Elite roleplay: Off station

OFF STATION

Your ship, deep space, anything that is not happening inside the Citi Gateway or Ingaba...

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.
Maul Montresor
08 Nov 2019, 4:06am
Maul bows to Omi and follows Khelan out of the office.

"I would ask where you're going to get a corpse for this but...I'm just going to try and not think about that."

"I'm also surprised that there were two trackers in her. We know how fucking wacko Anton was but the other one has me more concerned. That means they've been following us for some time now."

Before parting ways, Maul stops Khelan.

"So, just to make sure that I fully understand the plan. Are we going to be putting a corpse in an escape pod full of explosives? If so, make sure to send the escape pod to Hideo's shop. I've already got an idea on how we can trick scanners into thinking there is a body inside but masking explosives will be a whole other process."

He scratches the back of his head as he thinks.

"You know, I have a feeling that it's going to get pretty cramped in that pod."
Khelan
09 Nov 2019, 12:51am
Khelan smiles at Maul.

"Ah'm just gonnae ask the gud doctor nicely."

He looks deadly serious for a moment

"Ah'll no lie two trackers his me an Omi a wee bit concerned, in fact she's wanting ye tae get double checked an get the wan inside ye oot toot sweet just tae be oan the safe side."

His facial expression goes back to his usual cheerful look as he continues to talk to Maul.

There'll be a pod waiting fur ye by the time ye get back frae the docs, Ah oanly need the tap half of that corpse so if somewan looks intae the wee clear panel when they're settin up tae scoop then they're gonna see somewan who roughly looks like Vera in the pod. Once they've goat it onboard we'll make it go bang. Chances are they wilnae be sendin anywan important oot tae pick it up but when they dinnae come back then somewan wi a bitty knowledge might come oot tae take a wee nosy, we nab them, hiv a wee chat an boabs yer mother's live in lover we find oot wits goin oan."

"Wan mair thing mate, it's no Hideo's shop anymair, it's yours so ye might wanna change the sign oar somethin."

Last edit: 11 Nov 2019, 11:07pm
EvilCreamsicle
11 Nov 2019, 5:32pm
((Mine's late. Sorry. I'll take down the Halloween decorations tomorrow and start looking for the Christmas ones.))

Falcon15e“Huh,” Lamb remarked as Kai walked off, “I’ve never seen her not finish a drink before.”


"A problem easily solved." said Silas, now holding both drinks, before knocking back what was left of Kai's bourbon and setting the glass down on the ledge behind him.

The room was quiet once again, those still present contemplating the girls' stories, and likely trying to recall something of their own worth sharing.

Raven sits up, almost tipping off his stool before Tamiko caught and steadied him.

"OK, OK... we were, we were escorting thish... thish sciency dude to Cascad... no, Concordia?"

"Colonia." Echo corrects him

"Yeah! Colonia! 'Member that?"

"Obviously"

"...so anyway," Raven continues, "I had notished that the, um... the Cheddar-Bitz were empty, sho I went to the pantry to get shome more and..."

He paused for dramatic effect.

"...THEY WERE GONE!" he had set down his drink to raise his open hands in a grand revealing gesture, as if he expected this would elicit the same kind of chill as Lamb's ghost or Kai's bloody wraith.

Everyone just kind of stared at him, nonplussed. Silas raised an eyebrow at him.

"...eh, fuck you guysh." he said quietly, leaning back into Tamiko, who just smiled and shook her head.

"Reminds me of that station though. Remember?" Silas said, now leaning forward himself, looking to Echo.

Echo just nodded.

"We were just passing through on the way back from a passenger run, honking systems for the hell of it to see what we could find, until we came to Volsung."

"We dropped in and scanned the system. Random uninhabited system, we figured maybe we'd find, I dunno, purpureum crystals or something. What did you find Echo?"

"A station signal." Echo answered

"A station signal. In an uninhabited system. It had only appeared briefly and then was gone, but we figured we ought to check it out all the same. So we fly out. A binary system so it would have been Volsung AB 1... " he pauses to count. "H. AB 1 h."

"So we get there, and we see this signal again, its kind of faint but clearly a station. So we approach it and drop out, at a bit of a distance to see what we can see. Well, the answer was 'not much'. This thing was dead cold. No lights, no discernable power use... and at this point I'm really confused as to how we saw the signal in the first place. But then, something occurred to me!"

Silas takes a sip of his Old Sol before continuing.

"I pulled up the system chart and looked at where we were. Volsung, an uninhabited system. AB 1, a Class I gas giant. H, the 8th moon.
Here we were, sitting in front of a cold station, orbiting the 8th moon of an unnamed gas giant, which was somehow magically emitting a signal source. So now, I'm not confused anymore, I'm stoked. I'm thinking we just found The Dark Wheel, the real one.

