Story 10: The Pirate King!

Page 1: Metal Lass, Mr. Music, Miss Anima

The page framing is a classic 6 panel grid of the three characters walking through the Legion’s ship headquarters while, at first, talking with Olles Senn, the reporter for the Daily Planet. Miss Anima joins the other two a couple of panels into the sequence. The larger than normal panels are to show how much the Legion Q has improved just since last issue. Having the indefatigable Robot Boy around has rapidly accelerated the repairs to the ship to the point where it’s approaching space worthy. Plus, Bessie is now completely repaired, not that we pass through that part of the ship.

[BR: I’m framing it this way so I’m not dependent on one of you for an infodump, if we want to restructure so that it’s Mr. Music and Metal Lass showing of their strains of detective work without Olles there confirming it, we can do that, but in the name of expedience and also the logic of having the kids get someone to confirm their facts]

Olle’s voice is coming through Mr. Music’s communicator, “Well, Ode, I gotta admire how you kids tracked this down. Yeah, Jinnjhal’s sketches of the two women certainly do match the eyewitness reports from a couple of the pirate raids.”

The images of the two sketched women that Uncle Lardon pulled from White Raptor’s memory appears in a hologram screen, and then a blurry image of one of the women in motion on a Space Freighter, wielding what appears to be the bastard love child of a whip and a lightsaber.

Senn continues “How you convinced those tough-as-nails Jrdanians to admit that they were beat up by women… well, great work.”

Mr. Music remembers meeting the two enormous grey-shelled crustacean-humanoid space-sailors in a bar near the docks and calming their androphiliac species nature. (Jrdanians are a highly male dominated species with extreme sexual dimorphism, and their inability to understand how other races have gender equality is a consistent issue in the UP. They also like Lobstercules from the second season of The Tick.) Ode was able to calm them down and listen to a lot of their talk of how either one of them would have won the fight if they hadn’t been overcome with dizziness and loss of coordination, similar to what happens when they drink way too much in dockside bars and then have dust ups with more sober new arrivals. (This is totally normal behavior for Jrdanians… and long-haul freight crews.)

Senn’s voice takes on a clear note of pride in Mr. Music’s emotionally tuned ear, “I was able to call in some favors and confirm that this woman goes by the name of The Lash. She’s a Wynathian who was once part of the Taurus Gang. Clearly she didn’t take the chance afforded by her slipping the SP’s dragnet to go straight.”

Metal Lass arrives at this point, and upon hearing the name of the Taurus Gang can’t help but remember that Black Mace was also once part of that organization, and her stride takes the stance of someone remembering a past insult. Metal Lass’ hands are full of her research on the stolen ship designs, which ships have them, and how that ties to known or suspected Pirate attacks. She thinks she has a good idea on where they will strike next. Maybe. (There are some ‘attacks’ the SPs suspect might be ships dumping their cargo to the black market under the cover of the consistent stories of how some pirates are able to freeze their prey in place in the space lanes.)

“That she was seen at multiple attacks means it’s much more likely that there’s a coordination between the pirate crews. Some sort of ‘Pirate King’.”

[BR: feel free to respond and thread in other stuff. The pirates are a real threat, but they also don’t kill their targets – they leave them stranded in well traveled spacelanes with working life support. They aren’t anything like Roxxas the Starfinger, who raids colony planets, octomates them and leaves the survivors to starve.]

[R: Yes, Octomates them – Roxxas usually kills about 80% of the population in his initial attacks. It’s not a science but Decimates is too small a word. Anyway, he’s the “worse than pirates.”]

Page 2 Top: Miss Anima, Future Boy, Robot Boy

The team who wants to be present for this (Miss Anima and Future Boy are required, the others are scientists and Mr. Music was involved int he last discussion) are in a neutral, comfortable 'hang out' room.

(I figure the base has a couple of formal 'conference rooms' and several informal 'hang out' rooms. This one happens to be the one with the holo table used for running streamed roll-playing games, which is an actual in-canon thing for the LSH - Star Boy used to play with his dad wha was back on Xanthu.)

Once animated, Mans again acclimates quickly - perhaps because he has been animated so many times before at the Institute - with his bemused expression. "Oh! Hello there."

His eyes dart over to Tok, "Does this mean you've accepted my offer to collaborate? Or did you learn that someone is trying to replicate my research in a populated area?"

"The former, fortunately. I've found a material made of a kind of strange matter. I've figured out how to use it to detune an area from spacetime, but to go further with it, I'm going to need-"

"An Einstein-Rosen bridge! Excellent!" Mans smiles a wide happy smile, slapping his hand on his thigh. "And you thought you'd consult with the old man on the negative space implications of that?"

[BR: I do need to know who is in scene as it will color some of his responses - Lisa, Myles, are any of your PCs present?] "Not just that," Tok says. "I don't know how to build an Einstein-Rosen bridge; it's too far outside any field I've worked in, and I certainly don't know how to work with negative space safely. I'd need your expertise and help to even make the attempt."

[JK: Lisa says she's fine with Mr. Music not being in the scene. Myles?]

[BR: if Bubble Boy _isn’t_ there I’ll add Robot Boy and we can have this plot running parallel for the issue while everyone else is in space.]

"Of course," Mans says, "Even with your obvious skill level trying to do this without a theoretical would be too much of a risk. You were wise to ask. and of course I'll help.

"Science is my life's work."

He turns to Miss Anima, "Thank you again, Miss, for this opportunity. I'm afraid this may task your abilities to the utmost, as some of the components we'd need are too complicated to handle via simple fabrication...."

"I've never animated something I didn't draw from life -- or at least, very recently after seeing it," Miss Anima says, "but I'm game to give it a try as long as we test it."

(She plans to bring up the medical issue during this appearance, and has a datapad set up, but this seems to already be going, so let's let it go somewhere. Ideally she'd change the topic when the physics conversation peters out, but she suspects the physics conversation won't peter out and she'll eventually have to cut in.)

"That's a great...I hadn't thought of asking Miss Anima to fab parts. Too focused on my own fabbing tech. Anima, the strain of animating Dr Wyla and a bunch of parts won't risk being too much, will it?"

[BR: in a mechanical sense if she strains her ability to the utmost she can animate something/someone for 4 hours. That takes a little more than half her energy to do, so she can wait a few minutes and do it again and leave herself pretty much exhausted. It takes about 30 minutes to recover from that effort. It's also possible for her to animate 4 things fr 15 minutes each and leave herself exhausted. I'm assuming you have Mans for 4 hours. Drawing on her like this repeatedly will be exhausting., but it's possible.]

"Then let's get started!"

The above was the top row of 3 panels; below that we have a set of smaller panels showing a building montage of Mans describing an object to Jinnjahl so she can sketch it, then animate it; Tok then shoves it into a scanner to get a functioning sense of what it is for later fabrication. During the scenes where Tok is radically reworking the fabricator to be able to capture the slightly insane things that are materializing under Man's direction and Adom is offering technical commentary on his Creator's use of workhole technology, we see Dr. Wyla reading over the tablet that Jinnjal left lying around. There's one shot of his brow furrowing on anger as he absorbs the data on the screen, but the reader can't tell if that's due to his medical treatments or his financial arrangements.

Jinnjahl, looking drawn, comes up to Dr. Wyla after he's had a little while to look through the datapad. "I'm willing to help you handle things almost however you want," she says quietly, "but it has to be your decision. And I'd really rather pretend the datapad was an accident." She sighs. "As far as I can tell, the Institute is managing a sticky situation as best it can, and the only real mistake it's made is being so puffed up about actual study of medicine that it didn't ask your advice, but anything you want to do will put them in the middle of a mess and I don't want to tell them I *invited* you to."

Wyla continues to look at the datapad for a moment before looking up at Jinnjahl with sincere gratitude on his face. “Thank you, I appreciate that. I’ll have to think about best path forward. I wouldn’t want to place you in an awkward situation.”

He may have been about to say more when Robot Boy speaks up, “Cuationary Statement: I do not believe this is the most efficient configuration of the energy containment manifold.”

Wyla turns over, “Hmmmm? Why? What makes you say that?”

“Statement: Two reasons. First, my creators had not discovered faster than light travel prior to my entombment, but instead relied on AI units such as myself to reach planets via slower than light drives, initiate terraforming and construct stargates, and this device is substantially similar to those stargates in design. Second, my programming makes it extremely unpleasant to witness Sapients to placing themselves in unnecessary harm, and operating this device with an inferior containment manifold would constitute such risk.”

"That is very considerate programming," Tok says, "But do you have any concrete ideas on how to improve the containment manifold? What specifically makes it less efficient than possible?"

"Statement: The manifold design put forward by Dr. Wyla is would place the materials of the passing through the gate under what I believe to be an undue negative space stress. Depending on the conditions of the material my calculations indicate potential sub cellular level effects."

"Recommendations: can we consider the following design changes that I think better meld Dr. Wyla's innovations with my creator's technology. Observation: this should provide protection without expanding requirements to my original decades-long construction cycle."

"Let me think about this," Tok says, and he starts working on some equations on a holoboard.

There’s something about the change of his stance and the intensity of his work that Jinnjahl recognizes from her own artistic endeavors, and when Mans starts to ask what’s happening the diminutive icon of images holds up a quieting hand.

It’s several minutes and multiple holoscreens (and some time for Mans to go back to perusing his medical record and making notes of his own for Jinnjahl to act upon) before Tok looks back up at the others....

[BR: Josh, short form is Robot Boy is right, his design is safer. Long form (because your inventing roll was a 1!) is that Mans’ original design would have placed the people passing though it under a moment of negative space shock that would only be damaging if their body were already carrying a noticeable negative space charge - and you would build up such a charge when using the Time Portal. Each trip would be increasingly risky for the sort of accident that gives people Atomic Horror Movie Villains mutations/powers.]

[JK: Got it. So Mans' original design is clearly far better because it's awesome.]

"Got it," Tok says. "You're right, Robot Boy; your design is far safer. With Dr. Wyla's original design, it will seem safe, for a while; there's no immediate backlash or other bad result, but the subjects—the time travellers--would eventually have terrible things happen to them, and the risks would get worse with every trip. I mean, some of the results we get with Dr. Wyla's design are fascinating and I'd love to study them, but in the interests of safety and not getting eaten by a friend, I have to go with the safer design.

Mans nods, "Of course. Lets all avoid being eaten by friends!"

He then turns to Jinnjahl, "I don't think I have much time left today, but I wanted to express my gratitude on your assistance, Jinnjahl. I've created some notes for legal steps I'd like you to initiate, and some technical files to send to the doctors at the Institute on suggestions for my treatment. Would you be so kind?" He hands her the tablet, with one file marked with her name and another marked for Dr. Plact at the Institute.

