Redemption (Rated T) - A Pirate/Fleet RP

[Huntress]

Bloody Mary's ears perked.

Death.

He sat up on Hunty's shoulder, sniffing the air, and squinted at Cyborg. The meepit, like most animals, had never liked the smell of death, and it'd take a while until the scent wears off the resurrected.

Or maybe it was the scent of singed fur. Frankly, it'd always smelled rather similar to him.

Hunty looked down at the kougra, then pushed the Spaceport front door shut with her foot and sat down on the crate again.

"Thanks, Sev, as long as he's in working order, I'm not complaining." She eyed Cyborg. "Well, here you are again. How's life?"

Bloody Mary, who'd begun to hope that this day had already reached its limit of bad punnage, glared at her.

"Well, at least he's generally unharmed. Should we keep him under close surveillance?"

"That depends on him." The captain glanced at Merpo, then at Keng again, then shrugged inwardly. She didn't actually have a choice there, the two probably deserved to know anyway, and they'd already wasted enough time. Might as well cut to the chase.

"So, you wanted to get back in the crew," she said, pulling out a ragged piece of parchment from the depths of her corset and unfolding it. It was the muster-roll, a currently rather sad-looking document with a lot of things crossed out and rewritten, with numerous notes on the margins. It was updated regularly. As it stood, nearly half of the crew had 'temporary leave' marked behind their names. Pirates came and went, and Hunty didn't mind, but she still kept strict count. Keng was marked as 'temporary suspension for violation of rules'. Cyborg's name was crossed out, with 'expelled and executed for betrayal' as the explanation. Hunty had added that bit shortly before leaving for the city. Now she tapped her fingernail against the parchment on those words, and looked up again.

"You violated the Code," she said, "and died for it. In other words, paid for it, and I won't hold it against you from this point forth, as per the Code... however, I can't even consider letting you back in the crew before you prove yourself, since that's a completely different matter. You've said before that you're ready to prove yourself worthy of rejoining the crew, and although your actions didn't exactly go with those words, I may have a use for you right now."

Her eyes narrowed.

"I'll make it simple. Are you willing to infiltrate the Spacefleet headquarters in order to gain access to classified information that's likely to get you killed, permanently, without any Sev waiting on the other side, if you get caught?"

[Zylaa]

Zylaa arrived at the Spaceport along with Speck, where she was rather surprised to see Keng and what looked like the anthromorphic personification of a rainbow along with the rest of the crew. Keng and Jina discussed the artistic implications of this strange figure's clothing, which was hard enough to follow, so Zylaa listened in on the rest of the crew as Ikkin-- who was apparently just back from Spaceport-- asked "So, uh, what's going on here, and who's the colorful guy?"

"Our ticket out of this goose-chase and onto more serious things, you can be sure," Rider said. Zylaa shot a puzzled look at Rider. Why wouldn't she tell them straight out? She looked almost watchful. Maybe she didn't trust the guy? Or was it Keng, unexpectedly back from Spacefleet? Zylaa hoped not. Even if she was with Spacefleet most of the time now, Keng was a good crewmate. She'd saved Zylaa's life once. ((Remember? In the ominous ancient temple of the Mary-Sue? XD))

Then Zylaa's train of thought was derailed, crashed into a deep ravine, and exploded, as Sev appeared, carrying a very much alive Cyborg. She jumped backwards in shock, looking around at her crew, and then realized that they must have been expecting this. Hoping that nobody had noticed her little leap, she turned towards Hunty with narrowed eyes as the captain began to explain.

"You violated the Code," she said, "and died for it. In other words, paid for it, and I won't hold it against you from this point forth, as per the Code... however, I can't even consider letting you back in the crew before you prove yourself, since that's a completely different matter. You've said before that you're ready to prove yourself worthy of rejoining the crew, and although your actions didn't exactly go with those words, I may have a use for you right now."

Ah, so that was the plan. Use the trusty Phoenix ex machina to bring back a crewmate to accomplish-- what?

