Editing Episode 501: Shakedown Cruise, Part Three

We come out of pulse and Joshua pilots us down on Whitefall.  It’s a lovely little moon, half of it entirely owned by the redoubtable woman known only as Patience. Luckily for us, we’re headed for the half she doesn’t own. Reentry is very smooth and it shows just how well-built ''Equinox'' is.  She hasn’t any parts welded onto her or scavved from derelict ships on the Rim.  She doesn’t shake as much coming through atmo. In comparison to ''Summer’s Gift'', the ride is smooth as glass, so much so Kiera can serve coffee on the bridge en route without danger of spilling it.  Nika is sitting on the bridge and she’s can feel how well ''Equinox'' is flying and she’s impressed.<br><br>

'''Joshua:''' We’re going to take a quick jaunt. See if you can find any cargo from the moon to the planet. We’re not expecting a lot but … (waggles a hand: ''do what you can'')<br>

Kiera goes off to change into something a little nicer for dealing with the townsfolk and goes off in search of that cargo. Arden, meanwhile, is conducting a search of his own. He’s surfing the local Cortex looking for word of Faria, of all people, hoping for a clue as to the man’s whereabouts.  By all accounts, the Shepherd is still on Shepherd’s Moon in Blue Sun and minus evidence to the contrary, he still has Schrödinger, the ''Gift''’s resident cat.  In that uncanny way of felines, the kitty missed all the subsequent hardships we’d encountered after parting company with the good Shepherd but that doesn’t lessen Arden’s desire for Schrödinger’s company. Or barring that, the company of another ship’s cat.  He goes into town to find someone with a cat to sell.<br><br>   

We land at Acropolis’s spaceport and like Eavesdown Docks on Persephone, approach and landing is where you manage to make it.  We settle on our berth, power down, and get to the business of finding Chu.  Acropolis is a city of 10 million people and it’s larger than Vandenberg on Boros. In fact, Acropolis is the largest city in Georgia. Finding Chu amongst all those people could be difficult.<br><br>

Kiera calls up her high and low places contacts and together they search out Hannibal Chu.  The word comes back: He’s still on Athens and his ship is now running under the name [[Episode 501: Shakedown Cruise, Special Features#How To Speak Chinese|Hēimǎ]], ‘''Dark Horse''’. Back when Kiera did business with Chu, his ship was called ''Dark Horse''.  Kiera thanks her contacts and wraps up weighing favors given and owed, then tells the crew what she’s found.<br><br>

'''Joshua:''' Loser … gets us an eye surgeon. ''Because we’ll have one''.<br>  

'''Kiera:''' ''She volunteered''.<br><br>