Elite roleplay: The docks

THE DOCKS (Dockyards)

The Docks is where all pilots berth their ships. It is the first place that pilots find themselves upon landing their ship. Docking and launching is controlled by the Citi Gateway’s Traffic Controllers while each individual dock is controlled by a dockmaster and a team of orange clad dock crew workers.

The Docks is a sparse and desolate, 0.1G environment, littered with service vehicles, cranes and landing pads. While cool, the air is dry and lightly filled with the smell of burnt metal and ship grease. Public Service Announcements blare across the the docks reminding all pilots of station regulations. The docks contain 45 individual ship docks, several warehouses storing massive tank of hydrogen fuel, and standard shipping containers of cargo, the dock’s traffic control tower and the local pilot’s market which resides in one of the warehouses.

Ship docks
Each specific dock has a landing pad, a ship hangar and adjoining terminal. In each terminal there is a passenger waiting area, the dockmaster’s control tower and several dock crew vehicle bay.

Warehouses
If the docks were already unpopulated, warehouses would be completely vacant of anyone if not for a small handful of security staff. Warehouses are completely automated and highly guarded facilities as they contain massive amounts of valuable and flammable material.
"Loitering is a crime punishable by death" - Station Announcements

Pilot's Market
The pilot’s market is best described as a tourist trap for pilots. Every person who’s not a pilot is trying to guile a pilot to part with their credits.

"The station administrators would like to remind all pilots that transactions in the pilot’s market are not protected by Citi Gateway or The Bank of Zaonce" - station announcements

General Roleplay Etiquette:

1. Control only the actions of your own character(s). (AKA: God Mode)
This doesn't matter how small the action is, even if it is as simple as scratching their nose or a direct reaction to something else that just happened. This applies to everything from casual conversation to full blown fight scenes. If you'd like someone to do something specific, PM that person, however keep in mind they are completely within their rights to say no. Especially if said action is inappropriate to their character and/or circumstance.

2. Don't brute force your way into another persons RP.
Approaching with a conversation starter is fine, or indeed some other small action. However charging in, guns blazing and disrupting the flow of another person/pair/groups conversation/arc is about as rude as doing so in real life. If something is going on that you'd like to participate in, be subtle about it. Put out a gentle hook for someone to take, but again, be aware that said hook may not be taken. If you fear it was simply unnoticed, PM the person or people it concerns. Or even leave a message in the OOC forums.

3. Good grammar and spelling is preferred.
We're not asking you to be perfect, but please at least demonstrate willingness. no1 iz gna tak u srsly usng txt spk. There's a wide variety of people here, many who speak English as a second, or even third language. There are even some with varying degrees of dyslexia and/or likely other issues that affect spelling/grammar. We accept them all here. However, people who aren't accepted, are those unwilling to accept polite correction. Remember that even a small thing like the placement of a comma, or the wrong use of there/their/they're can completely change the definition of an entire sentence.

4. Accept constructive criticism gracefully and politely.
If someone spots an issue with your writings, they may wish to help you improve that writing. They may do this through PM or even publicly air their thoughts on the OOC forum. If they have taken the time to be polite and explain what is wrong with your writing, the best way to behave is to respond in kind, using the same manner they have approached you with. It means they have taken an active interest in what you have written and wish to see more. Basically, you have a fan!

5. Don't take the actions or opinions of things done IN RP, to be directly relevant to the writers thoughts or opinions.
Basically, if some ones character calls your character a jackass, it doesn't mean the writer thinks you are a jackass. It's a ROLE they are PLAYING. Watch a movie. The argument between the characters isn't an argument between the actors involved. The same applies here.

6. It's not a popularity contest.
Your RP might be bustling with participants. You have 3 people off station in a fire fight, while another 2 are infiltrating the darkest areas of the station, meanwhile a group of 4 others are tracking your movements in an effort to stop you. Good for you, I'm sure it will be a thrilling read! But you know what? Sometimes the absolute BEST work, comes from two RP characters having a simple heart to heart. Both are valid, both are great, but NEITHER is categorically better than the other. Period.