I tell Echo and his eyes get wide, right. He's obviously thinking the same thing. This was like 4 months before Raven joined the crew or something so it was just the two of us at the time. Echo immediately tries to hail the station and request docking. No reply though, we're not surprised.

So, we decided to just try and dock and see what happens.

We pull into alignment with the dark mailslot, and the pressure barrier is clearly down. Passing through, the canopy glass frosted up almost like when you drop a heatsink. It's really dark inside the hangar bay, even darker than we expected so as we're pulling through, I hit the ship lights. The excitement was gone, and I can't speak for Echo but my blood ran cold."

"Definitely dude." Echo interjected

"Inside the hangar bay, through the frost we see hundreds if not thousands of corpses were floating. Could have been the entire population of the station. It's good we had a slow approach. Before I could even slow down to back up, a couple were bouncing off the cockpit canopy. After the first couple scraped some of the rime from the window, something caught my eye... their uniforms.

I asked Echo if he recognized them. We agreed they were some kind of military uniforms, but they were all vintage Navy uniforms. Like, first Thargoid war, 3100s uniforms. We're just, confused, and fascinated, and intrigued, and terrified all at the same time. As I'm staring at these uniforms I just hear Echo yelling at me... 'Dude, dude!'. I glance back to see he's pointing at another part of the glass, and when I look at what he's pointing at I just see writing appearing in the frost on the window... 'You don't belong here!'.

I have never noped out of a station that fast before or since. We tried finding that station again a few days later, gone. Tried finding info on any old Galactic Navy stations from the war, no record. No idea what the hell that was about."

"Damn, dude. You never told me about that." Raven said, surprised.

"Never told anybody about that..." Silas said, standing up.
"I'm gonna go check on Kai. Good night, y'all." he said, finishing his Old Sol and setting his glass next to Kaisla's before exiting the room.

"Living with a buncha damned ghosht huntersh, I tell ya." Raven slurred. He went to take another sip, but he thought better of it. It's not that he was opposed to blackout drunkenness, but he and Tamiko had other plans which more alcohol would not have been conducive to.

Last edit: 11 Nov 2019, 5:43pm
Khelan
12 Nov 2019, 12:18am
Khelan

"Wan mair thing mate, it's no Hideo's shop anymair, it's yours so ye might wanna change the sign oar somethin."



Khelan gives Maul a fist bump and heads off towards the docking bays to to check the load out on Headhunter and make sure everything is in order for launch when the time comes.

He rounds a corner and walks straight into two System Authority officers, their immaculately pressed blue and white uniforms a stark contrast to Khelan's battered old clothes.

"Hello Khelan." says the first officer with a cruel sneer on his face "We'd heard that you were back on station again and that you're staying this time."

"Wit can Ah say, Ah like it here." Khelan says with a cheerful smile.

"Cut the crap." snaps the second officer "Word on the street is that your now the Waka Gashira for the Black Dragon Society."

"Dunno wit yer talkin aboot" says Khelan with an air of practiced innocence "Is that some kinda fancy takeaway place oar somethin?"

"And the Irezumi covering the entire of your righthand side of your body is just a fashion statement?" retorts the first officer. "You're nothing but a common criminal and a violent thug to boot."

Khelan looks over both officers before replying.

"Is there a reason ye stopped me?" he asks "Oar is this just a wee friendly how're ye?"

"Word on the street is that you're responsible for the murder of one Theodore Yamamoto who was found floating outside the station with a blade wound to the heart."

"Never heard of the bloke." grunts Khelan as another two officers come around the corner that Khelan had taken moments ago.

"Also a ship matching the description of a vessel you're known to have owned, an Alliance Chieftain callsign "Headhunter" is wanted in the Balante system with regards to the attack and subsequent destruction of a mk2 Krait callsign "The Enigma" owned by a Maul Montresor, missing presumed killed by the attack."

"Dunno wit yer talkin aboot" says Khelan.

"You really expect us to believe that?" snaps the first officer. "Your ship leaves station, jumps away in the direction of Balante where a vessel matching the description of your ship attacks and destroys another ship before escaping from the authorities there and then your ship arrives back in system shortly afterwards."

"Coincidence" says Khelan "Happens all the time so it does. Ah'm Ah bein detained?"

The second officer steps forward as the other two officers stand in close behind Khelan.

"Under station code 80-09 I am performing a stop and search as I believe that you may be carrying either illegal weapons or possibly controlled substances. I would ask you to cooperate fully or you'll be arrested and forcibly searched."

"Disnae look like Ah've goat a choice dis it?" growls Khelan as the officer takes out a scanner and runs it over Khelan's body.

The officer passes it along Khelan's right arm, it beeps wildly and the officer smiles.

"Roll up your sleeve" he commands and Khelan does so revealing the spring loaded wristblade strapped to the inside of Khelan's arm.

"Now what do we have here? A concealed weapon that looks a lot like the one we heard was used to murder Theodore Yamamoto."