Page 2 Bottom: Mr. Music, Metal Lass, Bubble Boy, Diskette

The scene is one of the more formal conference rooms, with everyone present and Mr. Music in the official "Chairperson's Chair"

(BR: Strong urge to have Chairface Chippendale show up in the next open application as Chair Person)  

The topic of discussion is next steps from Metal Lass' deduction on the next target for the pirates. Here's what you know, which Metal Lass and Mr. Music will lay out right before the start of the scene. 1) White Raptor was selling the stolen spaceship part plans to two women, one of whom has been identified as "The Lash". She is a former member of the Taurus Gang and wielder of an energy whip, who was identified at some of the pirate attacks 1.1) You don't know what the other woman is capable of, but the Jrdanians Mr. Music interviewed spoke of being disoriented. 2) The target is a luxury cruise liner, full of very wealthy people on a very expensive cruise. This would be their first civilian target, but the profile of high visibility, low defense, heavily outfitted with the equipment for which they have stolen plans fits 3) The pirates are thieves and assailants, but not murderers - they crew of the targeted ships have been given a chance to surrender, and left battered but alive in ships with working life support in traveled space lanes. (Metal Lass may want to bring up that while they are thieves they aren't dishonorable ones, at least not in her framework. Mr. Music might want to indicate in scene that the threats are financial and not _yet_ life or death, but that the piracy is already having an effect on UP defense strategy) 4) The pirates apparently have some means to hold their target ships immobile in space that frustrates conventional shielding against Gravity or EM weaponry. Could be some new super tech 5) Any reasonable plan will get you on to the ship and engage you with the pirates; borderline plans might give the pirates some sort of advantage, but don't go nuts here. 6) Only one PC per player. Robot Boy will at minimum stay behind on monitor duty unless you insist on dragging him along, while Josh has to pick whether to bring Diskette or Future Boy and Lisa has to pick Mr. Music or Ree the strange badger-dog-thing-that-lives-in-the-base)

Scene Open: Mr. Music says "Thank you, Metal Lass." He turns to the team. "This is everything we know...."

In the room are Mr. Music, Metal Lass, Bubble Boy and Diskette. Everyone, having a chance to chew on the data, waits for a beat before expressing their various levels of interest in the affair, starting with a Whoop from Bubble Boy for being able to fight space pirates.

[BR: can someone start some planning dialogue on which method)s) you intend to use to get on board?

"...and that leaves the question of how we get on board in the first place," says Mr. Music.

"Well, the money isn't a problem," Patin says."Felos has already requested that the Legion look into this, so we'll cover any reasonble expense.Honestly, I can just get a stateroom and have the rest of you come as my friends; nobody will think twice."  

"Yes, a nice cruise and pirates! Do they have all-you-can eat buffets?" Gorvo asks. 

Page 3: Mr. Music, Metal Lass, Bubble Boy, Diskette, (Linda)

SPLASH PAGE The whole of the page is one of those no edge bleeding off the paper shots showing the Boundless Stars luxury liner in orbit over Carekesh. There are several shuttles docked already but we are focusing on a Felos Industries craft coming in from the upper left hand side, and a second private craft coming in from the upper right. Following each crafts trail is a series of smaller panels

Felos Track

Diskette is at controls, with the rest of the Legionnaires around her. Gorvo is looking at a tablet rather than gawking at the enormous space freighter

Gorvo: "An all you can eat buffet!"

Gorvo replies, "On Tallag, it was eat or be eaten in the early days, and the habit is culturally ingrained at this point. At least, that's what I say when I go back for second helpings."

He looks longingly at the tablet display, which shows obscene amounts of food temptingly arrayed.

Station: "Felos 1138, you are cleared for approach to docking bay AA3. Manifest shows stateroom with four adjoining bedrooms. I also see a note here for a 'special weapons clearance'. Please transmit documentation for code 43A17 Fencing Supplies, Miscellaneous."

"Of course," Diskette says, "stand by for transmit."

Ranzz Track

The inside of the other shuttle we see a perfectly normal Wynathian family with two parents, a brood of three children, a butler who is piloting the ship and an au pair. Perfectly normal extremely wealthy family.

Station: Private Shuttle Ranzz 4, you are cleared for approach to docking back AA5. Manifest shows stateroom with master bedroom, second bedroom, three child bedroom and au pair chamber. Welcome to the Boundless Stars.

Scattered across the rest of the page, overlaying the ship to indicate where things are, we have panels of the characters doing things on the ship before the predicted attack.

LINDA

Linda checks to see how effectively she can make sure the the kids leaving their rooms will wake her in hers, then takes them exploring the ship. That's a split panel -- all three kids are enthusiastically listing what they want to see as she's checking out the suite layout, and she's agreeably asking, "How long do you think you can keep walking?" and then in the third of a panel representing the end of the exploration she's got a kid riding piggyback and the other two yawning while they trudge next to her and she's cheerfully saying, "We can explore more after naps."

LEGIONNAIRES

At the No-Limit Bar, Patin, clad in a white cocktail dress, with only a few required touches--a single valuable bracelet; an expensive antigrav "Beagle Pocket" purse following discretely near her side--to show how rich her family is, steps up to what Superboy (or another late 20th centurian) would certainly recognize as a not-that-distant descendant of a karaoke machine. The music swells, and behind her a tri-D image of, Patin, only dressed like a rock star, takes shape, as she shamelessly, athletically, and adroitly dances to the long instrumental intro. And, planting her feet just in time, begins to sing.

Ode's sitting in the bar with a milkshake in front of him. His thought balloon of Patin as a back up dancer has broken in half, a lightning bulb between the two halves.

"She can _sing_?" he asks, stunned enough to be unaware he's spoken aloud.

So it would seem.” Dolar says, as she flips through the map of the ship. “Look at this — they have a zero-grav arena!” Her pose, barely restrained, denotes excitement at the prospect of a new experience. “Do you think the rest of the team would like to try it?"

Patin makes her way back to her friends once her performance ends, looking breathless. "Well, I didn't have to pretend to be nervous," she says, sitting down near her friends. "But the show must go on."

“Are you going to take a turn, Ode?”, Dolar asks, looking up from the digital flimsy, shifting into a form denoting pride for the talents of friends. “Perhaps you and Patin could choose a duet?"

“Look at this — they have a zero-grav arena!” Dolar's pose, barely restrained, denotes excitement at the prospect of a new experience. “Do you think the rest of the team would like to try it?"

"Zero-G is great fun, but I might end up squashing a few team mates. We play Zero-G pinball at home sometimes but it takes a strong stomach not to get motion sick."

"I would," Patin hasn't quite regained her wind, but you wouldn't know it by her body language. "That sounds terrific, and a great workout besides. "Gorvo, don't you think that...where's he go?"

We get a single panel of an opulent doorway to a dining room with a sign saying 'All Hours Buffet'. In the doorway is the receding blue-grey silhouette of Gorvo.

Page 4: All Characters

There is a sudden hideous lurch as the _Boundless Stars_ loses all forward momentum. It had been paused outside one of its scenic systems, where a gravitational anomaly was pulling a par of gas giants and their attendant 72 moons into Red Dwarf star in a truly beautiful decade long collapse. The liner had been on a modest drift around the system over the course of a day to give everyone a chance to see it from all angles before moving on. That forward momentum is gone in an instant, as if something had reached out at caught the ship like a slow pitch moopsball.

[BR: A brief digression on spaceship travel in the LSH setting: the LSH uses Star Trek rules, where the ships are in normal space, just moving faster than light when they decide to get moving. There are faster than light communications and sensors that make this possible. Robot Boy’s creators developed stargates with instant point to point transport between fixed devices, but no one in Federation space uses those, and certainly no one has developed jump drives for an individual ship to teleport on its own (only Diskette can do that…). Your average ship can run at FTL speed for days at a time and then needs some time to either refuel from gas giants (for older safer models) or recalibrate and clean the engines (for newer, faster models that don’t have to hit a star system with gas giants in it to refuel]

[BR: Can everyone please give me one cool thing they do to help/save people during the sudden stop? There can be some damage to the amenities but while this was jarring it wasn’t the equivalent of hitting a brick wall so no structural damage to the ship. Diane, Metal Lass is feeling a distinct queasiness.]

Linda grabs Garth as he starts to topple out of the chair he'd been standing on, dropping him immediately (and therefore rather roughly) on his chair as she grabs the light table they'd been sitting at and interposes it between herself and the children and the collection of dinnerware, cutlery, and oddments flying all over the room.

Garth squeals "Wheeeee!" as she spins him to the ground, followed by "Woah" as the upended table absorbs an array of airborne assaults.

Irma looks worries "Are we gonna crash into the sun, like the planets are?"

"No."

Diskette does a skater's gesture with her arms almost as soon as "down" briefly changes directions, and her hands and feet all go into discs--her feet bracing her as they appear against the far wall, and the her hands, pushing forward through disks, each catching someone who was flying off at a dangerous angle. Meanwhile, the other score of discs she summoned serve a bunch of more targeted purposes--some catching flying objects to clatter harmlessly against the wall and others in groups of three or four to catch large pieces of furniture and brace them against the wall.

Gorvo, in the buffet dining room, feels the ship lurch and instinctively strengthens his force field, reaching out to grab other passengers nearby to shield them from flying shrimp and assorted plates and cutlery. The airborne debris clatters harmlessly off the force field. Only the sauces and soup cling briefly to the surface to run down and drip onto the carpeted floor.

As the ship rights itself, Bubble Boy releases the other passengers and calls out. "You heard the captain, head for your cabins!"

The items flying around the cabin include the insturments the band normally uses when people aren’t doing the tri-d kaeroke. As the guitar goes flying past Ode reaches out and casyally snags its neck before it can clobber an unspecting passenger.

At the lurch, Metal Lass throws out her hands and spreads her fingers wide, and flying forks and knives stop short and settle gently to the floor. As they land, she folds in on herself, arms wrapped around her stomach. “Drell’s basin! What is this?"

The emergency lights start flashing at their lowest level and a calm, soothing voice says “Good morning, this is the captain. We seem to be experiencing a minor inertial disturbance. Please head to a designated zone while we restore normal function.” There’s a brief pause and then the lights shift from pale amber to a harsher red. In the enormous viewscreen overhead (not a transparent material, but a perfect 1:1 imaging of the outside sky on the inside of the ship that has the same effect” the Legionnaires can spot a trio of ominous ships – a smaller one hanging back with weapons while the one larger and one small are approaching the Boundless Stars.

