Characters: All
NPC: Chuck, Kagfak, Uengghae, Captain Urshakekar and crew, Captain
Daagudakur and crew
Location: Miishakaal cargo hold
System: Timat
The meeting with Rothchild was successful and now Gvarokh, Lakir, Dougok, and
Captain Urshakekar are back on board Miishakaal. Meanwhile, repair teams
are hard at work on fixing the ship. The work estimate is three days. Slade
agrees with the assessment.
The crew have assembled in the cargo hold along with the two rescued captains
and their respective crews. Urshakekar is explaining to his crew and Daagudakur
and her crew what happened during the meeting and his report filing he needs to
conduct for his lost ship. Meanwhile Gvarokh and crew, who wish to be
mercenaries first and traders second (the reverse of what they used to be) are
discussing how to move forward as privateers.
Once both groups are finished, Gvarokh combines the two into one big meeting.
Gvarokh explains that he and the rest of New Miishakaal Enterprises (NME
for short) are planning to pursue a campaign as privateers for the Vilani,
provided that they can secure a more potent ship. He doesn't hide his feeling
that they were incredibly lucky to have completed the rescue mission and made it
back alive and (mostly) intact. With Rothchild backing their request, he feels
that they'll be able to requisition one of the captured corsairs, preferably a
Ueknou class, to use in this assignment. Success means Miishakaal
will be available for lease and Gvarokh would like Urshakekar and/or Daagudakur
to be their first clients.
The two captains exchange glances. Daagudakur raises an eyebrow and tilts her
head. Urshakekar is smiling.
Daagudakur replies, "We were just talking about combining our crews, at least
for the short run."
Urshakekar says, "I'm going to be filing a claim with the insurance company.
While we wait for them to process the claim, my crew will be working for Su."
"And it was my intention," she adds, "to hire you guys to help us get my ship
back. Goddess willing, she's still adrift in the Envar system and no one's
snatched her. But we don't have any money right now as our bankcards were stolen
by the Touzagh. We'll need our banks to issue us new ones, but as you can
probably guess that will take some time."
Urshakekar interjects with a sardonic grin, "Everything involving the Vilani
Bureaux takes time." With a wink at Daagudakur, he quips, "We have a bet to see
which happens first: the processing of my insurance claim or the reissuing of
our bankcards.
"I think we'd still be interested in leasing your ship but we need to get back
on our feet first."
"And I want my ship back," Daagudakur says emphatically. "If the banks give us
any shit, the Raven becomes my only asset." She struggles to say the next
part. "If I have to sell her to survive, I will."
Gvarokh says, "We are more than willing to help you out on this. We have to go
to Maran first. That is unavoidable. However, after that visit, we would be
happy to help you search for your ship."
Daagudakur smiles and nods as she says, "Thank you."
"Assuming you get any money back, we would need contributions to the operating
costs, but we won't charge you a charter fee or anything like that. It is just
that we must go to Maran next. Our business there shouldn't take too long, so
most of the delay will just be travel time.”
Urshakekar replies, "Well, Maran is on the way and the insurance company is
based out of there. Would you mind giving us a lift?" He smiles. "You can put
it on our tab."
Gvarokh laughs and says, "Sure, not a problem!"
Dougok wags his tail and yips in agreement with the decision.
Lakir speaks up, "We don't have enough staterooms, well, not without everyone
doubling up, so who's goin' cold this time around?"
Urshakekar raises his hand and replies, "It's our turn." He turns to face
Daagudakur. "It's only fair. You went last time."
She doesn't object. "Ok."
Lakir says to Gvarokh, "We should also see about topping off our rounds on the
gauss guns and anything else people shot off during the raid. Not to mention
getting some grenades, seismic charges, and maybe our own iris valve opener."
"Maybe even an autodoc," Dougok suggests.
Gvarokh nods.
"And maybe something more effective than a bubble for Dougok, regardless of how
far we need to go."
"We'll get it on Maran. They're tech level 15. After all this time, we should
get him one that's top notch."
Dougok's tail wags vigorously. "One with a smart cloth option to allow me to
fine tune the color schemes?"
"Uh yeah, sure, if they're not insanely priced."
Characters: All
NPC: Chuck, Kagfak, Uengghae, Captain Daagudakur and crew, Lun Miisha,
Rear Admiral Khagamsusuu, Lt. Mizepsharguliig
Location: Miishakaal
System: Maran
Miishakaal emerges from jumpspace and begins decelerating.
