The Ganoltir Project Forum

Cass stands quietly in the elevator as they descend, the change in the spin giving him minor discomfort. He peers around the lobby as they arrive, feeling quite out of place. Judging by how much cred it must have taken to staff and decorate this place, I'm hoping they got work for us. We could really use it.

He takes a seat with a nod of acknowledgement, pulling out his compad as well. If he has access to the infranet, he will attempt to do some digging. They gotta have something useful here.

Mechanics

Does the Asteria Corp have a page on the net? And if so, is he able to find any sort of staff breakdown or bio pages about who Miss Holland might be?

The popstar narrows his eyes at Lagunov, somewhat suspicious of his intent, but seeing no other option than to agree anyways. We may as well see what he wants, at least... He stays somewhat silent as they walk, his hands fidgeting nervously in his hoodie's front pocket. He eyes the elevator's control, noticing their destination. Corporate offices? What does the Asteria Corporation want with us? As the elevator comes to a stop and he steps into the corporate lobby, his eyes go wide, in astonishment and amazement. Damn, this looks as nice as someplace in Strocho. Guess this isn't just some backwater space pirate dump. Seeing their escort simply pull out his compad, Hikaru sighs and wonders if this is a common occurrence with this Miss Holland. With time to kill, he looks towards the holographic projection of the business news channel, wondering what is being broadcast.

Eridas follows along close behind his new companions, each step seemingly causing him to shrink further and further as he hunches down, almost as if he was trying to hide himself from the world. He glances up slightly, watching as Lagunov leads them into an office. He looks over at the sofa that is indicated and he carefully steps over to it and takes a seat, hugging tight to an arm of the sofa if he can manage, very carefully tracing patterns into it as he tries to calm himself down.

A few quiet minutes pass before the receptionist speaks up again.

"She is ready to see you now, if you'll just follow-" he begins, starting to stand up.

"No need. I know the way," Lagunov interrupts, quickly jumping up and making his way to the doors behind the desk, which he holds open, gesturing for the rest of you to follow. The receptionist meekly sits back down.

The security officer leads you along a glass lined corridor, flanked by office areas filled with employees working at holographic terminals. At the end of the corridor  you turn to the left down another short corridor before reaching a door at the end of it. A name plate next to the door reads; Nereida Holland - CEO.

Lagunov opens the door and walks inside without hesitation. Stepping inside you find yourself inside a large office, decorated much like the lobby of the Asteria offices. A woman with short black hair wearing an elegant dark dress, more high society than business, stands at a large desk in the centre of the room, interacting with a holographic display. The whole wall behind her is either a screen or a window, it is hard to tell which, which shows a wide view of the stars slowly passing by as the station rotates. 

"Please, take a seat," she says as you enter, gesturing to a long board room table to one side of the office, without looking away from her work. Laid out on the table is a spread of sushi and sandwiches with accompanied by a variety of drinks. Lagnunov walks over to the table and grabs himself a sandwich before perching himself on a long sideboard cabinet which runs along the wall next to the table. A few moments later Nereida swipes down with one hand and the holographic display disappears. 

She makes her way to the table and takes a seat at the head, sitting down and pouring herself a glass of water. "Now, Darlings, to business. This will have to be fairly quick, some of the board are here from Strocho and we're entertaining them in a couple of hours," she says, gesturing at her dress as if to explain.

"So first things first, which of you can explain who are you and why you've come to my station in a stolen gunship? Hmm?" she asks, raising an eyebrow as she leans back slightly in her chair and takes a sip of water, looking expectantly you.

"The Escrosians sent us a message from Idarete a few hours ago telling us to tell them if a ship called the Furious Midnight showed up here. We thought it was a bit strange when, looking through our visual scopes, a ship called the Makkuro happened to have Furious Midnight painted on the side," Lagunov says, having just finished swallowing a bite of his sandwich, the half eaten remains of which he gestates with to articulate his point. "Luckily for you, they barely control Idarete let alone the whole system and not our station, as much as they'd like to."

"My station," Nereida says, correcting her security chief, still looking at the four of you expectantly.

Hikaru

Focusing on the news cast in the lobby, you find it appears to mostly be talking about commodities' prices, with a particular focus on lithium which is apparently at a high.

