Galaxy's Edge Space Bar (archive)

[Gaz]

"No worries, kid," said Gaz. "You want to pick something out of my bag? I think you need something to go with that hat, eh? And how about something to eat?"

"Is this part of being a pirate?" Fletcher asked with a smirk. "Spoiling little children?"

"I think we got a great future pirate right here," Gaz said, "I'm just makin sure he's got what he needs. How about some chow, kid? It's about that time, isn't it?"

[Kit Cloudkicker]

Keirdan nods and stqnds up. He walks toward Gaz, a solemn look still plastered on his face. He climbs onto a chair and mumbles "Mac and cheese" before turning to glare at the door.Shal glances at Gaz, a bemused expression crossing her face. She knows full well that if Breekan or herself had tried that the boy would still be under the table pouting.

[Myitt]

"Hm," Myitt replies to Zoshonel, "interesting.  Why must governments continue to promote the use of young children as soldiers?" 

She shakes her head and swivels the chair to smile at Mar.  "Good.  I hope you don't die on us, because I wouldn't know how to bring you back," she says idly.  "Do you need water?  Perhaps something to eat?  I don't know how that works with you, but there is a supply of protein soup in the stock room.  Protein in every color of the rainbow."  She rolls her eyes.  "Delish."

((Gonna Yeerk Kara a little bit, just until she returns.))

Kara yawns and stretches, looking blearily out the viewscreens at the blank whiteness.  "I'm tired," she says sleepily.  "I guess I haven't been much use as a weapons tech."  She runs a hand along the stylized black joystick-looking device positioned in front of the hovering translucent weapons console.  "But Ardiss was good at it." 

"Alright, enough chit chat, we're going to emerge in real space soon--so if you want food, get it.  Like, now.  I want everyone strapped in in t-minus five minutes.  Otherwise, hold on to something, and Kara, keep away from the console controls--we don't need to come in guns blazing."

Kara nods.

---

Corliss watches the goings on, putting the link away.  He has faith that his sibling and her friends will intercept their information in time.  They simply have to.

"'ey, cheer up, little bloke," says Corliss' host Michael to Keirdan with a smile.  "You know, mac and cheese was my favorite as a kid, too.  Right after jam butties.  An' maybe sausage and mustard.  Oh hell, the whole lot."  He glances at the bartender.  "Make that two mac and cheeses, I can't help evacuate a base on an empty stomach."

The bartender purses his lips in annoyance and fixes two microwaveable mac and cheeses for Keirdan and Corliss, setting the plastic plates down in front of them.

Corliss nods at Gaz and Fletcher.  "You guys planning on rendezvousing with their Cruiser?  I hate to see this place empty, really, but they might need your help.  Want me to see where they are?"

[Luke Skywalker (Ossanlin)]

((Sorry guys, I have a 9-week old puppy that demands all of my attention, and between him and work, I have about ten seconds of free-time a day.  Plus I don't get much sleep.  o_o  ))

Ossanlin watches Alic depart and decides to follow after Christine.  If the child wanted to play with glass, he would eventually cut himself, and he would learn not to play with glass again.  At least that was the way he saw it.  He didn't think a minor cut would provoke the kid to howl, but it was a possibility perhaps better left undiscovered.

He trots out after Alic and catches the tail end of her conversation with the human girl, laying a hand around the femme andalite's waist of her upper torso.  <Well you know how idiotic most of our race is, but there will always be a place for you with me if you want.>  Ossanlin smiles with his eyes at Alic and then looks down at the human girl.  <I cannot imagine anything that would ever make me want to be infested...I have been infested once, in fact it was by the Yeerk that the others just went in pursuit of.  A loyal Visser known as Seran by his closest of friends.  You do not have to allow Ardiss to infest you, you do have a choice, you have free will.>  Ossanlin glances at Temrash a moment.  <She has terrible memories and there is no guarantee that she does not still hold loyal to the Empire herself.  The Empire is not gentle with their hosts, ask Temrash, he knows what his compatriots do to their vehicles.  If you do not want to be a part of her or have her...in your head...just say so.  You are not required to do this.>


**********************
Seran:

Seran grimaced to himself as he looked through the diagnostic systems on the long-range transponder, though he did very well at hiding his expression.  The system had been sabotaged, someone had known, someone had done it on purpose.  It was possible he had been careless himself and underestimated Myitt's contacts within the Empire.  Obviously she had an operative here and she had already deduced that this was where his ship had gone.  She must've even confirmed his flight codes.  This was a poor situation, but he could still make the best of it if only...

