Edge of Night Sector Session #3 - One Ticket to Anywhere, Please!

Mouser [2126]

DRAMATIS PERSONNAE
Navy Lieutenant Raj Kundra - 4 terms - UPP 758C8C
Mechanical-1, Pilot-1, Medical-1, Jack-o-T-1, Computer-0

Other Durjan Hammill - 3 terms - UPP A69467
Gambling-3, Forgery-1, Brawling-1, Shotgun-1, Streetwise-0

Army Lieutenant Bill Fisker - 1 term - UPP C643C9
Rifle-1, SMG-2, Admin-0

Navy Lieutenant Alexi Kurigane- 2 terms - UPP AB8579
Vacc Suit-3, Ships Boat-1, Sword-1

Army Major Leif Vilchis - 2 terms - UPP 5A77A9
Admin-1, Rifle-2, Fwd Obs -1, Blade-1, Leader -1, SMG-1, Tactics-1

While recovering from his wounds in hospital, Mr. Kurigane was approached by a doctor (not his treating physician) by the name of Dr. Nixon. Having heard of the lieutenant's encounter with a panther locust, she had a job offer for him. He husband, a senior manager at a remote Consolidated Interstellar mining site, has gone missing. He never returned from hunting panther locusts with a few work colleagues.  His as his hunting companions claim he was killed and eaten by one of the beasts.  But she is convinced he is still alive and offers 30000Cr if the party will go and bring him back alive; 10000Cr if they bring back his body if he is dead. Mr. Kurigane discussed it with his companions, but they decided it best to finish the Kinunir job and then get off world ASAP.  

The party rented a pair of rooms at a starport hotel, then left a message for their mystery employer in the designated starport locker. And then waited. Finally had a reply after six days; the gentleman would come to meet them. Meeting in their hotel room, the exchange went without a hitch. Once assured the data was real and everything was on the up and up, their employer summoned his men to bring the cash; a briefcase containing 200000Cr plasticredits. Inquiring as to any other possible employment (or even a way off-world), the gentlemen suggested it best if they part ways for now. His sources have told him General Shipyards has discovered the data breach and sent word to Concordance Naval Intelligence on Anitgone [2236]. He expects an investigation team to be on-world in a few weeks, and suggests they all need to leave before the investigators arrive. 

Making no argument, the party checked out of their rooms and headed up the beanstalk to the orbital highport, looking for passage to anywhere but here. There were two ships leaving that day: a free trader bound for Buna Cava [2025] (a corporate waterworld run by Seaharvester Corporation) and a scout/courier headed to Mouser [2126] (a moon orbiting the inner gas giant of the systems star, once a massive naval complex, and now a maze of overpopulated subterranean warrens  run by various cartels.) They opted for the later, and soon were in jump aboard the "Space Ghost" under the command of the grizzled ex-scout Jerold Simonsen. The week in jump passed without incident, and once they landed in the cavernous docking  bay, the first order of business was to cover their tracks. The party all booked low passage on a fat trader bound for Rastafar [1827], having no intention of ever boarding the ship. They instead bribed the captain to ensure they 'died' in passage.  This way everyone shed their fake identities, except Baron Kundra who was forced to kill off his real self and assume his plebeian alter-ego. At least for now.

That done, they asked Jerold if he had any contacts on Mouser, as they were interested in finding work. The old coot made a few inquiries for them:

1. "Spider" Davos is a 'fixer' looking for some help. It seems he had a line on some goods to be had for cheap. But for some reason the seller decided to do business with one of his rivals rather than take his offer. The Spider looking for hired hands to find the goods and 'recover' them for him. He'll pay them 5000Cr for doing to job.
2. A ships' captain  in a bit of a bind and is looking for help.  The cartel that controls the landing bay in which his far trader "Highliner" is docked is refusing to let him leave without paying an exorbitant ‘docking release fee’. He is looking for help in getting his ship and crew released. He’s offering 10000Cr and free passage to his next destination to anyone who can help. 
3. A scout/courier captain (Clinton Jager) representing a Tortuga merchant by the name of Malik Jupiter. Seems Malik has lost a scout/courier carrying a valuable cargo to the Crimison Wave cartel. The "Wasp" jumped from Tortuga with the cargo, but never arrived at Mouser. He wants the "Wasp" found and returned, and the cargo delivered to the Crimson Wave before they hunt him down and kill him. Pays 10000Cr each for successful completion of the job, plus high passage off-world should they need it.

