Editing Those Who Stare In The Black, Game 13: Swallow

<br>
'''Thursday, 10 Oct 2519'''<br>
'''Silverhold Port, Silverhold'''<br>
'''Red Sun (Zhu Que) system'''<br>
'''Mid-afternoon'''<br><br>

Cargo loading is expeditious. They took our payment upon check in without even looking. <br><br>

Niiiiice.<br><br>

Basic supplies are acquired. Other Cargo and Passenger fares aren't looking for a ship out, so our current cargo is all the business we've got going. Still, Allyne is looking to do something with his time and money. He decides to buy some of the local offerings—namely, scrimshaw. The quality here ranges from medium to high and covers the gamut: figurines, pipes, plaques, etc. He ropes Oksana and Verity to go shopping with him. <br><br>

The scrimshaw is decent, made of cattle bone. Allyne picks up several lovely items on sale and chooses an otter-inscribed piece for his personal collection. He names it [[Those Who Stare In The Black, Game 13: Swallow#HOW TO SPEAK CHINESE|''"Kōngjiān"'']]( 空間 ), the word for "Space" in Chinese. He spends over a 100 credits on the scrimshaw pieces, using his Good Name and Allure to his advantage.<br><br>

Marley also leaves the ship on business of his own. No one but he knows what it is.<br><br>

Xiu has the ship all to herself. It's a crap shoot if we'll still have a ship to return to once everything's said and done.<br><br>

She manages not to blow anything up. Instead, she decides to make dinner for everyone while they're out. It's pretty much pureed food: cream vegetable soup, pureed vegetable entree, and rice pudding for dessert. Again, she manages not to blow anything up.<br><br>

Everything is ready to eat when everyone returns to the ship (including Marley). Reaction to the food is mixed, favorable and less than enthusiastic. Oksana has seconds of the soup and the rice pudding. <br><br>

Cargo fully loaded and ready to go by dinner time, we check with the authorities and find our departure window is scheduled for tomorrow morning. Oksana does a last minute run to the area clinics and orphanages, offering her services and knowledge to those who need it.<br><br> 



'''Friday, 11 Oct 2519'''<br>
'''Mid-Bulk Freighter ''Space Otter'''''<br>
'''En Route to Aberdeen'''<br>
'''Red Sun (Zhu Que) system'''<br><br>

We take off on schedule and begin our 10-day flight to Aberdeen, ETA Monday, 21 Oct 2519.<br><br>


'''Sunday, 13 Oct 2519'''<br>
Verity and Xiu spend the week combing our ship for anything suspicious: bugs, hacks, anything. They find nothing new … but on the third day out there seems to be an internal sub-broadcast protocol running in our system hardware. Investigating further, it's a form of prepackaged malware that predates our landing on Silverhold. It looks as if it might date from our first inspection encounter at Greenleaf. We don't know if it was installed at Greenleaf or if it came with the ship when Allyne bought it and was somehow activated at Greenleaf.<br><br> 

Verity found it when she discovered recordings of Xiu cooking in the kitchen. Our ship's internal camera array includes the galley and looking carefully, we can tell from the angle that the feed is from our own camera and not an intruder-installed one. Still, that sub-broadcast protocol is worrying. We do what we can with it but there is no telling where it came from or who is responsible for it.<br><br>


'''Friday, 18 Oct 2519'''<br>
Bored, Xiu pokes around the ship and finds Oksana's elbow-length cleaning gloves under the sink in the galley. After a nasty moment when she mistakes them for the dreaded gloves of blue, Xiu looks closer and finds out that it was a trick of the lighting and that they are actually a harmless color. To her they look like proctology gloves. She gleefully hatches up a little prank, writing a message on them with a permanent marker—"You are due an appointment with the Doctor''—and leaves them at the door to Allyne's quarters.<br><br>

When Allyne finds them, he takes them to Oksana in medbay, asking if she'd left them. Of course she didn't and Allyne recommends the doctor scan the engineer to make sure the woman isn't suffering from another break. <br><br>

Oksana gets that scan done.<br><br>

Everything appears normal but …. there's a shadowed area in the cleft between the frontal lobes, close to the border between the higher mental and emotional functions. It's not on or part of the amygdala or the hypothalamus or anything like that … It's just a shadow on the scan. <br><br>

Odd. <br><br>    

Oksana runs another scan and she notes that it scatters the scan frequency, hampering data analysis. The best she can determine is the object or shadow or whatever it is, is inorganic.<br><br>