Cass warily takes a seat, but not before grabbing a sandwich and a drink. Been a long time since I could afford sushi, but from a mining rig on an asteroid? Don't know what they got in there.

He chews and listens, not altogether surprised that the Diktat had decided to phone ahead. Probably an embarrassing fucking call, huh? Hey, somebody stole our ship, can you keep an eye out? The engineer winces, however, knowing that this Holland now has a myriad of opportunities afoot.

She could ransom us back. Or let us go, but make us submit to a few deeds, like Bao. No way a cutthroat CEO gets out of this without some sort of payout for her. Cass decides to stay quiet for now, hoping Hikaru can talk his way into Holland's graces.

Eridas quietly follows the rest of them into the room, his eyes going wide when he sees the spread of food. He hesitates, waiting for Cass to grab a sandwich before grabbing one of his own. He would gently take a seat and start to chew on it, glancing over at Hikaru then down at the ground, staring intently at whatever he can find on the floor.

Commodities trading... How exciting, the popstar thinks, trying to stave off his boredom. His saving grace arrives, however, when the receptionist breaks the silence. Following through the corridor, his eyes go a bit wide as he sees the name plate suggest they're to meet the CEO of this corporation. Oh fuck. Time to put on a show. He listens to her speak, nonchalantly snagging a piece of sushi from the table after he sees Lagunov and Cass help themselves. Sushi... How I missed you. Those Strocho execs can get it whenever they want. I've earned this. He nearly chokes on a piece, however, as the woman very plainly calls them out. Well, it's good to know these people can read, at least. It'd be kinda sad otherwise.

He finishes gulping down the sushi, mind racing as to the best way to go about explaining things. What do we really have to lose? "I'll tell you, but I'm not sure you'll believe me. As for who I am..." He extends a hand to Miss Holland, flashing a smile. "Hikaru Tsukiakari. A pleasure to make your acquaintance. And my friends here, of course." He gestures to his companions, still maintaining a show biz grin. "As for the ship, well. I'll be honest. Your kind hospitality has earned that much, at least." He pauses, choosing his words carefully. "We stole the ship to escape, to escape oppression and danger. As for why we came to your station? To lay low, to find work, to paint that egregious Furious Midnight off the side of a stolen ship."

He shrugs, taking a seat at the table near Miss Holland. "But if you help us, we'll of course be obligated to help you." He raises both his eyebrows, giving the CEO an innocent smile, akin to a child who knows they're in trouble and is hoping to get out of it.

"Works for me," Tess responds with a shrug as they are led into the elevator. We landed, our ship is intact, and we're not in cuffs or bleeding out. Definitely better than some of the alternatives. She follows after their escort, looking up and down to try to gauge his competency as a security officer, but is mostly uninterested in him and quickly focuses on their surroundings instead.

Inside the elevator, she watches with curiosity as they move further from the center of the asteroid, feeling the nausea in her stomach beginning to subside as the rotation becomes less and less noticeable. So we're going to a corporate office, lovely. I guess some rich guy wants to talk to us. Flex his money and his influence on the newcomers and try to bribe us - or blackmail us? - into helping him with something. Just another Bao, it seems. 

Helping her, then, she notes, as they reach the ornate lobby and their escort mentions the name of the woman who'd summoned them. Probably some stick-in-the-mud old woman who has a bone to pick for some reason. Or maybe she'll be like a nice granny, she thinks, chuckling lightly to her self. Either way, it's weird to be in an office lobby for anything other than a job. Never been to a building like this before and didn't have sex in it. Guess there is a first time for everything, she thinks, once more chuckling to herself.

When the receptionist allows them to move to their final destination, Tess stands and whispers 'finally' under her breath. Offices and more offices, of course. Wouldn't be a giant space corporation without an endless stream of arrogant executives and mindless corporate drones to do their bidding. Whatever is going on behind those doors, I'm sure it is mind-numbingly boring.