The party takes on job #3. First thought is to bring Jerold in on the job, and have him take them off planet and to search. In the end his price is too high and they realized without more information, the search would be the proverbial needle in a haystack. When approached for help, Clinton did offer the use of a pinnace should they need to go search the space lanes. No jump capability, but well suited to searching among the planets and moons of the system. For now, information searching they went:

• Baron Kundra searched the public arrivals and departures database for any ship matching the description of the "Wasp". One other scout/courier arrived at the same time "Wasp" was due; the "Achilles Heel" piloted by Inigo Summers. By all accounts Inigo is male, and the pilot of the "Wasp" was a woman. "Achilles Heel" also jumped out of system a week after arrival, and did not land at the docking bays typically used by Crimson Wave. 
• Mr. Hammill hit the streets and bars for information on the pilot of the "Wasp", Nina Claire. No indication she is anything other than a reliable courier and a skilled pilot. No history of double dealing or other troubles. Also asked very discretely about Crimson Wave. Learned a little about where and how they operate. Also learned they are one of the bloodier and least 'civilized' of the cartels on Mouser. Best not to piss them off. 
• Mr. Kurigane drew on his naval background to muse on figuring out where the "Wasp" came out of jump, and then follow that vector to see if it led to the ship. A bit beyond his education and skill, but might be able to learn something useful if the right person could be hired. 
• Mr. Fisker and Mr. Vilchis went shopping for more guns and gear. Because they could here, and you never known when you might need it ...

Edge of Night Sector Session #2 - Collecting Data

DRAMATIS PERSONNAE
Navy Lieutenant Raj Kundra - 4 terms - UPP 758C8C
Mechanical-1, Pilot-1, Medical-1, Jack-o-T-1

Other Durjan Hammill - 3 terms - UPP A69467
Gambling-3, Forgery-1, Brawling-1, Shotgun-1

Army Lieutenant Bill Fisker - 1 term - UPP C643C9
Rifle-1, SMG-2

Navy Lieutenant Alexi Kurigane- 2 terms - UPP AB8579
Vacc Suit-3, Ships Boat-1, Sword-1

Army Major Leif Vilchis - 2 terms - UPP 5A77A9
Admin-1, Rifle-2, Fwd Obs -1, Blade-1, Leader -1, SMG-1, Tactics-1

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Baron Kudra and Mr. Kurigane settle into their new jobs. Mr. Kurigane is issued his sidearm and baton and gets into the routine of the various security patrols around the shipyard; regular patrols on foot and by air/raft between the two 15' razor wired perimeter fences, regular foot patrols in the shipyard, and infrequent patrols in the adjacent scrapyard. There are also cameras and motion detectors around the perimeter, and cameras in the yard. Similar camera setup in the main administrative building. All monitored in the security building by the main gate, although the security guard at the desk in the administrative building usually looks after those cameras. Both Baron Kundra and Mr. Kurigane try to get unaccompanied access to the scrapyard, as they learn the scrapped hulk of the Adda Dubsar (a Kinunir class cruiser) is there. But both are rebuffed by their superiors. 

Outside the shipyard, the others do some further investigation:

• Mr. Fisker tries tracking down Aya Cheung, the local shareholder with the former Tschadi Shipyards. Easy to get her address and number from the phone directory. Put that info away for future use.
• Thinking some firepower is going to be helpful in the future, Mr. Hammill goes back to the card table to make a few credits and hopefully a few new underworld friends who can provide connections to some illegal guns. He isn't convincing though and gets no leads.
• Instead, Mr Fisker and Mr. Vilchis decided to open a fake security company, 'Tacyon Advantage Security Solutions'. Getting Mr. Hammill to draw up some fake papers, they head off to the police station to apply for purchase and carry permits for automatic pistols, small SMGs and cloth armor. The documentation passes muster, and the pair are soon armed, uniformed and undoubtedly dangerous. 
• While the other two are gun shopping, Mr. Hammill stakes out the General Shipyard gate to see if there is a particular bar everyone heads to after work. This leads him to the 'Spacer's Arms' at the starport. After a few days hanging out and listening, he focus attention on an old guy [Alwin Thorne] that's always drinking at the bar and telling stories about the old times at the shipyard. Buys him some drinks and gets him talking about the old days when they were building the Kinunir cruisers. Able to get remarkably detailed information on the fuel tanks, as well as names of a few old engineers who worked on the cruisers back in the day. A later search of HR records by Baron Kundra shows one engineer, Calvin Voll, is still working at the yard. 