"I'll make it simple. Are you willing to infiltrate the Spacefleet headquarters in order to gain access to classified information that's likely to get you killed, permanently, without any Sev waiting on the other side, if you get caught?"

Oh. That. Zylaa was impressed. Cyborg had nothing to lose by taking this job that he hadn't already lost... and would surely lose again if he refused to help. Of course, Zylaa still wasn't sure what exactly this classified information was, and she made a mental note to ask a crewmate once the vital part of the conversation had been resolved.

[Cyborg]

"Well, here you are again. How's life?"

" You know, it's been great really, got executed, found my dead parents in the afterlife, died a couple more times, trying to get to the surface of the ocean, now I have this,.... thing on my neck. It's been bloody amazing!" Cyborg stated sarcastically.

"I'll make it simple. Are you willing to infiltrate the Spacefleet headquarters in order to gain access to classified information that's likely to get you killed, permanently, without any Sev waiting on the other side, if you get caught?"

Cyborg waited a minute before responding, " Wow, always a catch with pirates. Might as well, got nothin' better to do, but wth two conditions. One I get my necklace, I guarentee I will need it. And two Keng will take me, less money needed. Plus she knows her way around."

[Kengaroooooo]

Upon the unceremonious arrival of Cyborg, Keng took only a moment to run and glomp him after some of the other crew had finished their prodding. The cyborg was dry after the teleport and the metal was almost hot, but still bearable to the skin. Steam was coming out of a few cracks and Keng couldn't help but be impressed by how waterproof the engineering was, as he seemed to be in good mechanical working order in addition to his restored health. "Welcome back." she whispered to him. "You'll have to tell me about death sometime hmm?"

She loosened her hold to pull away and hear what Huntress had to say.

"I'll make it simple. Are you willing to infiltrate the Spacefleet headquarters in order to gain access to classified information..."

Keng swore inwardly to herself. She'd become rather dedicated to the fleet. She wasn't sure if Huntress realized just how high up the ranks she'd climbed. She was even studying ship combat in the ambition of becoming a higher ranking officer. Maybe even a sub commander one day. Stealing classified information was not going to look good on a resume for that job application though. But maybe they wouldn't have to steal it? If it wasn't a super high level security file she would more than likely have access to it. She was about to offer up this idea when she thought about Cyborg's debt. No, she would have to keep any ease of offering information private or he could once again find himself a useless pawn: food for the fishies.

Keng then looked at Merpo. He was their ticket? He didn't look like anyone who could get them there... "How exactly was it you planned on getting to Spacefleet? I kinda doubt you can afford a civilian ticket. I only got up there when I first joined because I'd enlisted, so my ride up was almost completely paid for by the fleet. He'll also have to be processed by security. No exceptions there. I doubt being a pirate will count against him. They're pretty relaxed with shady pasts -I got in- but he won't be allowed out of the civilian sections of the station. I can give him a ride up there I suppose. I have a ship. Won't cost you anything."

Keng wasn't aware that Huntress intended to go up too along with the rest of the crew. In the meantime she was scheming how she could get Cyborg the information legally without letting on to the other pirates that it might be that easy. She then realized that she didn't yet know what specifically they wanted. "What information by the way?"

[Omni]

"A towel and some other stuff I brought with me to the gym." Ethan settled on a dish he'd heard good things about. "Pizza please. Pepperoni."

[Speck]

"I'll make it simple. Are you willing to infiltrate the Spacefleet headquarters in order to gain access to classified information that's likely to get you killed, permanently, without any Sev waiting on the other side, if you get caught?"

Speck perked up on the word 'Spacefleet', completely forgetting about the not-so-fascinating magazine in front of her. Spacefleet... up in the sky... There was something she had to do in order to see her father again. A voice at the back of her mind whispered, There's no guarantee that that mysterious person meant that pop's alive. They could mean that you are going to die and reunit-- She pushed the thought away and stood up.