Inara RP Etiquette:

1. Respect the setting and rules of the universe.
Inara is an Elite: Dangerous 3rd Party Tool. The RP Forums are set in the Elite: Dangerous universe. Elite: Dangerous has rules, as any fictional universe does from Lord of the Rings to Star Wars, or Game of Thrones to Star Trek. If you intend to RP within the Elite: Dangerous universe you are bound by the history and rules of that universe. Simply put, this RP forum is bound by the same rules as the game, so if it can't be done in the game, it is not permitted here. This applies to things from a 50Ly Jump Range on a normal, unmodified Sidewinder, to the destruction of entire stations.

2. Respect the characters created by others.
We have a wide variety of characters already here. It's expected that some will be similar, just as it's expected that two characters will be vastly different. Opinions of each persons character will naturally be varied, but all are valid provided they follow the rules of the universe. You are allowed to interact with, or avoid interaction with, any character in the RP forums. But you have no right to belittle others for their creation. You are not an authority figure on writing, nor are you directly affected by another persons imagination. You might not like it, but you MUST respect it.

3. Be caught up on current events before joining in.
You need basic things like character descriptions in order to interact with them. You also need to know what's going on in the surrounding areas. This is simply because the people you are hoping to RP with, might be gearing up to something that you might not want to be part of. Or simply that the most recent post, out of context, could leave a different impression on the goings on than if you gather that context. We don't expect you to read every single post from the beginning of the forums, just enough to get that basic understanding.

4. Either subscribe to, or frequently check, the Roleplay: Q&A and OOC forum.
People may be discussing something relevant to you there, or even discussing you directly. Perhaps someone asked what the general consensus on the existence or non-existence of a certain object. Or we're just chatting about random gibberish. Either way, be aware of it and use it. If you're unsure about something, such as how guns would look and or behave, or even the music selection, use the OOC forum to ask. We don't have all of the answers, but the collective knowledge and logic usually allows us to overcome an issue and come to a decision on what should be allowed. Frontier Developments, and even David Braben himself, don't have the answers to every possible question that can be asked.

5. Large Scale events exploding out of nowhere are a complete no go.
We get it. Everyone wants their character to be noticed and for people to be tripping over themselves to interact with them. In some audiences, an introduction involving you blasting in for landing in a fiery wreckage of a ship, before cart wheeling out and sword fighting 35 Ninjas before whisking off with the local celebrity for a glorious night of passion, is in fact, cool. This is not one of those audiences. It is generally considered better to build your character up slowly over time. Eventually, you might even have a legitimate excuse to fight those Ninjas. Maybe even with other RP participants by your side.

6. Perfect characters are boring.
The point of a character arc, is that it is in fact, an arc shape. One who is morally unquestionable, fully kitted out and an infinite fountain of knowledge, cannot go through an arc. Give your character flaws. Be it a tendency towards befriending the wrong people, or a bad knee that frequently gives out at inopportune moments. It gives readers something to latch onto and empathise with. You can give your character exceptional capabilities at something, but it requires balance. She's a damn good pilot with no equal, but can't drive an SRV for peanuts. It can lead to some very interesting moments between characters, be it heartfelt or comedic.


Other Notes:
It should be noted that there can be exceptions to these points. For example, good grammar when a character is speaking is actually rare. Few people in real life actually speak with perfect eloquence after all. Or previously arranged actions during a fight scene, such as someone stumbling back after a punch. What's key to remember is context.

All in all, remember this is purely for fun. We have some seriously talented writers here, and others whose writing history starts and ends at high school. But many are willing to help out in whatever way they can. All it takes is that you ask nicely.

Also keep in mind that many people who RP here, also have logbook stories related to the character, or characters, they portray. If it looks like there's an "in joke" going on that you're unsure of, it's probably in those.

In fact, some users have even gone to the trouble of creating "alts" to RP with. If you read back far enough, it's usually pretty clear who has and hasn't, and which ones are the "alts". It's therefore not unheard of to see the apparent seizing of control of other characters. If you do spot one, point it out in the OOC section. If intervention is needed, it will be sorted quickly and (hopefully) politely.