Back at the yard, Baron Kudra and Mr. Kurigane decide they need a distraction to get free access to the hulk of the Abba Dubsar and make some measurements.  A memo appears about next weeks  'Bring Your Kids to Work Day'. Decide that Mr. Fisker (being the youngest and dumbest) will pretend to be Baron Kundra's developmentally delayed younger brother, whom he brings to work for the family day. In the midst of the chaotic day, they are able to slip Mr. Fisker into the scrapyard, where he gets into the engineering sections of the Abba Dubsar and is able to measure the location of the jump drive fittings and maneuver drive/power plant couplings.   Mr. Fisker is able to finish the work before anyone else at the yard notices he is missing and a hue and cry is raised to look for him. 

Still need to get the location of the black globe generator fittings on the bridge. Mr. Fisker starts to bawl and blubber; says he left his teddy bear in the scrapyard. Mr. Kurigane offers to go look for it; manages to get away alone given the general disorder in the yard today. Makes his way to the bridge, and crawls under the open control panels to start measuring. After a few minutes senses something in the room with him; looks up to see a Panther Locust (8' long, 3' high, black fur and six legs. Mix of insect and mammalian traits, scary claws and a maw of teeth). It leaps to attack, biting and clawing the prone Mr. Kurigane. He hauls out his auto pistol, and after a few shots is able to kill the beast before it does too much damage to him. Calls for help on the radio, security and medical response team (including Baron Kundra) arrives to help. Once Mr. Kurigane is carried away to the ambulance, Baron Kundra clears the incident scene to do an investigation (but only after Mr. Kurigane surreptitiously slips the Baron his notes and measuring tools). Once alone, the Baron finishes the measurements and goes to collect his 'brother' and take him home.   

While this is going on, Mr. Hammill decides to shadow the engineer Calvin Voll for awhile. Learns the man is having an extramarital affair with a young blond waitress. Mr. Hammill gets some compromising pictures of the two together, then backed by Mr Fisker and Mr. Vilchis, contacts the engineer to blackmail him; user name and password to the engineering computer network at the yard in return for the pictures and negatives. Calvin tries to bluff his way out of it, but eventually caves. After a few days provides a user name and password (not his own though; doesn't want to be traced); Mr, Hammill likewise turns over the incriminating photos.  Turns the username / password over to Baron Kundra, who uses it to access the shipyard blueprint database while at work. Downloads the Kinunir blueprints to a data-cube, then walks out the shipyard gate with the last of the information they need to get paid ...

Edge of Night Sector Session #1 - Checking References

General Shipyards of Tortuga

DRAMATIS PERSONNAE
Navy Lieutenant Raj Kundra - 4 terms - UPP 758C8C
Mechanical-1, Pilot-1, Medical-1, Jack-o-T-1

Other Durjam Hammill - 3 terms - UPP A69467
Gambling-3, Forgery-1, Brawling-1, Shotgun-1

Army Lieutenant Bill Fisker - 1 term - UPP C643C9
Rifle-1, SMG-2

Navy Lieutenant Alex Kurigane- 2 terms - UPP AB8579
Vacc Suit-3, Ships Boat-1, Sword-1

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

While sitting around a grubby startown bar after mustering out on Tortuga [2126], the characters are approached by a gentleman dressed in a finely cut suit, flashy waistcoat and a bolo tie. He notes the characters look like just the type of folks he needs to do a special job for him. The characters decline to discuss in public, so he invites them to his room at the nearby Travelers Aid Society hotel.  