Stepping into the office of their hostess, Tess is quite surprised - though pleasantly so - to find that their interrogator is much younger, and dressed quite attractively. She steps in and makes her way first towards the food, taking a plate with one sandwich and a few pieces of sushi. She grabs a glass and pours herself some of a red liquid which she hopes to be wine, before taking a seat at the table. She glances towards Nereida as she does, giving her a wink and a slight smile, before taking one of the pieces of sushi into her mouth. Maybe her guests will need some additional, expensive, entertainment this evening. Or maybe she might instead. After her bite she turns to face Hikaru, assuming he will want to speak first.

Miss Holland raises an eyebrow in surprise as Hikaru reveals who he is, clearly recognising his name, but she takes his hand in a brief handshake and stays quiet and listens as he explains your situation. As the popstar turns the conversation to helping each other she smiles,.

"Straight to it then - I like that," she says looking over the four of you for a moment with a slight smile. "I do have a proposal for you, which, as you eluded to, can be mutually beneficial."

"As you may have noticed their is a bit of a situation brewing here with the strike. The dock workers are emboldened by what happened with the Prancaris gas mine. Things are in hand on that front though. None the less, this station has a delicate eco-system and the strike is upsetting things. We have a loose understanding with the..." she says, pausing as she chooses her words carefully. 

"Let's say - unsavoury elements, that call the station home. We leave them alone for the most part as long as they allow our operations to go ahead unhindered. A couple of days ago we lost contact with one of our mining outposts and coincidentally two ships and their crews haven't been seen on the station for a few days," Nereida explains.

"Our corporate ships are either undergoing repairs or are needed to defend the station so I need a ship - your ship - to take back my outpost. You all clearly possess the necessary skills if you were able to steal a gunship from the Diktat."

"The two ships are the Blackstar and the Kyo Maru. Both up gunned free merchants. You shouldn't have any trouble dealing with them," Lagunov says jumping into the conversation. "The Blackstar, is captained by Yasmin Malik. She's generally pretty reasonable so you could even negotiate with her. Damien Hartjen commands the Kyo Maru. I wouldn't expect much from him. The man's a psychopath. In fact, I'd prefer it if you make sure I don't have to deal with him and his crew on this station ever again," the security officer says.

"Regardless, you'd be free to deal with them as you see fit. I just want that outpost back," Nereida says looking mostly at Hikaru. 

"In return you would have my gratitude of course, but also 50,000 credits. We can also help with that egregious paint job and any repairs you may need. Oh and also my assurances that the Diktat won't learn of the location of their missing ship from us," she says sitting back slightly having said her piece, awaiting your response.

Tess

Following your wink, the Asteria CEO maintains eye contact with you for a moment, her mouth curling into a slight smile before she turns to look as Hikaru as he begins speaking.

Cass listens closely, his eyebrows raising at the mention of fifty-thousand credits. And a clean slate — maybe an ally, too. But he knows a deal like that doesn't come without its challenge, or its fine print. We wouldn't be making many friends with the workforce, either, helping out their employers during a strike. But tough shit, I'll gladly be a scab and lick the boot if it gets us ahead. That's how it is out here.

"The Blackstar and the Kyo Maru," he repeats. "What's your history been with them so far?"

If we're going toe to toe with these pirates, I'd rather know everything I can.

"Nothing of note with the Blackstar," Lagunov replies to Cass. "Most of the crew have the usual rap sheet though, they're no saints. It looks like they've have a run of bad luck recently which would explain them joining the Kyo Maru for this. Hartjen is probably the brains of this operation - or the balls more accurately. It wasn't the smartest move but it definitely is a ballsy one," he continues, smiling slightly at his own joke.

"As for the Kyo Maru, her crew does have a reputation. We try to stay out of the politics between the crews but they've caused trouble for my men more than a few times. Last time Hartjen put one of them in the hospital for 8 months, regrowing a new spine. At least I think it was them, I can't prove it unfortunately," the security chief continues, his jokey attitude disappearing as he turns to the Kyo Maru.

 

Relief washes over Hikaru as their hosts quickly become more agreeable, the worry of being thrown back to the Diktat readily fading as he listens to the woman's proposal. Damn, if we can get on their good side? These are some strong friends to have. He raises an eyebrow, listening carefully as the situation is explained, feeling somewhat nervous, and yet taking comfort and confidence in Nereida's apparent praise of their skills. I guess we did get away with stealing a ship, didn't we? Wouldn't have made it this far if we were morons.