Most, if not all RP participants here have Logbook stories pertaining to their character(s). These are for the reading pleasure of anyone who wishes to do so. While it can be useful to read them in order to gain a bit of backstory on a character you wish to interact with, it should not be assumed that your character shares that knowledge. Within the E:D Universe, these Logbooks either don't exist, or are private diaries kept by the characters. Either way, without explicit statements to say otherwise from the writer, your interactions should reflect that your character is in the dark about any information you, the writer/reader, have gained from reading the stories.
Leon Falkner
14 Jun 2017, 8:54pm
A small blip then a flash, and a Cobra MkIII emerged from supercruise. The thrusters angled and sputtered, there was clearly a mechanical problem with the starboard Reaction Control Systems. The ship was wobbling lazily, the main thrusters compensating for the lack of control.

"Flight Control, this is Delacy Cobra Lima-Echo-Oscar Niner. Requesting docking vector." The voice over the comms was tired and muffled as if through gritted teeth.

"Delacy Lima-Echo-Oscar this is Flight Control, you are cleared for docking vector, please maintain heading and safe speed."

"Acknowledged." The ship's pilot responded. The Cobra drifted slowly and deliberately into the mailslot, only just missing clipping the port wing on the wall. The ship’s red military paint was peeled and had several scorch marks crisscrossing its hull.

The ship spun around and thrusted downwards towards the small landing pad indicated, the starboard landing strut was bent at a wild angle as it lowered. When she ship came to a rest the strut bent and snapped with a loud screech and bang. The ship tilted and slowly fell sideways, the starboard side coming to rest with a grinding sound. The engines wound themselves down, their high-pitched whine dulling to a hum then silence.

The docking ramp, blocked due to the ship’s odd angle, failed to extend fully. A tall man dressed in a grey standard flight suit appeared, crawling out of the gap. His hair was going every which way, and there was black grease stains and a smear of dried brown blood down his forehead. The ground crew rushed over and helped the pilot to his feet. He flashed a weary smile, and handed a crew member a credit chit.

“Here’s for the repairs, the repaint and the refit.” He then produced a second chit. “This is for not touching any of the internal cockpit systems. Understand? Not a single fingerprint whatsoever. I just got those things the way I like.” The man took a look at the second chit’s readout number, smiled and nodded.

“Great. Would you please point me to the nearest bar?” He said, wobbling as he adjusted to the gravity. The man pointed him off in the direction of the bar, Leon thanked him and strode off to get cleaned up and drunk.
Kyla Emmerich
15 Jun 2017, 8:15am
"What the fuck was Jem thinking?!" Kyla yelled as she entered the hangar bay where Moonshot remained docked. She stumbled up the entry ramp of the ship almost tripping as she tapped her key card to open the door inside.

Without bothering to change, she flopped down on her bunk.

"There's a reason that bitch is worth five mil to that woman..."

Attempting to dismiss her anxiety from her lack of power over the situation, she let out a long sigh.

"It's her funeral I guess..."

She rolled over and closed her eyes. But I'd prefer it not to be.
son of khzvoltz
15 Jun 2017, 10:30am
*he slowly awakes in his DBX, and sighs* damn... no passengers huh? *he shrugs as he stands up* well, i need a drink, maybe somthing strong *he stands up, and walks to the bar*
Nsite
15 Jun 2017, 1:34pm
The worn Rim Liner lurches through the mail slot as it clumsily makes its way towards its assigned pad. Several of the aged ship's signal beacons flicker inconsistently as its stressed power plant struggles to supply enough draw in order to maintain a stable course; the once illuminated panes of glass on the majority of deck b are currently shrouded in darkness. Goes without saying, this ship has seen better days.

As the ship screeches to a stop atop the deck, one of the Dock Technicians takes notice.

'Jesus...' he quips, unable to mask his look of disapproval and annoyance.

The airlock to the Rim Liner's bridge hisses as it opens, a shadowed figure approaching the doorway.

'You're going to be able to get that thing off my deck, yeah? Otherwise your Moorage fees just skyrocketed there, slick' the tech barks up at the man now walking out the shrouded doorway on to the hull of the Anaconda.

Blake lets out a sigh as he runs his hands through his hair. He looks rough, defeated, agitated, and ten years older.