Khelan sighs as one of the officers behind him grabs him by the arm and they unstrap his blade.

"Of course forensics aren't going to find any trace of Yamamoto's dna on this are they? And this is all going to be a huge misunderstanding isn't it?" sneers one of the cops as he roughly cuffs Khelan's hands behind his back.

"You're under arrest on the suspicion of the murder of Theodore Yamamoto, the murder of Maul Montresor and for carrying an illegal concealed weapon." says the first officer as a Station Authority transport turns around the corner.

"You have the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law, you have the right to an attorney if you cannot afford one then one will be provided for you."

"Shite!" grumbles Khelan as the officers bundle him into the transport and the first one continues to read him his rights.
Maul Montresor
13 Nov 2019, 5:06am
Maul makes his way to Dr. Kojima's office and is taken back as soon as he arrives and changes into a hospital gown.

Dr Kojima enters the room with a smile.

"I wasn't expecting to see you again so soon, Mr. Montresor."

Maul nods.

"Same doc."

Kojima continues.

"Omi notified us that she wants that tracker that we deactivated, removed. It should be a quick procedure, given that you don't start panicking like you friend Vega did earlier."

Maul sighs and nods.

"Alright but don't expect me to be laying around here. I've got some work that needs to be done before tomorrow."

Dr Kojima smiles and pats Maul on the back.

"No worries. It shouldn't take more than a couple of hours. I'll give you some medication for any pain that you may be having and then you can be on your way."

Dr Kojima gestures for Maul to lay back.

"We'll do a quick scan and then start the procedure. Just try to relax."

Maul leans back as the humming of the machine begins to soothe him.
Khelan
14 Nov 2019, 12:53am
***** A few hours later *****

Khelan sits in the holding cell his non cybernetic eye swollen shut, his lip cracked and his beard stained with dried blood. He sits holding his ribs with his left hand trying not to breathe too deeply.

"Fuckin basturds" he grumbles to himself "Hiv'nae even asked me any questions yit."

A figure appears on the other side of the barred cell door.

"Well hello there cupcake, one of us is in a whole heap of trouble." says the figure.

"Aye but if ye let me oot noo Ah promise ye Ah'll no press fur charges against yer bhoys hospitality." Khelan retorts.

"I dont know what you're talking about, you took a nasty trip and fell down the stairs, everyone here saw that." says the figure on the other side of the cell door.

"Aye that auld chestnut" says Khelan "Ah want ma right tae a comm call. Ah've goat tae get ma uncle Albert tae feed ma cat while Ah'm in here."

The officer in the other side of the door thinks about it for a few moments before nodding to the guard to open the cell door.

Khelan gets up and walks over to the door where he's stopped by the officer who pokes him in the ribs with his night stick causing Khelan to grunt in pain.

"One call, that's all you get, you understood?"

"Loud an clear cuntstable."

The officer gives Khelan a quick blow to the side of his head.

"That's officer to you and don't you forget that."

Khelan nods and heads over to the comm terminal, he punches in the number for the engineering shop and the line starts buzzing for a few moments before someone answers.

"Hello, Hideo's engineering service with a smile Caden speaking. How can I help you?"

"Caden, it's Khelan." he starts to say

"Oh hey man, if you're looking for the boss man then he's not here at the moment, you should try to get him on his own comms."

"Ah cannae mind his number." Khelan says "Listen, dae me a wee favour, when Goolie gets back tell him that Ah've been lifted by station authorities an he's goat tae get Uncle Albert tae feed ma cat. Ye goat me?"

"Wooah!" replies Caden "You've been arrested and all you care about is your cat getting its dinner? Man you sure you're not wanting him to arrange for a lawyer or anything instead?"

"Ah telt ye, get him tae get Uncle Albert tae feed ma cat, that's all ah care aboot right noo." says Khelan.

"You got it man, your kitty will be well fed don't worry about it."

The officer across from the comms panel presses a button on his desks control panel and the comms system shuts off abruptly.

"Times up" he grunts "Back in your cell."

Khelan looks at the officer, nods and goes back in to the cell and sits down again.

"Man Ah hope that fuckin onion hied waster passes that tae Goolie afore it's too late." he says to himself as the cell door slams shut again.
Maul Montresor
14 Nov 2019, 4:17pm
Maul walks into the engineering shop with his shirt pulled up as he looks as the small incision from the surgery.

"Hey boss man!" Caden shouts from across the workshop as he quickly approaches Maul.

"It's Khelan, he's been arrested and we've got to feed his kitty."

Maul and Caden stared at each other in silence for a moment.

"...What?" Maul says in complete confusion.

"That's what he said man, he said "Get Uncle Alan to feed my cat"."

They continued to stare at each other in silence.

"Who the fuck is Uncle Alan?..."

Maul shook his head and tried to dissect the situation.

"Khelan was arrested? Does Omi know?"

Caden shrugs.