Deceleration complete. Miishakaal gets in line for Melika Starport.
There's some trepidation throughout Miishakaal. The last time they were
here (18 weeks ago), the ship was attacked by a rogue recon drone which
kamikazed into the ship's reactor. While Sharushariid paid for the repairs, the
crew were obligated to pay that debt by undertaking the rescue mission that they
just returned from.
Although the line is much shorter this time, waiting is still annoying.
A recon drone comes by the line, scans your ship, and stops.
You're hailed by it.
A human voice says, "Attention Miishakaal, please exit the line for the
starport and follow this drone to the naval base. It will be your escort."
Gvarokh replies, "We have some low berth passengers, could you have someone on
hand to help revive them?"
"Acknowledged, Miishakaal."
"Well, at least it's not shooting at us this time," Chuck says.
Gvarokh gives the order to follow the drone.
The drone leads Miishakaal to the naval base which is located on a small
moon. She is granted access without delay and is instructed to set down on a
landing pad. Once down, the landing pad descends into the base and the drone
returns to the queue for Melika Starport.
Miishakaal is lowered into a bay and the roof closes overhead. The bay is
brightly lit and personnel scurry about. A docking arm is extended and connects
with the personnel airlock. A few minutes later, the buzzer goes off to
announce that someone wishes to come aboard. External video reveals it to be Lun
Miisha (the guy from Sharushariid), Lt. Mizepsharguliig (your legal rep), and
Rear Admiral Khagamsusuu (who was at the meeting). Behind them are two medical
personnel. Two guards stand at the far end of the ramp.
Gvarokh opens the door.
Khagamsusuu is smiling. "Permission to come aboard, Captain."
"Permission granted!"
He shakes Gvarokh's paw. Miisha and Mizepsharguliig do likewise. The medical
personnel nod and Gvarokh flags down Chuck to escort them.
Once everyone is squeezed into the crew lounge, Rear Admiral Khagamsusuu says,
"Well done, Captain. Well done. No, scratch that. Excellent work!" He can hardly
contain himself. "I've read the reports and what you did was simply
outstanding. There's an old Solomani saying... That took balls!"
Miisha seems a bit uncomfortable by Khagamsusuu's unprofessional demeanor.
Mizepsharguliig smiles through her embarrassment.
Miisha says, "Yes, thank you for returning our scientists and their vessel to
us. They spoke highly of your bravery and your efforts."
Khagamsusuu continues, "I take it that Rothchild repaired your ship to your
satisfaction?"
"Yes, his crew did a fantastic job," Gvarokh replies.
"Good. Good. Oh, yes. Lt. Mizepsharguliig has news for you."
"Yes, I do," she says. "The party responsible for hiring the hacker that crashed
that recon drone into your ship was arrested, tried, and convicted. He's now in
prison serving a 20-year sentence."
"Good!"
Khagamsusuu asks, "So now that all this is behind you, what are your plans?"
Gvarokh responds, "Well, sir, as you know, we lost our trader during this
adventure. When looking at things, I just don't know how much we really are
truly cut out to be traders, anyway. What we would like to do is shift more
permanently into a role similar to what we just completed."
"I'm listening."
"Unfortunately, we just don't really have the ship designed for such operations.
So, that leads to my rather bold request. I know that you have captured
multiple corsair ships in your innumerable skirmishes. I request that you allow
us to use one to go fight fire with fire. We would operate along both sides of
the border as an independent corsair, but actually taking direction from
Sharushariid.
"I hope that our performance on this mission has demonstrated both our ability
and our loyalty. Imagine the effect we could have with a true combat ship!"
"I am, and I confess I'm intrigued." He sighs. "I'm booked solid with meetings
until 06:00 tomorrow. I stole some time to come down here to see you. Regardless
of what is decided, I need to take those plasma turrets off of this ship. We
can put you up here at the base, or I can assign a launch and guard detail to
you for R-n-R over at Melika."
Lakir says, "We need to pick up some shit anyway, to enhance survival options. I
vote for goin' shoppin', with maybe a hooker and a beer on the side. It's been
a LONGGGG cruise."
That brings some cheers.
Dougok nods, "Hookers are good."
Vlad adds, "Whichever leads me to meat and beer works."