'Yeah, yeah, she'll be just fine. But we may be here a while.' He responds with almost an apathetic tone.

The Dock Tech grunts as he returns to his business, Blake watches the man as he skulks away in exaggerated protest to his arrival.

'What is the deal with these people?' Blake says under his breath.

With a quick tap of his fingers on his wrist, Blake pulls up his holo and begins transcribing a message.

'Phisto, you and I haven't met, but Sydney sends her regards. She is on her way here, arriving sooner than you might expect. She requested I send you a line the minute we got in-- see if you might be able to give us a hand when she touches down. Wish I could say it was a small favor. No chance you've seen or heard from Marcus? Goes without saying, we haven't. Any information you have as to his whereabouts would be appreciated, and rewarded. Be well commander.'

Blake closes the comm and takes a look around the dock. It's far a more solemn scene than his last visit here.

'Where the hell are you?' Blake whispers. With ginger movements he walks back into the airlock leading to his bridge, the door closing abruptly behind him shortly after he does.

Last edit: 15 Jun 2017, 2:00pm
User1355
15 Jun 2017, 2:50pm
Marra and her small entourage exit the elevator from the Pilot's Market and make their way back to the Wrach Du.

"I just needed ten more minutes, cherie!" pines Apollonia as they walk across the docking pad, "she was gorgeous, non? Just think how much they'd pay for a night with her!"

Marra waves her hand dismissively, wincing in pain as she walks up the Python's access ramp.

"I've gone off brunettes."

Apollonia mutters to herself in her native Gallic as the ramp closes behind them.


A few minutes later, the black freighter releases its docking clamps and raises itself above the pad. With a roar, it boosts forward, sealing its heat vents as it clears the mail-slot, beginning its long trek home to the Pegasi sector.
XxHyde840xX
16 Jun 2017, 7:02pm
Hyde paused for a moment at the multitude of shoppes and kiosks offering their various wares and services. Scanning the area he quickly zeroed in on a local butcher and made his way toward the counter. A veritable cornucopia of meats and fish were artfully arranged and one could tell just at a glance that the proprietor prided himself on having the best stock available. Hyde raised his hand in greeting and the butcher, without so much as a pause in his work, greeted his new customer.

"Welcome, friend! You like feesh? You like meats, yes? We have best in station. Good price for you!" His accent was thick, but he spoke clearly, and warmly.

"Got any large bones? Cow femur or anything like that? Something with some good stuff left on it."

Without hesitation the meat-master scurried into the back, and returned moments later with a massive bovine thigh-bone, some flesh and cartilage still attached. Hyde could tell just by looking that it was fresh and grinned. "Perfect, I'll take it." Popping a slice of jerky from the countertop into his mouth, he watched as the bone was wrapped in brown parcel paper. Hyde paid the man for both and turned back in the direction of the elevator.

After a short ride, the doors opened and he found himself staring at the docking bay, and his ship. The LCS Jormungand was pristine, minus of course the wear and tear on her paint that she bore with pride, and Hyde smiled watching the last of the dockworkers finish up and sprint towards the aged Rim Liner. He made his way to the access ramp and scanned his palm across the reader.

As the door opened, his eyes bulged as an enormous mass of black fur bounded down the ramp, barking wildly, and threw him to the floor.

"Sorry, Sir! He saw you coming from the cockpit and we couldn't get a hold of him in time..." The ships external comms exclaimed as his three crew stared sheepishly from from the open access door.

Not like you could've stopped him anyways.

Hyde broke into laughter and grabbed the Cane Corso playfully in a headlock, and wrestled with him for a moment before getting up. "Miss me DT? Gotcha somethin' buddy." The dogs eyes bulged and he barked playfully, tail wagging furiously as he saw, and smelled, the delicacy that his owner had brought him. He was through the wrapping in seconds, and had it not been for the sheer size of the canine, it would've looked a damn sight foolish with a bone that size in his mouth.

Hyde was already halfway up the exit ramp. He whistled sharply, and the black Corso's ears shot up. Grabbing the femur between his powerful jaws he sprinted up the ramp after his friend and benefactor.

