Rae Overholt: New. Figured I'd hide my back in style.
Shen: Looks good Cap'n... I reckon Paquin has something for all sorts.
Rae Overholt nods.
Xiao Li Marshall: Nice. Didja mug an Independent Vet or somethin'?
Rae Overholt: Well, he was giving me the eye.
Shen Jiutai who is an Independant Vet frowns at Xiao Li's remark.
Xiao Li Marshall: Anybody seen Rol? He on board yet?
Shen Jiutai glances at the door to shuttle #2, "Is that companion gonna show up? Ain't we coming up on that revdezvous?"
Rae Overholt: Haven't seen 'im. How about Li? gabe?
Shen: I think Gabe is crashed out in the longue.
Xiao Li Marshall: Gorrammit. Might as well install a revolvin' door, way people keep comin' and goin'...
Rae Overholt sighs, "Long as Gabe stay's I'm ok with it."
Shen: Can't hardly blame them. Heck everything Paquin has to offer... Did he really do Mime on the street to eat?
Rae Overholt: Kinda what he says.
Xiao Li Marshall: Kinda hard to keep the ship in the air without a mechanic, Cap'n.
Rae Overholt: I agree Xiao li. Might have to learn it myself.
Shen: They say Fireflys ain't that hard to keep up... but it's not like I'd know.
Xiao Li Marshall: I c'n do minor fixes but it ain't really my thing...
Rae Overholt: Well. Let's hope they arent.
Shen: The way Kevin goes on about everything he can do in that shop of his... you'd think we didn't need anyone else.
Xiao Li Marshall: Except that Kevin's always disappearin' too.
Shen Jiutai nods.
Rae Overholt: Maybe we should get one of them tracker implants and put it on them.
Shen: Well, I think I got enough of the rations taken care of for a while, I should be able to come up with a suprise meal or two ya might like.
Rae Overholt: That sounds shiny Shen.
Xiao Li Marshall nods. She tilts her head as she hears clanking and cursing from the general direction of the engine room. "Ah, sound's like Rol's on board after all." She clomps up the stairs and down the hall to the cockpit.
Shen Jiutai checks over the three mystery crates in their hidy-hole before closing it up. She shouts up the gangway, "Everything looks secure here Cap'n!"
Xiao Li Marshall starts flipping switches and grabs the comm. "This is your pilot speaking. I'd suggest everybody buckle up right about now."
Rae Overholt goes to get secure herself "Good Job Shen, buckle up"
Shen Jiutai heads over to her bunk and sits on it, unconcerned, reading a new magazine.
Xiao Li Marshall: Taking off in 3...2...1...
Rae Overholt stares up at the ceiling, wondering what surprises they'll get next.
Xiao Li Marshall pulls back on the throttle and the Raven takes to the sky
Shen Jiutai feels the lurch as the ship's Gravity fights with the moon's gravity, rolling her belly around a bit.
Xiao Li Marshall: Breaking atmo in ten seconds...
Rae Overholt grips the handles of her seat, nails digging in to release some of her pent up anxiety.
Xiao Li Marshall: And we are officially in the black. The pilot has not turned of the 'fasten seat belt' sign, 'cuz we ain't got one.
Shen Jiutai breathes a sigh of relief as Raven soars out into the black, somehow feeling more at home here than on any particular world. She drops the Magazine-sheet and heads up to the Galley. Punching the intercom she asks, "How far out are we Xiao Li?"
Xiao Li Marshall: 'bout five minutes from the renezvous point, give or take.
Shen: "That fast? Hunh, no time to cook anything. for some reason I always get hungry after breakin' atmo." She decides to watch the show and wanders up to the cockpit to gawk out the windows.
Xiao Li Marshall: I work fast.
Shen: I'll say you do. We gettin' there early?
Xiao Li Marshall: I make it a point to show up early. Easier to scout for trouble that way.
Shen: Good plan.
Xiao Li Marshall: Nothin' out of the ordinary on the long-range scanners yet...