Gvarokh decides he'd better nip this in the bud before it gets any worse. "Ok,
we'll go to Melika."
Miisha rolls his eyes. Admiral Khagamsusuu has a grin on his face. He says,
"Good. Be ready in an hour. I'll have an escort waiting for you."
"One last thing, Admiral," Gvarokh says.
"Yes?"
"Our passengers..."
"Oh yes. Lt. Mizepsharguliig will see to them."
The admiral and Lun Miisha depart while Lt. Mizepsharguliig stays behind.
Captain Daagudakur takes advantage of the situation and introduces herself.
Characters: All
NPC: Chuck, Kagfak, Uengghae
Location: Melika Starport
System: Maran
The crew have parted ways with their passengers. Both of the captains and their
crews have accompanied Lt. Mizepsharguliig to start reclaiming their lives.
Miishakaal's crew, along with their escorts (two armed guards), have
hopped over to Melika Starport to go shopping and get some much needed rest.
No one in the group is armed, but Gvarokh is wearing his tailored cloth armor.
Dougok wears one of the suits of vargr cloth armor he has claimed as his own
from the ship's locker. Everyone else is casually dressed and equipped with a
comm and/or PDA.
Gvarokh asks the group to stick together for right now. He needs to set up
Dougok, Kagfak, and Uengghae with bankcards and then they should all go
shopping. After that a group dinner is the last thing he asks of them before
they spend their remaining free time doing as they see fit.
The guards arrange for an airbus to come pick up the group. When it arrives, it
has no driver as it's under control from the starport's trafficnet. The airbus
holds everyone comfortably while the guards sit at the front and handle driving
instructions. The seats are comfortable and recline. There's even a bathroom!
The first stop is Melika Federal, a large and popular bank in the subsector.
Establishing bank accounts for the three vargr takes some time as biometric data
is collected from them. When it's finally done, Gvarokh deposits a thousand
credits into each of their accounts. He explains that this is just "mad money"
and that he'll be paying for any equipment purchases.
Dougok expresses his gratitude for the mad money as well as the offer to buy
equipment.
From here the group gets back on the bus. Gvarokh explains to the guards that
they need equipment, especially vacc suits that will fit vargr. The bus heads to
what used to be an Imperial Outfitters store. It's now a Sharusharid Traveler
shop. It's mostly equipment (yes, vacc suits too) but there are some light
weapons: a limited range of blade weapons and low caliber pistols. A sign in the
store warns visitor that all firearms are prohibited on the surface of Maran.
Dougok heads immediately to the vacc suit section and inquires about a tailored
vacc suit with a smart cloth option that allows him to fine tune the color
schemes. The clerk in attendance says that it will cost 20,000 credits and
require 8 hours to construct.
Dougok asks, "Does that include a built-in HUD and vision enhancement?"
Lakir keeps an ear open for the answer.
"Yes on the HUD. Vision enhancement is present but limited to 50x magnification
in the visible spectrum. However, if you're in comm contact with a sensor
array, the data from the sensors can be relayed to the vacc suit and displayed
via the HUD."
Lakir asks, "Got anything that I can mount on an older suit?"
"How old?"
"Tech level 12."
"If it's got HUD and a data port you can plug in some light weight limited range
wearable sensors."
"Are they interchangeable?"
"You'll have to buy the vacc suit harness and a regular headmount but yeah,
it'll work."
"How about gun mounts?"
"No. You'll have to find someone that sells scopes."
"Ok, so how much?"
"1000 credits for the sensors, 15 for the harness, and 25 for the headmount."
"Ok, I'll take the package."
Meanwhile, Vlad has wandered over to the blade section. He sees a nice variety
of daggers, blades, utility and combat knives made from high tech alloys that
make for hard, yet lightweight, weapons and tools.
Kagfak and Uengghae have followed him over and are also looking over the
options.
Vlad opts for
a concealable non-metallic knife that costs 25 credits.
Kagfak and Uengghae opt for regular-sized daggers at 10 credits each.
Simrii says to Gvarokh, "I think I'm gonna go see if I can find some fresh food.
Some meat, veggies, fruit if possible."
Gvarokh replies, "We'll go there next. I'd like everyone to stay together, at
least until after dinner."
Dougok picks up a set of full spectrum goggles (1000 cr) and a hand comp (1000
cr).
