are extremely dangerous to lone ships. Apart from these, you may cross a Riperius if you are unlucky. Normally, you should just meet passive wildlife content on just going about their own business.
There are also a few human colonies out there. To name a few, Chept IV, John Calabart and Kalogs are such colonies. Nothing much worthy of note about them, apart that you may resupply there.
And of course, there are pirates hiding in some of these systems too. None of them are really dangerous though, just some wannabe pirates with no real backup. There are a few planets bearing life out there, but nothing smart enough to wield blasters or flying the sea of stars."
He then added:
"As a bonus, you should avoid the Great Outer Stream. There is a weird hyperspace phenomenon that prevents common engines to jump accurately. It's basically a space labyrinth, with nasty things coming from normal space, hyperspace and subspace being legion. Many new captains ended up disappearing in there."
He did notice Katerina fiddling with her com device, and threw at her an inquiring look.
Get more information about this "systems out of thin vacuum" thing. Have stars literally just popped up in the sky or is this some kind of hyperspace lanes thing? I don't actually know how FTL works here. Could the hyperspace dragon be related to this?
Jim approached a cosmopolite group. Two humans discussing with a floating machine, a Pelagiac (some sort of fishmen) and two Mycons, a species of tall sentient mushrooms using their many tendrils to move and interact with the world.
The dog captain inquired about these strange rumors. A Mycon, the one who was deep jungle green spoke in muffled mushroom speech. His translating device thankfully said in understandable words:
"Stars, planets. Whole systems are appearing. Two kind: those that seemed to just be hidden then revealed, and those that just seemed to be born out of nothing. Utmost bewildering. Main theories:
1) Foremost one. Natural phenomenon hiding portions of the galaxy. Cause unknown.
2) Secondmost one. Unknown overspace-born or underspace-born entity can create whole systems.
3) Thirdmost one. Advanced galactic species possess technology to create systems.
3) Fourthmost one. Systems are pulled from another galaxy, or another universe."The machine added with a bass-heavy voice:
"You forgot the most important. One fact remains quasi-certain, all systems appeared in regions of registered fluctspace.""Oh right, the Flux." one man said.
Jim inquired about fluctspace, or "Flux". The machine replied.
"Regions of normal space where laws of physics are said to keep fluctuating. Not much is known about these, as entering one is 100% lethal. Some say these regions are areas where normal space connect with hyperspace and/or subspace."[What you know about FTL travel]:
You know of three means of FTL travel. Two are commonly used, and the third is at an experimental stage.
The first and most used one is the use of hyperspace drives. Your ship takes a path through the hyperspace to cross immense distances.
The second is the use of Jump Gates. Using a Jump Gate allows for instantaneous travel to another connected Gate. You don't know the principles behind them, but they are the pinnacle of Alliance technology, and were reverse-engineered from Gates used by other species.
The third is the use of subspace drives. You have no idea how those are different from hyperspace, having just heard of it as some trivia.
He then sat more comfortably, and asked:
"Any other questions?"
Thomas noticed on a nearby screen how a violent gunfight was currently occuring in one lower level of the spaceport.
"Yeah, when do we head out?"
Upon seeing the screen, Thomas didn't need to read Starbeard's text to realize he needed to hurry.
"Sorry to leave so suddenly, but my crewmates have alerted me about urgent business I need to take care of."
With that, Thomas sped off towards the bar Starbeard was in.
Lyon smiled.
"We will be ready to set off as soon as tonight by Gavarle time. Let me send you the rendez-vous point."[Rendez-vous point uploaded]
Noticing Thomas hurry, Lyon stood up and offered a handshake.
"I see you are a busy man. I hope you are not leaving because you noticed some resentful mob going after you?"He obviously tried to make a joke, but it fell rather flat. Thomas forced himself to smile and laugh -rather well if he had to say-, and left prompty. Noting the blazing bar's location on a map, he headed for the place.
"Thank you so much, Ronav! You're a fine fellow, and the gift is much appreciated. I'll put this manual to good use, I promise!"
Ecstatic after having a great experience with its new friend, Sneed waved goodbye with its tentacles as Ronav left. It entered the ship, noticing that no one was there. That didn't affect Sneed's good mood though. It would take much more to put a damper on Sneed's great day.
While Sneed approached its room, its communication device started beeping. Retrieving the device from in between one of its slimy "skin" folds (where Sneed keeps all its belongings), Sneed read the new message.
help Starbeard enter bar and kill idiot who try mug Starbeard but now everyone fight and fire arround also cops
come quick
also fire is both gun and flame
bar is burn and people shoot and is all chaos help
Aww, how thoughtful. An invitation to a Space Pirate styled party. It's barely been a day, but Starbeard's already making friends. Good for him. Sneed smiled as it returned the device back to its place.
Decorate my room with my souvenirs. Afterward, leave the ship and search for Starbeard's bar at a leisurely place.
"Hehe, you remind me of when I left my home planet! I wish you good luck in your space career Sneed, you will definitely need it! You will realize how wonderful and ruthless a place space is."He waved his feathered arm at you, and left to return to the repair bay.
Then Sneed entered his small room. The walls were plain and his mni desk was plain. He made sure to liven up the place with his souvenirs, sticking the picture of the Longneck Wapster above his bed. That way the Wapster would watch over Sneed in his sleep. Then he pinned the various badges and pins all over the walls, and finally stored his 'authentic' stardust in a drawer.
Once all of that was done, Sneed strolled toward the space pirate party location.
Jim J. Barkley: (Captain)
Health: Healthy
Morale: Good
Inventory:
-[5000] Alliance Credits
-Voice-Activated Claw Drone
-(Anti)Bugging Tools
Katerina:
Health: Healthy
Morale: Good
Inventory:
-[9995] Alliance Credits
-Civilian clothing
-A small ruby ring
Edwin 'Starbeard:
Health: Healthy
Morale: Good
Inventory:
-[0] Alliance Credits
-Space pirate flintlock gun
-Space pirate sabre
-Space pirate clothing
Sneed the 38th:
Health: Healthy
Morale: Good
Inventory:
-[0] Alliance Credits-[Honesty-class Corvette special reference manual] (digital)
Thomas Whitney:
Health: Healthy
Morale: Good
Inventory:
-[10000] Alliance Credits
-Classy suit and glasses
-Briefcase
-[Rendez-vous point for Escort Mission coordinates]
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Topic: Sailing on the Sea of Stars [5/5] - Turn 6 (Read 43766 times)