Wiping the flecks of slobber and drool off of his person, and brushing the dust off of his attire, Hyde retreated to his quarters for a moment, briskly changing into his flight suit, and made his way back to the bridge, saluting the crew. Deftly flicking a series of switches and buttons, he powered up the Anaconda and prepared to launch. As the ship took flight the comms crackled to life. A gruff male voice had replaced the pleasant young woman's who had first welcomed him to Citi Gateway.

"Faulcon DeLacy, X-Ray X-Ray Hotel. Do NOT deviate from current vector an heading. Speed under a hundred. Greenlight on exit."

"Roger Wilco, LCS Jormungand out."

The LCS Jormungand maintained a steady heading until it was no longer mass-locked, and then disappeared into the black.

Last edit: 16 Jun 2017, 9:58pm
Leon Falkner
16 Jun 2017, 7:54pm
Leon walks through the docks, meandering to the Pilot's Market.

He seems more in his element now. He turns the collar of his jacket up high, the faded blue fabric covering the top of his flight suit. He searches stalls, shops, and all manner of electronic stores. He picks up a few random components, mostly from scrap and salvage shops: some rubber padding, copper wire, some only slightly bent steel brackets.

He asks every one if they know if they can help him find one very specific thing: a zero-g Coffee machine. All of them look at him like he has six heads and wave him on.

The Quest Continues... He thinks.
Nsite
17 Jun 2017, 10:59am
Her clipper was pristine as if flown directly off the lot; this was not the case of course as she had been piloting this craft for years, but this was just Sydney's meticulous nature.

'Sierra Yankee Delta, you are cleared for touchdown on landing pad zero seven.'

That always managed to make her smirk. Whoever came up with that familiar alpha numeric salute deserved a fist full of Thargoid in her opinion. Even in its unintentional use it now conjured up childlike sentiment for her which, from her perspective, only perpetuated an already suffering interstellar gene pool. Clean maybe, but she emphatically rejected cute in any of its vomitous analogues.

'Copy that Control,' she responds with an intentionally nasally inflection. She was barely paying attention, but that wouldn't stop her from taking a quick jab at the nerds in the control tower now telling her what to do. She didn't care for them either.

'Auto Dock' Sydney articulates flatly mere seconds later, her eyes still scanning over an opened data link panel, one she hadn't diverted her attention from for quite some time now.

'Auto Docking Initiated' her computer responds.

The screen in front of Sydney was replaying the feed from the day of Marcus' disappearance- her eyes fixated on a small portion of that feed, now magnified in a separate window. Phisto can be seen clearly running across the dock as he energetically squawks into his PDA.

'You were talking to him, weren't you?' Sydney speaks quietly to herself. She smirks and shakes her head from side to side as a shit eating grin escapes her.

'Yeah, I'm on to you--' Sydney says while simultaneously opening up a comms panel to her left.

'I don't buy it for a second Blake, he was center stage to the whole spectacle. He knows more than he's leading on.' she riddles off confidently.

'I thought you said he was one of Marcus's friends.' Blake replies.

Sydney raises her eyebrow slightly, Blake's words seemed somewhat annoyingly inappropriate to her. 'That doesn't sound like a word I would use... friends.'

'Trusted him then.' Blake retorts.

'Trust is another foreign word to me Blake. I said they were involved.'

'How romantic.'

The bridge of Sydney's clipper begins to fill with the ambient glow emitting from the dock's interior; her passage through the mail slot was far more graceful, albeit automated, than Blake's recent arrival into this awkward mesa-scene. Sydney lets loose a healthy yawn, accompanied with a stretched and strain moan scored by exhaustion.

'I need a nap, or a drink. Maybe both.' She muddles out.

'Meet you at the bar then?' Blake responds.

'See you there'

Sydney closes the comms link simultaneously as her ship elegantly lands onto her assigned bay with barely a lurch. A familiar dock technician now sporting a look of definitive appreciation after watching Sydney's entrance, walks along the breeze way adjacent to her craft.

Nice boat. He thinks to himself.

Last edit: 17 Jun 2017, 11:19am
Bryan Iscariot
20 Jun 2017, 10:43pm
Bryan sauntered across the hangar to the access ramp at beneath the Nomadic Wayfarer towards the back of the ship. As the passed under the ships massive thrusters his comm bleeped with a message go opened the message from the comms in the cockpit once he was aboard. It was from Leif. He glanced at the message and turned to pack up his stuff.