Shen Jiutai shifts uncomfortably, "I mean, that Cap'n that gave us this job seemed honset enough, but what do we know 'bout 'im? Did you get a chance to give him the once over?"
Xiao Li Marshall: Seems legit as far as I c'n tell. Either he's who he says he is or he's got a damn good forger workin' for him.
Rae Overholt: And any idea why someone would want us recorded?
Shen Jiutai shakes her head, "Place like that who knows? Prolly lookin' for some kind of advantage over the competition."
Rae Overholt: Shouldn't have gotten much though.
Xiao Li Marshall: I can think of a few reasons. Most of which are marked on our bodes in one way or 'nother.
Shen: Let's hope we're still fairly unknown... not many have seen my Tat.
Rae Overholt: Me either. How the hell did we end up in this anyway?
Shen: Don't look at me, you were the one that took Locum's offer.
Xiao Li Marshall: You'll have to be more specific. We're 'in' a lot of different things right now.
Shen: Good point.
Rae Overholt: Half of us slaves on the run, indebted to a serial killer, nowhere safe in the verse for us?
Shen: There's alot of 'Verse out there...
Rae Overholt: Yeah, all crawling with alliance and dragons.
Shen: yeah..
Raven has arrived at the rendezvous point, and has been waiting for around an hour.
Xiao Li Marshall starts her seventeenth game of Tetris.
Shen Jiutai paces back and forth, bored with the long wait, "Any sign of them yet Cap'n?"
Rae Overholt flips through one of Gabe's books, not really getting why he likes them. "Not Yet Shen. What ya reckon's the holdup? Anything showing on our panels?"
Xiao Li Marshall: "Not so much as a blip. ...wait..." She pauses the Tetris game and leans over toward the comm speakers. "We got a set of headphones someplace?"
Rae Overholt reaches over on the cabinet, flips open a pannel and pulls out a set, tossing it to Xiao Li.
Xiao Li Marshall: "Xiexie." She slips them over her ears and plugs them into the audio-out jack. She frowns. "That can't be good."
Rae Overholt waits, watching her closely.
Xiao Li Marshall: I'm picking up someone else's comm chatter. Real faint, but it sounds like somebody's in trouble.
Rae Overholt 's eyebrows go up. "What? What are they saying? how far out is it?"
Xiao Li Marshall: I can't tell. Any of it. Somebody sounds mad and the other's tryin' to stall, but I can't make out acutal words.
Rae Overholt: Think it could be our party?
Shen Jiutai paces, "Cap'n, this don't sound good, for once I wish Kevin still had those blasted thermopics."
Rae Overholt nods to Shen, "Everyone arm up."
Shen Jiutai nods and checks her magazine.
Xiao Li Marshall looks up abruptly as one of the display screens starts flashing. "We got incoming. Ophelia's just come into sensor range."
Rae Overholt: "The voices you're hearing getting stronger as she comes?"
Xiao Li Marshall: Yeah. Still can't make anything out yet... you want me to pop 'em a wave, make sure everything's shiny?
Rae Overholt: yeah, that'd be good.
Xiao Li Marshall nods, pulls one side of the earphones off so she can hear both comms at once, then punches up the code to open a channel to the incoming ship. "This is Firefly class transport Raven calling the Ophelia... do you read me?...I say again, do you read me, Ophelia?"
Shen Jiutai paces further, "Cap'n I know Kevin would want us to do someting barely within our abilities, but don't ya think it might be better if we laid low to see what's going on?"
Rae Overholt: Fine, but I still want us all armed.
Xiao Li Marshall picks up the comm one more time. "This is the Raven calling the Ophelia. Is anyone there? ...Cap'n? Now the radio chatter's gone dead. This don't smell right."
Rae Overholt curses in chinese, "Well reckon we'd better be prepared for anything."
Shen: Cap'n if this guy is in trouble, perhaps we should go quiet, I mean it ain't like we got ship to ship guns anymore.
