9 Isten 1117: Venad – Adar/Hinterworlds (0402 A221621-B Ni Po Na 324 Im M0V M6D)
I slept in late again this morning. Eventually, I got up and checked the various news and comm feeds. Everything looked good.
After a while, I packed up and left, heading back to the Starport and the Grayswandir. I pinged the entire crew, telling them to get ready to go and asking them to meet me at the Garan this evening. Finally, I had the remaining Trade goods transferred from the warehouse to the ship, instructed the owners of the various general Cargoes to proceed with loading them, then pinged the passengers to let them know we would be leaving the next day, inviting them to board after local noon.
Once that was done, I headed for the Garan. I thought I would be the first person there, but Jami was already sitting at the bar, wearing what looked like the same outfit as yesterday. She jumped up and ran over to me.
“Heya, Captain!” she said, throwing me her sloppy salute. “Are we ready to head out?”
I nodded. “Close. We’ve got a full load. The cargobots should be at the ship at 1000 tomorrow. Planning on hitting vacuum around 1800 and Jumpspace by midnight.”
She nodded in return. “Sounds good! I’ll be happy to get out of here.” She looked around. “Anyone else here yet?”
I looked around, then shook my head. “It’s early still. Let’s grab a table.”
We wound up at almost the same table as the other night. We had just gotten our beers when Do’rex and Varan came in, saw us, and walked over. Varan was wearing his full jumpsuit and jacket, while Do’rex had only the jacket over street clothes.
“A Vegan!” Jami said, hopping up. “I’ve never met one of them… um… one of you before.” She suddenly looked around, embarrassed. “Hi,” she said, somewhat more subdued. “I’m Jami Wistina, the new Engineer. Good to meet you.”
Do’rex looked at her, his tentacles twitching in what I knew to be embarrassment. But he extended one and tapped her outstretched hand with it.
“Kapan Do’rex,” he said, “Pilot of the Pha… Grayswandir. Glad to have you on board.” He ducked past her and slid into the booth, sliding around to sit next to me.
Varan nodded. “Yeah. Varan Hort. Steward.” He gestured towards the booth, and she slid back in. He followed.
“Anyone heard from Saahna?” I asked as everyone settled in.
Varan shook his head. “Haven’t seen her. She hasn’t been with you?”
“No,” I said with a slight sigh. “She thought that with me being Captain now it would be… awkward.”
“You OK?”
“We were never ‘together’ together. It just worked out that way sometimes.” I shrugged. “We’ll both be fine.”
He smiled slightly. “So… you won’t mind if I try to move in?”
“Be careful; she’ll kill you if you try something out of line.” He had no idea.
He laughed slightly, and Do’rex clicked in amusement. “Yeah, I got that. Trust me.”
“She is here,” Do’rex said, followed by a click.
I looked at the entrance. Saahna had entered, accompanied by a thin but muscular local. Once they had their masks off, she looked around and, seeing us, gave a quick wave in our direction, then gave her companion a quick kiss. He headed for the bar while she came towards our table.
“Sorry, I’m late,” she said, sliding in beside Varan. “Hope I didn’t miss anything.”
I shook my head. “Just getting started.” I paused. “You can invite your friend over if you want.”
She lowered her eyes but smiled, then turned and gave the man at the bar a wave. “Yeah, that’s Melant. I… met him a couple of nights ago. We’re planning on making a night of it after we’re done here.”
I felt a slight twinge of jealousy but smiled. “I’ll try not to keep you that long.”
“Melant…” said Jami, frowning.” He’s with Controlled Crash right?”
Saahna looked at her. “Yes. He is. And… who are you?”
“She’s our Engineer,” I said, as she flushed. I waved at her. “Jami Wistina, formerly of the Cygnarus.” I gestured the other way. “Saahna Denan. Gunner, Security, and most valuable crew member.”
Jami tried to cover her embarrassment and held out her hand. “Good to meet you!”
Saahna shrugged, smiled, and extended her own hand. “Welcome aboard. If Derek… If the Captain wants you on board, then I’m sure you’ll fit in. Just watch out for this guy…” she indicated me. “He thinks he’s a lady’s man. I haven’t had the heart to tell him he’s wrong.”
Jami glanced at me and flushed slightly again. Varan laughed, and Do’rex gave his clicking approval.
“OK,” I said, flushing myself. “Let’s get to it. Don’t want to keep your musician waiting.”
“Drummer,” she said, tilting her head slightly. “It was good to meet someone with a sense of… rhythm.”