His eyes occasionally wander around the boardroom, caught up in thought over their predicament and the challenge lying ahead of them. He nods to her as he's given free reign to handle their new quarry in whatever manner as they see fit, trying to maintain his composure as she explains their reward. Goddamn, that'll go a long way out here. He sits up in his chair, momentarily looking back at his companions before back to Nereida. "Sounds like the Blackstar is the weakest link then. If we can get Malik to see reason, their whole operation might come crumbling down." He looks again to his companions, wondering how on board they are, but recognizing they don't have much of a choice at this point. "Not to say this'll be easy, but I think it's something we can handle."

"Seems like a fair deal," Cass admits, noticing Hikaru look his way. "But there's one more thing, Cap."

Turning to Miss Holland, he continues. "Our transponder needs new codes — as I'm sure you've noticed. We patched it ourselves to get past Diktat airspace, but I'd ask this be part of the deal. Call it repairs, if that works."

He purses his lips nervously. Trying to bargain with somebody of this calibre's not gonna work too well, but this helps them as much as it helps us. Nobody wants to be associated with a stolen Diktat gunship.

"Excellent news," Miss Holland says as Hikaru accepts the job. She looks to Cass as he negotiates further - pausing to think for a moment she gently runs two fingers across her mouth as she considers his proposal.  "I think that can be arranged. I'm glad we could come to an agreement," she says with a smile. 

"Well Lagunov can show you out. I look forward to our next meeting," she says, glancing at Tess. She stands as does Lagunov ready to escort you out of the offices.

"Oh! Before you depart," Nereida suddenly says. "You should pay a visit to a bar on the lower levels called Element. You'll find an an Anthean Noble there who owes me a favour. He's a psychic so he should be useful in achieving your goal," she explains.

Eridas listens, his mouth going dry as Hikaru plays for the hail mary and drops their entire situation on their new captors. His eyes go wide as it seems to work, going from feeling like they were in massive trouble again to suddenly having employment. Fifty thousand? I... I can't have heard that right. Fif... His thoughts trail off as he hears Cass and Hikaru continue the negotiations. He grabs another sandwich and some water, hoping to lubricate his throat before he tries to speak again. He looks at the others as things seem to finish, stuffing the last couple bites in his mouth rather rushed, and finishes the drink. "So I suppose that's... that, then, yes?" He asks, standing slowly. "Down to the Element, I guess." He says with an anxious smile at his friends.

"It is," Cass says to the pilot. Not sure how I feel trying our luck against some pirates, but the Makkuro pulls her own weight.

"A psychic?" Cass repeats, skeptical as they leave the CEO's office with Lagunov. "Haven't been around one of those headcases in a while. This should be interesting."

He turns to the security commander, eyeing him for a moment. "Do you know anything about this 'noble'?"

Blackmailing us into helping with something it is, Tess thinks, as their hosts announce proposition them to hunt down and deal with their pirate problem. At least she is nice to look at, much better than some old rich executive. And she clearly thinks the same about me, so maybe I can get a nice souvenir out of her bedroom after this is all over. She chuckles lightly to herself, giving the woman another wink as they stand to leave.

As they are stopped, and the noble is mentioned, she raises an eyebrow and then turns to face Lagunov with Cass' inquiry. "Is he actually psychic? Or one of the dozens of frauds that simply claim to be? I can't say I'd trust a noble to tell the truth about such things, but have you actually seen him use his abilities?"

"Not a lot. His name is Maximillian Redgar III. I think he's on the run or in hiding for some reason, but I haven't been involved in his dealings with Miss Holland so I can't comment there. He is the real deal though," Lagunov replies as he leads you back down the corridor towards the reception area. "Here," he says, pulling out his compad when you reach the reception desk. He taps a couple of times before swiping towards you. "Directions to Element. The station isn't too big but some of the levels can be a bit of a maze for newcomers," he explains. "I'll have the coordinates of the outpost sent to your ship as well. Good luck," he explains, before giving you a goodbye nod and leaving you by the elevators, disappearing back into the Asteria Corporation's offices.