Rae Overholt: Let's go dark and watch, see what happens. Fool them if we can then.
Xiao Li Marshall nods and starts powering down the ship's systems. "ROL! We're goin' black!"
<><>Ophelia is now within visual range, she appears to be heading in at high speed, almost as if she isn't intending to stop.<><>
Rae Overholt waits, silent and watching.
Xiao Li Marshall 's jaw clenches.
Shen: She don't look like she's slowing down, is she Xiao LI?
Rae Overholt frowns, puzzled and turns to look for anything chasing the ship, "She being followed? We sure that's her?"
Xiao Li Marshall: Not slowin' down... nothing else on radar... yet.
Xiao Li Marshall: Definitely Ophelia.
Rae Overholt: Did we get her close enough to get any life readings on her before we shut down?
Xiao Li Marshall shakes her head. "That's a neg."
<><>A second ship, black and armed with two rather intimidating looking cannon, appears behind Ophelia, there is no indication of a pulse beacon signal, Raven's active scanners have automatically picked it up and displayed it's speed and heading. It is closing on Ophelia.<><>
Xiao Li Marshall: ...wo de tian a...
Rae Overholt shakes her head and grits her teeth, "Hold tight people. We'll see if there are survivors after its over. We don't have the power to stop this."
<><>As soon as the second ship has closed to within 500 meters, bursts of light appear from the guns and visible tracer rounds fly towards Ophelia, which starts to burn and leak gas into the void.<><>
Xiao Li Marshall 's jaw clenches even tighter.
Rae Overholt: Maybe they'll leave her now.
<><>A few seconds later, there is an explosion, and Ophelia disintegrates before your eyes.<><>
Rae Overholt curses again and covers her eyes a moment. "Hope they didn't see us."
Xiao Li Marshall: Well, fuck. So much for that job.
<><>The predator veers to avoid the wreckage of it's prey, narrowly missing the parts of what was once a well loved and well-tended freighter.<><>
Rae Overholt shakes her head, still watching closely incase they've been discovered.
<><>As the wreckage continues to disperse, the gunboat changes course, and speeds off in the direction of the planet before leaving sensor and visual range.<><>
Rae Overholt: No markings on that other ship? Fit any discriptions you've all heard? Anything?
Xiao Li Marshall: Don't look likely, Cap'n...
<><>From the direction of the wreckage of the Ophelia, a distress beacon is detected, however soon after the signal goes quiet.<><>
Xiao Li Marshall: There was a distress beacon but it's gone dead. Could be just out of power...
Rae Overholt sighs.
Xiao Li Marshall: Do we head in to look for survivors?
Rae Overholt: Let's try. Won't hurt.
<><> As Raven approaches, it becomes clear that there is an escape pod transmitting a weak signal.<><>
Rae Overholt smacks her hand on the control panel, "Yes! Let's get it."
<><>(((Standard rescue protocol allows the rescuing vessel to automatically guide the Escape-Pod in for capture, once they are in close proximity. This was established during the migration from Earth That Was when it was discovered that not all ship-wreck survivors who made it into Escape-Pods could be relied upon to pilot themselves successfully to the variety of different ships that might be giving aid. One unfortunate incident involved a rather enthusiastic teenager who attempted to dock at an un-recommended velocity with an Ark's main reactor core, fortunately the core breach was contained, and the young pilot was the only casualty.)))<><>
Xiao Li Marshall: I need someone down in the cargo bay, please...
Shen Jiutai runs to the gangway, "I'm on it!"
Rae Overholt jumps up and runs down the corridor to the gangplank and cargo area, eager to spot what they have as well.
Xiao Li Marshall grabs the yoke in one hand and the comm in the other. "Okay, Shen, we're doin' a Barn Swallow into the airlock. When I say 'go,' open the outer door, dong ma?"
Shen Jiutai comms back, "Gotchya!"
<><>As Raven approaches, offering sanctuary from the darkness of the black, the wayward pod lingers in space, providing a simple target for Xiao Li to capture.<><>
Xiao Li Marshall steers the ship to within meters of the approaching pod.