Lakir gets a pair of goggles too. He explains that he needs software for them to
interface with his super-PDA. The clerk lets him download one from the store
for 20 credits.
Looking over the firearms, Dougok notes that they're all snub pistols of the
standard shipboard security type.
Lakir has followed Dougok over here and, disappointed they don't have the ammo
he wants, discretely asks for the location of a heavier weapons dealer.
"Sorry, don't know. Military grade hardware is outside our catalog."
Dougok selects a snub pistol. It costs 150 credits. The only ammo available for
it is the non-lethal variety: tranquilizer darts and sleep gas. There are no
clips for the weapon; bullets are loaded individually. Boxes of ammo are
available for 20 credits and each holds 20 rounds. Dougok opts for five boxes
of each.
Once the purchases have been rung up, everyone gets back on the bus. Gvarokh
asks the soldiers if they know of any open markets where they can by fresh
food. One does and instructs the bus to take them there.
The airbus has parked outside a food market. Simrii leads the way, but the vargr
in the group follow closely behind. The scent of fresh food—especially
meat—is irresistible to them. A few people balk at the sight of vargr, but
the presence of the group's military escort squashes any dissent before it can
manifest itself into something ugly.
Chuck catches up to Simrii and the two start ordering: Simrii making main course
selections and other fresh food that he has a craving for while Chuck finds
stuff to complement it. The vargr make their suggestions too and Chuck makes
sure that they're added to the list. Gvarokh, who is resisting the urge to join
his brethren in the droolfest, offers the ship's bankcard to cover the bill and
arranges, with help from one the guards, to have it all delivered to the ship.
He also takes note of the vendors here as possible customers for the packaged
food and spices they have in their hold.
After dropping a thousand credits on fresh food, the group is done with shopping
and looks for a place to eat. Gvarokh asks the guards for recommendations for
vargr-friendly establishments. The two scratch their heads for a bit and then
one suggests The Rising Sun, a Solomani-Japanese restaurant. "They
prepare the food right in front of you so they can make it any way you like it.
I've had it; it's good."
The group decides to give it a shot and instruct the bus to take them there. The
staff at the restaurant are friendly and a chef who is familiar with vargr
palates is assigned to them.
Before the chef gets to work, and after drinks have been poured, Gvarokh asks
for some quiet to give a brief speech.
"Friends, both old and new, thank you for agreeing to this dinner with everyone
together. For all of you here from the start, when we first left, no one who
sent us really expected us to succeed. we were just an opportunity that
presented itself to them for one last chance. Despite that, we knew we
could succeed and I had faith in all of you, my pack, that we would succeed.
"Together, and with the invaluable help of our newer packmates, we turned that
faith into action and success. Do not forget the enormity of what we
accomplished. It was truly a great accomplishment. A toast to the success!"
A chorus of "hear, hear" goes up and then the drinks go down.
After the toast Gvarokh pauses for a couple moments, then says, "And before we
eat, here is a second toast: To the glorious future and hunts ahead!"
More cheers and drinking.
At this point the chef shows up with the food he is to prepare. It turns out he
knows his stuff and everyone is pleased with his skills. He bows at the howls of
appreciation and applause.
The dinner is enjoyed by all but it has come to an end. Gvarokh confesses that
he plans on calling it an early evening as he wants to be stone cold sober for
the meeting the next day. He asks the rest of the crew what they have planned.
Vlad says that he plans on just going to the hotel bar for a couple of drinks
and then head off to bed.
Lakir asks Gvarokh if he'll be requiring his presence at tomorrow's meeting.
"That would be great if you'd attend."
"Ok, then. I'll make it an early night."
Dougok stands up and says, "I plan on painting the town red!"
Kagfak and Uengghae seem torn as to what to do. They look to Vlad and Gvarokh
to gauge their reactions.
Chuck is staring down at his PDA.
Slade shakes his head.
Simrii seems preoccupied with produce.
Vincent looks to be mulling it over.
Chuck gets up and walks over to the guards and engages them in conversation.
After a bit, all three return to the table. He explains to Dougok that they'll
be watching his back this evening as the rest of the group will be keeping it
low key—the hotel bar being the extent of their evening.
Kagfak decides to stay; Uengghae goes with Dougok.
After Gvarokh has paid the bill, the group heads to the hotel and checks in.
Dougok and Uengghae head out with the guards. Before they exit, Dougok is heard
asking them if they know "where the wolves go to hunt tail."
