PT1: Better Lucky Than Good.

[Tara Marx]

[BRIDGE]

"Well I am also captain of this ship in everything but the namesake. Please, do tell what concerns you?"


Tara started in on her concerns and ultimately her request. If Michael had authority to make ship decisions apart from Chris that worked for her. "Okay then... my XO is on a fact finding errand for me on Persephone that is vital to our endeavor." That was the easy part she thought, now the tough part. "He was to meet us on Santo but has run into a bit of trouble I'm afraid and now we need to perform a rescue." Tara glanced around the bridge quickly before turning back to Michael. "I need you to get Bell back here and change course for Persephone and time is of the essence." Her voice was steady and calm but did impart a touch of concern.

[Andes Maley]

[GALLEY]

Andes had just returned his mug and was heading out again when he heard the call.

"Maley."  She called as she approached him, sweat from her workout had started to cool on her skin and she felt a slight shiver.

Still not being too sure to be able to match a voice with a face, he swung around, "Yea? Oh!" He was not expecting her but was pleasantly surprised all the same.

"Look I'm not good at social interactions so I'm just going to be brief.  I know I didn't make a good first impression with you... so.."  She was searching for a way of saying what she meant without being too touchy feeley or at all touchy feeley.  Emotions were stupid.

"We good?"  Nailed it.  That was basically an apology, in concept, she supposed.

He just shook his head and smiled, "Yea, we are good." He entered the galley to show that there was no metaphorical boundaries between them. "And for the record, we were good before. I dont take things personal and it takes time to get to know and trust others in situations like these."

It obviously took a lot for her to approach him, something that she was not used to but it was important. And by the look of the goosebumps on her arms, she was a little uncomfortable. "There is a fresh pot on, dont want our pilot falling asleep at the helm. Can I get you a cup?" He crossed to the mess area. "I admit I have a limited skill set compared to yours but if you need something shot or you want to be entertained, I'm your man."   

[Mattie Rooney]

Mattie wasn't entirely satisfied with Tara's cryptic response, but the captain rushed off before she had the opportunity to get any more concrete information out of her. The gunhand was left alone at the galley table, staring at the face displayed on the screen before her.

Alberich Siegfried, huh? She'd never heard the name before, but she didn't like his face. Or, she didn't like the way Tara had reacted to it. Same difference, really.

Mattie turned off the screen on the cortex device and pushed it aside. She wasn't big on snooping around other people's things – at least not the people she liked – and she trusted Tara to fill her in soon enough. Still, she felt uneasy as she sat quietly at the table, waiting, watching the mercenary and the pilot exchange a few words in the galley doorway. She didn't pay attention to what they were saying, but something about their interaction – Bell's stern face, to which Maley responded with a light-hearted smile – struck a strange chord within her, and she was hit by a sudden pang of worry for Lucky's well-being.

Maley was entering the galley now, still chattering at Bell. Mattie felt invisible, which, well, it made sense. She wasn't part of the Mischief crew, not really, and she'd showed up late into the repairs and hadn't had much time to mingle. She didn't see a reason to make friends with anyone on board, since they hopefully wouldn't be here for too long, but she begrudgingly accepted that sooner or later she'd have to get to know them at least a little.

"There is a fresh pot on, dont want our pilot falling asleep at the helm. Can I get you a cup?"

"You mind gettin' me a cup too?" she hollered from her table, wedging herself into the conversation with her usual grace.

[Addison Michael Carver]

Michael's eyes narrowed. "And just what constitutes 'a bit of trouble,' Miss Marx." It didn't sound good. In fact it made Carver feel very uncomfortable. Tara conveyed a lot suggestion with her words, a suggestion of an encounter Michael wasn't keen to tackle.

"We have equipped and prepared ourselves for the initial objective you proposed. Any... alteration to our plans leaves the ability of this ship compromised, not to mention present challenges to the safety of the ship and its crew."

He wondered if he and Chris had made the wrong choice in taking on this endeavour. They sought to move away from trouble, not towards it. "Pardon my asking, but do you expect we would encounter such a situation when you chartered this ship?"

[Andes Maley]

Andes finished pouring a cup and then procured another one for Mattie. He filled the mug before replacing the pot.

She had surprised him, he thought she was doing her own thing, she was obviously very worried about something. Something that wasnt any of his business. He crossed the room and and handed the steaming cup to her before offering the other cup to Emerson. "How are you finding everything?" Civil conversation would cost him nothing and they had a while in the black. He flipped a chair around, not unlike Emerson's move a few days ago, and sat down opposite of Mattie and motioned for Emerson to join them.

[Cyril Leland Wade]

a dingy bar at Eavesdown

Lucky was on the floor, grappling wildy with Baddie no. 2. It had not been a particularly sound plan. He heard the crash of a bottle breaking at the same time Baddie no. 1 grabbed him by the shoulders of his coat and heaved him up. Baddie no. 2 wasted no time in getting some payback with a hard fist into Lucky's gullet.

Baddie no. 1 yanked Lucky towards the door, trying to get him out of the bar. Baddie no. 2 shoved some kind of cloth into Lucky's face. It smelled something awful, and that was the last thing he thought for a while.