 

Cass peers down at the station layout on his compad, raising an eyebrow at some of the more labyrinthine sectors. "Yeah, no kidding." Flicking through, it takes him a moment before he realizes the security officer is already halfway gone.

"So this guy's the Third," the engineer echoes, turning toward his companions. "I'm sure he'll be a real pleasure." He sighs. "Holland or her man neglected to mention how this wavebrain's supposed to even help us. Here's hoping he can work a shipdesk."

All the psychics I know from the League are either sociopaths, pedophiles, or both. Time to roll the dice and see if this system's any different.

Why most nobles always reuse the same name over and over? It's boring and uncreative. "Let's hope he is the one good psychic among the droves of rapists and con artists," Tess says, as their host leaves them alone with one another once more. And that he isn't a complete tool. Being around the wealthy for work is one thing, but in my leisure time? Hard pass. 

"A bar sounds fun, though. Maybe we can find a few other side jobs while we are there, or make some normal, non-corporate connections." Maybe I can find a local madam who takes freelancers. Would be a nice bit of extra coin if I could get a few clients each time we dock. Unwind and line my pockets all at the same time. As she speaks, she presses the button to call the elevator, before leaning against a nearby wall.

"You gonna lead the way?" she asks Cass, noticing him checking the location on his compad.

"Statistically it's not looking good for him," Cass says of the noble. "The concept of 'one good psychic' hasn't proven its existence to me yet."

He looks up at Tess, then back down at his compad. "Oh. Yeah, sure. I can get us there."

OOC

Take us away, Jake!

Hikaru raises an eyebrow at the mention of the psychic, not exactly keen about placing his trust in some random noble. What the fuck kind of place even still has nobility? What happened to working for your own success? He sighs, glancing at his compad for a moment to take a look at the directions to their quarry. He grimaces at the display, the array of different passages and corridors already fogging his brain. Could be worse, I guess. No different from the backstage areas of some arenas back home.

The popstar lets out a mix of a scoff and chuckle as he listens to his companions speak. "With a name like that?" He shakes his head. "If there's anything I've learned from silver spoon fucks, it's that they don't need to be psychics to be the biggest pricks in the galaxy."

He sighs, pressing his head against the wall as they wait for the elevator. "Yeah, lead the way."

The elevator arrives and the four of you step inside, riding it back up, deeper into the asteroid station. You get off on level 3 - Inner Habitation & Commerce, stepping out into a small plaza of sorts, lined with dingy looking stores with many of their wares on display outside of the buildings. Cass leads you from the plaza and down a narrow corridor lined with more stores and other unmarked doors which are presumably homes. The area is fairly busy but thankfully not busy enough that the tunnels and corridors are congested, allowing you move freely and relatively quickly.

The tunnels twist and turn around the larger homes and businesses which feel ad hoc and unplanned in their design, crammed together where possible - space at much more of premium on this level than the Asteria offices. Most of the walls and floors are covered with metal grates and panels, your surroundings closer to the interior of the Makkuro than an open air city on Strocho or Aldis, although in places the rough rock of the asteroid is visible, bearing the scars from the process of carving out every room and corridor of the entire station from the rock. 

You soon step out from the narrow corridors into another small plaza, bathed in lights as you do. Five or six small bars and nightclubs line this plaza, all competing for your attention with large colourful holographic and neon signs. A steady stream of people pass through the plaza uninterested in its offerings, not surprising given its only the early afternoon, but some are clearly undeterred by the time of day. A heavily inebriated group, dressed in matching crimson jumpsuits, stagger out of one of the bars and make their way over to the lone street vendor in the plaza who has a small cart parked in the middle of the plaza where he grills some sort of meat - or more likely out here a meat substitute. Looking more closely at the surrounding facades, you spot a large white neon sign above the entrance to one of the bars, which reads; Element. Beneath the sign a holographic display scrolls past, listing off the bars various deals on different drinks.

Making your way inside you find the bar is actually beneath you, as a narrow staircase takes you down below the floor level of the plaza. It opens up into a surprisingly large but low ceilinged room. A large bar, staffed by a single bored looking woman runs the length of one walk, while open circular booths flank the others and several more lounge like seating areas dot the middle of the bar save for a small dance floor. 