The rest of the group heads to the bar. Some stay briefly to make an appearance
before heading off to bed. The rest enjoy the evening at the bar but call it a
night before any room spinning can occur.
Characters: All
NPC: Chuck, Kagfak, Uengghae
Location: Miishakaal, parked at Maran Naval Base
System: Maran
The crew has returned to the ship. Fortunately there was enough downtime for
Dougok and Uengghae to recover from their night out. While the guards didn't
provide any details, one remarked, "You're gonna have your hands full with that
one."
Dougok showed up sporting a gash on one ear and several roughed up areas of fur.
He seems inordinately pleased with himself.
Simrii and Chuck are busy going through the foodstuffs purchased the previous
day and finding the proper storage space for it all in the galley.
Dougok stumbles into the galley and fixes himself a cup of kaf. Once completed,
he sits down and laps it up. To the assembled crowd he states, "I needed to blow
off a bit of steam. That was a howl." He looks about. "I can help with the
stowage of food. I don't think I'm in the best of shape to meet a Vilani
admiral."
Gvarokh laughs. "No, you're not."
Slade spent his morning going over new ship designs. While there are no
shipyards on Maran—it has a B starport, go figure—the Vilani Navy
(which does have a base here) funds research that is conducted here
(Maran is TL-15). Obviously said research is top secret but the trend is towards
more automation. The war's influence is felt heavily here. The Navy would love
to have fully autonomous warships, but the lack of true AI continues to be a
stumbling block.
Ads for the commercial shipyards (the two closest are Audhumla and Vhodan: 1
and 2 parsecs away, respectively) push the same ships that have been in the
marketplace for some time. With the demands of war forcing shipyards to focus on
the military's needs, the refurbished ship market is booming. Repairable ships
and salvage are in high demand.
Gvarokh spends his time rehearsing his sales pitch to Admiral Khagamsusuu and
trying to come up with answers and retorts for every question and
counterargument he can think the admiral can come up with.
Vincent stops by Gvarokh's quarters and says, "If there are no objections, I'd
like to go."
Gvarokh replies, "Yes, you'd make a good addition."
When the time comes to depart, it's just Gvarokh, Lakir, and Vincent. An escort
takes them to see the Admiral. He meets them outside a conference room and seems
enthusiastic to see them. After shaking their hands/paws, he says, "We're
meeting with two other admirals and a representative from each of the four
Bureaus. This sort of operation requires approval from the military and at least
one of the Bureaus. Not only does someone has to fund it, but all four must be
made aware of it and, if there are any strong objections, they must be made
before we get under way."
Gvarokh replies, "Thank you very much for the explanation of the situation. That
helps a lot!"
"My pleasure. Each of the people in there has received a brief about the plan. I
had a chance to talk with the other admirals about it over dinner, and they're
sold on the idea. We just have to convince the bureaucrats.
"I'll make the formal presentation. I'll start off with an introduction of you
and your success against the Touzagh, then you'll make your proposal and I'll
tie it in with our Border Defense Strategy. They'll then take shots at the plan
to see if it can still float. Ready?"
"Yes!"
The trio accompany Admiral Khagamsusuu into the room. They're introduced to
Admirals Ashikagalagan and Shashkulashi (a man and a woman) and then the Bureaux
reps: Akagur Ashshaazam from Makhidkarun (male), Ishnir Pashishii from
Naasirka (female), Aru Arkummu from Zirunkariish (male), Fabian Dikishari from
Sharurshid (male), and on a monitor on the wall, your contact from Sharurshid,
Lun Miisha. They all look to be in their late 50's but could be older if their
bloodline is as heavy on the Vilani side as their features imply.
Khagamsusuu then expounds upon Miishakaal's mission to rescue the crews
of the Qa Livk and Fitzpatrick. He details how successful the
group was and does so with a measure of pride. He drags Lun Miisha into the
discussion, insisting that he verify everything. And he does. Miisha then
forwards the gratitude of the Qa Livk's captain and crew and
recommendations from Security Chief Rothchild and Colonel Garmin of Odinaga.
Khagamsusuu then thanks Miisha for his input and lets him go. The monitor goes
blank.
Gvarokh makes his pitch to the group and Khagamsusuu bolsters it by showing how
it can tie into the Navy's Border Defense Strategy. Once he's done, the others
let their feelings known.