Maul throws his hands up and walks away to find Akio.

"Akio, I need to get a hold of Omi. Is there a secure way of doing that?"

Akio turns around from the project he was working on to face Maul.

"Yeah, we have a secure comms line from here to Omi's office."

Akio walks Maul over to the comms device and starts a call to Omi. After a moment Omi picks up.

"Yes?"

"Omi, it's Maul. Khelan's been arrested, what do you guys do in these situations?"

"What? What happened?"

"I'm not sure, I just got the news myself. He called here and told Caden."

Omi is silent for a moment.

"We haven't got time to go about this in a legal manner. With his reputation, they'll kill him."

Maul leans his head back and closes his eyes to think. After a moment he speaks up.

"Okay, I might have an idea."

"I'm listening." Omi replies.

"If me and the boys here can gain access to the security stations network, we could open the cell doors. That should cause enough mayhem to provide him cover to escape. It would help if you could have some of your men cause a distraction on the other side of the station to thin out the numbers at the security station. Maybe even send some other members to help security catch any unwanted fugitives from escaping. If people saw The Black Dragon Society helping station security during a riot, it might boost our reputation with the public. Security will know it's bullshit but they won't say anything about it considering we helped them and even if they did speak out against it, we'd still have the public's trust."

"Are you sure you can do this?"

"Give us an hour, and make sure to send a vehicle to pick up Khelan. He'll need to vanish quick."

"Alright, I'll start sending out the orders. Good luck, Maul."

The comms end.

Maul looks over at Akio.

"What do you need from us boss?"

Maul takes a deep breath.

"I need Chikao to try to brute force their network and the rest of you need to start working on that pod that arrived. We need to make it think there is a live body inside. We're also going to be filling it full of explosives, so figure out a way to mask them from a scan."

"Are you going to be helping Chikao?"

"Nah, I'm plan B. I'm going to be going to the security station to try to install a backdoor on one of their computers."

Akio nods and calls the group together to explain the situation. Chikao approaches Maul with a smug grin.

"So we're hacking station security?"

Maul nods.

"You got a better plan? I'm open to suggestions here."

Chikao shakes his head.

"Nope can't say that I do. I'm just glad we're finally going to stick it to those wise-ass pricks."

Maul smiles and grabs a small USB device loaded with the backdoor program from a jar labeled "Knock Knock. Who's There?" before walking out into the street.

Last edit: 14 Nov 2019, 5:36pm
Khelan
15 Nov 2019, 12:35am
The door to Khelan's cell opens and he looks up to see four officers walking in all carrying nightsticks.

"Ah take it yer here tae say there's been a terrible mistake an Ah'm free tae go?" asks Khelan trying to sound cheerful.

"Shut your mouth gaijin." snaps the first of them "It's time you learned some respect."

The first man nods to the others and they advance on Khelan as one. Khelan tries to relax in preparation for the upcoming beating.

"No visible marks above the shoulders boys." says the groups leader "And try not to kill him just yet either. There's a lot of people who want to teach the infamous Shiroi Akuma a lesson."

"Sure thing Chief." replies one of the men as they raise their clubs in unison and the blows start to rain down on Khelan's torso.

"Once we're done with you we're going to make a move on your little slut of a girlfriend and teach her the error of her ways." sneers the Chief as Khelan slumps to the floor and curls up into a ball.

The blows rain down on him for a few more moments before the Chief orders his men to stop and they take a couple of steps backwards to let him in.

"You're not so tough now are you gaijin?." the Chief says as Khelan coughs up a load of blood.

The Chief nods to the other officers and they leave the cell each one giving Khelan a quick kick as they go past him causing him to grunt in pain with each blow.

"Ah want ma lawyer." whispers Khelan weakly as the Chief leaves the cell.

"I'll think about it." laughs the Chief as the cell door slams shut again.
Maul Montresor
15 Nov 2019, 3:16am
Maul approaches the security station in a business suit that he had purchased on the way over. He had his other outfit in a bag that he was carrying. There were very few security vehicles parked outside, indicating that the distraction must have worked and most of the stations security were elsewhere. A few vehicle's had just pulled up to let out some Black Dragon Society members a few of the men give Maul a nod and he reciprocates.

He approaches one of the men.

"Is this the vehicle for Khelan?"

The man narrows his eyes and nods.

"Yeah, are you that Ghoulie guy we've been hearing about?"

Maul nods as he opens the back door of the vehicle to throw his bag in and speaks to the driver.

"Get this vehicle around the corner and wait there."

He closes the door and the vehicle drives off.

"Are you sure this plan is going to work?" Another member asks as he approaches Maul.

"Let's hope so. What kind of distraction did you guys come up with?"

"We set fire to an old office complex. Omi knew some guys who were wanting to purchase the property for its location. They're wanting to tear it down and construct a shopping mall or something. The current seller wasn't willing to come down in price though. I bet he does now, and having these new owners owe us a favor isn't such a bad idea. We also called in about three anonymous bomb threats around the city."

