Session: 8 The Train Job

   Kira's time in the Advanced Power Research Facility was almost crushingly educational. In her first two weeks there was an onslaught of textbooks to study and access to research that she could barely comprehend. She began to study feverishly, fearful that she'd lose her apprenticeship should it be discovered how poorly qualified she was. She kept her head down and her voice quiet watching how others got along. Thankfully as Letch's assistant nobody was all that interested in who she was or what she did.
   Kira found time to go over power plant specs with the Crafter, hinting that she had noticed that that a lot of cyborg women visited him. Letch smiled leeringly as he worked, his pale face lit by the paler light of his screen "Yes, one of my hobbies is the design and calibration of cybernetics" Kira smiled and tried to arrange her body in an attention getting pose, not easy for a girl who had worked hard at not being seen all her life "You know I have cybernetics?". Letch didn't even make eye contact as he explained "Yes, you have a ketonic sheathed nervous system, is it out of calibration?" Kira felt the hook sink in her catch "It's not a problem Crafter but it could use calibration, perhaps one of the Engineers here could tend to it.." Letch finally looked up from his work "Nonsense, he rose and grabbed his volt tools and walked over to her with a kind smile before pulling her clothing away from her maintenance port. What followed was an uncomfortably unromantic exchange where the Crafter treated her non-cybernetic parts like so much meat as he adjusted her body and ran her through a competent calibration without ever speaking to her.
   Back in Tikal two weeks flew by. The ship was no almost completely scrubbed clean. With the ship less toxic crews began working on the interior but there was only so much that could be done without power. Towards the end of that time Genin Fox came to Lady Sakura and suggested that the contract be suspended for a vacation until the ship had power so that her money wasn't being wasted. Ian didn't have enough firebirds to pay out the two weeks of work yet. He had been counting on hearing from Boss Harmon already. He flew to the Guild Hall in Carllion and send a reminder to Boss Harmon via the Avalonia guild hall that he was waiting for that work.
   When Ian and Lady Sakura returned they could see soldiers in red armor as they flew over the village. It was the Red Dragon Guard, finally hitting Tikal. As they set down they both walked to the stairs down to the town, already finding soldiers well-armed and ready demanding to know their business in Tikal. Sakura addressed them with the polished confidence of a woman who no matter what wasn't going to prison for any of this nonsense. She explained that she was pursuing a reclamation license in town and she had employees working in the building behind her. The soldiers radioed this in and their commander ran forward. After a brief interaction at the bottom of the stairs the commander climbed up to Sakura and Ian with a charming smile and introduced himself as Commander Eron Chun. He apologized for any misunderstanding and explained that his men were in Tikal looking for insurgents and would need to search their camp and the surrounding ruins. Lady Sakura tried to flaff him off with moans of her long travels and a longing to just get a cold night's rest on the mountain but the commander insisted. Sakura sighed and directed Ian to run ahead and alert the camp they'd be having guests and make sure everything was in suitable shape for inspection.
   As Ian ran for the camp Commander Chun summoned his half-dozen men from the village below and they came running, giving Ian a lead of only seconds. Ian found the Diakang Longdong with weapons trained on the door as he arrived, heckles up. He told them they needed to look inconspicuous but the Daikang, already aware of the Count's soldiers were in a contentious mood and argued with him until the Red Dragon Soldiers were running down the stairs towards the landing bay. Ian just hissed at the angrily to get their dumb asses in the ship. However soldiers burst into the doorway before they could all get in. With guns raised and cries of "Halt!" they caught the last of the Diakang soldiers outside of the ship and forced him to surrender.
   As Commander Chun entered the bay and found a Daikang rebel in the camp and reports of more in the ship his demeanor changed. He wanted everyone on the line with papers ready or he said he'd shoot. He summoned more soldiers. Lady Sakura looked frightened. Ian tried to fast-talk the Commander but was shouted out to stand in the corner like a child. The Camp was tossed and his contract workers were interrogated. Once the rest of the solders arrived they made Apprentice Hume force the airlock and they negotiated the other four Diakang to surrender and come out to be arrested. Ian watched the Diakang being arrested and as a last bid of desperation he begged the Commander if there was some sort of fee that could be paid to just get back to business. Chun looked at Ian thoughtfully and shrugged asking for 16 Firebirds with an outstretched white glove. Ian was beside himself, and quickly dug the coins out of his pockets. Commander Chun doled out a single Firebird to each man and then told them to take the prisoners away. Ian looked at the commander in disbelief "I paid!" and chun's eyes narrowed "And my men appreciate your quick payment of the fine for attempting to bribe a House official.. if there are additional fines to be levied once I have interviewed these prisoners I will come to you directly..". The Red Dragon Brigade began leading their prisoners down the mountain in the afternoon and Ian felt genuinely horrible for letting the Diakang down.
  Ian and Lady Sakura flew down to Lawton hoping to get ahead of the soldiers. Sakura went to go talk to her father and find out where the prisoners would be held and find out what she could about how they would be tried. Ian, lacking anyone more powerful to talk to in the guild, went to meet with Lula Blue. He found her tending to her orchids in the terrace room of Blue Tours. He explained what had happened and asked her if there was a way to bribe the judge or break the Diakang out. Boss Blue listened distractedly while spraying each petal, her expression difficult to read. When Ian finished she stood tall and looked to him "Do you love these men?". Ian had never considered his motivation other than he had a deal "Uh.. no". Blue set her spray bottle down and looked up at the big glass windows thoughtfully "Freeing them would run maybe 10,000 FB? And it would be chancey.. Bribing their freedom would cost around the same and be less reliable. No matter how you cut it they won't generate a fraction of that for you, rebels just don't have money like that.. If you don't love them you write them off as an expense..". Ian hated the realization that she was right and after months of moral ambiguity it felt good to hate her for being right, like the principal was enough for him, but she was right. He couldn't possibly raise that much money and his principals weren't worth trading the one asset he had for. He thanked Boss Blue for her perspective and left.
   Sakura didn't have better news. The judge slated to rule over prisoners of the Red Dragon Guard was an ornery justice and the political shift against rebel fighters in the Ceremanique Mountains meant they were unlikely to get more than a show trial before their execution. Sakura didn't have any connections that could help. She was out of options and didn't even know if she could keep this from blowing back on her family. Ian comforted her and explained they'd find a way.
   Back in the Advanced Power Research Facility, Kira had achieved the sort of Fake-it level of understanding technology the Imperial Eye had showed her how to project and she began to take on supervision of workers in the factory. Letch would demonstrate how to construct a module and Kira would simply ensure that those standards were being met. Not fully understanding the function of these plants didn't stop her from measuring a part of approving it or rejecting it. Kira was also able to keep better tabs on Letch with her nose out of the books. She noticed he had a lot of female visitors who had a lot of conspicuous cybernetics, not that that surprised her anymore. She made a note of it as a way to control him.