[Tara Marx]

[BRIDGE]

"And just what constitutes 'a bit of trouble,' Miss Marx."

"We have equipped and prepared ourselves for the initial objective you proposed. Any... alteration to our plans leaves the ability of this ship compromised, not to mention present challenges to the safety of the ship and its crew."

"Pardon my asking, but did you expect we would encounter such a situation when you chartered this ship?"

---

Tara's facial features were set with determination as she looked directly at Michael. "I would not be doing my job if I did not anticipate all possible scenarios Mister Carver, that being said we have hit a bump in the road a mite sooner than I would have liked." She paused just briefly. "Now you are no fool so I do not believe you think we just repaired your ship out of the goodness of our hearts...there has been a hefty investment put into you, your crew and Mischief." Tara was working hard to keep it pleasant. "Now we need to rescue one of my crew who has most likely been abducted by now which puts us all in danger." Tara paused again trying to keep her emotions from getting the better of her and in a calmer tone continued. "I unquestionably need your help here Michael, I'm sorry but it is a life or death situation not just for Lucky but for us all."

.

[Addison Michael Carver]

Michael held his tongue and tried not to react too honestly. This was not what he wanted to here, in fact it was far from the life he and Chris had sought. Not a quiet life per say, but a healthy and lengthy one. This seemed counter intuitive to that. They were in Tara's doubt though. She had out them back in the black and flying well, but that didn't mean she owned them. She couldn't drag them into the abyss.

"I understand Miss Marx." He answered as soon as he could, so as not to show himself pondering the right words to dodge this predicament. Perhaps his better half could support him. "And I accept that time is of the essence but you will have to allow a moment for me to discuss this with Chris. Wait here."

Michael left, letting out a heavy sigh when he was out of view.

---

It was perhaps a few minutes later, around the time that Michael mentioned that someones life was at stake, when Chris' voice came over the ship comms.

"Emerson, come to the bridge immediately. We are changing course."

---

Michael reappeared on the bridge. "Lucky you say his name is? How very ironic."

[Emerson Bell]

Em was glad to clear the air with Maley, not that she was the touchy feely type but it was better to keep things civil when on a ship and she did not trust their new employer so it was also better to keep some allies.  She followed him into the galley for a cup of coffee, sitting across the table from him and accepting the mug of coffee she was offered.

"How are you finding everything?" [/i]

She wasn't sure if the question was to her or the other woman, Mattie was her name?  Didn't really matter.  Before she was given a chance to involve herself in uncomfortable social conversation she was beckoned by the man she'd just left behind at the bridge.

"Emerson, come to the bridge immediately. We are changing course."[/i]

"Well looks like I may be right about our new employer."  She left the steaming cup of coffee on the table as she stood, they always said not to look a gift horse in the mouth but she knew that these repairs were going to come at a price that Marx had yet to name.  Making her way back to the bridge she eyeballed the woman disapprovingly as she addressed her direct employer.

"Changing course already eh?  Maybe I didn't ask enough questions about this job."  Her trust level was now at zero with the woman and wondered if the husband and wife duo were really just some suckers on a collision course with an early death.  Lucky for them at least she was their pilot.

"What are the coordinates."  It wasn't so much a question as a suggestive demand.  She sat down behind the console and flicked a few switches taking it off auto-pilot and resuming command of the ship.

[Tara Marx]

Tara let Emerson's remarks go and without waiting for Michael to speak she jumped right in. "New destination is Persephone, Eavesdown Docks to be precise. Would like the most direct course to shave off some travel time if at all possible." Tara was way outside her bounds now, the question was could the Carver's reel her back in. "It is imperative though that we make a nice slow cautious descent and approach Bell, don't want to look too hurried, someone just might be watching for a ship coming in on the quick."

[Andes Maley]

Andes nodded in reply to Emerson's departure. "It's always somthin." He muttered as he nodded to Mattie as he took his leave.

[Emerson Bell]

"So you want me to fly casual."  She responded as she pulled up some charts and began plotting.

"Well the good thing is in heavily patrolled Alliance space we won't likely need to dodge ship-jacker's but if time is essential we'll have to bypass several checkpoints.  I trust your flight papers are all in order Captain just in case."  Narrowing down several paths she found the most optimum route.

"So if we cut between Paquin and the outer space of Beaumonde we can use the planets rotation to give us a boost and reach Persephone a day ahead.  Should save on fuel too.  I've transmitted a docking request should hear back shortly.  Our new path is set."  With the heavy amounts of traffic that Eavesdown saw she was even more skeptical of Marx, who would be watching for them that knew their intent.  They wouldn't exactly stand out among the thousands of ships that landed a day unless there was something she wasn't saying.  She hoped the Carver's had the good sense to be asking these questions.

[Addison Michael Carver]

Michael started to doubt how much the ship really was his during this endeavour. Were they working for Tara, or simply eating her crap up until a point at which they had the credits to be independent again. He looked forward to a time down the line when the picture was clearer. At least his pilot still seemed to be an astute crew member he hoped to keep happy. She was less quiet with her doubts too.