The doors to the control-room slid open and admitted the foppish human controller sub-visser.  "Visser, pardon the interruption, but your blade ship has arrived.  It just docked."  The human was sweating with the controller's fear, it was obvious that he wanted him off the station as quickly as possible.  He would have to leave his personal transport.  If this station survived he could claim it back and remove any rebel paraphanilia.  If not...well there were other ships.  It was important to get in touch with the Council immediately.

"No one except myself will board, and you will take me to the dock immediately.  I will depart forthwith."  Seran brushed past the human-controller quickly, the sub-visser bowing deeply.  Seran paid him no attention and headed straight for his ship.  It was docking as he walked up to the portal.  After a few more seconds, it slid open and he walked through quickly back onto his personal capital ship.  "It was an hon....."  The sub-visser's words cut off as Seran closed the hatch and went straight to the bridge.

His crew stood and saluted as he entered and he went immediately to stand by his chair.  "No one and nothing boarded aside from myself?"

"Yes, Visser."

"Good, cut the dock immediately and move.  Get us to safe transmission distance as quickly as possible.  I must speak with the Council immediately, it is a matter of the utmost importance."  Seran pauses as all eyes stare at him.  "NOW!"  His shout got everyone working at their stations feverishly as the portal was retracted.  The apparatus tore as the station had not retracted it's docking clamps, but once they realized his ship was leaving, they cut off all anchors and the torn section floated free of the main portal.

The axe-like vessel slid silently through the bleakness of space and exited the docking station, turning towards the nearest relay point and shot off into Z-Space.

[Gaz]

Gaz places some money down for the bartender. "Chow down, little shipmate. Did I ever tell you about who I learned to be a pirate from?"

Gaz turns her attention to Corliss. "Yeah, if they need us The Vagabond is ready to fly."

[Chad32]

I am not enlisted in the military. My training is just so that I can defend myself. And yes, I would like food and water." Zoshonel said, and went to find something.

***********************

Temrash got a call from his contact, and transmitted the information to Myitt. "Seran's bladeship arrived, and he boarded immediately. My contact will be leaving the base to a safe spot. I don't know if we'll be able to stop him from transmitting the coordinates. Sine I don't know who Seran is, exactly, I don't know if I have any contacts on his bladeship. It's doubtful, though, as I usually only track the people I know."

He ended the call. "Christine, I'm sure you're aware that many Humans are not treated well by Yeerks. And that Ardiss needs to be taught that the host is a valued person instead of a vehicle. I would like you to help both me and Ardiss, but I won't force you."

"It's ok. I want to help. I'm not sure how to respond to your offer, sir. Do you really mean that you'd accept me, or are you just saying that because you don't like the alternative?" Christine said to Oss. She was starting to feel a bit awkward with both Andalites being there, but she was glad Temrash was there. She didn't feel good talking about the "joys" of being a controller to two Andalites without someone there.

[Shenmue654]

Mar hastily grasps onto a can of what appears to be protein soup and eats quickly. He needs to regain both strength and possibly dilute the alcohol. He hasn't slept at all, unike Kara. Although it has been a few hours. Perhaps the drink is wearing off by now.

Mar glances at Myitt over his soup and states, "I'll do my best not to die. If I do in fact fade from this world it would take me some time to re-enter from the same spot. That is, unless I want Crayak to know I'm here almost immediately. .....at the rate this is going the effort might be futile anyway. The boy said he knows. ........if something goes terribly wrong, I will interfere. But only if another escape route is impossible."

[Alic]

Alic shivered when Ossanlin touched her, but she wasn't cold. It was a very warming feeling, actually. <Thank you. I know. I wonder how all your little warriors would respond to a female on board? Especially me!> She smiled, sure that she was the last thing anyone would expect to bring home.