   Before the end of 30 days word was sent from the APRF that the Power Plant was completed and would be delivered. In just three days a freight hopper landed above the bay and workers started loading crates down into the ship. The Scravers had managed to jimmy the cargo bay doors open and aired out the engineering area with fans. Letch and Kira performed the installation over several hours, restoring power to the vessel after a number of system's tests. The reclamation crew cheered and hollered and drinks were poured. Crafter Letch presented formal papers establishing his rights to 10% of the ship and her profits and reluctantly the other owners signed him in. Kira wasn't so satisfied with the deal so she suggested Letch might have to refund some of his share because she did most of the work constructing the power plant. He just smiled and suggested she choose the percentage of the power plant she'd like to return to him. She persisted and he just smiled and finally told her that she has been hinting at how much she'd like further enhancement, if she'd like to upgrade her eyes she may pay the price of one eye and he'd gracefully buy the other. She was taken aback and unsettled by his fetishism. At the end of the day she flew back to her training with Letch, thinking about the eyes she might have installed.
   Days later in Tikal a skimmer arrived with a guest, it was Harmon's man Maeve. Maeve had completely changed his look, now dressed in tight clothes with a golden afro. The sight of it was almost enough to make Ian laugh. Maeve made some small talk about how things were going and gave a few Scravers on the contract a nod and smile of recognition before going into Sakura's tent with Ian to talk shop. He had a job form Boss Harmon; there were 4 coffins-sized containers being transported on a train from Avalonia to Susa in one week's time. Maeve warned that the cases were being transported in a Tithe car for the Cathedral and would probably have half-a-dozen guards. Harmon wanted them pitched off of the train along the massive train bridge stretching across the southern straights between the continents where a boat waiting at the first bridge support would collect them and go. The job paid 5000 FB for all four cases, less firebirds for any less cases. Ian asked how close to the boat he had to get the cases and Maeve reiterated what Ian was being paid for all four cases getting into the boat.
   Ian flew down to Carlion and called out to the Engineers APRF to talk to Kira. He told her about the job and that he'd pick her up the day before and drop her off the next morning. He took a train ride down to Susa to get a look at the train. It was a Duraplast and aluminum bullet train but rarely traveled faster than about 100 mph. It was comfortable and most everyone slept on the long trip. He found the town of Susa strange and off-putting. It was dirtier and rougher than he was expecting and as a visitor he only had access to a tiny row of restaurants and inns, not permitted into the city proper. He camped a few miles down the tracks and in the morning he woke early and began crossing the passenger span on the bridge. He studied where he hoped to attack the train and found the drop very severe. There was nowhere on the tracks to land the skimmer so he'd have to try to come in on the train or land on top of it. He caught the train again in Susa as he returned from Avalonia and rode it back. On the return trip he realized each car had an emergency break so if he or Kira were on board they could stop the train where they wanted. He arrived just in time to get 4 hours of sleep, fuel up the skimmer and fly out to the Engineers APRF to grab Kira.
   Kira had found some time while Crafter Letch wasn't occupied and interrupted his drafting in his private quarters to talk to him. She explained that she had a family emergency and needed time away. Letch didn't like the sound of it but asked her how long ago her last break was. She said she had been working uninterruptedly since she arrived, a small lie. Letch seemed sympathetic and told her to take half a day and give his respects to her family. Kira was almost angry at how little he afforded her but she wasn't going to fight him for it.
   When Ian landed to pick up Kira she was packed and ready for the fight. He tried to explain all of the details of the job to her while flying and rushing to get her on the train. He explained he just needed her to pull the emergency stop when they reached the bridge and to be near the rear of the train to back him up. Kira had some other stuff going on in her mind and didn't really listen as well as she could. He shoved her onto the train and ran to get in the skimmer car and go get into position ready to ambush the train and ditch it's cargo.
   Kira sat on the train patiently at first. She made a note of the emergency pull for the brake and thought of how she'd inconspicuously pull it when the time came. She looked over the 5-talon rail map she had purchased at the little stand that sold candy and other snacks. She didn't see any good point of reference for where the bridge began so she'd just have to watch vigilantly. She noticed people getting up and moving around the train so she thought she'd go investigate what's going on in the other cars. At the rear of the passenger cars she spotted a conductor distractedly doing some book entry of some kind. She decided she'd like a closer took at the tithe care at the rear of the train so she rushed to him and whispered fearfully "I think I saw a man in the car before this one with a gun, I don't know what he's doing is there a constable on the train?" the conductor leaned around his little alcove to a woman curled up sleeping across two seats and mentioned there was a suspicious character in car six. The woman got up and spoke quietly with the conductor. Meanwhile Kira crept out the back of the train car undetected.
  Deep in the Southern pines about 12 miles from the bridge head Ian was sitting on the hood of the skimmer car down a logging road from the train tracks, keeping a close eye out for a train that should be passing soon. He was keeping warm with a thermos of tea that had long gone cold. Suddenly overhead he heard the drum of contragav engines as two massive hoppers slowly drifted by. He didn't know the territory down in this part of Rampart well but he didn't think there were any cities in the direction they were travelling or where they were going. They vanished over the tops of the trees across the road. He didn't think they spotted him. With all the noise he hadn't realized the train was coming until it was zipping past the road. He jumped into the skimmer and started to pursue it.
  In the the blustery space between passenger and cargo cars, Kira pulled out a tube of molecular adhesive and squished a few applications into the door jamb leading back into the passenger car to keep passengers out of her business. She proceeded into the freight car, cutting cargo nets open and letting goods fall to the floor to hinder those that might pursue her back through the car. She found the door to the rear of the car locked so she put three rounds through it and used a metal box she found to beat it until the door latch fell off and she opened the door into the space between the last two cars. She slipped up to the door to the tithe car and peered into it's barred window. A quick glance showed a group of men in the center of the car sitting among crates and boxes. She dared a second longer look into the car, seeing soldiers playing cards on a makeshift table next to the big coffin-containers and a man in Church livery and heavy armor lazing on a stack of rice sacks, probably a knight. Sadly this time one of the soldiers made eye contact and started to get up.
   Kira, not sure what she was doing at this point and lacking a plan just started banging on the door and trying to demonstrate that she couldn't explain what was going on with the door closed. The soldier, alarmed but not terribly freaked out watched her pantomime for a bit before checking with the others and opening the door "Hey, I don't know how you got back here but this is a private car and you have to go back.." Kira somehow managed an appealingly warm smile and pleaded "Oh come on. I heard you guys have a game going back here and I'm dying of boredom, please can I play just one hand?". Everyone in the Tithe car seemed to understand this was a bad idea but they were won over by the excitingly strange woman and after the knight offered no objection they helped her into the tithe car and found her a seat around the table. One hand was over very quickly without a chance to gather any more information and surely someone would eventually realize the door was glued shut. One of the soldiers was getting up and escorting Kira back out of the car despite her tame protests and questions about what they were doing back here.