She says nothing to Xiu who appears unaware of the results. Oksana simply records her findings and thanks Xiu, sending the engineer on her way. Once the coast is clear, Oksana goes to Allyne to tell him what she's found. Whatever it is, she knows it's Core-level tech and that unless she has access to Core-level equipment, she can't determine if the thing is affecting Xiu or not, much less what it actually is.<br><br>

Allyne starts looking through his underground contacts for any doctors or equipment that might help identify what Xiu is carrying in her head. The underworld has its own medical infrastructure of street docs, secret labs and clinics. Perhaps they might have some information on the  mystery object.<br><br>


'''Monday, 14 Oct 2519'''<br>
Marley has been hanging out in the lounge and regaling everyone with stories of the glory of the Alliance. Oksana's been the recipient of most of this as she carries out her duties as Steward. Today, however, Verity has decided to leave the bridge in search of something to eat and runs Marley's gauntlet. Marley manages to engage her in a running conversation on books she's recently read, but it's definitely a running conversation as she doesn't stop but keeps on walking past him as they talk.<br><br> 

Just keep walking … Ignore the jingoistic jerk ... Just keep walking … <br><br>

We manage to make it to Aberdeen without killing anyone.<br><br>


'''Monday, 21 Oct 2519'''<br>
'''Aberdeen airspace, Aberdeen'''<br>
'''Kalidasa (Xuan Wu) system'''
'''Mid-morning'''<br><br>

We are given clearance to land but we must submit to an inspection scan before landing. Verity is NOT pleased but we submit to the scan anyway. In talking with the inspectors over the comms we find out that Aberdeen's inspectors aren't Feds at all. In order to cover all the worlds spinning, the Alliance has contracted the duties out. <br><br>

Well, that explains how they're able to cover all the possible worlds and moons without committing their own ships. It answers Verity's question as to how they've managed to do it, even if it doesn't make her happy to know it.<br><br>

The scan goes through without a hitch. In fact, the inspectors comm back with their thanks for sending in the advance scan to them—it made everything go much faster.<br><br>

Advance sca—'''''what?!'''''<br><br>

Oh, Verity is fit to be tied! That Alliance bastard's been spying on us! What the hell was in that advance scan?! If she wasn't currently busy flying our ship through atmo and keeping us from burning up on reentry, she'd have that Fed scumbag's balls for breakfast.<br><br>

It's probably a good thing her hands can't leave the yoke right this second, because the flight in just got a mite more interesting.<br><br>

How interesting? <br><br>

This interesting: an alarm goes off, alerting us to the fact that the rear cargo bay doors are opening. Specifically, the postern airlock built into the ramp is cycling through.<br><br> 

We check our cargo deck cameras. Marley's donned some sort of powered suit—with some kind of collapsible delta wing glider attached to it. With little thruster engines attached. And he's trying to leave our ship before we even kiss dirt.<br><br>

Oh hell no!<br><br>

Allyne hails Marley on the comms: You can't leave. You owe us for passage.<br><br>

Marley replies: No. He's prepaid. <br><br>

Actually, he has. Xiu suggests we let him leave the ship but scoop him up midair in a Barn Swallow maneuver. Allyne vetoes it. We have to honor the contract to our clients: We have cargo to deliver in one piece. Doing that Barn Swallow would damage it. Marley is on his own. Still, letting an Alliance officer die on our watch would make us look all manner of bad. If word of it gets out, our name is mud.<br><br> 

Can't have that.<br><br>

One of the feeds shows us the air outside our ship, tumbling aft. We realize that somehow one of our Cortex wrist comms has already gone out that airlock door, trailing behind like a passive sensor array. Why? Is Marley recording or broadcasting his escape? <br><br>

No time to find out. Allyne tells Verity to follow Marley to the ground to make sure he makes it dirtside safely and mobilizes for the cargo deck to prevent Marley from leaving. We all switch over to our private comms. Allyne takes the ladder down to his quarters, those being closest to him on bridge, while Xiu takes her secret access down from Engineering to the rear cargo bay, stating the while she's going to check out the Gat.<br><br> 

Marley has the jump on us and dives out our rear cargo hatch. He powers that delta wing up and starts jetting off.<br><br> 

To hell with the cargo. That stuff's secured by netting and ropes and what-all. Verity warns everyone to hang on to something. Allyne is still in his quarters and he straps in at his desk. Xiu braces inside the ladder cage as best she can. Oksana is already strapped into a locked desk chair in med bay. <br><br>

Verity executes that Barn Swallow, putting us damned near vertical as we fall, opening both cargo hatches and lining them up as we get under him. She scoops him out of the air like the epynomous swallow catching a fly on the wing. Marley tries to fly right back out again but Verity is too damned fast for him. Even as he gets his bearings inside our hold, she's moved the ship around him, changing the relative position of the open hatch. As a consequence, Marley fires his thrusters at the wrong instant and slams into the bulkhead instead of jetting out into open air. <br><br>