Maul sighs and nods.

"Alright, I'm going in. Remember to stop anyone, that isn't Khelan, from escaping. Gotta make it look like you guys are here to help."

Maul straightens his tie and walks through the doors of the security station. An officer was sitting behind the desk.

"Can I help you, Sir?"

Maul reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out some papers and smacked them on the desk.

"I'm Eli Cayne Attorney at Law. I demand to see my client Khelan right this moment."

A quick search on the galactic web landed him on a vague enough PDF file to alter and print out. Now Maul only had to hope that this officer was as stupid as this plan was and besides, it only needed to work long enough to get him in the same room as Khelan.

The officer glanced over the papers and back up to Maul.

"Can I see some I.D.?"

Maul fished around in his pocket and tossed an old I.D. on the desk. The officer looked at it and back to him. It was an old I.D., Maul was a few years younger when he made it. The picture was before the green hair dye and tattoos.

"Looks like you've had a rough few years Mr. Cayne. I've never seen an attorney with so many tattoos, and what's the deal with the hair? Also, this little sticker here indicates that you're schizophrenic, right?"

Maul nods impatiently.

"Yeah I know, I look like shit and I take my meds, it's all very Ha Ha funny. Now how about you stop jerking me around and let me see my client?"

"I guess it's true what they say about these "criminal lawyers"." The officer says with a sigh as he gets up and leads Maul into a meeting room just down the hall from the front desk.

"We'll have Khelan brought up to you shortly Mr. Cayne. I've got to warn you though, he took a nasty fall down some stairs and isn't looking so good.."

Maul nods and waves the officer away as he taps on his slate in an attempt to look busy. His slate chimed as a message from Chikao came through. He had no luck brute forcing his way into the buildings network.

Maul smacks the slate onto the table and sighs.

"Okay, plan B it is."

He clasped his hands together on the table and waits for Khelan.

Last edit: 15 Nov 2019, 3:24am
Khelan
17 Nov 2019, 2:32pm
Khelan sits in his cell looking down at the floor and watching the chronometer display at the bottom of his vision from his cybernetic eye when a small red dot starts flashing next to it.

"Wit?" he whispers in surprise before relaxing his vision and concentrating on the flashing dot.

A small line of text appears in his vision

"M in blding. B rdy 4 rscue. O"

Khelan reads the message a couple of times to decipher it before shifting his vision back to normal

"Well that's new" he says to himself.

A few minutes later the cell door opens up an two guards stand there.

"Your lawyer's here gaijin, get on your feet." grunts one at him.

Khelan stands up slowly wincing with the pain

The first officer advances on Khelan holding a set of manacles in his hands, he locks the cuffs around his wrists and then locks the other two around Khelan's ankles while the second guard stands brandishing a shock stick which is crackling menacingly.

"Let's go." grunts the first guard and Khelan shuffles out from the cell and is escorted to the room where Maul's waiting for him.
Maul Montresor
18 Nov 2019, 5:36am
Maul shakes his head at Khelan as the guards plop him down in the seat across the table.

He looks up at the guards with a furrowed brow.

"Thank you gentlemen but are the chains necessary?"

The guards look at each other and then back to Maul.

"You do realize who your client is, right?"

Maul looks back at Khelan, who was clearly in pain, and nods.

"I like to think so. Now, if you'd be so kind as to give me and my client a moment."

The guard with the crackling shock stick, nods at Maul and turns the weapon off.

"We'll be outside. If this little prick tries anything, just shout. Someone will hear you."

Maul nods as the guards leave the room and waits for the door to close before speaking to Khelan.

"Okay, It's not going to be long before these Einsteins put all of this together and realize that I'm not just some strange looking lawyer. So, here's what's going on."

He takes a deep breath and exhales.

"Chikao is back at the shop trying to brute force the security stations network. It's not working, so I'm here to install a backdoor onto one of these terminals. That will give us access and let this plan move onto phase two. Which is opening every cell door in the building and causing a riot to cover your escape. We have Black Dragon Society members outside to assist the authorities with catching any criminals that may try to escape. All of them but you of course. I only suggested this part to Omi because I figured it'd help the gang's image with the public."

Maul looks at the chains around Khelan's wrists and ankles.

"But seeing as how you won't be going anywhere with those on, it looks like we need to get you back to your cell, and I need to figure out how to get onto someones terminal without drawing attention to myself."

He thinks for a moment.

"The guy at the front desk seemed pretty gullible, maybe I can come up with something to get him away from his computer."

Maul finally relaxes his shoulders and slides down in his chair a bit.

"I know it's a crazy plan but Omi said these guys would kill you if we didn't act quick and by the looks of you, I'd say she was right."

He sits back up straight and wipes the sweat from his forehead as he examines.