   Finally at the door of the train car Kira sighed, drew her rapier and ran the guard through the gut. Everyone was caught flat-footed and the lazy knight actually fell off his pile of rice sacks in shock. Men scrambled for rifles or cover. Kira pulled her Rip-roarer and put two rounds into one of the solders, hitting him solidly in the thigh and taking him down. There were two rifles shots returned, then the sounds of reloading. Kira couldn't believe it, she charged the men firing into one of them and wounding him. As she neared the bags of rice the night burst forward and trapped her gun against the stack with his pistol and quickdrew his vibrosaber which Kira tied up with her rapier. The night looked at her through the visor of his duraplast helm "Hey, calm down.. what do you want?". Kira huffed and puffed at him, shifting her grasp on her weapons looking for a way to strike without being attacked "I just wanted to see those containers but you wouldn't let me.." The knight swallowed and nodded "How about this.. you can look at the containers, then you're going to put your weapons down and we'll be more relaxed ok?" The Soldiers looked rattled but didn't want to shoot the crazy woman while she was tangled with their knight. Kira shifted anxiously and slowly lowered her weapons, edging around the knight to look at the big coffins. They were refrigerator units, with a window that showed tiny bags of fluid on racks, well that didn't make her less curious. She examined the case and started looking for a way to open it before the knight spoke up "Ok, you've had your look, now you keep up your end and put your weapons down..". Suddenly Kira saw the bridgehead shoot by the rear window of the train and she noticed an emergency stop pull on the wall behind the knight. She was going to have to get by him quickly.
   Soaring above the train Ian was lining up his landing when he spotted those Fright Hoppers coming in from behind. They were definitely going to pull some bullshit. He patiently watched the train approach the bridge, roll past the bridge head and nothing, fucking Kira he was going to have to land on a moving.. oh wait.. there's the breaks, sparking kicking up from the wheels as the engineer tried to right the breaking. He kicked on the landing software and tried to lock on the top of the tithe car. All he had to do was dump that cargo before these dicks in the hoppers get in his way.
   Below in the Tithe car everything lurched forward, people grabbing onto what they could for support as the train braked sharply, screeching down the tracks. Kira saw her opening and just shoved past the knight out the back of the train, shoving the door closed between them. She could see Ian settling down above, that was a mission accomplished in her book. Although, if she didn't pull the brake who did? She leaned around the side of the decelerating train she climbed up the ladder to the roof.
   Ian was shutting the engines down and trying to get Kira on his whisper pin when all of a sudden he saw someone clawing their way up on the front of the tithe car, it was an angry-looking church knight armed with vibrosaber and pistol. He quickly popped open the canopy on the skimmer and pulled up his rifle. The knight charged him to get cover on the front of the skimmer as Ian began blowing big-bore rounds through the roof of the train car, parts of the knight and the hood of the skimmer car. He stood there freaked out aiming at the hood of the car waiting for her to pop up as Kira walked up "What are you shooting at?". Ian swallowed "Crazy church knight.. I think I got her but I don't know if she's dead.. check it out?". Kira snerked at Ian "Why me? You've got a rifle?". Ian, maybe a little afraid of how quickly she closed ground adjusted the rifle against his shoulder and held aim "Just go look and see if she's dead.." Kira leaned around the edge of the skimmer car and round a river of blood running down the side of the train car from a crumpled armored form. She prodded it with her rapier, then stuck it with no reaction "Yeah.. dead.." She spotted the hilt of a vibro saber still rattling in the grill of the air car and turned it off before drawing it out of the mechanics of the skimmer "She may have gotten you though..". And just then the two big black hoppers glided to a stop over the tithe car and masked faces peered down over the side at Ian and Kira. Ian couldn't see any livery on the vessels before but at this range he could see that their emblem facing had deliberately be covered with tarps. Yeah, they were here to fuck some shit up.
   Ian told Kira to cut a hole in the roof of the Tithe car with the vibro sword while he kept an eye on the hoppers above. He could see armored crewmen with submachineguns edging out along the hopper frame and dropping cargo cables down along the train car. Their movements looked somehow wrong. They had digitigrade legs, they were changed like the Hounds. While Kira was cutting away one of the hopper crew slid abruptly down a load cable and landed on the train car behind the skimmer, hands held out in a don't shoot me gesture but Kira drew her pistol once more and Ian raised his gun just in case it spoke muffledly from behind a mask "Hey.. put it down.. there's a lot of guns up there and they're going to shoot you a lot if you threaten us.. He says we don't have to fight..". Ian lowered the Hazat Battle Rifle "What do you mean 'He'?". The tall skinny changed gestured at the roof of the train with his empty hands "Down-down.. I don't want to get shot when they tear you apart..". Ian looked up, the faces peering back all hand gun barrels not pointed directly at him, more like 'hey, look, it's a ton of guns up here..' he tossed his rifle into the back of the skimmer and immediately the changed descended in droves from both hoppers, climbing down the sides of the car and bracing the doors shut below. The one who had been doing the talking cocked his head to the side while pressing his helmet to his ear, then stood a little taller and pulled down his mask to show off his feline features proudly "Dr, Corruthers says you can come with us, are you staying or going?". Ian was perplexed by the choices and he looked to Kira who seemed to have no better understanding until the cables went taught and the Tithe car shifted under their feet and the skimmer skidded atop it "Oh shit!". The speaker for the changed gestured up at the hoppers and cargo netting was thrown down, he barked in a foreign language and more of the 'sky pirates' climbed up the car and began webbing the skimmer to their stolen train car as the hopper's contravrav engines grinded to life and begin to carry the it away over the water into the sunset.
   The trip was short but at harrowing speed the rush of water below gave way to tree-tops just a few meters away. Ian and Kira gripped the cargo netting holding their leased skimmer and the changed all seemed to just grapple onto something and fearlessly fly along, many with hooks seemingly designed for their sky-pirate lifestyle. Down below there was a lot of commotion and shouting in the car, nobody could hear it over the engines but the shit was definitely hitting the fan. In just under an hour the hoppers descended and set down in a clearing on either side of the train car. Ian and Kira climbed down with the friendly assistance of their new pirate buddies and the other team moved into position ready to breach the train. Ian could see someone was giving orders on the other end of the train but with pirates stacked up there wasn't a way to get over there without getting in the firing line so he just scurried under the train car like a rat. As he emerged a tall masked man wearing tech gear and synth clothes rushed forward to offer him a hand up.