"Captain. If Keng goes, so do I. Someone's got to make sure this bilge ra--- er, Cyborg's going to carry out your plan" She cleared her throat, "And I still have my old clothes somewhere back at the ship. No need to worry about affiliations, perhaps?"

Speck hoped that Huntress would get the hint, and understand that she meant her old ninja garb. Why she kept those old mementos locked away in a trunk, she didn't know. Maybe she was afraid to let go of her past, afraid to move on, long after the fact that she had moved on. Maybe she had been planning to use those bits of fabric to fashion more bandanas for her head. They certainly got pretty grimy from the life at sea she was so accustomed to now.

---

Joce Farlap continued down the street to the Spaceport's entrance, apparently ignoring what activity was going on behind her. She hugged her cloak in closer and put down her hood as she came closer to the entrance. Once there, she spun around to plop near the entrance. With a wave of her hand, she brought forth the illusion of an empty cup, hoping to pose as a beggar before catching Speck as she exited the lobby. If Speck decided to leave the lobby, that is.

[Huntress]

" Wow, always a catch with pirates. Might as well, got nothin' better to do, but wth two conditions. One I get my necklace, I guarentee I will need it. And two Keng will take me, less money needed. Plus she knows her way around."

"You're not in the position to make any conditions," Hunty said dryly. "I could still just slit your throat, leave you here for the rats to eat, and give Keng the mission. It's not my preferred route to go, because you're better suited for the task, but I still could do that."

She fumbled around in her corset. "The necklace, well, I suppose there's no harm in giving it back. The reason why I won't let Sev revive you if you get killed there is because it'd connect you with the pirates, and then the plot is down the drain. If you're able to help yourself when you get killed, then all the better. Although if you get killed, this most likely means that you were caught, and the plot'll be down the drain anyway. If you fail the mission, you can forget the crew, so keep that in mind." Hunty found the necklace and pulled it out, gave it a thoughtful look, then sealed her fingers around it and looked up at the kougra with a frown.

"As for Keng, definite no. If she's seen leading you around, you'd just get her in trouble... is that what you want?"

"Captain. If Keng goes, so do I. Someone's got to make sure this bilge ra--- er, Cyborg's going to carry out your plan," Speck said.

Hunty grinned, leaning back against the crates. "My thoughts exactly. Which is why we're all going. Sure, we can't actually afford to be seen with him, but you'll never know when we might have to change the plans, and then it'll be better if we're there to keep an eye on things instead of down here thousands of miles away. Still, your garb might actually come in handy here..."

Bloody Mary, who'd been seeing far too many holes in the entire plan from the start and therefore keeping his mouth tactfully shut altogether, looked up. "So how're we going to get him up there?"

Hunty shrugged. "Well, being together can't be helped when we're travelling. I know I've had to sail with all sorts of scumbags I wouldn't want to be caught dead seen with... come again?" She'd missed Keng's question.

Bloody Mary, who was a tad more attentive, shuffled around on her shoulder. "Classified information," he said. "As in, top secret stuff. Level... something."

"Level 9 security pass and identity verification," Justice said from the cluster around Hunty's feet. "The personnel library. Info on Leraye's current whereabouts. And if I may point out, I'm not even sure if that data is correct..."

"That," Bloody Mary said cheerfully, then fell serious. "Hunty, do you think he'll actually be able to trick the identity verification?"

The captain remained unsympathetic. "He'll have to."

[Cyborg]

" Thank you," Cyboorg said as he grabbed the necklace, and put it on. " Now Hunty, two things, one do you not think the fleet will find it suspicious that our rag tag group just suddenly decide to visit? And two, would it not look less suspicious if I was with Keng, as she offered a couple weeks ago to take me up there, and show me around? It would cost less, and if I'm with Keng I should pretty much seem innocent, and not be suspected for anything."