The music is loud and, whilst a few people notice you enter, no one really seems to pay you much mind, although the bar is far from full capacity. One large group dressed in matching navy blue jumpsuits is sat on a couple of sofas in the middle of the bar, loudly downing shots together. A couple of girls are sat are the bar and appear to be in the process of rejecting the advances of one of the men in navy. A few of the booths are also occupied, mostly by small groups of two or three having quiet conversations over drinks, at one booth you spot a very tall and large man dressed in a formal looking suit.

Maximillian

You find yourself on Asteria Station drinking at a bar called Element. You've been staying at a nearby flop house but your credits are starting to run low. Nereida Holland, the CEO of the Asteria Corporation, was kind enough to take you in and help hide your presence here from anyone looking for you but her help didn't come without a cost and you now owe her an undisclosed favour.

Sat at a booth in the dimly lit basement bar, you are sipping the last of your current drink when a new group steps into the room. Three men and one woman.

Using the base plan, Cass deftly guides the group to Element. The station's layout and appearance hardly stands out to him amongst the many he had stopped in while on League duties. Seems like every backwater base has their own dive bar for crews to get shitfaced and forget about the long months spent in vacuum.

He smirks at the two women fending off the occasional advance, feeling an odd sense of being at home, despite never having been here before. In the corner, he spots the well-dressed — and huge — man. Gods, I was hoping he didn't dress the part. Bet he's a real shitlord. Why doesn't anyone get that there's strategy in blending in around this sort of place?

The engineer subtly nods in the direction of the man at the booth. "Think that's our contact," he says quietly, mostly to Hikaru. "You wanna take point, Glitter? Can't be the first rich asshole you've had to deal with." Cass pauses for a moment, a thought occurring. "I guess the same goes for you too, Tess."

The very tall and large man seems to be deep into his cups, with several old fashioned glasses around him, and a look in his eyes like either he just got done a round of sobbing, and is on the verge of starting a new one.

He seems to be shouting at no one in particular. "I could have been a KING you know! We were THIS DAMN CLOSE, and then those THOSE TRAITOROUS DASTARDS fucked us over!!!"

Hikaru struggles to keep a straight face as he hears Cass's word choice, his mind going a completely different direction. "Yeah, she's dealt with her fair share of rich assholes," he says with a smirk. "Some rich dicks too, every now and then." He clears his throat, trying to clear the giggles from it as well, and setting his sights on their target. He gives the man a quick once-over, astonished by his height but finding himself in disbelief over the choice of clothing. He looks around the bar for a moment, turning to his companions. "Are... are we on an episode of one of those prank reality shows?" 

He jumps up as the man shouts out, blinking a few times to make sure he heard that right. Okay, so he's crazy then. He sighs, slowly approaching the table and half-expecting a camera crew to pop out. He looks back to his group for a brief moment, before back to the strange man. "Are you Maximillian Redgar?" he asks, choosing to omit the the Third to see how the man reacts. "Miss Holland told us to find you. Something about calling in a favor. May we?" He gestures towards the open seats at the booth, glancing back at his group.

Maximillian looks over at Hikaru in a drunken haze, sizes him up, and says "Indeed, good sir. Maximillian Redgar III, at your service! Please, sit down. Any friend of Holland is a friend of mine."

Maximillian gestures towards the booth. "May I ask what this favor may entail? Holland was very...uh...nonspecific about it."

"Hey, it's not only rich men," Tess says, feigning annoyance at her friend while chuckling at his joke. She watches in confused silence for a moment, as their apparent contact rants aimlessly in the mostly empty bar, wondering why no one has asked him to leave yet. Did he just start this, or has he been going for awhile now? Hard to say which would be worse. She is happy to let Hikaru approach first, feeling that the man is more his brand of rich asshole than her own. Entertainers deal with the crazy rich folk. Leave the horny ones to me.

Cass titters at Hikaru's innuendo, but the moment is interrupted by the noble's outburst. What the fuck? Wonder what category of wavebrain this big bastard will fall into. Maybe I need a new one. Pedophiles, sociopaths, and sad sacks blubbering to themselves in a shithole dive bar.

The engineer stays quiet as Hikaru does what he does best. So he's a 'friend' to Holland... curious what that dynamic is like. That means he's either competent, or at the very least, a capable pawn. I don't see her keeping him close otherwise.