   Changed raiders threw choke-gas grenades into the car and there was a limited amount of gunfire before people came stumbling out of the enclosed space with their hands up, pulled to the ground and restrained. The leader of the raiders pushed aside a light machinegun strapped over his shoulder and pulled down his mask. He looked Ian over with a smile as he led him away from the train car "Watch your head son.. I figured we'd probably run into one another sooner or later.. I'm Dr. Corruthers.". Ian stared searchingly up at the face of a man he had no way of recognizing but recognized like a reflection of himself "You're my father." his tone matter of fact. Dr Corruthers smirked Ian's smirk and nodded "I am what passes for that.. I'm sorry I wasn't around for you son. Our people do a lot of things well but family isn't one of them.. I'm glad you've made your way in the worlds well.". "Ian looked at the guards being detained and his fathers little army of changed cat-people "This was a job for me Dad.. a lot of Firebirds, what's your gain?". His father looked at Ian a bit judgmentally for a moment "It's altruism... this car is carrying a cure for a plague. I'm making sure it gets to those the church would deny it to." Ian raised dubious a brow at the folk-hero nonsense coming out of Dr. Corruther's mouth "You're saying the Church let loose a plague to kill the changed?". Dr. Corruthers chuckled at how absurd his claim sounded "Maybe not let loose... But certainly the Church isn't breaking a sweat to save these people..". That was a lot easier for Ian to accept. They bickered over the loot a brief bit before it was decided that the Dr. was taking the serum, save five doses he'd gladly give his son and his friends and Ian and Kira would take what they want from the train car.
   Kira was eyeing the knight she had faced off against. It was problematic leaving a witness that had seen her face and she didn't much like that she had fought him and both of them were living, it left a sort of lack of closure. When she had heard Ian and the Dr. come to terms with the loot she drew her rapier and gesture at the prisoners "So I can kill them?". The Church knight spoke up quickly "Whoah.. wait.. we're not a threat to you. You've beat us fairly, you have our weapons, show us some mercy, let us go free. We won't complicate things for you." Kira smirked "You're not going to tell the Church who robbed them? I'm doubtful..". The knight frowned and looked at his men bleeding and beaten "You're a gambling woman right? Three coin flips, if I win you let me and my men walk into the forest. If I lose you can do whatever you like to me but you let my men go free? Ok?". Kira was distractedly thinking about the most economical way to terminate the prisoners and the end of the knight's question broke her out of it. She pulled out a Firebird and showed him heads and tails. "Tails" the knight called and Kira flipped Tails, Heads, Tails. The knight sighed and breathed a a breath of relief. He stood on shaky legs and held out a hand to Kira "You're an honorable woman.. thank you for this decency.." and he helped his men onto their feet, leading them away. Ian looked at Kira in astonishment but Kira was just confused "Wait, I was supposed to kill them all if they lost and?". Ian just shook his head and shouldered his Hazat Battle Rifle, taking aim at the knight's back. Dr. Corruthers objected in soft tones "Son, they're not a threat to you..". Ian fired, dropping the unarmored knight, then picking off the two soldiers that had survived as they scrambled to escape with crippling injuries. He turned and looked angrily at Dr. Corruthers "You've given up on your guild, they aren't a threat to -you- for Kira and I those men could destroy us and everything we're fighting for. Dr. Corruthers just nodded bitterly, not seeing a good end to that fight.
   The Raiders loaded the serum onto their hoppers, disconnected the cables from the train car, and prepared to take flight. Ian approached his father before he climbed aboard "If I need to reach you how do I get in contact..". Dr. Corruthers smiled as he pulled himself aboard, shouting over the engines "There's an inn in Sazu called the Stumbling Pig, if you leave a note there I'll get it.." and he took off into the air, fading away across the treetops.
   Ian and Kira looted what was left in the train car, a strongbox with 2400 FB, some finery and a collection of easily fleeced goods they found in luggage that was stored over from the freight car and a crate of hand-crafted clocks that Kira believed was worth a good deal. Ian flew Kira back to the Advanced Power Research Facility to continue her watch and he flew back to Tikal to spend his loot resurrecting the Starship he'd already sacrificed so much for.

And so things progressed...

[This is the end of the First Book of the game.]

Session 7: A spoonful of poison

   The days that followed the confrontation with Daikang Longdong were tense but grew better. They disposed of the body of the scraver they executed, they attended to the safety of the work crew and they legitimately had some expertise at mountain survival that made the stay up in the mountains much more comfortable. The Daikang took up their own camp in a separate storage room in the hangar bay, there was always one on watch and always one on patrol. Ian was absorbed in the potential cost of this gamble, finding himself doubting his earlier zeal now that blood and been spilled and frozen to the floor. Sakura was struggling keeping her polite composure dealing with the disrespectful Diakang. Kira was coldly calculating how best poison the Daikang, they weren't offering much for the cost of keeping them and they were sure to turn on her and Ian when they'd rather they not. Worse still was the crawling progress of any repairs on ship's systems without power.
   Word came back that the Senior Engineer Hume had referred them to was excited to examine the power plant and was arriving the following day. Ian decided it would be best to take Sakura and get her out to Carllion to take care of some business. Kira politely asked to come along. Ian knocked on a few Guild Counters to see about help with the financing but even his own guild was unwilling to advance him funds without taking a share in the ship. They purchase the rice and heating oil they bargained for with the Diakang as well as a few other necessities, Kira invested in some new glassware and condensing agents for making poisons and some Blue Camiya beans, a local flora that when overcooked made people who at it dangerously sick. Both Ian and Kira discovered that guild-fees from their recent clandestine work had caused a recalculation and both of them had promoted to full vested work within the guild. It didn't mean a great deal in Firebirds but there were a lot of nice benefits, like not having to pay to have the laundry they brought with them washed in the guild barracks.
   They met Crafter Uther Letch on the landing pad when his flitter came into Carllion. He was a pleasant but unattractive old man. He naturally began ordering Kira around to carry his things and answer his questions about the ship and it's locaiton. And stranger still Kira went along with it, recognizing  and respecting the man's power within the Guild.
  They stopped back in Lawton to check on a few things and Kira made a distillation of a Ricin-like poison out of the Camiya. They hurried back to the mountain and as they set down and were unloading the skimmer Kira poured the Ricin impregnated in an oil into the rice being given to the Daikang. She instantly realized how sloppy of an idea this was as she watched Scravers loading the heavy rice bags dripping with poison down into the hangar bay with bare hands.
   Letch was very excited to see the Starship but troubled by it's condition. He donned a filter mask and went in to analyze the power plant of the ship. Everyone else set about preparing for the long night. Letch slept briefly and continued his work. Time away didn't make things more comfortable for Sakura and she found herself in constant stand-offs with the Daikang. Everyone was on edge with a feeling that someone was watching them and Ian had to admit he had a crawling sensation in his skin since he returned.
   Ian set out to look around Tikal Village just to settle his anxiety and Kira not wanting to be bossed around by Crafter Letch. Kira noticed a pair of the Diakang guards were following them some ways back. She wasn't sure what to think about that. While out and about they spotted a girl in white watching them, very obviously trying to stay hidden in the snowy streets. They both gave chase, determined to find out who was spying on them. However, their zeal led them directly into a trap as the girl ran into a box courtyard and a massive armored Vorox bearing Muster livery stepped quietly out from under the eaves of the building behind them. The girl in white drew a pistol and said in a soft voice "Ian Corruthers, We have a warrant for your arrest for trafficking in illicit technologies, Don't resist..". Kira smiles blushingly at the big alien and held out her hand to shake his. The Vorrox's massive eyes smiled from under the visor of his duraplast knight's helm causing Kira's stomach to knot.