“This is the Captain: Please return to your rooms immediately in an orderly and calm fashion.”

[BR: Beth, Linda can recognize these ships as refitted vessels from the last Khund War – old, but dangerous and completely capable of taking out an unarmed ship like the _Boundless Stars_. Compared to today’s technology they are a bit Eggshells with Hammers, but the hammers are strong enough to destroy the _Stars_ if they hit it enough times before the _Stars_ can fire up its engines and get out of here. Tactically, if the pirates take much or any damage they may withdraw, but everything really depends on getting the _Stars_ moving again.] Linda looks at the ceiling viewscreen, purses her lips, and says, "Let's go, kids; we're supposed to evacuate -- and frightened crowds are no place for children." She grabs food and drink, especially drink, as she shepherds the kids out of the room and tries to figure out which lifeboat is safest if the emergency turns more dire. Somewhere she can dog the latches and tell the kids to keep the latches dogged even if she needs to go out to deal with something. Ideally with the kids' parents; barring that, another adult who she trusts to be at least minimally competent. She does not, however, explain this to the children until she gets them out of a crowd.

Garth grabs Irma's hand to pull her ahead "We're gonna get to fight pirates!"

Irma resists, and Mekt grabs Garths other arm, perhaps roughly, to hold him in check, "They have guns and swords you goober! We're eight! We're not gonna fight anyone. Linda is gonna fight people."

Irma stands stock still for a second, freezing everyone, "No one is going to fight anyone! That would be stupid." Once the boys absorb this she lets Linda keep moving them forward at her brisk pace. "Linda, where are we going to go?"

"Yeah?" Garth asks, "Where are we gonna go?" Despite his bravado there's some fear in his voice after his brother explained the harsh reality, and Linda knows enough of the group dynamic to know that if Garth is getting scared the other two are likely barely holding on.

"Those were older ships," Linda tells the kids conversationally as she takes them out of the crowd and away from their rooms, "but armed, and we're not. It's okay to be scared. In fact, it's smart to to be scared. It's not okay to panic. The safest place to be right now is the lifeboats. So we're going there, not to your rooms. We're going this way because if your parents are headed back to the suite we may meet them."

Mekt nods once, and then starts dragging his brother in that direction,, even as Garth is craining his head to see what's going on.

"Scared people," Linda tells Garth (and the others), "no pirates nearby. Run for a moment, I want to through the next intersection and a flight up before anyone panics." (That's where there's a chance to intercept the parents. RIGHT NOW, a panicked crowd is a way bigger threat to three fragile children than pirates who are probably boarding soon.) She scoops up Irma, who is not at all likely to run off, but the other two will freak if she gets hurt, and runs down the corridor at the kids' best pace. (This way she'll have one kid that isn't winded, she can manage one on her back and one on her shoulders if she really has to, but carrying all three at much would require a harness.)

[Diane, the _Stars_, for all its bulk, it doubtless a faster ship (Metal Lass knows this from her analysis of the various ships systems that White Raptor was stealing, as the _Stars_ has that engine design). If the crew can get it moving and avoid incoming fire for a short while they can get clear. Plus, you still feel really wonky. Something is messing with you.]

[Josh, you can extrapolate the most likely target – it’s out of character for the Pirates to go for kidnapping or ransom, but the _Stars_ sold itself to the wealthy with the combination of maximum safety and convenience for their valuables. There’s a complex internal dumbwaiter system that gives each room its own ‘safe’ that actually carries the coded and tagged valuables down to an ultra-secure vault in the core of the ship. Key in a code in your room and one of a number of ‘safe deposit boxes’ will whisk up to your safe for you to extract your jewelry, contracts, bearer bonds, used to be legal to make but not anymore so your existing ones are grandfathered in and fantastically valuable Karelia Silkfur shawls and so on. The Vault is clearly the most secure part of the ship, but if you have the means to make entry you can scoop up everything of value rather than have to take it room from room from each panic-stricken passenger.]

[Lisa: Mr. Music can hear the murmur of the passengers and crew and can tell that aside from the four Legionnaires this is a complete shock – the crew and ships security is unprepared for this. You can also hear a note of calm, one self-assured instrument in the symphony, coming from the aft starboard, where one of the shuttle bays for the small excursion ships are (imagine 4 person kayaks with outriggers used for sightseeing around the ship and you have the right idea.]

[Lisa: to clarify – Josh is correct. She can hear that there are some people amidst the chaos who are prepared for what’s happening. These are also Rob People Pirates, just to clarify]

"The Vault," Diskette says, tapping a control at her belt, causing her dress to assume the color scheme (although not the style) of her typical costume, and pulling her viewscreen to help her navigate. They have to be planning to hit the vault!"

"This way!"

Ode adds, “Someone expected this aft starboard. Heading there. The rest of you follow Diskette's lead -- she's right." Ode heads off, guitar in hand, playing a song to calm the crowd and make the evacuation as orderly as possible, as he works with casual deliberation towards themetaphirical calm instrument in the cacophony. The music sweeps across the atrium and the near panicked crowd instead forms orderly queues and moves with a quick pace to their quarters, as requested.

Gorvo dashes out of the dining room in the games room where Diskette and the others were to catch Diskette leading the charge for the Vault. "A cruise, all-you-can eat buffets and space pirates? This is amazing!"

Before he can reach the rapidly moving Diskette he spies the unmoving Dolar, clearly in some sort of distress.

Still curled in a half-ball, Metal Lass extends her metal-sense outward — towards the ship’s hull — looking for the source of her discomfort, the point where that metal’s harmony is being disturbed.

Her contact with the ships hull leaves her recoiled with shock, and the hope that her contact was too brief to be felt. THERE’S ANOTHER METAXIAN HOLDING THE SHIP IN PLACE!

Page 4 Bottom: Metal Lass, Bubble Boy, Diskette

Eyes wide and shoulders set in the form for the discovery of betrayal, Dolar gasps, “Gorvo! One of…my kind…stopping the ship. Can’t tell whether…they’re on this ship…or the other. Feedback…in…my…metal sense…feels...awful. Tried to hide…don’t know whether….they felt me here…"

"Dolar!" Gorvo rushes to her side. "Another Metaxian? With the pirates? Crashing comets, that's bad news!"

He extends his force field in a generous cushion under and behind Dolar's body. "Are you okay? Can you stand up? I can help." His brow wrinkles in concern as he concentrates on being as gentle as possible. "You'll be fine, Metal Lass. I know it."

As soon as Govo says those words Metal Lass’ nausea ends. The enormous array of metal bending power that had been holding the entire spaceframe in place vanished. Unfortunately, this doesn’t result in the Boundless Stars moving forward again.

(Diskette has obviously noticed at this point that her strike team has been delayed…)

Diskette doesn't pause her advance as she responds to the news she's overheard over the team's communicators.  "Metaxian?  Got it. That's...gotta be their safe-breaker  I'm going in--catch up when you can."

"No metal on me, she thinks. Except..." One hand goes to the nape of her neck as she runs, and her necklace falls, slipping through a quickly summoned hole to parts unknown. "and there it goes".

Given her powers and training she would have easily outdistanced her allies even without their concerns for Dolar, and she is able quickly reach the floor where the vault resides, the corridors around it providing no access to the supposedly impregnable box. A series of disk periscopes yield a surreptitious glance around the whole of the vault and she can spot a red-headed woman in a stylized space suit waiting by a hole that has just been melded into the vault space, and the deposit boxes have likewise disgorged their contents across the floor. The woman is clearly the one from the memory sketch that Olles had been able to track down as The Lash, formerly of the Taurus gang. But according to Senn, this woman is Wynathian. The woman is looking at a small device in one hand that is blinking red while speaking into a wrist communicator.

Through the warp Patin can hear her say "Rum, Lash here. Vault is open, but the big prizes aren't here."

Lash then looks up at the pinhole disk....

BR: Josh, I'm presuming some logical behavior on Diskette's part to scout out with her powers. Let me know if this is problematic and, if not, what you intend to do next. You _think_ she's spotted the warp but maybe not.

[JK: It's fine--I didn't have her try to warp directly down largely because I didn't want to entirely short circuit the race if you didn't want (or arguably because as long as she was leading part of the team down she didn't want to get too far ahead--once it became clear backup would be slower that becomes less important), but of course even a large ship tends to be fairly small if you don't have to worry about elevators, and a periscope probe is sensible once she hits a predictable dead end and she's dome it before]

Diskette thinks: "There's got to be a metaxian out of sight, unless it's Lash. Can I really beat them alone?. But I sped down herr to buy time, so..." Patin opens up a gate to drop up behind Lash, her gloves shifting and merging together to form her trademark weapon. "Let me guess, she says--this was a good place to hide from the pirate attack?"

JK: Basic strategy: Keep Lash talking if she can to give the rest of the team a chance to regroup, and use some small periscope portals to make it harder to ambush her. If Lash attacks, defend and try to separate her from the device, whatever it is, then go on the offensive if practical. If things stay conversational for a bit, try to find out what she's looking for or why she's doing this, but mostly try to stretch things out--that said, Diskette's sarcasm will likely push things physical sooner than not.

ROUND 1 28: Diskette The lithe Legionnaire drops down behind her potential opponent and says “ Let me guess, she says--this was a good place to hide from the pirate attack?"

[BR my assumption is that Diskette is setting up an Evasion to go along with her defense and help buy time if things turn into a fight. Her current Vitality is 50 after the rescues, the periscope disk and her appear from behind move, so any attacks on her are at -5 attack base.]

19: the Lash Lash’s response is clearly not that of someone inclined to banter. She barks into the communicator “Captain Ahn, Legionnaires!”

The hand holding the flashing gizmo suddenly extends a long line sinuous glowing energy, and with a practiced flick of her arm the pirate sends it lashing through the air at Diskette.

[BR: base attack is 17, reduced to 12 for Parry defense, reduced to 7 for the Evasion, increased to 8 for level modification. Roll is a 10. Each use of the defense costs 1 Vitality so after this she is at 49]

Diskettes instinctive was shield catches the energy line two thirds up its length, and Diskette realizes a problem when the explosive force of the contact leaves a scar on a nearby wall - unlike on a planet where her parries can be safely grounded here every strike she blocks risks damaging the ships frame.

This flashes through her head in the split second before the energy whip continues its momentum, curling around the blocking disk on its path towards her. Only her nearly inhuman reflexes keep the tip from ripping open her shoulder.

13: Diskette (BR following through on Josh’s stated plan) Her specially designed sword forming out of her gloves, Diskette lunges with a decade of training, scoring a nearly impossible hit on the tip of the device in the whip hand. Whatever it is, it shatters into a million pieces.