 

Hikaru blinks a few moments, surprised the drunk noble is so cordial as he comes to realize this is reality and not TV. "Right," he says, sliding into the booth. He glances around the bar, knowing they should be discreet even with only a mid-afternoon crowd in here. "Well, it seems you're to help us on a mission we've been hired for," he begins, electing to leave out the more truthful details of their employment for now. Lowering his voice a bit, he begins. "We've been hired to take back an Asteria outpost. One that some... let's call them space pirates have taken over. We were told you'd be useful for this." Maybe not exactly space pirates, but it sounds cooler that way anyways.

Space pirates, eh? Seems simple enough. I'll be out of this dumpster fire of a station in no time.

Maximillian perks up a bit. "As I said, I am at your service! I will gladly do whatever needs be done. Those space pirates will rue the day they decided to cross Maximillian Redgar III!!!!"

"What exactly are your qualifications?" Tess asks, looking to the man incredulously as his wild ranting turns into creepily-polite speech. She takes a seat after Hikaru, watching to see what he does next. "We were told you are a psychic, but what can you actually do, specifically?" And how do we trust someone so clearly unstable? This man does not seem to be in his right mind.

Space pirates. I guess that's kind of true, Cass realizes, both proud but terrified at the realization. He listens as Tess quizzes the strangely servile noble, some questions of his own rising to the surface of his mind.

"Yeah, you, uh, ever work on a ship before?"

Qualifications? Should I tell them the truth? Hmmm...

Maximillian clears his throat. "Yes, of course. I am indeed a scholar of the mystical arts, although my schooling was...cut short by...uh...certain events I do not wish to get into. As such, I was only able to truly master telekinesis. Other than that I know my way around computers enough to get by, and am of course trained in martial combat."

Maximillian flexes and grins from ear to ear. "Of course, like any TRUE gentleman, I deal only in the most honorable weapon known to man: his wits, and his own two fists!"

Maximillian notes Cass' question. "A ship? Uh...no, I have never done so, however I'm certain it is not beyond my tremendous capabilities!"

Cass takes a seat, listening to the man explain his prowess. Comms station it is... doesn't take a genius to throw out a sensor jam. Plus, it was no problem splitting time between engineering when we were against those jarhead fighter pilots, but slugging it out with these 'space pirates' is gonna be another story.

"Okay, so you can move shit, you can work a computer, and you can throw a punch or two." Cass shrugs, turning to the others. "I guess that can prove useful." He turns back to Maximillian, leaning in a bit and lowering his voice. "So what's a noble with a claim to a throne doing in a shithole bar like this, on a backwater mining colony like this, doing favors for someone like Holland?"

Tess listens to the man speak, her opinion of him changing several times as he speaks. She rolls her eyes as he once more refers to himself as a gentleman, and at such a volume that she can only assume every other patron heard it as well. Well, if nothing else, we know he's confident. And insane. So he has just the right traits to work with a bunch of other criminals, I guess. The Harlequins certainly had their fair share of insane, confident members. Hopefully he is as competent as he claims to be.

"So you are a martial artist?" Tess asks, raising an eyebrow when the man mentions the use of his fists. He certainly doesn't look the part. But then, I guess, neither do I. "I could use a sparring partner. You'll have to show me what you can do," she says, instinctively giving the man a wink, before internally cringing immediately after. Dammit, the last think I need is some rich psycho thinking I want him.

Well, he's certainly energetic... Or maybe it's the booze talking. He sits and listens for a moment, almost overwhelmed by this man's odd presence. Ugh, he's like one of those weird actors back home. The ones who just lurked by the open bar and talked about their spiritual awakening. He sighs, letting his crewmates take over the apparent interview for a few moments while he collects himself. "It sounds like you can hold your own then. Good." He leans back into his seat, wondering if they'll ever get the full story out of this man.
 

Maximillian looks at Cass, and speaks at his normal volume. "The reasons I am here are very complicated, and I'd rather not disclose them fully. All you need to know is that I had to leave my homeworld after a bit of...political unrest."