  Ian, of course, resisted. He quickdrawed his pistol and took aim on the girl. He simultaniously was hit in the back by an energy weapon fired from inside one of the ruined mountain shacks in the village and there was an explosion of birds rising up into the sky as he felt a sensation not unlike someone crushing his brain with their thumb, suddenly his mind was filled with the idea that now would be a good time to lay down arms and not get anyone hurt... fuck that. The big 4-armed alien tightened his grip on Kira's hand as she started to pull away and he warned her "Don't..". Ian fired on the girl in white and charged at her. He felt another blast from that energy weapon hit his skull and he felt surging pain in his skull, staggering in his charge but not falling unconscious. The girl in white pulled a gun but Ian grabbed hold of her and wrung her around to use as a shield. Kira wrestled with the Vorox, loosing leverage and being put down into the snow while he casually drew a splinter rifle and put a pair of drugged spikes through Ian's synthsylk. Ian shoved his pistol into the psychic's throat and struggled to keep his footing as he felt the drugs sapping his strength and the aching pain from the stunner swooning him. From inside the building they could hear a voice shout "Witch, don't do it.. we need him alive.. Don't you fucking do it! Fuck Jimmy grab him before he pops!". The big Vorox just hurled Kira away into a snow bank, dropped to all fours and charged Ian and the psychic girl shouting "I'm on it.." Ian saw the huge alien coming at him and just winced and threw the girl at him, but they were both slammed under the big beast. After a quick struggle the girl was ejected from between them by hands Ian couldn't' even see and he was utterly pinned by the Jimmy the Vorox's 6 arms. Kira got to her feet and got out her gun, putting three rounds into the Vorox's back but it wasn't enough to punch through his armor. Another shot came out of the darkened shack, this time striking Kira's synthsilk mittens, it stung but not badly. She took aim on the Vorox, walking towards him as a figure in black burst out of the shack and grabbed hold of her and twisted the riproarer from her hand before she could fire. He turned and shouted at the Vorox "Jimmy, we're shutting it down, pack up and run..". Ian pulled his arms loose from the Vorox's hold and grabbed the beasts neck, wrenching it hard but not as hard as the huge alien's corded neck muscles. Still Jimmy the Vorox was not pleased, staring at Ian wide-eyed. He dropped the fusing grenades he had clutched in his big hands and began pummeling Ian's pinned body.
   The grenades under Ian's arms exploded in huge plumes of gas and just like that the mighty Vorrox released him and vanished into the white cloud. Ian clutched his breath mask and tried to fight his way onto his feet and find his pistol in the snow. Kira and the man in black were also overtaken by the cloud. She quickly snatched the weapon he had sheathed on his belt but wasn't expecting the wobbly shaft of a frap stick and her attempt to strike him went-wild. The man in black  yanked her breathmask down and ran followed by something huge lumbering through the cloud of gas. Kira had to slow down to fix her mask but instead of giving chase she went deeper into the cloud shouting for Ian.
   They found each other by yelling out and lead each other out of the cloud and found the two Daikang soldiers waiting just outside of the gas to lead them out. Ian could see the Vorrox in the neighborhood below hurrying towards the mountain gate out of the village. He drew is vibrosword and handed his revolver off to Kira "If they make it to the gate we won't know what they'll come at us with next. One of the Daikang soldiers tried to point out the stupidity of charging after trained Ashtati while wounded but Ian and Kira were already pushing past him. Ian charged after the Vorrox carrying the psychic girl and Kira bounded over an disused animal pen trying to find a shortcut.
  Kira came around the corner quickly on the man in black, she recovered quickly and drew and fired her gun, hitting him twice in the face at point blank range before he could get a weapon out and then the smoke grenade he had just dropped went off, losing her in a cloud of dark blue smoke. Ian rounded two village homes in the twisting streets and lost sight of the Vorox, even knowing where he was going he knew he was losing ground on the galloping alien. He turned back to go help Kira.
  As the smoke cleared Kira was safe and the man in black was very dead. The two of them walked back to the town gates and looked down the winding trail to see the Vorox just a hundred or so meters down. Ian contemplated giving chase, the icy path was treacherous and there was a good chance they could kill the Vorox with a fall. But then he caught sight of the psychic staring back up at him, he said "This isn't over, you're going to pay for murdering Bagger you slag." to no one in particular and then before he could catch himself he lobbed his still-running vibrosaber over the mountain, watching it tumble until it caught in a crag. The psychic on the Vorrox's back flipped him off with both hands as she was carried down the path. Ian was pretty sure aiming a gun at the duo would be much more dangerous. He retreated with Kira and the Daikang Soldiers.
   Back in the hanger bay Mistress Aiko plucked the drugged needles out of Ian's back and let him sleep off the beating he took. Kira checked in on Hume and Crafter Letch who were oblivious to the chaos that had the rest of the camp going mad. Hume said that they were making progress diagnosing the drive but that the Crafter wasn't happy to be working in such a toxic environment so Kira had the Scravers concentrate on clearing the fungus that was growing in engineering out. While Crafter Letch slept, Kira slipped away with his think machine and cracked his password, a skill taught to her by her handlers in The Eye. She looked over his personal files for any signs of malice and found none, but she did find a truely massive archive of porn. Most of the shots looked like they were taken by the same person all of the women in various states of debauchery were cybernetically modified, an idea that unsettled her.
   Later that night Ian and Kira found out that two of the Scravers and one of the Daikang soldiers were too sick to eat. Crafter Letch emerged from the ship and stripped off his protective gear and held a meeting in Sakura's quarters for the ship owners. He described the state of the plant as "Encouraging" that one of the catalizers for their fusion plant was shot but since the generator was duel-core it could run at half-power with very little work. The other would have to have it's catalizer completely rebuilt and the entire cost of the work would be just under 12,000 Fb. If they have the means to repair the plant he would begin work immediately or if they don't he would agree to be a 10% share holder in the ship in exchange for the repairs of the power planet, but due-paying work would have to take precedent. He told them he understood it was a large decision and he would be another day evaluating the drives and forming a parts list before he departs, they have until then to talk it over. Oddly Ian and Lady Sakura agreed that it was too much to sacrifice for drive, but Kira and Aiko believed that there was no sacrifice until the ship is working.
   The following day half of the camp was showing signs of some kind of toxin and Kira was very nervous about the poisoned rice. Genin Fox finally came to Lady Sakura and explained that her people were going to have to go back to town for medical care. Kira wasn't feeling well but after sleeping on it she noticed that those that got ill the quickest were those with the longest exposure to the ship. She suspected the fungus growing in the ship was toxic. She suited up and got samples of the blue glowing fungus and went back to town with the others who were getting sicker. Ian who had spent very little time in the ship, met with Crafter Letch and Sakura. After looking over a complete estimation of parts Sakura began to waiver under the costs and they decided to take Crafter Letch's offer to carry the expense of repairing the power plant of the ship for a 10% share in the vessel.