"Text to speech" Bryan announced. A quiet bleep from the console indicated that his command had been recognised and was now awaiting input. He turned his back on the console.
"Shouldn't need that, I tend to travel light be over in a few" he said hunking down beside a box full of mechanical and electrical clutter which he always kept on hand for fixing his ship. He was preparing to leave his ship. With the exception of a few station hops since arriving back at the bubble he had spent a a solid month almost alone ferrying passengers to nebulas and other vistas. He had fond memories of the ship dispute it being a constant repair job.
"See you in a few, End message and send."

He mused at the fact that he said he travelled light when his cockpit was so full of junk but it was necessary to keep his ship running and in one piece... figuratively. He doubted he'd require any of this stuff to help keep the Beluga running.

He scraped the box of spare parts across the floor out of the way which revealed a small alcove hidden behind the box, inside the alcove was a small lock box of Bryan's valuable possessions. It's contents included a photo he never looked at anymore, his various id paperworks, a couple of rare trinkets had managed to trade for, a token belonging to his father that was supposed to carry weight the system he used to pilot in but he never used it, He didn't want to use it and get tied down to a single system, it would defeat the purpose of being an explorer. And finally his mining colony identification badge from his home system of Muruidooges.

He cradled the lockbox for a moment and looked around the interior of the ship, "Well old girl, I guess this is it for now, it's been fun...and temperamental...but fun none the less these last few months, I'll see you when I get back from this job, Not sure when I'll finish but I'll be back." He walked to the doorway and affectionately stroked it with his hand as he looked back. like some soon to be war widow chasing after her conscripted husband in an old holo-vid dropping her handkerchief dramatically an access panel fell from the wall and clattered to the floor. "Really?...we were having a moment and you had to ruin it by falling apart around me..." He sighed consuming himself to fix it when he got back. "...Oh well see you later"

He turned and exited the ship and began to make the journey back to the Beluga.
Jason Frimantle
21 Jun 2017, 12:55am
"Find us a landing pad, Astra."

Requesting docking permission.

The Strider's contact system sprang to life of its own accord and ran through the options to send the message to Citi Gateway. The response from traffic control, assigning the pad, was quickly followed by the oddly cadenced voice of the AI installed in the ship's computer system.

Auto-docking procedure ready, Commander. Please throttle back.

"I think I'll take us in manually this time, Astra. Thank you."

You're welcome.
A pause.
Shall I transfer power to engines?

"Sure."

Jason Frimantle gave the ship's thrusters a boost to move the Cobra to a better position. The g-forces from the acceleration kicked him in the pants, and he grunted softly. After a long haul of cargo from Chona, he had started to think about relaxing, stretching, having a drink. Whenever the thrusters kicked in like that, it reminded him that he was in the black, a layer of man-made material between him and hard vacuum, and he always had to be on his toes.

Easing back on the throttle, he brought the Strider around towards the mail slot. He had to nudge himself over to make room for a lumbering Type-9 exiting the station, then swung back into position to find his pad. It was, of course, right near the entrance. He rolled to starboard as he killed the main thrusters, speaking to Astra as he did.

"Lower the landing gear, please."

Landing modules down and locked.

Jason lowered his ship towards the pad, making small adjustments with the lateral thrusters to stay in position for the landing. He was very glad he'd invested in a computer core that could handle the AI system. He knew that his Astra was just one iteration of a particular construct, of several available. The idea of an AI computer assistant aboard a spacefaring vessel hadn't caught on throughout the bubble, especially among some of those he worked with in the Empire, where it was much preferable to work with flesh and blood beings as opposed to technology. Still, considering the amount of time he spent out in the black alone, it was good to have someone to talk to.

His thoughts about looking into a different AI, or perhaps two, to bring aboard the exploration craft he longed to purchase were interrupted when the Strider came to a halt on the landing pad.

Landing successful. Ship secured.

"Thank you, Astra. Bring us into the hangar, please. Let our contact know we've arrived with their cargo, then shut down main systems and place yourself on standby. Standard security protocols."