[BR: attack base is 16, a called shot requires an odd hit to work in the deeply tested new rule that I just made up to account for how the dice are different. Since she wasn’t aiming for Lash directly you don’t know if she has any defenses that might apply. Roll is a 3. Maximum damage is rolled (10 points!)]

4: Lash, Captain Ahn Unfortunately, it doesn’t appear that the device is what is creating the energy whip, as Lash still has it to hand, and now has a nasty grin, “I don’t need any gizmos to do this, Diskette - by the blessings of the Hermit Gods this is allllll natural!”

[BR: as above but her chance is 1 better because at 49 Vitality Diskettes Evasion is now only -4. The roll is a 1! A hit! Damage roll is 9, and I assume Diskette rolls with 4 points of it. Her current Vitality is 45, Hit Points are 7]

Lash expertly weaves her unpredictable weapon between Diskettes sword and her warp shield, and the tip leaves a long hot bruise along Patin’s right thigh. Had she not already been in motion the force of the energy weapon might well have, given Patins loss of Terran endurance, shattered the girls hip.

The floating warp that Diskette is using to avoid ambush reveals to her glance that the wall of the vault is rippling, and with an instinctive leap braced by her free hand on the floating bit of wall that has been serving as her shield the fastest of the Legionnaires flies through the air and over the incoming flow of liquid metal that burst free of the vault wall. There’s no sign of her Metaxian opponents location but their presence is felt.

[BR: I’m not gonna do the math on the to hit here because Patin has no way or judging her unseen attacker, but suffice it to say it was close. 1 more Vitality down for another use of the Defense. You are at 44.]

Lash speaks again “don’t worry about me, Captain. It’s been a long time since I saw someone this good and I want to enjoy this....”

[BR: Actions next round are dependent on what Bubble Boy and Metal Lass are doing. If they started immediately after Diskette they will be there next round. If not the duel continues....]

[BR: Diane, here’s what you absolutely know: any Metaxians control over metal is time dependent - once you grab hold of something you can keep manipulating it for about 150 seconds (your endurance in 15 second combat rounds). Whoever took control of the ship held it for about that long, but they might also have decided to focus their energy on one or more places from that original control, the way you might pull off a hunk of your sculpture to use as a shield and not care about the rest. It would be possible for a Metaxian to grab the whole ship and then - If they had access to the plans for the devices - disable the FTL and standard drives so they didn’t have to strain against the ship the whole time. such a person would have to be incredibly experienced and in peak physical condition to grab the entire 325 ton ship and that must have been exhausting. They probably still have control of at least one hunk of metal from that first grab, but its hard to tell for how much longer - no Metxian has ever held a connection longer than 6 minutes.]

[...And yes you did hear “Captain Ahn” come through Diskettes communicator because it’s more dramatic that way and of course Patin would have set it to 1 way transmit while sneaking to keep you in the loop]

• By the Five Gods, what will the elders say?* Dolar thinks as she dashes down the corridor.

Gorvo chases in the direction the fleet Diskette went, hoping that she's not in over her head. "Not the first time," he mutters, "but she has a way of making it work."

Page 5: Mr. Music and Linda

Linda and her charges are making their way with best speed through the halls to get to the life boats. The quartet have outraced the crowds, which were not as panicked as Linda feared (nor are the children, nor herself come to think of it), making their treck to the starboard aft lifeboats (the closest she remembered from the ship scehmatics) as easy as possible. There’s been no sign of the pirates yet, but by her estimation they are likely docking right about now, probably via any of the dozens of locked down private shuttlebays that her employers and the other most affluent patrons used to board the ship.

Unfortunately, that last surmise, while logical, was incorrect.

Mr. Music, having clamed the ship with his powers (non-combat pushed used for 5 times efficacy, 16 Vitality, you have 36 vitality remaining after resting some on the way here, but nearly everyone on the ship is being calm and logical in their actions), makes his way to the aft starboard area of calm. That’s the small craft bay. A quick glance shows him the ships crew who should be guarding the bay are lying unconscious, splayed across the room, save one who is woozily trying to hold himself up as a striking woman with long raven-black hair wearing a black and white stylizard space suit approaches him. He thinks he recognizes her as one of the two women from Miss Anima’s sketch of White Raptor’s memories. The one they know nothing about.

There is already a rough and tumble troop carrier docked past the air lock, and the remaining crew member is trying to manipulate the controls to prevent the lock from cycling. Before Mr. Music can intervene, he hears the patter of multiple feet approaching him and hears a kid stage whisper “It’s a pirate!”

Linda, rounding a corner, sees the small suttle lock entrance, where a young Wynathian, oh-so-stylingly dressed and carrying… A guitar?... is peering around the corner when Garth inevitably pipes up. Mekht slaps his hand over his brother’s mouth with an actual whisper “what do you think a pirate looks like?!”, but it’s too late.

Inside the room, the woman deliveres an experienced front kick to the officer’s face, rendering the already staggered man unconscious. Mr. Music hears the man’s jaw break, and sees the spray of blood, but can also hear the breathing of the other crew isn’t accompanied with moans or other sounds of pain. It’s possible that this was the only blow struck.

Linda can also hear the sharp crack of a breaking bone, and the collapse of a body inside the room. She also hears the airlock cycle.

The pirates are on board.

There’s a brief communicative glance between the two teenagers – Linda nods forward, Ode nods to the door – and then Ode prepares to act as a distraction.

Linda tosses Irma over her shoulder in a firemans carry, scoops up both the boys and takes off at a sprint back past the door towards the closest escape hatch. Ode can see the girl is blindigly fast: even weighted down she is moving at the same speed as a Miss Anima can manage with her loping Slan leaps. As soon as she’s clear Ode steps into the doorway, his motion covering for any movement the woman inside might have seen out of her peripheral vision.

As he steps in, he hears a voice through a communcator, "Rum, Lash here. Vault is open, but the big prizes aren't here."

Ode starts strumming (or, more likely, shifts tunes), focusing on making the pirates feel very protective of the kids. (Yes, this pretty much means the pirates will see him.)

"Remember the captain's orders," he says. "Get to your cabins and stay there."

[LP: Note that this is not an attempt to get the pirates to give up piracy or decide the kids should be adopted. He's figuring that these are not the pirates who murder or who commit violence lightly. So, his priorities are a) make sure the pirates don't hurt the kids and b) delay the pirates from doing, er, pirate stuff by having them focus on making sure the kids get somewhere safe -- there's a (not very good) Hong Kong movie called Hard Boiled where the cop and the (established as crazed) killer stop and lower their guns and wait until all the folks in the hospital they're fighting in leave the room. That's more what Ode's going for -- he's not trying to get a pirate escort for the kids.]

[He may be seeing Linda as non-com, but that's not really relevant as he figures she's on board with protect the kids. But, if relevant, the pirates have no reason to think Linda and Ode are colluding because, well, they're not.]

[BR: I am interpreting this as generating Calm, one of your existing emotional states, where the pirates are Charmed into being generally calmer in the direction that's most beneficial to you. Your attack roll on the Pirates in general is a 17 attack base (you have higher Int and Cha than all of the mooks, so you get a +3 from their Low Willpower defense type) I'm working in groups of 5 for convenience and with rolls of 18, 3, 9 and 13 you have charmed 15 of the 20 pirates to an increase non-violent/make sure we don't injure the passengers attitude. This will have a beneficial aspect across the whole ship. It would have been possible for you to define your undefined emotional state as Protective to get an actual Pirate Escort for the kids, but yeah, I don't think that's one you want to have on permanent standby]

[BR: as for the woman who facilitated their entry, she's not such an easy target, beating you in both Int and Cha. her defense type drops your attack base to a 7. The roll is 18, so no joy. She's not influenced by your music. In any even 8 more points of Vitality expended, you're at 28. By the combat applications of this power it camn target everyone in a hemisphere, but not the people behind you so Linda and the kids are unaffected.]

ROUND 1 17: Mr. Music, Pirates Mr. Music steps into the doorway and intensifies his playing, coming as quite a shock to the score of pirates and their raven-haired infultrator. Before the woman can do or say anything the music washes over them and Ode can see a noticeable shift in more than half of the Pirates. The one pirate with a sash, obviously some sort of command thing, barks out "Right, A, and B teams, crowd control, herd people and officers their rooms - keep easy routes back here, keep the distractions to a minimum. There's no money in blood."

"C and D teams, get to the vault," The pirates start rushing out with speed, two groups taking a hard right turn, presumably vault-bound, the remainder come out seconds later, spitting up, and one group turning in the direction that Linda took the three kids.

16: Rum Back inside the room the infiltrator's face has gone from surprised to worried to bemused, "It's Mr. Music, right? Not sure you're here but nice to know your priorities don't necessarily overlap with mine."

The communicator on her arm barks out "Captain Ahn, Legionnaires!"

"Or maybe they do..." She says in a whisper before adding "Here too, Captain!" into the communicator.

Mr. Music sees light shine around her head in pink circles, projecting out towards him. He can hear that this is costing her - she was breathing heavily a moment ago and her breath goes a little ragged as she concentrates - whatever her power is, she's been pushing it recently. Unfortunately that's all he has time to register as Rum's power short circuits his nervous system. The room goes black and he hears is the sound of his own body hitting the ground (years of training with the monks made sure he protected the guitar with his body as he fell). Hes nearly oncsicous, but can still hear the music of the spheres for a vague awareness of what's happening.

[BR: Her base attack is 15, increased to 18 because she has a higher Int and Cha than Mr. Music. The attack roll is a 6. You're unconscious until you make a d20 roll vs. Influence to force yourself back to sight/mobility.]

16: Linda Before the pirates make it out the door, Linda has already tossed the three kids into the escape hatch with a whispered instruction to seal the door but not launch. Irma nods gravely, and Mekt tackles his brother into the front of the pod and sits on him to prevent any mischief. Once they are safely stowed, she takes a quick two steps and leap to the archway of the intersecting corridor and braces herself out of sight behind it.

Should the pirates try anything with the kids, the kids will be behind a steel door, and Linda will be in position to come at the pirates from behind with room to move.

[Combat wise she’s now set up for an ambush and will get facing modifiers should it come to a fight.]

2: Mr. Music [Lisa, your Influence is an 8 and you rolled an 8. You still lose this turn, but thanks to your monastic training and general awesomeness you're able to act again next action and are fully aware of what's happening. Feel free to insert a Flashback Sequence here as to how the Monks taught you to deal with this sort of externally imposed disharmony. (and no, that doesn't mean she's an entropy munk, but the general principles would apply]

<space for flashback>

2: Pirates One cluster of 5 pirates tromps past the airlock where the kids are hidden, none of them spotting the figure in the shadows of the archway. There are several seconds of peace before the lead of the group pulls out a small device and turns it on, to see It flashing green, indicating behind him.