   Back in Lawton, Kira worked on samples of the fungus with her limited tools and deteriorating health. She found that the spores from the fungus were fatally toxic in larger doses but even a brief exposure can cause a fungal infection that spreads. The fungus was delicate enough and could be eradicated from the system with a mild dose of a modification of the Ricin poison she had distilled to kill the Daikang Longdong, but more-so the ship could be easily cleaned of the fungus with an airborne version of the anti-fungal poison. She tried the poison cure on herself first and when she didn't croak she replicated the cure and brought it to the Scravers.
   The next day the Scravers were vomiting up black crud but their health was improving. Ian and Sakura came to collect Kira and fly Crafter Letch back to Carllion to catch his flight back to the Engineer's research enclave. They stopped at the Reeves and modified their claim to give Letch 10% of the ship and he had the Engineer's guild pack parts of the fusion Generator to come back to the enclave with him. While boxing up the parts he brought along with him he talked with Kira and offered her a an opportunity to apprentice at the enclave to learn how to make advanced fusion generators. As much as she felt the gravity of the offer she asked for a day to think about it. She respected Letch, but not in a way that made her want to be alone with the man. Ian took advantage of the time waiting in Carllion to stop at the Scraver's guild and send word to Boss Harmon that he wanted to meet.
   With Letch on his flight home, the three of them flew back to check on the ship and found the Scravers back at camp and looking much better. They were unloading supplies and getting the campsite operational again. As Kira came in they called her into the Scravers tent and gave her a cake, at first she was nervous and not sure if this was some sort of clumsy poisoning attempt but the guildsmen were genuinely appreciative that she saved them from fungal poisoning and wanted to show their gratitude so they all pitched in. Later as Kira ate cake in Lady Sakura's tent with Ian she brought up Letch's offer and everyone agreed it was likely too good of a deal to not take advantage of, and Ian mentioned it would give her eyes on Letch until the power plant was repaired.
   The Next afternoon Genin Fox came to Ian to tell him that word had been passed back to her through the guild that Boss Harmon wanted to meet him that night for the last showing at the Grand Royale. He and Kira quickly made excuses, hopped in the skimmer and took flight across the ocean. They set down in Avalonia and raced to the theater, paying for tickets and taking their seats. About halfway through the show Boss Harmon walked in and took a seat next to Ian while the show ran. The two of them talked about the possibility of negotiating funding while Kira kept a nervous watch out for a double-cross. Harmon said he has a lot of work for a non-Scraver without reservations and he has connections at some of the biggest scrapyards on the planet. He was in a unique position to deliver exactly what Ian wanted. He complimented Ian for taking a shit deal like a pro, it showed character and Harmon admired that. He told them that his man Maeve would be in touch about jobs and then he Scraver Boss faded out of sight, just another hologram projected by the theater.
   The two flew back to Tikal's Mountain hangar talking about the risk and reward of working for Harmon but ultimately it came down to there being nobody else right now paying them. They set down and Kira packed her bags. Ian flew her to Carllion. She contacted Crafter Letch to tell him she was accepting his offer. Five hours of sleeping in the skimmer later Ian got her on her early morning flight and she left for the Advanced Power Research Facility in Acadia.

Session 6: Rising Above

   Ian was woken by a firm knocking at his door. It was well into the morning. He had become too accustomed to lazy mornings on the shuttle and had overslept on a day of important plans. He rolled out of his hammock in his empty rental house and pulled on his flight suit to answer the door. However it wasn't Lady Sakura waiting on him but rather the tall imposing blue-haired figure of Scraver Boss Lula Blue. She was flanked by a pair of big rough-looking Scravers holding heavy wooden boxes. She flashed a salesman smile at Ian and held out her arms in a cordial gesture "Welcome to your new home Charioteer.." she had her men set down boxes full of kitchen wares and towels and blankets "I brought you a few things to start out. I'm sure you would be short on the basics living on the shuttle for so long.." Ian was genuinely flattered by the thoughtfulness of the gesture but resented the sudden thoughtfulness in lieu of the contentious arrangement. He muttered a grouchy "Thanks". Boss Blue continued as she walked into his home uninvited and looked around thoughtfully "If we're going to be partners in your little endeavor it's wise for us to start out on a good footing. We have a lot of coordination to discuss before we go up to the ship.." Ian had sort of hoped that they would go up to Tikal and the Scravers would be left out of the loop until they wanted to deal with them, "Boss Blue, this is really a thoughtful gesture but I need to speak with my partners before we move on to discussions with your guild, give us a little time.." Lula forced a smile, it looks like she could have forced it better but wanted Ian to know it was a forced gesture "Of course, look at me.. I've shaken you out of your bunk, please forgive my eagerness. I'll be in my offices today and if you need to come by tomorrow to talk business you can have your Lady make an appointment. Looking forward to working with you Charioteer.." She raised her hand and waved her goons out of Ian's house, leaving him cursing and hurrying to dress. They had to get up to Tikal now!
   Kira woke early and picked over some of the Luxe leftovers she had stored in the Engineer's hall refrigeration cabinet. They did not keep well. The bulk of her fellows raced to get ready and soon she was alone with Apprentice Hume who was packing up his things. She sat down with him to explain that she and Ian were meeting with The Lady today to make plans and they should be going up to the ship within the next few days. Hume was confused and explained that the Scravers were taking him up to the ship today. Kira was blindsided and didn't want to tip her hand about plans to cut out the Scravers. She asked Hume if the Scravers even knew where the ship was. Hume only seemed more confused "I thought that was why you and Ian were coming along.." Kira was caught off-gaurd and not a fantastic liar so she smiled awkwardly and explained "Oh there's a plan don't worry.." Their conversation was cut short when an autowagon outside started honking it's horn. Hume ran to check the lot outside and Kira could see it was one of the Scraver buses. Hume asked her if she was ready to go and she shook her head, explaining she had to meet with Lady Sakura first. Hume told her he'd see her in Tikal, grabbed is toolbags and dragged them out to the bus. Kira needed to find Ian.
   Kira ran to Ian's home and caught up to him just as he had taken care of food and water for Pork Rind and was headed out to find her. She explained that Hume was "on his way" to the ship with the Scravers so they decided they needed to get Sakura and get up to the ship right away. Later at the Palace Sakrura calmed their panic and explained that the Scravers would still need time to get up an icy mountain to reach Tikal, then find the ship. Ian suggested that they go up in Baron Naganaka's flitter. Sakura diplomatically explained that her father was an agricultural baron, he doesn't have a flitter. Ian suggested using the Shuttle instead and Sakura explained that her father was never going to let Ian use his Shuttle and even asking him is a bad idea unless the want to involve House Li-Halan in the reclamation of a lost starship. For the same reason she didn't want her father's house guard involved unless there was no other choice. She suggested Ian use his guilt contacts to get something he could fly and they agreed they'd go out to Carllion the following day to talk to the Charioteer's guild. Ian and Kira spent the rest of the day in town shopping for expedition gear to stay up on the mountain.