Xiao Li Marshall: GO!
Shen Jiutai opens the outer cargo door.
Xiao Li Marshall pushes the ship forward, neatly catching the escape pod in the airlock. There's a loud THUD as it hits the inner door. "Okay, close 'er up."
<><>As the Escape Pod thuds against the inner door of the airlock, Shen hits the red button and the outer door closes. The pressurization procedure is started, and pod drops to the deck as the gravity comes on.<><>
Rae Overholt dashes down the plank to the cargo floor and over to the inner doors. Peering through she looks to see if there's any way to tell what's inside the pod.
Shen Jiutai waits for the airlock to pressurize before opening the inner door..
Xiao Li Marshall locks the console and gallops down the stairs to the cargo bay
<><> A loud alarm sounds.<><>
Rae Overholt: What tha?? Serve me right if that ends up exploding in my cargo bay.
Shen Jiutai walks over to the console and switches off the alarm, looking at Xiao Li.
Xiao Li Marshall freezes in place on the catwalk. "What??"
Rae Overholt breaths a sign of relief and goes for the escape pod, knocking on it she waits to see what happens. She draws her gun, just in case.
<><> A hollow thud comes from inside. <><>
Rae Overholt: Guess they're alive. Let's open 'er up.
Shen Jiutai starts the pressure equalization sequence on the escape pod.
<><> A proximity alarm starts sounding. <><>
Rae Overholt: Xiao Li?
Xiao Li Marshall looks up. "Shit." She gallops up the stairs again.
Rae Overholt nods.
Shen: What the hell is that?
Rae Overholt: With our luck? Terrifying space monkeys. Followed by reavers. No, REAVER space monkeys!
Shen Jiutai shudders at the mention of Reavers. "Cap'n Reavers ain't funny... I lost what was the closest thing I had to a family to 'um."
Xiao Li Marshall 's face falls when she sees the radar screen.
Rae Overholt: Yeah I know. It wasn't ajoke.
Xiao Li Marshall pulls down the comm. "We got the ship that just shot the Ophelia on our tail..."
Rae Overholt: Can we lose them?
Xiao Li Marshall: We can outrun 'em if we start moving now. Everybody brace yourselves!
Rae Overholt braces against the wall of the cargo bay, clinging for dear life.
Xiao Li Marshall is already powering up, and pulls back on the throttle as she finishes speaking.
<><>Not long after Raven has been traveling at hard burn, the pursuing ship is no longer closing distance, but begins to fall behind. Apparently it had expended it's short-duration burst of speed chasing Ophelia.<><>
Xiao Li Marshall: They're fallin' back... gonna keep up the hard burn for another ninety seconds an' we should be home free!
Rae Overholt nods, "Sounds like a plan" :: she grits out through her clenched teeth::
Shen Jiutai stands clutching the Catwalk railing, breathing heavily.
Xiao Li Marshall: "Dropping out of hard burn in 3...2...1..." She eases off and the ship's thrust returns to something more reasonable.
Rae Overholt is thrown forward and lands with a thunk, sliding on the cargo floor. Standing up she dusts her self off and heads back to the airlock. "Guess we should get our guest out now? We sure we lost them?"
Xiao Li Marshall: Got a whole lot o' nothin' on the long-range scanners. Think I'd better stay up here just in case, though.
Rae Overholt: I agree.
Shen Jiutai sighs with relief and goes to help Rae with the escape pod.
<><>Upon opening the pod, a young girl, of about 16 is discovered inside. Apparently of Asian decent, she is unconscious, but appears unharmed.<><>
Rae Overholt: "Damn, reckon she lost her family on that ship?" She leans in and taps her, trying to wake her.
Shen: Dunno, perhaps she was the passenger we were supposed to pick up afterall, I mean our luck has to change eventually...
Rae Overholt: Let's hope so.
Sean M. carries the unconsious visiter to the Med bay.
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