“What the?!?” He mutters, “Guys, one of the high value targets is right behind us!”

The pirates turn and head back, following the blinking light indicator, until all of them are staring dumbfounded at the door to the escape pod. We see a shot from inside the escape pod where the kids are all hiding, terrified, in the shadows of the seats and control panels, trying to stay out of sight as a pair of pirate faces loom in the window.

1: Linda [BR: OK, you’re up. There are 5 of them armed with rifles and clubs, and all have their backs to you. They have no defense types, and are the same effective level as you, so that gives a 14 or less to hit, or 17 or less if you attack with a ranged weapon.]

[EC: If they're armed with rifles Linda wants to be right there in the middle of them where ranged fire is difficult. So ... she picks the pirate who looks most clueful (if she's not sure, the one with the tracer) and attempts to cushion a fall by landing directly on him. Her theory here is to take out a pirate or two, maybe get that indicator, definitely grab a rifle, and run and hope they chase her. (Perfect would be for them to split up, but she's not trying for perfection.)

[BR: with the odds in her favor I'm assuming a multiple attack, rolls were 9 and 2, so both hit, one for HP and one for knockback. HP damage is 6, knockback is 8; that's enough to KO one because you had surprise and the other is knocked back 20 feet. I figured it made sense for the following. ]

With surprising silence Linda swings out of the shadows of the archway and lands a double footed kick on the man with the tracker, followed by her mass as she lands on him when he goes down. Linda snatches up the tracking device wit one hand and then charges one of the stunned pirates who has his rifle inexpertly stowed. Hitting him with a full on rugby tackle, her hands latch onto his rife and she runs, dragging the discombobulated soldier some twenty feet before turning to lift him and snap the canvas strap free. .

ROUND 2: 17: Pirates. The pirates - the three still by the escape pod - suddenly get their bearings with a yell and unlimber their rifles to take down the their fleeing attacker, only to find their shots blocked by their partner, who the deceptively strong girl is dragging behind her as she runs. Their aim is accurate enough, and their companion absorbs three heavy stun blasts from them. He stands for a minute, turns to look at his companions with a betrayed look, and then falls to the ground unconscious.

The girl who had been dragging him is gone, but she clearly cut down the connecting passage.

[BR: So she's got the pirate as a shield, probably hoping they wouldn't fire. And they wouldn't have had their Int saves not be 18, 19 and 18 respectivelly, and then their attack rolls to hit her being 19, 20 and 18. The dice love this poor Terran girl.]

17: Mr Music Ode pushes himself back to full consciousness, and can hear that the pirate infiltrator, Rum, is just now leaving the room, heaving an exasperated sigh. She's not aware that he is restored to consciousness - whatever her power is, it obviously doesn't include an ongoing tie to his nervous system. Ode can feel the after effects - absolutely like the night when Brothers Hawa and Kruun taught him how to drink close to his weight in stout and not have the alcohol effect the purity of his tone - but he's capable of balling up the headache and exhaustion and pushing it aside for the sake of the chorus.

[LP: Would it be utterly absurd for him to reach for her ankle and yank?]

[BR: Lisa provided her intentions offline. Basic HTH Ode has an attack base of 10, +4 for facing/surprise gives a 14, roll is an 8. Even hit with untrained unarmed HTH means knockback. Roll there is a 4, so with her size 1" of knockback. That's enough to take er to the ground and keep her here for a minute.]

As Rum tries to leave the room the 'unconscious' Mr. Music reaches out and snags her ankle, giving it a yank. The pirate overbalances, falling to the ground with an unkind word concerning Ode's birth litters parentage.

His thought balloon reads, "If only..." which may say something about his family life and part of his reason for becoming a monk. Ode scrambles up to try to pin her to prevent her from leaving the room.

16: Linda [BR: Beth, action? Your call as to whether Linda cut down the side passage for them to follow you or used the flash blindness from the blaster-rifles to leap into the next escape pod in line.

[EC: Linda cut down the side passage; she doesn't want to get mousetrapped in the escape pod, especially a different escape pod from her charges. She's expecting to be followed and is trying to get enough of a head start to be unexpected, and then duck behind cover and shoot pursuers. (The pirates targeting her charges, or at least seemingly targeting her charges, converts the situation from "get charges the safest place possible and then stay out of the way and await developments" to "get the pirates before they get my kids.")]

Linda, as a Terran, is easily half again as fast as any of the pirates in a sprint, and she easily clears the distance of the side passage to the port-side main corridor. taking the corner and flattening out to give maximal cover she keeps watch on the side passage via the twisted reflection in a silvered planter holding decorative ferns against the wall - the Boundless Stars has all the best decor!

[BR: Mechanically, she's moved and saved her attack for when a pirate makes it halfway down the passage.]

16: Rum Rum managers to roll over just as Mr. Music scrambles to pin her down, and he can see her panic at his still being awake. Her power lashes out instinctively to try to render him insensate again, but a prepared Mr. Music is not so easily taken. Singing a chant of internal fortitude his monastic training counters the effect. There's a panel of her radiating pink circles slamming into the music coming from Ode's mouth in a very strange display of parrying defenses.

[BR: OK, actually she rolled a 19, but we're going with Ode's power being the reason for that.]

Ode is definitely feeling the effects of using his powers so rapidly along with a killer hangover, but his opponent looks just as exhausted as he is.

• brief flashback* to one of the older monks telling him, "You can do anything with a hangover that you could do without one. It just hurts a lot more."

Seeing her power isn’t working she manages to shove him off of her, and scramble to her feet, but he’s on one knee between her and the door.

2: Pirates Two of the three remaining pirates duck their heads into the corridor and, seeing no resistance, start running down the hall. They make it halfway before Linda swings around the corner and fires twice, one shot from the heavy stunner hitting each pirate in center mass.

[BR: attack rolls are 13 and 9, so just what she needed but both odd so HP of damage is done. damage rolls are 7 and 8, but since both men can roll with attacks now the top 3 damage gets carved off the top. Both are wounded, but both are still up.]

The pirates both fire back as they stagger, the first blast taking Linda in the shoulder, and the other forcing her to dove back to cover. Energy level of the rifle reads green.

[BR: rolls were 3 and 8, damage is 7 from the odd hit and 'knockback' from the even hit that forces 10 of movement. Of course Linda can roll with the attack so she takes 1 HP and loses 6 vitality. In short, she hardly feels it.]

1: Linda [BR: Beth, your action. These two are pretty wounded, but you don't know where the third pirate is - he could be trying to flank you up the next connecting corridor, or he could still be exploring the life support pod.]

[EC: Kick the plant out ahead of her in an attempt to distract the pirates and draw their fire, then duck around the corner and fire again. She's got to deal with them quickly and get back to the escape pod. Yes, it's sealed, but there's *got* to be an override for crew, and she has no idea if the pirates might have that information. Not being pinned down for the fifth (third remaining conscious) pirate is also a plan. She's trying to pay attention to everything she hears. ]

(Somewhere in the back of her mind Linda is trying to remember which passengers might have a clue what to do with a rifle, while internally grumbling about not being dressed for this party. But that's (a) several steps ahead and (b) not currently relevant.)

The planter spins out into the hallway, and is immediately reduced to flinders by blaster fire - they have clearly moved from stun to a higher setting.

It doesn't matter much, because Linda spins back once the pirates are committed to their targets and lands another pair of solid center mass shot. Both men fall, and before they even hit the ground the Terran girl is back in motion, spiriting back to the end of the corridor, stopping inside cover and glancing around quickly to find the remaining pirate trying to force entry to the escape pod.

ROUND 3: 17: Mr Music. Ode's goal here is to keep Rum from chasing Linda and the kids or regrouping with her fellow pirates. So he's going to try to stay between her and exits from the room, to stay up and mobile, and, if possible, to knock her down.

[I sort of see this as an almost comedic scene of the two of them, exhausted, throwing bar-room-brawl type punches -- you know, nothing personal, but I am leaving now / I can't let you do that sort of fight. They're both focused on the immediate goal, not on chatting, which... actually means there's probably a bit of grudging respect. The why piracy conversation (is this about the money? the excitement?) would be for a more stable situation, like if one of them bought the other a drink after a bar room brawl, if this were just an ordinary bar room brawl.]

There's a few moments of Rum feinting left, then right, then trying left, then moving to run left but shes tired and no longer the self-assured, holding all the cards person who casually ko's the security guard. Ode manages a punch (which doesn't quite land) and a shove that sends her staggering back five feet. Ode moves back to the block the exit from her line of movement

17: Pirate [BR: in order to warn you, in order to show off Linda's power set I am contractually obligated to kick the stuffing out of her. His attack base is 16 with the mine, attack roll is a 13, damage roll is 12, she can roll with 6 of that, takes 6 yo HP. Current HP is 19, current Vitality is 57.]

The pirate has given up on trying to use the code override, since he's not exactly technical, and has attached something to the door of the escape pod.

"Someone must have tossed it in here," he's muttering, "lucky for us we'll get the bonus for finding it."

That's when he catches movement in the reflection on the pod's window, and Linda can almost feel their eye contact through the reflection. He stops trying to attach whatever it is and instead spins, turns the vibration mine (which can be used to precisely pulverize small sections of metal and stone if set up properly) to maximal and lob it at her. No time to aim, she's already running to get clear fo the blast radius when it goes off with a pulse of kinetic energy, bowing the corridor walls out and sending the leaping Linda flying through the air, action hero style.

16: Linda Linda rolls with the blow by landing in a somersault, continues the motion to the wall, and pushes off it to somersault with a twisting motion that leaves her facing the pirate.

"Leave my kids alone! Stop moving! And fall over like a good pirate! Before I hit you until you hurt like I will when the adrenaline wears off!" She emphasizes this by pulling the trigger of the rifle. A lot, completely heedless of the charge level; she's perfectly happy to start beating the pirate with an inert stick, if the rifle runs out of charge -- and there are several unconscious pirates to loot for guns for later. (She's pissed, partly because he's endangering her kids and partly because she's going to HURT when the adrenaline wears off. And 'it?' Hey ... are the kids carrying pirate bait? Can I lay an ambush with some friends and the pirates' weaponry? Or do I just put the bait in one pod and the kids in another and call it a day? LATER.)