   Early the next morning Sakura's coach arrived at Kira and Ian's homes to collect them. A fully recovered Mistress Aiko knocking at their door chipper and smiling conspiratorially "It's time to go Partner..". The usually long drive into town seemed like it wasn't long enough for all of the planning they did as one suggestion launched a dozen questions of how goals would be achieved or paid for. As they drove into town Sakura explained she had some diplomatic responsibilities in town and would find Kira and Ian later. The guilders went to the Charioteer's Guild, a decidedly classier guild office than they were used to It was more like a salon than a guild counter, Boatswain Phillip looking more like a Reeve than a Charioteer except his wheel livery on his Synthsilk Kimono. They put in a request to find a local charioteer with a flitter or skimmer that would be willing to rent it out for a few months and were told to check back in at the end of the day. As the were walking out a man in black synth jacket stoped them in the doorway and showed Ian his Kilroy Badge "A moment of your time Apprentice Corruthers." making the question sound very much like a statement of fact.
  Ian followed the Kilroy into the back where another man in black stood wearing shaded spectacles. They introduced themselves as Mr. Bridge and Mr. Hold and they emphasized the importance of the alleged starship he was trying to reclaim be registered with the Charioteer's Wheel on it's tail, that recent liberal permissions of the guild had weakened it's patent and that every opportunity to maintain guild control of new registrations was essential.
   Ian left his unexpected meeting with the Kilroys a bit shaken. They wandered the town shopping and Ian picked up his fitted armor. They checked in with the guild hall later to find a response from a local Charioteer willing to rent.
   Ian and Kira climbed the road out of town to a cliff-side manor for a Charioteer Captain EJ Smith. Lady Sakura and Aiko squawked them on the way and joined them up at the manor. Smith was the kind of Charioteer every Charioteer wanted to be, heavy in rank with enough connections that you can just buy a house somewhere beautiful and live off of your share in different enterprises. He was a little leery of the scrappy Charioteer and Engineer that wanted to rent his skimmer but comforted by a House Li-Halan noble in the mix. His Skimmer was and older model air-car, roomy and comfortable but a bit worn. They agreed on a rental price of 65 FB per month and Sakura transferred their belongings into the Air Car, sending her driver home with her Autocoach and they flew back to Lawton.
   Ian set down in the street outside his house and they started loading supplies for the mountain. Pork Rind was in a mood. She had torn down his hammock and scattered his bedding. They packed up rations and some firewood and put out more food for the dog before taking flight again. The 8 hour climb up to Tikal was a 30 minute flight. As they crested into the town at night the clouds were low enough to ruin visibility but the Air Car's sensor system made the landing easy. As the set down they could see the Blue Tours hopper up on the factory parade field. When they investigated it it was empty but they could hear shouting from below in the bay. They crept down the stairs to that lower landing where they saw the ship and round a Scraver armed with a shotgun waiting just inside. The standoff was brief before another Scraver ran up to calm the situation, explaining to the camp guard that these were the owners of the ship they were waiting for. The scraver introduced himself as Associate Lammy, they recognized him as one of the bus drivers that took them into the city. He led them into a small encampment inside the frigid workbay where Scravers were busily preparing for night on the Mountain.
   Lammy introduced them to Genin Fox. Fox was a young woman built like a Muster with tight synth clothes that showed off her muscles and her multi-color hair pulled back in a bun. She greeted Lady Sakura with fair etiquette and invited the owners over to a table where she outlined the status of the encampment. They found out that Hume had been working all day on cracking the airlock of the ship without success, that dinner was cooking and they were putting together a private pavilion for the lady. Fox introduced them to the rest of her 4-man crew, most of them hard at work scrubbing algae from the badly encrusted ship. The bay still had big puddles and most of it was as slippery as a soup bowl and it reeked badly from the stagnant water that had flooded the place for decades or longer. Fox explained cleaning was a lower priority but it would get taken care of eventually. While away from the Scravers, Fox confided that she has 4 men working off contract and morale is burning like a short fuse and that some kind of contract needed to be drafted soon or Boss Blue would step in. Ian wasn't going to be intimidated he told her until the door is open there's nothing to contract. Once they know if the ship is salvage or reclamation there's a contract for the Scravers, until then they're just early. Fox obviously didn't care for the answer she got but doesn't disagree either.
   The first night was cold even with coal-burning braziers, having massive bay doors in the roof opened into the mountain weather was more than their simple tents could fight off. They huddled in their blankets and fought off the cold. The morning came with the fresh stench of algae and watery coffee. Ian and Kira set about checking out the service bay. There were racks everywhere toppled and in disarray from the flooding and doors that when forced open led into big storage rooms with more gear and tools. They found three salvagable sets of mech tools and a few volt tools that were salvagable. They got a stack of old Life Support tubes that could be fixed with just a little scrubbing. As they began to gather salvage the Scravers also started grabbing gear and shifting it into a corner of the bay to claim as their own.
   Late in the afternoon after the Scravers had served lunch Hume finally cracked the airlock and cranked open the door. He and Ian put on breath masks and stepped into the ship. The air was thick with spores and fungus climbed the walls in many places having been left to run wild over the centuries. Water pooled in lower reaches of the ship with massive water damage from lifetimes of evaporation and condensation. Surprisingly a good amount of the electronics seemed to power up but the power plant was dead. Even stone cold Hume was excited about it. The power plant was peak 2nd republic technology, a legendary moun catalyzed fusion plant. The think machines on the bridge had sat cold for ages and Hume didn't expect they'd be able to do much. He imagined ships drive and parallel systems would match the splendor of the power plant. It was the most highly advanced piece of shit they had ever seen.
   While Ian explored the ship Kira explored the old Rollick offices and factory space. So much had been gutted from the building over the years it was hard to identify what the rooms were used for. She made notes and sketches in her anthopologst's notebook and daydreamed about what the factory was like during the Second Republic.
   Ian emerged and tasked Genin Fox with creating a list of what reclamation would need to be done to restore the vessel to ship-shape. When Fox brought him the list later it was long and vaguely priced. Hume noted that there was maybe one or two engineers on the planet that could work on a power plant that advanced. Later that night Ian called everyone together in the pavilion to make a decision on salvage or reclamation. They cooked food in the brazier and drank wine as they brought up pros and cons the more they discussed the more it became clear that everyone wanted a ship but nobody wanted to put any of the others in debt for it. Before they debate could become comical, Kira heard a strange beastial noise coming from outside the tent and reached for her gun. The pavilion wall behind Lady Sakura was torn open and standing behind her was a massive white canine creature, another tore open the tent behind Ian and two more stalked in through the pavilion's entrance.