Oops.<br><br>

Marley staggers off the deck and seeing he's closest to the now-closing foredeck ramp, hauls ass for it and starts banging on the controls to reverse the close command. <br><br>

The cargo ramp continues to close.<br><br>

'''''BANG!'''''<br><br>

Marley shoots the control panel. It doesn't change a thing. The ramp continues to slide slowly shut. The crack between it and the hull gets inexorably smaller and Marley has no choice but to try to squeeze through, wing and all.<br><br>  

Xiu and Allyne still haven't arrived on the scene but Verity catches all of this on the bridge feeds. She yells "Tilt-A-Whirl!" over our private comms and everyone braces again. Still strapped to her chair, Oksana calmly pulls a trank dose and her hypo-gun out of the drawer. <br><br>

Verity jinks hard to starboard, then to port, and follows up with a barrel roll. Marley gets tossed around the cargo bay like a sock in the dryer, tumbling to a stop on the deck. He's disoriented and not able to do anything for the nonce. (2pts. stun)<br><br>

Unfortunately, Xiu gets tossed about too, and is stunned. (2pts.)<br><br>

Shaking his head clear, Marley sees the open crack getting smaller and smaller … too small for him now. He tries hacking through another console to activate the drop floor instead. Unbeknownst to us, he's got some hacks installed that might facilitate the override. <br><br> 

The floor lift starts up. The deck panels slide back and the lift floor retracts into the hull … then stops and closes again.<br><br>

Allyne uses his desk controls and slaps a lock on all the control surfaces on our ship against Marley.<br><br>

Xiu makes it to the cargo deck before Stone and starts hunting for Marley. Unlike Verity, she has no feed to tell her where the man is and the hold has cargo that blocks her view. <br><br>

Xiu rounds a corner and puts Marley in her sights. She orders him not to move or she will shoot him.<br><br>

'''Marley:''' You won't shoot me. The suit will explode and put a hole in your ship.<br>
'''Xiu:''' I can fix the ship. You know what I can't fix? Assholes.<br><br>

Marley jets over to the cover provided by the mid-deck stairwell. Xiu shoots, hits his delta wing, and breaks off a tip of it. Marley makes a rough landing in the (blind) corner of the stairwell and suffers more stun. (2pts.)<br><br>

On the bridge, Verity gets hailed by Ground Control and the Inspection Ship. <br><br>

'''Ground Control:''' What the hell is going on up there?<br>
'''Inspection Ship:''' Shots fired. Please Confirm. Shots fired.<br><br>

Allyne hails them from his desk.<br><br>

'''Allyne:''' Thank you Ground Control. We have a damn space crazy who decided to take a walk off our damned ship. We're taking care of it.<br><br>

''Click!''<br><br>

Allyne engages our Jabberwocky so no one can track our comms. He pings Verity on the bridge.<br><br>

'''Allyne:''' Land the ship as planned. Put it on autopilot and join me in the hold.<br>
''Verity:''' Not if you want to land in one piece, I can't. But the doctor can.<br><br>

Allyne orders Oksana to join him and she throws off the belts and takes Xiu's secret ladder down, those being closest to med bay. Allyne quits his quarters and runs down the foredeck stairs.<br><br>

Marley sees Allyne exit the stairs foreward. The Fed shrugs out of his wings and tries to go up the mid deck stairs. The door is locked against him.<br><br>

On the bridge, Verity detects several approaching ships on the horizon. <br><br>

Oksana reaches the bottom of Xiu's ladder and steps out onto the deck.<br><br>

Allyne yells to Marley, in clear line of sight.<br><br>

'''Allyne:''' Stand down!<br>
''Marley:'' Starfish! Bail out!<br><br>

''Starfish.'' Oksana freezes as the word hits her. ''What the hell?'' Then she shakes off her paralysis and starts running for the sound of Marley's voice.<br><br> 

Xiu is between Oksana and Marley, her gun drawn and up. The stress finally overpowers Xiu and the young woman goes turtle on the deck, curling up into a tight little ball. Oksana runs to her and checks her vitals. Thready pulse. Unresponsive to commands. <br><br>

Thank goodness Xiu hadn't shot herself or Allyne—also downrange of her gun—and Oksana takes the weapon up. She frisks Xiu for her backup piece and recovers it as well. <br><br>

Meanwhile, Allyne has made it to Marley and neatly disarms the stunned man of his weapons and frisks him of his electronics gear. Allyne notes Marley's suit is made up of stuff similar to what the ninjas wore. <br><br>