[BR: Base attack is 13, roll is 12, so the attack hits but only does knockback via forcing the enemy to run. Given that she's emptying the charge on the run I'm going to boost the effect on that a bit. He ends up some 60 feet away]

She starts firing, almost indiscriminately, the rifle giving a 'skree' again and again as the pirate runs for cover from the madwoman. Her shots are tracing the wall and floor just behind him as he runs down to the next most distant cross-passage, has to duck away from it as the next shot runs right rather than left, and finally reaches one further and dives flat for it.

16: Rum While the two can hear the kineitc pulse outside, Mr. Music and Rum remain engaged in her fierce, if clumsy, minuet. She pushes herself off the wall and charges forward, landing a series of weak punches that Ode, who is used to elbowing 40 year old monks out of the way on pastry night, is able to block or absorb while only giving a little ground - the conflict has moved almost to the doorway, but she still can't get past him.

[BR: attack roll is a 10, so she hits but only for knockback. damage roll is 4, less his size is 5 feel of movement.]

2: Ode [BR: assuming plan of "keep her occupied" continues... attack roll is a 2, so even hit once again just does knockback. Damage roll is 3, equal to her size, so she's not actually going anywhere.] Mr. Music seizes the initiative to launch another series of blows at her - wide swings which she keeps stepping inside and taking to her arms and shoulders. He can see she's angling to get close enough to knee him, waits for his moment and steps in himself then pushes her back as hard as he can. She stumbles back a couple of feet and the pair end where they started off. Ode gets the sense that she's probably better trained than he is, and if she could just recover her bearings she'd be winning, but that hasn't happened yet.

2: Pirate, if he's still up Linda stands, holding what she thinks is the last shot in the rifle, but rather than a counter-attack she hears a 'ping' followed by the inevitable strains of "The Girl From Ipanema" as the pirate flees into the elevator.

(Heh. Linda wasn't *planning* to force a morale check, she was just angry.)

1: Rum …And it continues to not happen - there is a futile exchange of blows on her part that, while she's attacking, it's clear Mr. Music hasn't ceded the initiative, for all that at this point it's almost a slap fight.

[BR: her attack roll is 18. She's not hitting anything.]

1: Linda "Just wait there, kids; I want to see what those noises are before you come out." Linda grabs the rifle from the first guy she knocked out and follows the sounds of the slap-fight, first rifle slung on her back and second rifle pointed at the floor.

She sees the boy who she'd shared a silent conversation with earlier doing his best to keep a woman from making it out the door. To be fair, his best isn't that hot, but the woman is also showing terrible form, and the two of them are dancing around the unconscious bodies of the crew members, tripping occasionally.

[BR: Making a d% vs. Linda's intelligence here to see if she recognizes Mr. Music, and heavens above she does! she has plenty of action left here if she wants to take a shot on the pirate.]

After a second, she places the boy as Mr. Music, one of the "Legionnaire" teen super-heroes she saw on the news during the three days the Ranzz's were on vacation in New Metropolis.

More importantly, he's the guy who distracted the pirates as they came in so she could put an airlock between her kids and the pirates.

She'll check to make sure the rifle's set to max stun, line up her shot so that a missed shot won't get Mr. Music, and shoot the pirate.

[BR: attack base is 13, +2 for facing is 15, roll is a 15, odd hit means the attack does HP of damage. Damage roll is a 1! Aarcgh! Making the d% check against damage taken to see if she's stunned, not expecting much. Roll is an 01!]

Taking careful aim, Linda creases the woman's skull with a stun bolt. Her legs go out from under her as she slides backward, moving from wrestling with to half embracing Mr. Music, then having her feet catch on an conscious body so it looks like she might be staying up, then her knees buckling and finally she collapses.

The floor is quiet, other than Mr. Music's precise hearing being able to make out the muffled sounds of Mekt struggling to keep Garth away from the life pod door.

"Thanks; I don't know what I would have done if the pirates spotted us before I got the kids tucked away. I'd better go tell them to come out before they hurt each other fighting about it; I don't want them this close to the pirates' away boat, especially when it looks like they've got pirate bait somehow." (No, Linda can't hear them; she just knows them.) "Do you know how to use a stun rifle?"

<space for Mr. Music to respond>

In a few seconds the kids are freed, tumbling out. Garth has a bruise on his cheek but they are otherwise unharmed.

Garth pipes up "Why did they come back? Linda did you hand us secret plans and then put us in the escape pod but the evil pirates are after them and were hunting it down to help the Khund war effort!?!"

<assuming Linda mentions something about high priority targets>

Irma reaches up to her neck and fishes out the necklace that had been hanging under her blouse. "Do you think it's this? Mommy gave it to me to wear today because she said I had been such a grown up girl on the trip."

The necklace is a simple chain with a simple setting with a red gemstone on it about the size of an adult thumb. The stone is opaque and radiates solidity, a bright crimson that isn't something Ode or Linda have ever seen before.

"It's part of a set. Mommy put on the broach today. She said it's the last remnant of a dead planet." Irma bites her lip, "I think it may be worth a lot of money."

There are still at least 10 pirates unaccounted for....

Page 6: Diskette, Bubble Boy

ROUND 2: 28: Diskette [BR: assuming a continuation of the Evasion, which is now at -4 to be hit, Given what we discussed on line, part of Diskette's action is provoking activity from Lash, so yes, she gets useless attacks on your action. You're burning 3 vitality to set up your secret trick inside the pneumatic tube that would carry security boxes from your suite to the vault. Current Vitality is 41.]

The Lash response is a series of rapid whip slashes that are tearing gashes in the walls, floor and many other places where the lightning quick legionnaire is not. This is a bit of a chase around the corridor that loops around the vault structure, and to Diskette's surprise there is no sign of the Metaxian... are they running around the corridor to keep the vault between them? hiding inside the vault?

17: Lash, Pirates The pirates approach at a run, and Bubble Boy skids to a halt in a position where he can watch them moving - he too far away to do anything effective just yet, but he can see that the Pirates have been peeling people off behind them to cover their escape. There are 5 now approaching the vault door, and those are pulling out parts of something while they are running to position. five decent-sized pieces of deep grey metal that are obviously meant to fit together....

Lash, inside, is continuing her assault against the ever elusive Diskette. In a sudden surprise move her energy whip extends several meters in length while in mid air, catching Diskette painfully off guard. Instead of the tip ripping into her the whole affair coils around her with an electrical jolt. Almost like a living thing the energy wire spins and twists, leaving her at least temporarily bound.

"Gotcha you little cricket!" Lash crows, "Try to worm you way out of this!" she adds with a wolfish grin, a veritable menagerie of ill intent, as a second energy whip uncoils from her other hand.

[BR: with your current level of evasion she needed a 9 or better to hit, she rolled an 8; she has different effects on even hits. Diskette is Hampered until she makes an Acrobatics save - that means her evasion won't work until she's freed. Damage rolled is 5, Diskette can roll with 4 to Vitality, Current Vitality is 37, Hit Points 6]

16: Bubble Boy: [BR: Myles, Gorvo is just out of range to be able to use his Force Field powers, but is at the farther side of a t-junction passageway and hidden from view. Imagine the passages on this part of the ship are like a ladder laying on the ground - two fore to aft trunk passages and several port to starboard narrower ones. Hes in the port side, they're in the starboard, he's seen them leave guards behind at the prior junctures. He's not going to be able to act in combat till 1, but I want to know if the plan is to hang back at the last juncture and try to snipe the 5 people waiting to get in, double back to start taking out the guards, charge in headlong, or something I'm not thinking of. Regardless he's not going to be able to change the Diskette fight on this action.]

[MC: Gorvo is not much for hanging back.]

Gorvo charges down one of the connecting passageways towards the starboard side of the ship, his force-field expanding ahead of him like a cross between a battering ram and a gelatinous cube, filling the passage and sweeping out in front of the young Tallagian. He retained the sense not to call out, but whispers under his breath, "I'm coming, Dolar. Just hang on!"

[MC: Gorvo's intent is to sweep the corridor ahead of him and force back anyone who might be lurking there. If the passage is clear, he sprints to the starboard side, just shy of the stern-aft passageway and pauses to assess.]

[MC: As an aside, I want to ask about power stunts and the like, as I've long since forgotten whatever V&V rules I once knew. If Gorvo was to form a small sphere, expand it rapidly to large volume and let it pop, would that serve to make a loud bang as the excluded air rushed in and thus create a distraction?]

[BR: OK, I think I follow - he's going to make sure he isn't exposing himself and then positioning himself to act next round. V&V doesn't have any _formal_ power stunt rules (predating Marvel Super Heroes in its design) but for my purposes Bubble Boy can try darn near anything and depending on difficulty it's a d20 save against Int, his Inventing or his Int/5. If it's something he wants to keep and not roll for again it takes an inventing point. This stunt is interesting enough that it's something he can set up to do right before his next action.]

13: Diskette: [BR: well, the Acrobatics check to free herself is an 8 when she needed a 15 or less, so... well we had a moment of tension...]

[BR: Josh, how do you escape and what snarky comments do you have - plus, you still have your action.]

"You know your problem?" Diskette says, her muscles bulging as she pushes against the whip uselessly. "You've got this incredible energy manipulation power--I mean, it's great; I'm really impressed. But..."

All at once, Diskette relaxes and the whip loosens just as a portal opens out under Diskette, who drops out of sight, while her voice remains audible, echoing out the other end of her periscope portals. "all you do with it is make whips. Weapons of cruelty. And you're trying to rob a space liner? You could do so much more. Me? I don't have much. I'm not even a nice person. But unlike you, though,"

Through a summoned portal, Diskette's flies up, feet first, using the stored inertia she built up while she was monologuing (and falling) in the lift shaft to attempt to slice up through Lash's spacesuit, "I'm trying to do the best with what I have."

[BR: Diskette's base chance to hit is 16, +4 because she is effectively attacking 'from behind', or 20. That's where this gets tricky. to connect with Lash and hit her space suit is just fine there, with an odd hit needed to specifically damage the suit. There's little way to do this without also damaging Lash, but for various reasons that will become clear, you need to roll a 2 or less to damage her.... Roll is a 7. Damage roll to the suit is 7 points, which will shred it. That was one more portal to escape, and one to set up the underside attack, so Diskette is down to 36 Vitality.]

Diskette's blade cuts the full length of Lash's Kelly and Olive space suit, from just above her right boot, along her leg and up her torso. There are clearly spaces where the sword tip scored into Lash's skin, but while there is a spattering of blood the sword parted skin reveals not muscle but a bright yellow orange glow, and Diskette could feel the push back on the bade. Whatever powers Lash has, it includes a force field _under her skin_

2: Pirates (and Bubble Boy) The five Pirates Gorvo is observing trade serious looks, then start ratcheting together the various pieces of military equipment they have; tubes that might be a missile launching mechanism, braces that could be required for a mortar, a control unit piece and power system for an energy blaster, a rolled out and stiffened plate for a blast screen... what horrors have they brought. Gorvo loses sight for a moment as the pirates maneuver and then he sees...