<I can't imagine being.. Infested. I know a few of my good friends are but they are in different situations.> Alic would have said more but she didn't want to go overboard on her feelings with yeerks and slavery. <Of course you would be accepted. I enjoy human company, for one. And since you are voluntary, I just worry about the one they're trying to... Give you. I don't trust her.>
Alic shrugged. If the human female accepted Ardiss, they would find out if the yeerk had changed at all.

[Myitt]

"Well, Mar," says Myitt, swiveling the chair to look back at him, "we're going to find out about that soon enough."

She answers the call from Temrash.  "We're going to try and follow him," she replies.  "Thank your operative for us, we'll keep you informed."  She ends the transmission, setting the engines to make the shift out of their z-space route.

The ship blinks into real space with a lurch, cloaked and already scanning the area for ships. 

"There's the bastard," Myitt whispers, tracing the signal coming from Seran's Blade Ship with the help of Temrash's transmission codes.  The visuals confirm that a Blade Ship is indeed leaving the Nerkin base.  "That'd better be him.  Sensors indicate he's powering up his z-space engines."  She starts the commands that will account for the most recent state of space-time flux, the only way they'll be able to emerge anywhere close to where Seran is going.

Myitt contacts Corliss.  "He's making a jump into z-space," she says tersely.  "We can try to catch him as long as z-space doesn't shift again."

"Where do you think he's going?" asks Corliss.

"If I were a betting man, I'd say the Council," she says.  "Or at least the nearest real Imperial outpost.  The Hork-Bajir homeworld isn't too far from here, either.  Ah, there he goes."  The Blade Ship jumps into z-space, and Myitt powers up the Cruiser's own z-space engines.  "Gotta run, Cor."  She sighs, tapping a couple of screens and sliding the translucent icons through the air.  "Here goes nothing, guys."  She ends the call and grins back at everyone.  "Buckle up."

The ship lurches back into the blank whiteness of z-space, sending their stomachs into their toes.

---

Corliss lowers the comm link, staring at his half-finished mac and cheese.  "I reckon I've lost my appetite," he murmurs.  "Gaz, I'm fairly certain that by the time you catch up with them, they'll either be dead...or on their way back here.  I'm really rooting for 'on the way back here'." 

((No worries, Luke!  Aw, puppy...I'm glad he's finally home with you!  It must be exhausting but exciting   ))

[Gaz]

"On the way back is preferable," Gaz replied. "The Vagabond is pretty fast, do I need to hop in and jet?"

[Chad32]

"I think it may be best for all of us to get aboard the Vagabond, and get over there. Bladeships are notoriously hard to take down. Short of a Domeship's main cannons, that is." Temrash said.

[Myitt]

"I'm not sure, Gaz.  Do we even know where Seran's headed?" Corliss asks urgently.  He picks up his link.  "Myitt?  Come in.  Hello?" 

No answer.

"Bloody hell, they might be getting distortion from z-space," Corliss mutters.  "Damn it, they could get our message in ten seconds or ten hours, depending on the shift."  He looks at Temrash.  "Do you know any way of tracking where they're going?  Perhaps Seran's ship signal, which we could use to triangulate his z-space trajectory, if my Skimmer's sensors can pick him up?  I can try tracing Ardiss' ship, too, Myitt sent me their signal via computer link."  He brings out his cube computer and starts tapping at the hovering holoscreen.

[Gaz]

Fletcher had stepped out a while ago to get something off the ship.

Gaz picked up her communicator and said, "Fletch! Fire 'er up, we gotta fly!"

Turning to the others Gaz said "You can link that up to The Vagabond. She's fast, but it would help if I knew where I was going."

[Myitt]

"Got it," Corliss says, pointing to the screen.  "This is Ardiss' ship's signal, I can send it to your ship's computer."  He sets up a scan to locate the Vagabond's computer sensors, transmitting the information and hoping it makes its way through.  "If you're going, I might like to come with you.  If Myitt heads back here it won't make much difference if she has to wait a bit for me or not."

[Gaz]

"You're welcome to join us," Gaz said, "Temrash too if he wants. My ship's just outside."

Gaz was all ready heading for the door. "If you're in, let's get moving!"