"Will you be able to navigate your way through the building once the riot starts and meet me outside? I imagine it's going to get pretty messy in here and to be honest, you don't look to be in fighting shape at the moment."
Khelan
18 Nov 2019, 8:25am
Khelan looks at Maul with the eye that's not swollen shut.

"Ah'll be OK bud, dinnae worry aboot it. Jus make sure there's a cuppla derms an a cuppa tea waitin fur me an Ah'll be peachy." he says with a grimace.

He gives Maul a deadly serious look before continuing to speak.

"Ah cannae let this go, ye know that right? Kinda like yer corporation stuff but a bit mair small scale. We've goat a wee place set up doon in the warehoose district near the landin bays, Ah've always called it the Houdini room. Tell wee Omi Ah need it set up an that's where Ah'm goin. The gud doctor can meet me there since Ah'm assumin she his already been in touch wi him."

He looks down at his bloody clothes.

"Ah think Ah'm gonnae need a change of clothes waitin fur me too. Ah liked this jumper an all." he says with a slight shrug.

"OK mate, let's dae this."
EvilCreamsicle
18 Nov 2019, 9:41pm
"Coffee..."

Silas was sirred from his sleep.

His eyes were still closed as his mind began to slowly rise from his slumber. He could feel Kai snuggling him.

"...Coffee..." she quietly groaned in his ear, this time grabbing his side and shaking him.
He raised an eyebrow at her as he opened one eye to look at her. Her eyes were closed and her hair was a mess.

Silas just chuckled, maneuvered his arm out from under her head, and stood up, ruffling the silver rats nest on her head some more.
Kaisla groaned and pulled the covers over her head.

After dressing himself to a bare minimum of presentability, he emerged from the cabin in his search of caffeinated life-nectar, shutting the door behind him.

He was feeling particularly chipper, and figured he'd see if there were other late sleepers who could use a cup.

First Echo's cabin. Empty. This wasn't surprising though, as he always was an early riser, ever since his Federal Navy days.

Next was Lamb's cabin. He raised his arm to open the door, then decided better of it. Either she was up already, or she wouldn't take kindly to being disturbed. And in any case besides, she'd be more interested in a cup of tea.

The next stop was... his own cabin. Not even he slept there last night, so he moved on to Raven's.

Opening the door to Raven's cabin he saw that it was empty. It didn't look like it had been slept in.
Silas shrugged and began to move on, but then had a thought, and turned back to his own cabin.

Opening the door, he saw Tamiko who, half-asleep and startled pulled the blankets over her.

"Sorry you're, uh... not my fighter pilot." Silas apologized, closing the door before turning toward the kitchen.

At right about this time, Raven was returning with arms full of breakfast, mostly bacon, for the two of them. Silas watched as he struggled to open his own cabin door with his knee without dropping anything, and proceeded to stare into the immaculate, empty room dumbfounded.

"Wrong cabin, you drunk asshole." Silas joked, patting him on his shoulder on the way by, but making no offer to help with the other door.
Raven's cheeks went red as he realized the mistake inebriated-Raven had made the night before and he began the process over of closing the door, and moving to open Silas' cabin instead, where Tamiko was waiting for him. Si didn't wait to see how that turned out.

Entering the mess hall, Silas could see that Echo was already sitting at one of the tables with his own steaming mug. He was reading something on a slate, presumably GalNet, though he kept begrudgingly eyeing a package that was sitting on the table in front of him. Silas glanced at it on his way to the coffee pot... it was a long thin gift-wrapped box, labeled 'To: Lamb, From: Raven'.

Curious, he thought, but was already reaching the coffee maker and the thought disappeared, as his quest for life-nectar was now complete.

He poured himself a mug, and went to pour one for Kai, but paused, debating whether or not it was wise to put a splash of the customary bourbon in it given how they'd tied one on the previous night.

At this point, Lambast emerged from the hall where the restrooms were looking refreshed.

Tabling the bourbon debate for a moment, he fetched Lambast a mug, draped a teabag into it and filled it with hot water.

"It's nothing fancy, but its something." he said to her, meeting her halfway across the mess and handing her the mug.

"How generous, Mr. Cousland."

"Obliged, Miss Mercy." Silas said with a playful curtsy before walking back over to the coffee machine, deciding that the correct approach was a modest half-splash of bourbon to split the difference.

"Good morning, Mr. Ramón." Lamb said, sitting down across from him at the table.

"Mornin' Lamb" he replied politely, eyeballing the package suspiciously. This drew Lambs attention to it as well, and she slid it toward her, rotating it so she could read the tag.

"How curious..." she said, beginning to remove the wrapping.
Echo had his face pointed at his tablet, but his eyes were focused sidelong on the unboxing before him.

Inside was a box with a note taped to it. Lamb unfolded the note and began to read it, to herself but out loud as she had sensed the curousity of Echo and Silas.