Meet with the gentleman (who declines to give his name) in his suspiciously unlived-in looking hotel room. Tells them he represents Tschadi Shipyards of Rastafar [1827], who are interested in gathering some commercial intelligence from General Shipyards on Tortuga. Looking for technical information on Kinunir class battlecrusier. Specifically: the actual measured fuel capacity, location of the jump drive fittings, size and configuration of the maneuver drive/power plant couplings, and location of black globe generator fittings. Baron Kundra has served as an aide-de-camp aboard a Kinunir class cruiser so he understands what the man is looking for. He needs the actual data, not the publicly available information. And needs at least two corroborating statements for each fact. He will pay 50000Cr for each item of corroborated information.  Payment will be by bank transfer from an anonymous account or in the form of plasticredits  if preferred. Characters decline to take the job right away; need time to discuss. He concurs, and tells them to meet him at a restaurant in Tortuga city the next night if they wish to take the job.   

Once they leave the still-nameless gentleman, the party splits up to try learning who he really is and who he really represents before taking the job:

• Mr Hammill heads to an an appropriately seedy startown dive to play some cards with the local rift-raft and inquire about the mystery man. He wins quite a few credits gambling, and learns the man had been in the bar a few days ago. Seemed to be sizing people up while siting quietly at the bar; didn't recall him talking to anyone at the time.

• Baron Kundra does a public computer search to find information on Tschadi Shipyards. Seems the company went out of business about 25 years ago at a time of political upheaval on Rastafar. No one has made jump capable starships on Rastafar since (hence the 'B' classification of the starport). No other useful information available on the public network, and efforts to hack into the registry of joint stock companies network (see below) to get more information is unsuccessful.

• Mr. Fisker heads for the office of the registry of joint stock companies to get information on Tschadi Shipyards.  Lucks out, as it seems one of the shareholders in the company lives on Tortuga. Normally the local planetary government would not have information of extra-planetary companies. The stockholder, a lady by the name of Aya Cheung, is apparently still alive and kicking though well into her nineties now. A later computer search reveals two children; a daughter Silvia who does not seem to have anything to do with the family business, and an older son Jordan who runs the business on his mothers behalf. Information filed away for future use. 

• Mr Kurigane meanwhile sits in the lobby coffee shop at the TAS hotel to watch for the mystery man. After an hour or so he comes down to the desk and speaks a few words, then writes something down and passes this to the clerk. Then goes out to the taxi shelter to await a cab. An air/raft cab arrives shortly and the mystery man heads into Tortuga city. Mr Kurigane notes the cab number and tries to hail one so he can follow, but it takes too long for the cab to arrive. 

Characters get back together to compare notes. Decide to question the cab driver to see where the mystery man went. Calls cab company to request the same cab. Cab arrives, Baron tries to sweet talk the young lady cabbie into divulging said information, but she refuses and takes off. 

In the end, characters decide to take the job and continue investigation into their employer later. Meet with the mystery man as previously arranged and close the deal. He still refuses to give his name or even a location where he could be contacted. Instead gives them a locker number and combination at the starport where they can leave a message if they need to reach him. Meanwhile, Mr Fisker snaps a picture of the man with his hand computer. Baron Kundra uses that image to do a later computer search. He gets a hit on a newsreel about 5 years old, showing raiders from the Iagonn Suzerainty. It would appear their mystery man is part of the personal entourage of one of the Sky Dukes of Heilithium, the semi-piratical, rampaging and raiding rulers of the Suzerainty. So they have been hired not so much to perform commercial espionage as treasonous espionage. All good ...

Still going ahead with the job, everyone decides to apply for a job at General Shipyards so they can get inside and poke around. Everyone except Mr. Kurigane get Mr. Hammill to whip up some forged ID papers for them first. In the end, Mr. Kurigane gets hired by Security and Baron Kundra gets a job with industrial safety. Both jobs allow them some freedom to roam unquestioned about the shipyard. Baron Kundra notes that there is no Kinunir class ship on the ship ways; not a surprise as the Concordance is suffering a shortage of the necessary high technology items required for such construction.  He does note a pair of merchant vessels under construction (a 200ton free trader and a 400ton subsidized merchant) as well as a nearly compete 200ton yacht on one of the final workup pads. There is also a 300ton close escort under construction for the Navy.