The portable gravity-cart.

<response? This it totally meant to be the nazi weapon turning into a coat hanger moment. Going forward with your other plan since you have time. Inventing roll is a 6

Bubble Boy concentrates abs rapidly expands a force field from the smallest possible size out to fill the corridor between the cross passages behind the pirates. It’s a strain but nothing like trying to float a Gamera so no problem.

2: Lash Lash grimaces as as her suit gapes tastefully open, "Yeah, it's gotta be rough to be the scion of a quadrillionare family that owns a couple of planets. If you think you're suffering growing up in that you must be the most sadly pathetic aristo I've ever met. What, desperate to show that you can do this by yourself?" her lash ears a chunk out of the wall where Diskette intended to land as she bounced off the ceiling, "Desperate your friends get here to show they love you?" Another lash striking where Diskette had tried to reroute herself as she shifted position, "desperate to just not screw up one more time?" A third lash ripping through the hull plate that Patin had displaced to act as a shield against the onslaught.

Lash stares down at the Legionnaire, who has been pushed back into the vault and is crouched on the floor under her displaced shield, the blood from her leg wound leeching into her skit and running down her leg.

“Desperate. Pathetic. Insecure. Worthless” each word joined by an angry lash of energy that has left the entire space around the crouched teenager a charred and smoking war zone.

[BR: technically, Lash missed with a 15. But hey, time to break up the beat pattern. And besides since Patin got really far under her force field skin - literally Lash’s origin is she was given powers under the assumption she’d become a super hero - so she’s going to, well, lash out.]

<space for josh to put a response, depending on how well Lash’s jibes landed - from a moment of insecurity in the eyes to a hearty laugh at how well she needled her I leave to you >

Diskette sees and feels the metal around her ripple as the vault walls move to swallow her. The reader sees there’s no time to respond as the walls and ground swallow her like quicksand as a wave of metal covers her, and then compresses like a fist.

“Desperate,” Lash says, “and now dead.”

“If you’re finished playing here” comes a cold voice from Lash’s communicator. “My attentions are required back in engineering. These Legionnaires have a kinsman I must deal with...”

[BR: ok so Captain Ahn the Pirate King, grand master of Metaxian metal bending, just rolled a 20. So of course Diskette teleports our before being crushed. Josh, you’ll be able to start next action wherever you like with them thinking you’re dead...]

1: Bubble Boy There’s an enormous BAMF* as the force field vanishes and air rushes back in to fill the vacuum. All the pirate jump and turn to see what’s behind them, giving Bubble Boy a perfect chance to act

[BR: yes that’s always the sound imploding air makes. Myles, you can slip past them into the vault corridor, attack with surprise, or anything else you can think of....]

[MC: You mentioned five of them. I don't know how effective as an area attack his force fields are, particularly if the deck is cluttered with a grav cart and what have you. But Gorvo's not much for subtlety. If he can take on more than one at a time, he will. If not, he'll try to brain the nearest one while their attention is occupied without revealing his position.]

As the pirates turn to look at the source of the bang, he fires off a volley of bowling ball sized spheres of force, attempting to crash them into the pirates' heads with considerable force.

[BR: Force Fields are actually pretty accurate, but unless you push your power you don't do a ton of damage. The Pirates are under the freshly stolen Mook Mob rules from 13th age so it takes 6 HP to take down one when you have them by surprise, but they have a 30 HP pool all told. I'm assuming a) you're pushing your power to do more, using your Impetuous trait - the roll is a 5, you needed an 8 or less, your capacity increases by 5 so your damage jumps to 1d12. You're then making a multiple attack, where each attack roll has to hit for it to work. Not difficulty since you have an attack base of 16, +4 for attacking from behind with the surprise bang. Rolls are 3 and 12, 17 and 4, so two odd and two even hits. Damage roll for the odd hits is 13, so KO one and hurt another. Damage roll for the even hit's knockback as 12 and 3- I'm kinda winging how to do that, but given how knockback works (they go flying (damage-size)*5 feet) I think that's just one person each.Vitality cost if 5 to push the power and the first short, plus another 3 for the other shots. Your current Vitality is 38]

The first sphere takes an unsuspecting pirate square in the head, and the man drops unconscious instantly. A second careens off another's helmet, and while she looks dazes she's still in the fight. The third strikes the pirate turning to see what's happening right in the nose and he drops as well with a splatter of blood. A fourth shot knocks a pirate to one knee, but nothing more than that. The final shot runs low on a beanpole of a pirate, catching the man mid torso and carrying him some distance before the force of the blow wears off. The other pirates see one of their number fly through the air, hit the deck and slide, to a groaning stop some 40 feet away. is flight took him past one of the pirates who were covering their escape, who turns his head and stares down the passage completely surprised.

After a second the remaining 2 pirates in this group turn and look at Bubble Boy, growling their pirate growls...

[JK -- So ARRRRRR?]

[BR: Exactly. I also realized that with a 19 or less to hit Bubble Boy, impetuous as he is, should have taken more advantage than this so I added two more attack rolls. both hit for even more awesome.]

ROUND 3: 28: Diskette Diskette drops out of a portal in a nearby corridor. "That was close," she thinks. "and I can't do much to Lash with that force-field in the way, But I do have an ace--I' ve been stashing bits of debris as I blocked them and juggling them in one of the useless pneumatic tubes--by now it should pack a punch--enough to rattle her force field. But I'll only get one shot, so better make it count. Fortunately, my periscope portals are still giving me a pretty good view of the battle."

(If she can usefully prepare for her next action as a mass blast vs Lash she'll do it, otherwise she can use a disc to take out a pirate stealthily so Bubble Boy isn't quite so outnumbered on his next action.)

[BR: Yes, you can use this to prepare. I'm assuming you're using this turn to Push your attack to get a bonus to hit after defenses, which is mostly what you need. Roll to push the attack using your Insecure tag, is a 7 when you needed an 8 or less. Since you're burning a whole action on this rather than incorporating it into one, when you act on 13 you'll make the attack at a +8 after defenses. so a 10 or less. 50/50 shot.]

17: Lash, Pirate The four remaining pirates - one slightly wounded, one knocked to one knee, one pulling himself up 40 feet away and and the one that one flew past - go on the attack. The two distant ones open fire, their precise dead center plaster bolts having absolutely no effect on the Tellagian force field. The wounded one pulls her club and tries a swing a Bubble Boy's head that gets nowhere, as the nigh-invulnerable Legionnaire focuses his attention on the kneeling pirate, who is clearly preparing for a tackle. Gorvo braces himself and then twists to the side, angling his personal field so the leaping pirate goes flying towards the vault entrance.

[BR; attack rolls are 3, 4, 17 and 8, so three would have hit, but they all needed a 2 or less thanks to the glory of the Telaggian force field, even at its weakest setting. Aaaah, mooks.]

"What in the Great Denebian Waste is going on out here?!?" Lash shouts as she exits the vault, obviously having planned to get the cart and help loading up the Boundless Stars treasures. "Do I have to kill another one of you people?"

Before Bubble Boy can properly absorb that, the pirate of the gaping open space suit (don't worry, she has a sports bra on under it) extends a whip of energy from her hand and snaps it at him with clear anger bordering on malice. The attack pushes hard against his field, bending it inward, and he can feel his force field press up against his cheek as it finally repels the blow. That probably would have taken his head off.

[BR: her attack base is a 17, dropped to 12 due to the Weak Force Field defense, her roll is a 13. His full power field will likely take anything she can dish out, but if she attacks again she has a really good chance of filleting him with that energy Lash.]

16: Bubble Boy "Crashing comets, that was close!" Bubble Boy says to himself as the burning lash presses hard against his force field. "She's more dangerous than a Tallagian Acid Slug."

Gorvo whispers into his comms, hoping to hear a reply. "Diskette! Are you alright?"

Diskette whispers into Bubble Boy's ear, "I'm fine. I've got a plan, but I'm worried about splash damage. Can you isolate Lash in a force field with enough space for me to attack into?" "Can do!"

Bubble Boy strengthens his field and, keeping an eye on the mookish pirates, throws a tulip-shaped field over Lash, leaving a throat in the field where it touches the deck plating.

[BR: I'm assuming keeping the weak field on the pirates and an attack with the full power field on Lash, given the mechanics. Spending the attack making attack roll is a 15, with an attack base of 16, that's her Stuck - she can't move or evade, and any attacks she tries to make through the field have to deal with the Force Field defense.]

Lash views the sudden appearance of the force field with feline distaste. "You're facing the power of the Hermit Gods, kid. I'll carve through this, and you, eventually." Her energy whip is swinging back and forth like an angry cat's tail.

13: Diskette A portal opens inside the tuliped open space, taking both Lash and Bubble Boy by surprise. Hundreds of pieces of shrapnel Lash's predations on the vault that have been falling endlessly through the pneumatic tubes fly out of a warp disk, slamming into Lash like machine gun. The pirate's already damaged space sit is shredded in a gratuitous attack of fan service, and she's left with dozens of cuts and bruises across her body that reveal the glowing energy under her skin. Some of these cuts look awfully deep, but the blood loss is minor due to her strange power.

Lash takes a step back under the onslaught, stands back up to launch her own attack, and then her eyes cross and she pitches forward, her face flattening out comically against the force field as she slumps down.

[BR: I'm using the same mechanics here as Metal Lass's Flight of 1000 Pebbles attack, the attack roll is a 9, damage roll is also a 9, and she's in no position to roll with the attack.]

2: Lash, Pirates Lash slides slowly down the field with a squeaking noise of her skin against the field until there's no where left to fall.

The Pirates, seeing Lash go down, continue their fire on Bubble Boy as the quartet makes a running retreat away from the scene. The full power of their contentrated fire starts to wear Gorvo down, and he feels a stitch in his side from keeping the field active.

[BR: one of them rolled a 2 and hit, but that even it is knockback only damage, where they rolled a 3, since that didn't beat your Size, you don't actually go anywhere.]

1: Bubble Boy Keeping his personal field in place, Gorvo seals up the tulip-shaped field and concentrates to reinforce the field to hold her tight. "You're not getting away from us, Lash."

Over the comms he calls out, "Diskette? Are you there? Lash is down, and we have 4 pirates retreating. Repeat 4 pirates retreating."