Ashshaazam expresses concern that this sort of offensive will lead to
retaliatory attacks against the Vilani Safe Zone.
Ashikagalagan counters that if the frontier worlds fall, the corsairs will start
raiding the Safe Zone. Khagamsusuu adds that the group will not carry anything
that will tie them back to the Navy.
Pashishii questions whether one ship can do much for the Ziru Sirkaa but
Shashkulashi points out how much has been accomplished already. Arkummu counters
that it might be presumptuous to expect an uptick in the economy now that the
Touzagh have fallen, pointing out that the group merely disbanded. He feels that
the corsairs will just realign themselves into smaller groups and resume
raiding. Shashkulashi argues that smaller bands are easier to crush as they lack
the resources to mount major attacks and coordinate large offensives.
Dikishari says, "I find it troubling that we're willing to content ourselves
with an ever shrinking Safe Zone."
Arkummu replies, "If you were aware of the numbers that are being floated about,
you'd realize that a small, yet stable Safe Zone is the only thing that will
help us ride this war out."
Khagamsusuu says, "While I understand a reluctance to finance a push into
conflict zones, this project aims to undermine a foe that is taking worlds for
their own use, not bombing them into oblivion. If successful, we can expand the
Safe Zone. It might be the boost we need to remain a viable entity in this war."
Ashikagalagan comes back with. "This is about Gemid, Admiral."
Khagamsusuu looks stung. "I don't know how anyone can sleep at night knowing
what sort of hell they could unleash. So, yeah, I'd like to get Gemid back.
Maybe this project is the first step in that direction."
While the group continues to debate among themselves, Lakir whispers to Gvarokh,
"This looks like our opening. Let's see what we can find out about Gemid. Also,
it seems the bucks required to support our ops is a sticking point. We need to
emphasize the 'self-funding' nature of our operations, both from a legit
commerce cover as well as a privateer/direct action point of view. All with the
right setup in the front end."
Gvarokh nods.
Lakir adds, "We can manage this; we have the track record."
Gvarokh clears his throat. "What's the status of Gemid?"
The group exchanges glances with one another before Khagamsusuu says, "As you
know, Gemid, an Imperial client state, fell to Confederation forces a few years
ago. We're not certain how it fell, but our sources indicate that several states
that were anti-Imperial made a deal with the Confederation and provided them
with information regarding the defense forces at the naval base that left them
vulnerable."
Shashkulashi adds, "They could've also taken the planet hostage with threats of
nuclear bombardment."
Pashishii retorts, "But only a fool would want to risk damaging all of that high
tech infrastructure."
Ashikagalagan counters, "Not necessarily. If your enemy has a cache of doomsday
weapons which you can't counter, wouldn't it be preferable to let them be
destroyed lest they be used against you."
Arkummu says, "But the Imperium would never use doomsday weapons..."
The assembled group all shoot a look in his direction.
"Oh right. Yes, well, that was before all this Black War madness."
Khagamsusuu regains control of the conversation. "The naval base there has an
advanced weapons facility. Everything was on the table, and I do mean
everything. Our contacts have indicated that the only reason why the
Confederation hasn't put these weapons into use is that those stationed at the
facility sabotaged as much as they could before being overrun. It bought us
time, but we don't know how much."
The room is silent while he pauses.
Lakir is about to ask some questions, but Gvarokh puts a paw on his arm to stop
him. Lakir looks at him; Gvarokh gives him a "wait" signal with his paw.
Gvarokh clears his throat. "We could help to figure that out.
"As Admiral Khagamsusuu stated, nothing on the ship will tie back to the Vilani
at all. Even if the ship is claimed or found, there will be nothing that will
give them any indication it came from the Vilani Empire. We will appear in all
ways to be an independent operator.
"While our overall goal is to raid and sow discord, working against any Touzagh
successor and gathering intelligence on Gemid fit right in with that. In
addition, we will be ripe for any other such missions along the way. Any other
intelligence, specific raids, or rescue missions are all fair game and within
scope of the operation. You will have a free agent operating in enemy territory
that can be used as necessary for specific tasks, while causing general mayhem
in between.
"I assume, based on this discussion, that Gemid will be our initial focus."
"That has yet to be determined," Arkummu retorts.
"Well, whichever mission is chosen, we will be a prototype of such operations.
If you determine our efforts a success, you will be able to add more such ships
to the effort over time.