[Fraze]

"A towel and some other stuff I brought with me to the gym," Ethan answered. After a pause, he added, "Pizza please. Pepperoni."
"Sorry, I don't know where it is," Fraze told him. There was a pause in which Fraze had a sneaking suspicion he had missed something. "Oh, wait. You weren't talking to me. Sorry, it's kinda been a long few days."
Well, if they were going to be talking for a while more, Fraze decided he wanted something to drink. "Peanut butter malt, please," he told the serving droid.

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

"Ahhh, from the fleet are you?"
Merpo was about to answer, when Keng began speaking again.
"No, Tel-fregan isn't much interested in weapons. They're portal, wormhole and time travel masters. They don't believe in alliances; they believe that they only lead inevitably to war. As a result of this they're very business oriented, and won't act on any engagement until a contract has been reached and officialized. We're undergoing negotiations with them for a collaborative science project. We need them more than they need us so right now it's a question of what we have to offer them in return. They don't do favors. They think it complicates issues and implies an alliance."
This was fascinating to Merpo. He had been reasonably up-to-date with regional galactic politics when he was still a member of Spacefleet, but that had been twenty years ago and more. He had tried to pick up FTL radio broadcasts for a while, but his receiver had long since worn out and he didn't have the necessary equipment to fix it.
"Very interesting," he said. "I--I used to be a part of Spacefleet's science and research department, but I was...unjustly terminated. It's been a v-very long time since I've heard news of the outside."
Until now, Merpo's stutter had been ever-present due to nervousness. Now that he was having a conversation he could truly take interest in--possibly the first one in years--it was fading quite quickly.

((Lampshading FTW!))

Merpo was caught off-guard when yet another person arrived, this one a kougra with--cybernetic implants? For half a moment, Merpo wondered if he was a 'Fleeter as well--then mentally rebuked himself, since those cybernetic components didn't look anything like what Spacefleet would make.
From what he could gather from the conversation, this seemed to be the person who was resurrected.
"I'll make it simple. Are you willing to infiltrate the Spacefleet headquarters in order to gain access to classified information that's likely to get you killed, permanently, without any Sev waiting on the other side, if you get caught?"
So this was the plan? Merpo wondered if saying this directly in front of a current Fleeter--and, it would seem, a moderately high-ranking one--was particularly wise.
"You w-won't be able to fly the whole...crew...up, will you?" Merpo asked Keng. "That would look much--even more suspicious than a-all of them boarding a shuttle.

Merpo thought a bit more. Turning to Huntress, he added, "If you need--um, need to stay in contact, I have some old--ancient mid-range communicators. And I could keep in touch with you on the...surface...that way. I, um, don't think they'll let me back in..." he trailed off.

[Jina]

Anester was dreaming of all the shiny things she could get from her new target when someone suddenly bumped into her. "Forgive me. Would you happen to know where we are right now?"

Anester smiled inwardly. Three of them, and they were lost even? Today had to be her lucky day.

Then she remembered the shiny woman and realised that she would be getting away. But perhaps these three could be of some use...

"If you get yourself lost then you sound like you need a map. Trust me, it's easier than asking your way at every corner. I can show you the way to the Spaceport so you can get one, if you like."

And since O Golden One was going that way too, it shouldn't be too much trouble for me.

[Kat]

"If you get yourself lost then you sound like you need a map. Trust me, it's easier than asking your way at every corner. I can show you the way to the Spaceport so you can get one, if you like."

"That would be awesome," Jingleheimer blurted out before any of his brothers could respond, and they discreetly elbowed him simultaneously. "Hey - "

John grabbed his ear and whispered, "Watch your back. After that old demon who did in Grandfather, we're not trusting anyone. Got it? We get a map, and then we go."

Meanwhile, Jacob nodded. "Oh, yes, do show us, miss."

[Huntress]

Hunty was by now beginning to wonder how the heck Cyborg managed to get the necklace from her firmly sealed hand third time this day now, as her archer and sailor reflexes should still have been pretty well in place, but figured that they had bigger fish to fry at that point.