Page 7: Metal Lass, Diskette

• By the Five Gods, what will the elders say?* Dolar thinks as she dashes down the corridor.

Metal Lass runs through the rapidly emptying halls of the cruise liner in her trip aft to the ships drive, her mind dwelling on the dishonor being brought to her clan by the renegade Metaxian.

Clan lore only brings to mind one story - the first class of Metaxians chosen to attend the academy a quarter century ago included one who died in space. A master of an unusual variant of the forms that stressed not the flow traditional to the Ahn clans art but the brutal self-discipline and ability to absorb pain of his grandfathers Lao clans. After his disappearance Ahn Yuans name was honored, recorded in the clan annals of one who had died performing a highest service.

• Was there no body to bury? Could that have misled them? What would make him want to abandon clan and braids so completely?*

Her reminiscing is cut short when she reaches engineering. The him and light coming from the main reactor indicates that whatever the problem Captain Ahn caused it was not there — all too risky. Instead the access hatches that would lead to the propulsion units themselves are molded shut.

Engineering staff are fruitlessly trying to cut their way through the metal with a phase torch.

Several crew members see her approaching and hold out hands for her to stop - one has a second phase torch as a possible weapon, but isn’t pointing it at her. The rest have what meager fare they can find to hold off potential pirates... which isn’t much.

“Woah woah woah miss,” the officer in charge says, shaking her head “you should be back in your cabin.”

ROUND 3 16: Metal Lass “If I were, I could not help!” Metal Lass cries. “I’m a Legionnaire! Stand back, I think I can open the hatches!” She stops in the doorway and shifts into the movements of “Ripples from a Fallen Pebble”, reaching out with her power to take hold of the (former) edges of the fused hatch and make the metal flow away from the seam.

The Lieutenant - whose eyebrows crawled up her forehead during Metal Lass's statement - has her response interrupted by one of the crewman, "Loot, I just got on in New Metropolis and she's the real deal. The Legion are, I dunno, junior Supermen. They saved the city from a giant radioactive turtle."

The Lieutenant glances from him back to Metal Lass, who is already assuming the forms, and says, "Well, the phase torch isn't getting us anywhere..."

[BR: roll to take control of the metal is a 15, so no issues. Vitality cost is 5, current Vitality is 39]

Dolar gently takes hold of the metal and finds that Captain Ahn had pulled additional metal from the superstructure and layered it into the hatch, folding the metal thousands of times and fusing it to make it nearly impenetrable.

To anyone other than a Metaxian that is. Even as she manipulates it out of the way she can feel the remnants of another's awareness inside it, that if he were to reapply his concentration, he would be able to directly fight her without having to reassert control. It's been over five minutes, and he is still connected with the metal....

The metal beads up and pulls back in waves, restoring access to the drive systems. "Go, go, go, shouts the Lieutenant and the crewman who had spoken up for Dolar, and had taken a moment to grab his tool kit, leaps through the hole.

[BR: Diane, you're up... what's next. Keeping in mind the Pirate King could resume control on the metal at any moment... Something else must be keeping his attention.]

1: Metal Lass, Captain Ahn

• If Diskette is correct about the Vault, they would need to open the lockboxes. Who better than someone who could open tens of them at one time? But if he has not dropped his connection here yet…*

Pulling the hole open a few inches more, she turns to the remaining crewmen. “You may all want to cover your ears for a time.” Holding the thin edges of the hole lightly with her power, she shifts into the repetitive pattern of “The Heartbeat of the World”.

[DK: The watchword here is *resonance*. She’s reasoning that if she got queasy as the Pirate King made all those folds, vibrating the metals he’s still connected to at their resonant frequency might have a similar effect on him.]

[BR: To be clear, you actually got queasy because you were inside the effect of him grabbing the entire ship, but yes, this probably would work. Especially given the nature of his training... (foreshadowing - you guide to quality literature). The inventing roll is an 8, which is exactly what you needed, and you've somehow contrived to make a Biological based attack on the combat table with Magnetic Powers. Normally you'd have a -6 on the level vs. level tables, but for various reasons (including how unexpected this is) I'm waiving that here, but he will get that +6 on his resistance save if this hits. You have an attack base of 10+ 1 accuracy +4 for surprise = 15, roll is a 13. He's picking up the _Tired_ condition until he makes a Resistance save. There's any number of ways this messes with him. This costs you 5 Vitality, your current Vitality is 34.]

Just as Metal Lass starts the vibrating resonance in the doors she feels Captain Ahn's control fully return to the metal. His power and presence are overwhelming: he has decades of training and experience on her, but even in her training none of the clan elders showed such strength. His actual consciousness infuses the metal, and amazingly she gets a visual flash of his presence. If this were a straight up fight he would simply crush her, but she managed to take him by surprise from several different vectors and she now has him psychically pinned inside the metal as the vibration rattles his unprepared body.

He's not even on the Boundless Stars. He's doing this from one of the ships outside!

"ARRRRRRRGH!"

[BR: the Tired condition gives a 1/2 normal characteristics for the save which reduces his Resistance to an 8 (that's half characteristic!?!), +6 for the level vs. level as mentioned earlier. He needs a 14 or less. He rolls a 1. In a moment he's going to snap free from this and easily reclaim control of the metal, but you've cost him his action this round breaking free. You're getting another action before he goes again - if you try this trick again you'll have to deal with his Level vs. Level and lose surprise, so your chance to hit will drop to 5. He's down to control of just this hunk of metal, and is clearly almost out of time on that control. Once he loses control you'll have only a few seconds before he just grabs the whole ship again and you're hosed. Either keep him occupied fighting you or get the drives working (which would be easier if you were on the other side of the door)]

Pirate King (Imagine him being the final bad guy governor from Iron Monkey - a cross between Shao Lin discipline and pure hedonism giving him vast power) image.png

ROUND 4: 28 Diskette “Diskette, I need help”, Metal Lass says into her communicator. “I’m distracting their Captain, but I don’t think I can keep it up for long. We need to get the drives working and get out of here. Can you come to me _right now_!?”

Still vibrating the edges of the open bulkhead, Metal Lass dives through the opening.

For the short dialogue between Diskette and Metal lass, we switch to open disconnected panels showing Metal Lass -- with portals on the top and bottom of the outside of each panel, as Diskette falls between them, not bothering to reset between ports given the urgency.

"Be right there," Diskette says, beginning her fall. "Where is Captain Ahn, anyway? He almost got me once, but I never saw him."

Metal Lass’s posture flicks between distress for her family’s honor and resolve to do what is right. “On one of the other ships! I have never seen skill like this.”

"...He's...that powerful? Right."

The final panel in the series is the same (slightly changed) Metal Lass panel from the rest of the sequence, only Diskette is crashing up, feet-first, from out of frame (thorugh a portal) into the panel from below.

"...Lets get out of here, then!"

“Can you drop us right into the drive room? We won’t have much time."

Diskette, clinging awkwardly from a ceiling fixture with her feet, gestures, and a portal going down into the drive room opens up right in front of Metal Lass. "After you!" Metal Lass drops through the portal, steeling herself to help the crew in any way she can.

The technician who ran in earier is staring at a diagnostic screen, which is showing a flashing light at one critical juncture.

Seeing them appear next to him, he starts, but then points at the screen. “We have a flow breakdown here, on a secondary coolant line. The ship isn’t in any danger, but the drive won’t turn over without that line flowing at at least 80%. It’s a 30 second fix to replace that piple that will take three hours to get to.”

Both Legionnaires know exactly what happened – thanks to White Raptor’s stolen plans Captain Ahn knew exactly how to stop the ship from moving with minimal effort and no risk of the prize exploding.

Dolar feels Captain Ahn’s consciousness take full control of the metal of the doorway – he’s free from her interference and at 5 minutes. 30 seconds gone he still has half a minute to use that metal to kill her or cripple the ship….

Talk me through it," Diskette says. "Teleporting disks, remember? If I can get eyes on it I can put a bypass in place in two seconds, and we can save a more permanent fix for when we've gotten further away." *

• Rejected titles for Diskette #1: Emergency Plumbing Lass!

He shakes his head, "Won't work. There's sensors running all through the piping - if there's no flow at all going through a stretch of pipe the system flags that as the block point. That's why I can see exactly where it is. It's either replace the pipe section or..." and he shrugs, not being able to come up with an alternative. "If you can open the portal to it I can yank the old pipe and put in the new one..."

16: Metal Lass, Captain Ahn Diskette feels the door metal starting to ripple, forming ten thousand needlelike shards....

“Do it, Diskette!” Dolar cries. “We’re almost out of time!” And with a desperate and rapid rendition of “A Bear Protects her Cubs”, she grabs the titanium sculpture from her bag and flings it out to cover the rippling metal of the door frame.

[The frame here shows Dolar's normally compact and blobby sculpture reforming in mid-air, stretching out in every direction to become a complex shell around the metal that Captain Ahn has control over]

[BR: Roll to take control is a 13, so success there. 5 more Vitality spent so you're at 39.]

The titanium screen is stretched thin to cover the area, and everyone in the compartment can hear what sounds like hail on a tin roof as the needles hurl themselves against the screen, regroup and do so again, a constant staccato that is shredding Metal Lass's sculpture faster than she can reform it.

13: Diskette Diskette generates the portal where the crewman indicates and they can see the metal tube of the piping, crimped neatly closed, undamaged, holding the vast engines silent as their doom approches to the sound a thousand metal drums.

He flicks the switch to initiate a containment field to hold the already blocked coolant back, then inserts the tool to removed the crimped pipe. His hands are shaking and palms are sweating. It may be longer than 30 seconds....

1: Diskette, Captai Ahn But before he has a chance to touch the pipe, Metal Lass makes a rippling gesture that re-inflates it into a hollow cylinder and spins to kick off the switch for the containment field.

She feels the metal almost slip through her mind, there barely being time to adopt a Form that lets her snag another metal under Captain Ahns onslaught, when she thinks of her clans honor and the hold snaps into place. After that it’s the work of a heartbeat

“Tell your Captain to run!"

She turns and sees her shield collapse, the needles pausing for just a second to come at her from all directions, when there is a sudden shift of the inertia dampeners. The needles fall from the air like a gentle rain as the Boundless Stars is several light minutes distant from the Pirate King and accelerating steadily.

There is a sudden clatter as the crewman drops his tool and then starts gratefully crying. “No lie, I thought we were gonna die. You kids are incredible!”

Metal Lass sways on her feet before sagging to the floor, hugging her knees close to her chest. “No. We do only the best we can with the gifts the gods have given us.” Her posture shifts into the form denoting gratitude for survival. “I also thought we were about to die."