"Miss Mercy,

I have never been one for feeling trapped or being under the thumb of any kind of authority.
I am sorry that I didn't trust you, and its not a mistake I'll make again.

I know you've been looking for a good spar. I'm available anytime. Figure you'll need this, though.

Your friend,
Raven"

She waited to read the PostScript, just to torture Echo a little.

"P.S.: If Echo is there, tell him to calm his... *ahem* ...breasts,"
It said tits
"...and that I'm not moving in on his territory"

Silas burst out laughing, nearly choking on his coffee, and continued to search the cupboards for bourbon.
Echo, embarrassed, continued reading his GalNet article.

Inside the box was a well-made sparring sword, with the profile and weight of a proper cavalry saber.

"How thoughtful..." said Lamb, as she gave it a few flourishes before setting it back in its box with a rare smile.

At this point, a wiry, sandy-haired deckhand walked into the mess hall. He couldn't have been a day over 19. He walked to the corner and made a 90 degree turn on his heel, making a direct line to Silas, who was just splashing the bourbon into Kai's coffee.

"Commander Cousland!"

"Huh?" Silas stopped and looked at him, a mug of steaming coffee in each hand.

"The Arbiter is space-worthy, sir. They need you down at the hangers to go over the armament loadout."

Silas had already heard this from Captain Ioneer the night before, and the sense of urgency on the deckhand's face was not justified by that information alone. The deckhand stood there in silence waiting for an acknowledgement.

"I'm not an officer, I'm just a vigilante with a thirst for caffeine, blood and bacon. Speak freely, what's on your mind?"

"Uh... well Commander, as we were stripping her we found several of what appear to be some sort of tracking beacons. They are also down in the hangar bay awaiting your inspection. We've put up a Faraday cage around them to prevent any signal escape."

This caught Silas off-guard, and he could see that it had caught Lamb's and Echo's attention as well.

"OK, thank you. I'll head down once I deliver this." he said, raising the mug in his left hand slightly.

The deckhand nodded, but still stood there.

"Uh... dismissed."

The deckhand nodded and turned on his heel to head toward the door.

"Oh one more thing!" Silas called after the deckhand

The deckhand stopped and turned smartly around.

"Commander?"

"Yeah, can you have someone get me a change of sheets?"

"Yes Commander!" the deckhand acknowledged, spinning on his heel for a final time and exiting the mess hall.

Silas made his way back to Kai's cabin. Opening the door, he found she hadn't moved much. Setting his coffee on the nightstand, he sat down on the corner of the bed, lifted the corner of the blankets and wafted the smell of bourbonated coffee into the coccoon she had created for herself.

She immediately bent slowly at the waist and rose like a zombie, taking the coffee from Silas and gripping it with both hands, sniffing the steam before taking a sip.

"You skimped me." Kai said.

"You'll thank me." replied Silas.

"...thank you." said Kaisla after a pause.

"Hey Kai, take your time, but I have to head down to the hangars. I'll explain when you've had time to wake up, nothing to panic about."
She nods as he kisses her forehead and stands, grabbing his mug and heading out of the room.

He stops on his way past his cabin and knocks on the door.

"Yeah?" comes Raven's muffled voice from inside.

"You decent?"

"Uh..."

"Never mind, dude, can you just hand me my jacket?" Silas says, shaking his head.
Raven cracks the door and hands Silas his jacket.

"Thanks. I've put in an order for new sheets, and they have orders to evict you... so you have until the cleaning staff arrives to vacate my damned cabin."

"Sorry..." Raven said closing the door.

-----

On the walk down to the hangars, Silas' head was racing, trying to figure out when the Arbiter would possibly have been left alone long enough to load it up with tracking beacons. One of them had been on the ship almost the entire time since Conduit, and it had only docked at one other station when they went to visit Ivan.

The only time it had been left alone was when they vacated it in the makeshift scrapyard after the 'goid attack.

No... it couldn't be. But the more he thought about it... it had to be. That was the only opportunity they would have had, and the crew's makeshift repairs were certainly not invasive enough to have found something that someone had wanted well-hidden.

Whoever they belonged to was hotter on their trail than Silas was comfortable with. They had to get out to that Corvette...
But perhaps he was jumping to conclusions. One thing at a time, he hadn't even seen the things yet.

He slowed his gait just long enough to take a swig of his coffee, which was cooling rapidly in the colder air of the ship's walkway, and continued on to the hangar bay, eager to see the freshly repaired Arbiter.

Last edit: 18 Nov 2019, 10:00pm
Maul Montresor
19 Nov 2019, 5:13am
Khelan"OK mate, let's dae this."



Maul nods at Khelan.

"Alright, when you get to the vehicle, you'll find a bag with my weapons in it, use them if you need to. Also, if you're desperate for a change of clothes you can wear my spare outfit, it's in the bag as well. Just try not to mind the stench."

He smiles and stands up.