" Now Hunty, two things, one do you not think the fleet will find it suspicious that our rag tag group just suddenly decide to visit? And two, would it not look less suspicious if I was with Keng, as she offered a couple weeks ago to take me up there, and show me around? It would cost less, and if I'm with Keng I should pretty much seem innocent, and not be suspected for anything."

"One, that's my business, not yours, and two, my word stands," the captain snarled. Executed just this morning, brought back pretty much on a whim, still teetering on the edge of Hunty's not so flexible patience, and already acting like he owned the place? Then again, what'd she expected? "Don't count on not getting caught. I already told you that it's a high-risk mission. And I won't let you drag any of my crewmembers down with you."

"Mrm," Bloody Mary did, a hint of reluctance in his voice. "Still, 'bout that first point..."

Hunty got up and patted Merpo on the shoulder.

"Money," she said in an oddly jovial schoolteacher-ish voice, "can buy you lots of things. Tickets. Vacations. Political relations. Disinterest. Oodles and oodles of disinterest." She snapped the fingers of her other, free hand. "And since we're on the topic, I do believe that it's high time to proceed to check-in or whatever they have here, so if you, kind sir, would show your wallet a little sunlight and also show us the way, it'd be much appreciated. We just need, hm," she looked around, "eight, nine tickets? Make that nine. You'll never know."

"If you need--um, need to stay in contact, I have some old--ancient mid-range communicators. And I could keep in touch with you on the...surface...that way. I, um, don't think they'll let me back in..."

Hunty paused. He probably had a point there.

"You're an angel," she said. "That'd be lovely." Then, as her conscious kicked in - largely in the form of Bloody Mary tugging on her earring - she added: "About those notes you wanted - where would we find them? I mean, the title or the appearance of the notebook or presumed whereabouts would be helpful."

[Cyborg]

" Hunty, Im trying to make this easier for all of us. If I am seen with the pirates at all, the fleet will most likely make assumptions, they aren't stupid people. If I go with Keng, stick with Keng, then less assumption of anything other than possibly a date." Cyborg explained.

[Rider]

[glow=red,2,300]Rider knew plans with holes in them when she saw them. Heaven knew she made enough of them herself.

"If it doesn't buy us enough disinterest, Katkat and Ikkin will continue to be Mage ambassadors. Speckles can activate Stealth Mode. I can disappear into the Meepit Realms and the rest of you will pretend not to know Hunty. Pretend she's your mommy, and she's embarassing you."

"No, in all seriousness, are we gonna stand out in these clothes? Because it may well be time for shopping."

Merpo was making her antsy as well. The last time they had helped a mysterious, harmless-looking stranger with his mysterious, harmless research, well...

... But it never paid to be distrustful of everyone. If she read the notebook and didn't like what she saw, there was always the burn-it-and-doublecross option. [/glow]

[Kengplant]

"Hold on there Huntress." Keng said letting go of Cyborg and raising a hand signaling her to stop. She noted to herself that this was possibly the first time she'd addressed the standing leader of the pirates without calling them Captain. "First of all the fleet already knows I came down here to see you guys. It'd be mighty rude of me to let you guys pay your way up now wouldn't it when I have a perfectly fine craft of my own that can carry everybody. Not to mention I can bar you from traveling on any other ship. Once you're through those doors you're in my jurisdiction. The fleet is well aware of my relations to you all and I'd be fully expected to visit you guys anyways. We may as well all go up together. Now I have wounded personnel and refugees in the hospital wing right now that I'm eager to check on and I'd very much appreciate it if we got going." Keng was loosing her patience, not that she had much left after the day she'd been having. She was hardly the peppy swabby that had left the pirates anymore, and her firm decisive stance certainly showed it. She then turned on Merpo (who's name she did not yet know) "And why might I ask, Mr. Crayola man, do you need them to get whatever it is for you when you certainly have the means to go up and get it yourself? Being 'terminated' from the personnel of the fleet certainly doesn't prevent you from visiting the civilian area."