"We will operate in a self-sufficient manner. Aside from the ship itself, we
should not incur any expenses. In fact, depending on how much raiding we are
able to accomplish, we could end up being cash flow positive. We will have to
retreat to Vilani safeholds when faced with serious damage, but the proceeds
from raiding should help pay for such occurrences."
Gvarokh pauses to let that sink in. He notes that this last point has gone over
well with the Bureaux reps.
"And being your team in the field, we can act immediately upon the intel your
agents provide us rather that waiting for it to find its way back here and then
sending out a team. Based on your orders of course."
Heads nod around the room.
Khagamsusuu asks the assembled group, "Does anyone have any further questions
for Captain Gvarokh?" No one does so Khagamsusuu asks Gvarokh, Lakir, and
Vincent to wait outside.
Out in the hall, Gvarokh explains to Lakir why he interrupted him when he
pressed on Gemid. "It was premature to ask any inside questions about Gemid and
could be counter-productive. Once they buy in, you can hone in on Gemid."
Lakir nods.
After ten minutes or so, the door opens and the group files out. Khagamsusuu
invites the trio back into the meeting room.
Once seated, he says, "We took a vote. It's a go. We'll need a few weeks to put
it all together: secure a ship, fit you into the budget, get you a list of
contacts, and build your itinerary." He smiles. "But we got everyone on board
and that was the hardest part."
Gvarokh wags his tail while he says, "Wonderful!"
Khagamsusuu nods.
"Can I put my wishlist in now?"
Khagamsusuu smiles. "Yeah, go ahead."
"I want a corsair, not one of those Imperial types, something vargr, like a
Ueknou class. And it should have an authentic Touzagh paint job."
"That shouldn't be too hard. There are several captured ones lying around."
"If there's any way we can get those two plasma turrets back, that would be
great."
"Yeah, it would." He scratches his chin. "I might have to squeeze a few bean
counters to make it happen."
Gvarokh's tail is wagging again. "Do we get a cutter or G-Carrier?"
"The Ueknous all come with G-Carriers."
"Ok, now the hard part. What sort of cut do we get from the spoils?"
"10%. We have to make some attempt to keep this revenue neutral."
The 10% is less than Gvarokh wants, but it will just mean they'll need to stay
busy. He figures that as long as they can get a few ships in the deal, it will
work for them. If they just get cargo, they'll suffer. He realizes that there's
a need to prove themselves, which means just accepting the 10%.
Gvarokh grunts in acceptance. They're getting a corsair; he can't be choosy.
Lakir assumes the balance of the gear and munitions procurement process will
occur concurrently with the ship acquisition so he holds off for now.
Gvarokh says, "We need to understand how much we're supposed to know on
different things, and how wide we should be spreading the knowledge with the
crew."
"What you tell your crew is your business. If you can't trust them, they
shouldn't even be on your ship. If they're someone you need for the job, use
your best judgment. Any information we send you will be marked. 'FYEO' is 'For
Your Eyes Only'. 'NTK' is 'Need To Know', something you'd generally share with
your closest crew, but you could tell the rest if the mission made it necessary.
'FP' means 'Field Personnel' can know. 'PK' is 'Public Knowledge'. If there's a
'D', it's disinformation. Does that suffice?"
Gvarokh replies, "Oh, I trust my crew. The issue was just that I was betting
there will be some information you won't even want them to know. I figure
setting the groundwork is the best path. Your outline works for me. Thank you."
The Admiral nods. "Good."
Lakir requests that the Admiral supply them with a data dump on the
tactical/strategic situation in the surrounding area, just PK stuff, to get them
up to speed.
The Admiral nods. "Absolutely.
"As I said before, it's going to be a few weeks before we're ready for you. You
can do what you want during that time. The op will wait until you get back, but
if you're going to take more than 12 weeks, drop us a line.
"We'll have your transponder ID on file." He adds a conspiratorial wink. "Be
sure you leave it running while within our borders. It'll be to your advantage."
The meeting concluded, the Admiral shows them to the door.
Later, when they're on the way back to the ship, Gvarokh explains to the other
guys that there may be a chance to "skim" a bit here and there. While he expects
the Vilani to track the big stuff, he's will to bet that they aren't going to
sweat the small stuff, as long as it isn't really noticeable.
Next: Post-Big Wig Meeting Planning