Affirmative. Have a good stay, Commander.

Jason unstrapped himself from the pilot's couch and made his way aft to the hatch, stopping to pick up his grandfather's flight jacket - and the sidearm from the compartment from the ejection seat's survival gear - before he exited his ship, and stepped into the unknown of Citi Gateway.

Last edit: 22 Jun 2017, 5:51am
Leif
22 Jun 2017, 11:42pm
Walking down a hallway, Leif played with the datacard in his pocket.

If you ever need anything...

Not quite sure what to think about that. He's such a weird mind.

His datapad beeped inside his pocket.

Phisto instead? Huh, nice guy, cool to chat, sounds like he knows how to fly but gets taken down by a newjack.

Leif chuckled at the memory of the nervous newjack quickly leaving the bar shortly after he arrived and Phisto telling this story.

Nice contacts nevertheless. One for chatting, one for ... well, other things. Might be useful for-

Another beep of his datapad stopped his thought train. "Yeah, I know I'm important," he whispered annoyed at it.

He quickly made the last few steps towards the hangar his ship was in. Swiftly opening, the doors made way for a view of a Beluga Liner in a barren dock. Maintenance was long finished as he landed here a few days earlier and liked to keep his ship in pristine condition.

"Read out messages," Leif commanded once he was inside the Beluga and the doors had closed behind him.

"Message one, from Senator Hallman."

He gave the air in front of him a puzzled look. He didn't expect to hear from the client he brought here again as he usually picked his passengers off the official passenger lists.

"Good afternoon, Commander Leif. I got notice that you are located at Citi Gateway, where you brought us a few days ago. Given my circumstances, I'd like to use your service again. If you remember the negotiations I talked about - well, they did not turn out as planned and I'd like to leave quickly. Can I count on you taking me and my companions out of here in the next half hour? Signed, Senator Hallman."

This sounded very different from what the Senator chatted with Leif on the trip here. From what he'd told, Leif figured, the Senator was rich, relaxed and had lots of time. He wanted to make a vacation after the negotiation with whoever he negotiated with. This message did not sound relaxed to Leif.

"Message two, from Bryan."

Leif quickly moved to his cabin.

"Shouldn't need that, I tend to travel light. Be over in a few."

Opening his locker, Leif commanded: "Response to Bryan."

A bleep indicated the voice recognition listening as Leif threw his Remlok from the locker on his bed.

"Make it a few less, I need you here A-S-A-P," he dictated as he took off his casual wear, "Hope you can change into your Remlok as quick as I can. Ship's outside hangar." He threw his trousers into the open locker. "Send message."

With another bleep the ship sent the message and Leif hastily pulled the Remlok over his legs.

"Response to Senator Hallman," he commanded again as he fiddled with the sleeves in order to slide his arms through.

"Senator Hallman, I appreciate your trust in my service and-", a sleeve slept from Leif's fingers and fell on his back side, "would ... like to have you aboard again. I can be ready in your desired timeframe, the dock ..." Leif finally got the sleeve over his arm, "is the same as you arrived on, twentyfour. The ship will be ready outside the hangar. Sign and send."

The Remlok sealed itself around Leif as he finished putting it on. "Exit hangar, get ready for takeoff and run pre-flight checks," he said as he left his cabin. The sudden movement of the ship threw his shoulder against the doorframe, but he casually pulled himself back to balance on the other side and went straight to the bridge. Just as the door zipped open the large inside of the docking bay appeared in front of the panoramic canopy.
Bryan Iscariot
23 Jun 2017, 2:50pm
Bryan was about to try the hangar doors when his comms bleeped, his hands were full with his lockbox inside his helmet which he was carrying under one arm and a couple pairs of clothes which were on a hangar slung over his shoulder, he hooked the clothes hanger on a piece of his Remlock suits shoulder to free up a hand, he stroked the metal device on his sleeve the opposite direction to the last few times, instead opting to scroll the message across the surface of the device than deploy the full UI.

it was another message from Leif, Something must of come up Bryan thought, Good thing I'm already in my Remlock he looked around for the access stairs to the surface to get to the docking bay because the landing pad was probably in the Raised position and couldn't be accessed by the hanger anymore. the clothes hanger was digging into Bryan's shoulder because it had a considerable weight due to it having several pairs of clothes on the same hangar, he lifted them off again, leaving the message on repeating on the devices surface, he'd turn it off once he put his stuff down.