Smooth, Max, real smooth

Maximillian then speaks to Tess, oblivious. "Yes, I would certainly be interested in sparring."

Cass shrugs, knowing he has his own secrets. Complicated, huh. As long as it doesn't matter to the mission, I don't give a shit.

He listens closely to the man, watches his mannerisms, and takes a glance at his strange apparel — hoping to decipher just where Max might be from.

Mechanics

Connect / Int: 2d6 9

"You're Anthean, right?" Cass asks, following a certain intuition. "Sounds like you've had your fair share of 'fun' with the Diktat and the League, I bet." He smirks, though it is out of an understanding and not condescension.

Max frowns. "Yes, I had the misfourtune of dealing with both. Believe me, I have no love for either of those damnable wretches."

Let's change the topic real quick...if I'm going to be sharing a ship with these fine folks, I'd best learn what I can.

Max then manages to regain his composure. "But enough about me, what brings you to this fine station?"

"Looking for work," Cass replies curtly, giving the others a sidelong glance. "And we found some. Now, Holland mentioned you owing her a favor, and I'm going to take that to mean your help with this is repayment on whatever you've got going on with her."

"So," he continues, driving the point home. "If at the end of this you're looking for a payout, that's on Holland — not us. The cred we're getting for this goes to our ship, our crew. You alright with that?"

If not, then he can sit here and drink his noble problems away until he pisses himself. We could use the help, but I'm not begging.

"Of course, I understand. It is a gentleman's duty to protect himself and those that rely on him. I would expect nothing else Mister..."

Maximillian pauses for a moment.

"I'm sorry, I don't believe you ever gave me your names."

"Good," the engineer says, satisfied with the noble's response. "Casimir. But you can call me Cass." He turns to Hikaru expectantly, unsure if the popstar will be as forthcoming as he was with Holland.

Hikaru crosses his arms and leans back, happy to let Cass break down this strange man a bit. Good, good. He's got vulnerabilities like the rest of us then. Means we can use them if he goes cuckoo. He relieved when the technician beats him to the punch and asserts that their payment for the job is theirs alone. Most of the risk is on us anyways. We deserve that cred. 

"Hikaru," the popstar says when the topic turns to introductions. "I'm glad we've got an understanding then. And just so this is out there..." He leans in slightly, putting his hands on the table, his voice growing slightly harsher. "When you're with us, any idea of nobility or special treatment that you might've had? That's gone. Maybe you could've been king, but now you're just a normal person, like the rest of us." Not gonna let some fancypants from Planet Backwards walk all over us.

Creed follows along as the four of them leave the office. A Psychic, huh? I haven't met any personally. Wonder what they're like... I hear they've got crazy powers. He smirks to himself, feeling his energy return when they entered the elevator, and were swept away to destinations beyond.
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Walking into the bar, Creed smiled again; places like this, he knew well. He looks around the Element and takes in the sparseness, the lack of customers feeling obvious when you've seen a club like this packed to the brim before. Creed follows the others as they walk up to the rather loud drunk man at the bar, the Psychic they've been looking for. He took in the conversation hungrily, and took great interest in his powers. He mostly stays quiet, he likes to stay in the background. At least, for a little bit longer. As names begin to be exchanged he nods to the man, "My name's Eridas. I'll be your pilot for this little trip." He smiles and gives a very small bow. "I look forward to having you on the ship with us. Should at least keep things interesting." 

"Well, glad that's all settled," Tess says, leaning back a bit in her seat, and smiling as it is clear that this situation - as odd as it may seem - should be a relatively easy one to navigate. So underneath all that drama and flair, this guy's relatively normal. That's good. "My mom calls me Esther," she responds, as the man asks for their names. "But everyone else calls me Tess. I'd prefer if you do the same."

As their conversation seems to die down some, Tess looks towards the nearest bartender and waves to get their attention. "I don't know about the rest of you, but before we go I could use a drink."

Cass checks his compad, finding himself almost able to count his credit balance on his digits. Fuck. I hope it's happy hour. Though it's not like much of the workforce on this rock is doing anything with the strikes on.

Shrugging, he cocks his head to the side and says "sure, I could use one. Been a while since I drank at an outpost dive like this. Here's hoping they have something more than fungal brew and lab liquor."