"Everything is up to date and everyone aboard this ship has been vetted. We shouldn't have any issue with Alliance checkpoints." He assured Emerson. "Just like we shouldn't have trouble with anything else." He looked to Tara.

Carver decided to elaborate on the future. "Now as Chris describes it we have a situation which can not escape our attention. In fact, ignorance is an action far from inaction. We have a... duty, to help." Her word, not his.

"However Miss Marx, *we* shall be handling this situation with care and expect you to follow our lead as we take this detour. That is after all why you hired us."

[Tara Marx]

"However Miss Marx, *we* shall be handling this situation with care and expect you to follow our lead as we take this detour. That is after all why you hired us."

"Sounds fine to me Mister Carver, Maddie and I are here to assist in any way." Tara turned to Bell... "Let us know when we get close." Tara moved to exit the bridge pausing once more to address Michael. "Just a heads up, when we get close to those that are behind this detour, it could get quite rough quite fast, hope you are up for it." With that she was off to see Maddie.

[Addison Michael Carver]

It was petty, but once she left he had to say it. "Let *me* know when we get close." He smiled with a confidence that did not connect with the feelings inside of him. He drew a long breath to keep himself relaxed. Whatever Tara had planned had the potential to be dramatically problematic, but he hadn't been able to sway Chris on the notion of putting their own lives first. Only one thing was important, that he keep Chris and himself safe. If Tara wanted to lead the march into danger.... well , they had part of the payment for this job up front. Maybe he should encourage it.

"Thank you Miss Bell," he said as he escaped his own thoughts. "Keep our vessel safe in transit and I'm sure our biggest concerns will be behind us."

[Mattie Rooney]

Mattie accepted the cup of coffee with a silent nod.

"How are you finding everything?" Maley asked, and Mattie shrugged.

"I guess it'll do 'til we get our own ship back," she replied flatly. It wasn't the most enthusiastic or flattering of responses. Maybe it shouldn't have come as a surprise, then, that her company dissapated as quickly as it had appeared. Emerson was summoned to her pilot-ly duties by the urgent sound of her captain's voice sounding through the comms, and soon after Maley took off as well.

Mattie sat alone with her coffee, feeling slightly sheepish.  Well, so much for small talk. Maybe now that she'd put in the bare minimum of effort into socializing she could just pat herself on the shoulder for trying and give up in peace.

[Tara Marx]

Tara started formulating a plan as she made her way back to the galley. She swung into the room to find Mattie alone. "Mattie! ....so we are on course for Persephone, what did you bring for firepower?" Tara slipped into the seat next to her. "The Carver's have pledged to help but not sure how far the rest of the crew can be counted on."

[Emerson Bell]

"Let us know when we get close... Just a heads up, when we get close to those that are behind this detour, it could get quite rough quite fast, hope you are up for it."  Bell gave the woman a smile that was more vitriol than anything else as the woman left.  Shaking her head she began checking some reports for traffic along her route, nothing major showed up.

"Let *me* know when we get close."

Em bore a slightly more sincere smirk after that comment, maybe the Carver's were more than a couple hicks with a ship.

"Thank you Miss Bell... Keep our vessel safe in transit and I'm sure our biggest concerns will be behind us."

"I assure you that your ship and crew are in good hands Mr. Carver.  I would keep an eye on that one, I know I hide it well but I don't trust her.  We need to know more about what we're getting into.  Money's only valuable if you're alive to spend it."

[Mattie Rooney]

Mattie perked up when Captain Marx re-entered the room.

"Mattie! ....so we are on course for Persephone, what did you bring for firepower?"

"The usual," she responded. "Daisy and a .44."

"Daisy" was what Mattie called her .45-70 lever-action rifle, as Tara surely knew -- lots of gunhands named their weapons and cherished them like offspring, and Mattie saw no shame in that. This particular rifle was Mattie's baby and her go-to weapon; the .44 revolver she carried was for backup purposes.

"The Carver's have pledged to help but not sure how far the rest of the crew can be counted on."

Mattie furrowed her brow. It seemed strange to her that they'd have the Carvers' support but not the crew's.

"Ain't much of a crew if they don't follow their captains, now, are they?" she snarked, a grain of judgment in her voice. She waited for Marx to take her seat before getting down to business.

"You mind tellin' me more about this Siegfried fella?" she asked. "I ain't gonna be much use if I don't know what we're up against."

Her coffee sat on the table, untouched and forgotten.

[Tara Marx]

"Alberich Siegfried, or Big Al as he is sometimes called, is one of Drogo's biggest rivals." As Tara spoke she got up to get herself a cup of coffee. "I've never worked for him directly, always seem to be working against the man, circumstances and all." She let out a small chuckle. "Bet he doesn't like that much at all." She took at seat again and took a long slow sip of the hot beverage. "I am pretty sure he knows we are after Gryphon, just don't know why he cares...unless there is more to it than we've been told....Julian does like his little games at times." Tara paused thinking for a few seconds. I have a few ideas where they'll be if it's him, and at least that's a start if we don't hear from Lucky again."