"And trust me, we'll get these fuckers back for this. The riot is just the start of things to come."

He knocks on the door and a guard opens it to let him out. Maul turns back to face Khelan but speaks to the guard.

"Get him back to the cell and get these chains off him. By the time I'm done with this place, all of you despicable dickheads will be out of a job. "Fell down some stairs", my ass. I mean just look at him!"

The guard smirks and gestures for Maul to go on down the hallway towards the lobby.

Maul nods at Khelan and walks down the hallway.

He enters the lobby and heads for the exit but stops in his tracks.

"Ah shit!" He says turning back to the officer behind the desk.

"I forgot my damn briefcase in the room back there. I'll just grab it real quick."

The officer jumps up to his feet and stops Maul. Maul could see that the two guards were already escorting Khelan back to his cell.

"Now hold on, Mr. Cayne. I don't recall you coming in here with a briefcase."

Maul stood staring at the officer. Of course he didn't have a briefcase, but this was the same dipshit that actually bought the whole lawyer spiel.

"Uh...Yes I did, officer. Come with me, I'll show you."

The officer put his hands on Maul's chest and stopped him from taking another step.

"Listen, I don't know what you're up to but I know you didn't have one when you walked in here."

Maul sighed and shrugged.

"Okay then, go check for yourself. I'll just sit here and wait. But so help me, if I'm late for my next appointment..."

The officer looked down the hallway and back to Maul.

"Fine. Stay here."

Maul waited for the officer to start down the hallway and ran around the desk. He pulled the small USB from his sock and plugged it into the computer. Thankfully, "Officer Einstein" left himself logged in. Maul quickly installed the backdoor and pulled the USB out and ran back around the desk just as the officer stepped back out of the room and starting walking back.

"I told you, Mr. Cayne. There was no briefcase in sight." The officer said with a smug grin.

Maul shrugged.

"Huh, must have left it in the car. Sorry about all of that."

The officer waved Maul off as he stepped outside to rejoin the rest of the Black Dragon Society members. He pulls his slate out and types up a message to Chikao to let him know that the backdoor was in place, and turns to the gang.

"Okay boys, remember. Stop anyone who tries to escape and when Khelan comes out, two of you escort him to the vehicle and tell the driver to take him to the Houdini room."

Half of the gang nods, while the other half verbally confirm they understand.

Maul turns back to the building with a smile.

"Alright boys, let's do this thing." He says as he sends the message to Chikao.

Everything was quiet for about a minute.

Suddenly, the brief silence was shattered by a deafening alarm coming from inside the security station. It wasn't long till a few windows were broken, allowing the shouting from inside to spill out onto the street.

"C'mon Khelan...C'mon..." Maul muttered to himself as he stood outside watching the chaos ensue inside the security station.
Khelan
21 Nov 2019, 12:12am
The two guards who were leading Khelan back to his cell had just finished removing his shackles when the security stations lights flicker for a brief moment before all the cell doors open by themselves.

"What the fuck?" Exclaims the guard with the shock stick as the doors swing open and a deafening alarm starts blaring .

Khelan smiles to himself and moves his tongue to the rear of his mouth, pushing forward on the rear of one of his back teeth causing it to move very slightly triggering his implants. Various endorphins and chemicals get instantly released into his system dulling the pain from the previous beatings and speeding up his reflexes.

"Showtime" he says to himself as he spins around on the spot driving his fist into the stomach of the first guard followed by a powerful knee between the guards legs causing him to buckle instantly and fall to the floor in a crumpled heap.

The guard with the shock stick swings for the space Khelan had occupied a heartbeat ago only to find he'd already ducked under the swing and was bringing his fist up to connect with the guards jaw.

The guards head snaps back with the blow and he collapses to the floor beside his colleague.

"Ya fuckin pricks" snarls Khelan as he heads out of the detention area moving as quickly as he can towards the exit.

"Hold it right there" shouts a voice and Khelan turns to see the chief pointing a gun at him. He notices the trembling of the barrel and smiles a thin humourless smile.

"Safety's oan" says Khelan and the chief quickly glances at the weapon giving Khelan just enough time to close the gap between them. He slaps the chiefs gun hand as hard as he can causing the pistol to fly out the other man's grasp and smash a nearby window.

Khelan leans in close to the chiefs face and makes a loud barking noise at him causing the chief to flinch backwards slightly.

Khelan spins on his feet and bolts towards the exit from the security centre. He bursts out into the street and runs as fast as he can around the corner and into the waiting van.

The driver of the van hits the accelerator and the shoots forward and into the passing traffic. In the back Khelan grabs the first aid kit, tears it open and slaps a few derm patches onto his neck before deactivating his implants.

Khelan sighs in relief as the powerful painkillers kick in and he sits on the floor of the van as it winds its way through the station streets heading for the warehouse district.

"That's wan Ah owe ye Goolie" says Khelan to himself.

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