Bryan found the access stairs to the left, there was an elevator beside the stairs but it aways seemed to move infuriatingly slowly because it doubled as a cargo lift for pilots who didn't want to pay the hangar fee and collected cargo on the pad instead. as Bryan reached the door of the stairs he saw a man accompanied by several others arrive at the lift. the man was dressed like a senator and seemed impatient for the lift to arrive. Must be our new passengers"Hey, If you're in a hurry it's probably better to just take the stairs, that's mainly used as a cargo lift so its real slow."Bryan called out to the man who seemed to almost flinch at being talked to out of the blue. the bodyguards and companions all looked towards the senator to make a decision gave Bryan a look that said I'm too Important for stairs and said: "No thanks" with a hint of disgust at the suggestion. "Suit yourself," said Bryan and left the door to the stairs to swing shut behind him.

he began the ascent to the landing pad. There were eight flights of steps to get from the hangar level to the docking bay Bryan was only halfway up the stairs when he heard the echoing of many feet beginning the climb below him Must've changed his mind, he really is in a hurry Bryan walked across the docking bay to the Beluga liner and climbed the boarding ramp. he remembered his way from earlier and made his way towards the cockpit, he saw Leif ready and waiting, "Heya, we by any chance picking up a skittish looking guy dressed like a senator? met him downstairs he should be out the stairwell right about now"
Leif
23 Jun 2017, 4:46pm
"Putting on the Remlok before starting the timer doesn't count," Leif exclaimed as he laid his eyes on Bryan, "and yes, that's the guy." He chuckled, but quickly regained a serious look as he turned back to his controls, "And if he takes the stairs, I was right about his situation. Buckle up."

With some button taps, holoscreens with the view of the boarding ramp and the lounge popped up in the air. The senator walked up the boarding ramp with swift steps, two of his bodyguards close behind him, then the rest of his company which concluded with another two bodyguards. These carefully stepped up the boarding ramp backwards, their guns visibly drawn and obviously scanning the surroundings.

"Actually more serious than I thought."

Leif's fingers rushed over the controls, closing the boarding ramp, requesting undocking and opening the intercom.

"Welcome aboard, Senator Hallman. I take it is indeed very urgent?" he said and looked from the holoscreen showing the closing boarding ramp over to the one showing the lounge. The Senator stood prominently in the middle of the view, looking directly at the camera.

"Yes," he responded through his gritted teeth, "now it's up to you. Are we ready for departure?"

Leif's fingers moved again. "We are. Please, have a seat. Urgency requires another style of piloting."

The landing gear let loose of the pad with a clonk and he fired the upwards thruster, sending one of the bodyguards tumbling. Leif cracked a grin over to Bryan.
Nsite
25 Jun 2017, 7:09am
Sydney walks down the ramp from her clipper, speaking inaudibly to Blake in the process. She takes a brief look around the large dock while taking a mental inventory of the ships currently visible to her. It was unlikely that she would see anything that would be of any help, but she was on high alert, and even the most commonplace detail might end up being more meaningful than it might appear at face value.

Sydney takes one last observation, this time more insecurely- she was about to sneak in a smoke, something she rarely ever did, and more importantly something she'd hoped few people would ever see. Confident she was alone and out of sight from any noteworthy observers, she entertains her guilty pleasure, doing her best to keep the plumes of her exhale as discreet as possible.
User23543
25 Jun 2017, 8:26am
Phisto walked casually through the docks. He'd been back on Data, catching up on some news when the urge to wander struck him. Strolling along, his mind wandered to Isaiah's canister and its pending opening. These thoughts were suddenly interrupted by an acrid whiff of second hand smoke. Looking around for the offending party, he took notice of an Imperial Clipper sitting in its dock. He tilted his head slightly, admiring the cool, stylish lines of the ship. Bringing a hand up to his face, he waved away the offending odor.

He slowed his pace, wondering who the source might be.

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