Oksana joins Allyne and Marley, looks Marley in the eye.<br><br>

'''Oksana:''' We need to talk. (tranks him)<br>
'''Marley:''' Parker sends his regards—(goes under)<br>
'''Allyne:''' Parker?<br>
'''Oksana:''' We need to question him, find out what he knows.<br><br>

Which they will, as soon as they get Marley and Xiu to med bay. As a precaution, Allyne strips Marley out of his suit and straps him securely into one of the scanning beds while Oksana scans Xiu on the other. The engineer checks out fine, if a bit catatonic.<br><br> 

Meanwhile, Allyne returns to the bridge to field queries from the ground and air. He turns off the Jabberwocky and pretends that there was a glitch in our comms, so sorry. Ground Control informs him to stay on course and land in ten minutes. Port Authority will meet us on the ground. <br><br>

Allyne acknowledges the orders and cuts the channel. He comms Oksana and orders her to scan Marley before we land. Oksana does so and finds the scan coming in nice and clear. The man has: <br><br>

*A mild concussion.
*Bone bruises
*Other (non-life threatening) contusions
*Is in excellent health
*Nothing unusual about him<br><br>

She and Allyne shift him to the recovery ward and strap him securely to his bed.  He's stable, unconscious, and not going anywhere.<br><br>  

Allyne has Oksana scan Marley's suit next. It causes the scan to fuzz up on the backpass. The scan results catch nothing as a result. Allyne stashes it in one of the passenger cargo lockers, those being shielded as well as being secure. Allyne turns to an inspection of the delta wing next, trying to determine how it was carried aboard Marley's one smallish suitcase. <br><br>

He finds that the wing is made of an alloy of nano-carbon fibers and cellulose, making it flexible like cloth until activated, allowing it to be packed tightly. Fairly sophisticated and high tech, obviously. <br><br>
 
Oksana treats Xiu for her stun and moves her to her quarters, cocooning her with her comfort objects so when the young woman wakes, she will not freak out.<br><br>

Allyne wants to turn Marley over to the authorities. Oksana dissuades him: make it look like Marley got drunk and tried to disembark early. We could say we had to restrain him for his safety. Oksana will inject him with something that will show up as blood alcohol on a tox screen in support of our story. Allyne recants the contents of several booze bottles in the lounge to produce empties on demand. <br><br>

While the cover story is getting nailed, Verity flies us nice as you please to the spaceport berth as ordered.<br><br>

The Port Authority vehicle pulls up alongside when we land. Four men haul out, two of them armed. <br><br>

Allyne lowers the drop lift to allow the authorities to come aboard. Our foreward cargo ramp has been damaged, so sorry. Once the authorities are aboard, Allyne tells them what happened: Our passenger got drunk and tried to leave via our cargo ramps, causing us to execute that aerial maneuver to save him mid-air. As a result, he's a mite banged up but he's alive.<br><br>

A gurney is summoned to take Marley in for interrogation. Two more (unarmed) staff exit the PA vehicle with the gurney. Allyne escorts them up one of our internal lifts to med bay, where Oksana has no choice but to turn Marley over to the authorities. She asks permission to accompany him as his attending physician. Permission is granted and she climbs aboard with Marley and is driven to the Port medical facility.<br><br>

Meanwhile, Allyne is informed that the Port Authority will oversee the off-loading of our cargo and will inform our client of our mid-air hijinks. Allyne is quick to inform the PA that Marley is not part of our client's cargo and they need not know of him. Marley was strictly a separate matter.<br><br>

At the medical facility, Oksana's busy overseeing Marley's installation as a patient. The usual hustle surrounds their arrival and she doesn't see someone inject a wake-up drug into Marley's IV port. He wakes up and as she checks him out, someone else draws her back with a hand on her shoulder … a hand that also holds a trank patch. Oksana immediately blacks out.<br><br>

The game ends with our party split up, our cargo possibly confiscated, and a mystery on our hands. Who is Parker? Why did Marley yell out 'Starfish', the same codeword for that secret wave Oksana received? What is Marley's game? And just what the hell is in Xiu's brain?<br><br>

Only time will tell.<br><br>

<br><br><br>
''((NOTE: This marks the exit of Dorian as the player of Marley. Only time will tell if he returns as Marley or as anyone else. Thanks, Dorian, and fly safe ... wherever you are.))'' 


<br><br><br>
=='''''HOW TO SPEAK CHINESE'''''==
'''Kōngjiān''' = 空間 = kohng '''tshee'''-enn = space, void, expanse [http://translate.google.com/?hl=en#en/zh-TW/Space Sound Clip]



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