   Sakura reacted quickly, rolling to her side and grabbing her vibrosaber. Ian did the same but was slow to get his sword free. The beast behind him slashed into his synthsilk but the blow didn't penetrate it's fibers. Mistress Aiko screamed and backed into the soft wall of the tent. Kira leveled her rip-roarer and begins plugging rounds into the beasts coming in through the front of the tent, red blood exploding into their white fur. The beast facing Sakura tried to slash her but found a deep gash cut into his arm from her sword instead. Ian sliced the chest of the Vulpine he faced, causing it to pour blood and roar in anger. Aiko dove for her shotgun and pushed the barrel into the chest of the monster fighting her lady, unloading both barrels to impressive effect. Ian was grabbed and dragged out of the tent. One of the Vulpine tried to swing at Kira but was tangled up in the collapsing Pavillion, the other surged past her to sideline Lady Sakura but the deadly noblelady spun away from the charge and sliced open the passing monster. Ian struggled with the beast holding him and he was thrown across the bay by it's great strength, landing on his knees. Kira kepts shooting the vulpin struggling against the collapsing tent, in the background she could see Scraver's running to her aid and soon someone with an axe began chopping the tangled beast through the tent. Sakura put down the second vulpin with a decisive stab through it's chest and Mistress Aiko dragged her out of the collapsing pavilion. The final beast seeing the battle turn began to run away but Ian raced after him recklessly and ran him through with his Vibrosaber and kept stabbing until the monster died.
   Following the attack the minor scrapes from the fight were tended to, mostly wounds from being hit by the collapse of the Lady's pavilion. Ian was furious and demanded to know what the guard was doing. Laramie the scruffy Scraver with the shotgun protested "I was taking a piss, it's not as if the latrine is very close to the camp!". Fox stepped in and called for order before weapons were drawn "Look, nobody told us to prepare for changed attacking the camp and we should have had a better plan for guarding the entry. Nobody is happy about this. We're all alive, lets make a plan, clean up the bodies and get some sleep before the workday starts?" grudgingly everyone accepted, they assigned a double-guard shift to watch the door and moved everyone into the Scraver tent to keep warm.
   The following day Lad Sakura suggested they give the Scravers some room while they flew into town to get supplies. Kira and Aiko volunteered to remain behind to oversee operations. There wasn't much to do other than watch Hume try to resurrect systems and watch the Scravers clean the hull so Ian agreed and they flew back to Lawton. Sakura stopped off to see the her family reeve and had a formal contract drawn to distribute shares of the reclamation. She had overheard her father speaking with one of the Count's Officers and the news put her on edge. While she was home she packed up a bunch of quilts and other comforts to take back up the mountain. Ian stopped at home to feed Pork Rind, but decided to bring her up the Mountain instead, she'd have to be a better guard than the Scravers. He shopped in the market for some fresh food, packed up the skimmer and flew Lady Sakura back up to Tikal.
   Kira took the day off to explore the ruins further, curious about sections of the old building that were boarded shut. She wished she had brought better tools to record what she was digging into but curiosity got the better of her. When she was halfway down a darkened staircase she heard gunshots carrying over the wind. She froze in place and waited, listening carefully for more sounds. She could hear yelling and someone sneaking into the ruins. She drew her gun and aimed at the doorway into the back reaches of the building. She could see a shadow and started aiming at it's forehead before Aiko called out in a hushed town "Miss Kira? I think we're in trouble.."
   As Ian set down in the air car and as they disembarked the work site was curiously silent. Moving to the stairs, Kira flagged him and Sakura down and motioned them into the building to let them know there had been a gunfight below and Aiko had seen some strange men in the bay. Ian and Kira decided that it would be wiser to keep Lady Sakura above, if they were Diakan Longdong they wouldn't react favorably to a Li-Halan. Reluctantly the Lady agreed. They both moved down the stairs to the entry to the bay. Kira swung around the corner with her gun drawn and saw five men near the entrance in armor with rifles and shotguns. The Scravers were lined up on the floor. She ducked back around the corner. One of the men spoke out "You low-landers sure do like to make a man wait.. how about your set down your gun and walk back in nice and slow..". Kira shouted back "How about you fuck off, we've got you outnumbered and cornered in there..". the voice called back "Drop your gun in the door way and come out with your hands up or I'll kill one of your friends in three seconds..3" Kira tried to explain they weren't her friends but the man kept counting. She called his bluff and there was a loud echoing gun report followed by the sound of Scravers squirming in fear. Before Kira could collect her wits the voice casually said "Lets do another.. 3.." Kira paniced and shouted back "FUCK YOU YOU BASTARD" drowning out the 2 and 1 while the Scravers protested with escalating urgency and there was another Gunshot.
   Ian yanked Kira back from the door "You're not talking anymore" and shouted out at the men around the corner "No more shooting.. I'm coming in.." he set his revolver on the floor and walked in  slowly with his hands up. There were four men behind cover with guns trained on the door and the biggest of them standing over the next living Scraver. As he saw Ian enter unarmed he nodded to him approvingly and lowered his gun "Thank you". Ian said "We're not our enemies, we have friends in Tikal.. what do you want from us. The man responded calmly "We want your shit and we want you off our mountain. Lowlanders in Tikal brings attention we don't want.". Ian nodded "We're working salvage, if we go others will just come back with more guns.. How about we give you what you want.. food? medicine? Ammunition?". Sakura overheard Ian offering insurgents bullets and just about vomited. The Daikang leader seemed to purse his lips as he looked at the work-rigging around the ship "Are you going to get her flying?". Ian nodded "I hope so..". The man looked at his team and then gave Ian a critical once-over "I've got an offer. We guard you while you fix her, keep you safe, you feed us, give us bullets and when she flies you take our men off planet..". "Ian glanced fearfully at the Scravers with bullet wounds not moving then back at the man "Where do you want to go?". The man just shrugged and said "Any planet other than this one..". Ian nodded "That's a deal.." trying to muster all of the conviction and trustworthiness he could. The big Diakang warrior dropped his assault rifle to his side and reached out, shaking hands with Ian before telling his men "It's done.. we're one side.." and slowly the Daikang fighters got out from behind cover and lowered their guns. Ian thought for a flickering moment of cutting them down while their guard was down but it seemed like there would be a better time for it.
   Kira lowered her gun and came in staring hatefully at the Daikang leader but she also understood there would be a better time. She quickly started checking the vitals on the Scravers. One of them, Laramie the guard was already dead, the Other Lammy the bus driver was fading. She quickly went to work with her first aid kit and Ian gave the Scraver kid a shot of Elixir to pull him out. And slowly, warily things just went onward.
   The Diakang Leader introduce himself as Yao Whitescar. Scravers gave the Daikang a wide berth and went back to work. The Daikang warriors disposed of Laramie's body and re-arranged the guard post with better protection on the door. The camp was shifted into one of the work rooms in the back of the bay with the Diakang warriors doing a lot of the heavy lifting. It was much more cramped but the smaller space was easier to heat. Once dinner was cooked everyone was feeling very anxious about the terrorists who had taken control of the camp but it was mostly business-as-usual.
  Sakura called Kira, Ian and Aiko aside to confide in them over dinner that she had overhead her father speaking to one of the Red Dragon Brigade Officers and the Dragons were coming to Tikal and they would need a plan to deal with them.