Everyone at the table laughed or clicked a bit more at that. I felt myself flush a bit brighter.
“OK,” I said again. “Here’s what we have. I want everyone on board and ready by 0900 tomorrow. The last of our cargo should be arriving around 1000, then the passengers around 1200. I’ve got a lift window for us at 1600.”
“Anything I should worry about?” asked Varan.
I hesitated, then nodded. “Yeah, we may have a bit of an odd one,” I told him about the visit from Korvusar.
“I can’t help but feel that she’s up to something,” I finished, “but it’s a guaranteed High Passage every Jump. Just… Keep her happy, but keep an eye on her as well.”
Saahna was frowning. “You should have contacted me; I could have done a background check on her.”
“Didn’t want to disturb your downtime.”
“It’s my job, Captain,” she said, emphasizing the last word. “Remember that, OK? I’d rather be disturbed than have to Vargr-up while in Jumpspace.”
“I didn’t get that kind of vibe from her. I know she’s hiding something, but… There are around a hundred ships a day coming through Venad; it’s the main Imperial trade gateway for the entire Hinterworlds. Her credentials are good enough that she could travel with anyone. But she wanted to be on the Grayswandir. She wanted us.”
I waved the waitbot back over. “I don’t think she wants to endanger us. I think… I think that she thinks that we can do something for her. Somehow. But she won’t tell me what is going on.”
Varan was frowning but slowly nodded. “OK, Derek. Um… Captain. I know you can read people; the gods know how many credits you’ve made for us with your instincts.” He paused. “I’ll make sure she gets taken care of, but I’ll try to see what I can find out from her as well.”
“Sounds good.”
Saahna was nodding as well. “I’ll talk to a few contacts and see what I can find.”
“I don’t want to ruin your evening.”
“Hey, Melant’s got a gig in a couple of hours.” She gave another wave and smile in his direction, then turned back. “I never said they were any good. Anyway, while he’s performing, I’ll do some research. I’ll say my goodbyes later.” She smiled at that thought.
I nodded, feeling that twinge again. “Sounds good.” I looked around. “Does anyone have anything else?”
Jami raised a hand. “Do I get a jacket?”
I laughed. “Yeah, they should be in your cabin by now. You need a vacc-suit?”
“No! I’ve got my own.”
“I figured. Just making sure.”
“So… that’s it?
“What else is there?”
“Captain Barikus liked to stretch these things out. Glad to see that’s one way you aren’t like him.”
Varan laughed. “I’ve been with this guy for almost 10 years. If it isn’t important, he isn’t going to waste your time with it.”
I nodded. “Don’t see any reason to tell you what you already know. You know your job better than I do. I’m assuming you’ll do it.”
She gave me what was becoming a familiar sloppy salute. “You can depend on me, Captain!”
“And will you please stop that!” I said with a sigh.
“Stop what?”
“Saluting.” I shook my head. “We’re a Free Trader, not the military.”
She nodded. “Got it, Captain!”
The waitbot arrived, bringing food for Jami and me and drinks for everyone else. I had stioshi pods again—since we were leaving and may not be back for a while—and Jami had some kind of sandwich that looked like it had a dozen layers.
“You can fit that in your mouth?” Varan asked, seeming surprised.
Jami smiled wickedly. “You might be surprised what I can fit in my mouth.” Varan flushed red as she poured the contents of a bowl over the “sandwich,” then chopped and mashed it into smaller pieces. She took a bite and looked at him with a raised eyebrow.
Varan ordered the same thing as Jami, while Do’rex ordered his usual salad. Saahna excused herself and stood up.
“I guess I’d better make sure Melant isn’t getting too friendly with anyone at the bar.” She waved at the table. See everyone on board tomorrow. And good to meet you, Jami.” She turned and headed towards the bar.
“She’s annoyed at you,” said Varan.
“Yeah. Again. Not the first time. She’ll be over it in a few days.”
“Maybe you were more to her than you thought?”
“She was the one who called it off.”
“I don’t know then.”
“Changes,” said Jami. “New Captain, new Engineer, old Captain and Engineer gone…” She shrugged. “All of you have been together for a while, right? Makes sense that she’d be uncomfortable.”
I looked at her. “How about you? Are you OK stepping into all of this?
“Hey, gotta be better than my last berth, right?”
“We’ll see.” She frowned slightly at that.
I spent the rest of the evening hanging out with the crew, minus Saahna. Varan insisted on telling some of our more “epic” misadventures, including the K’kree incident (don’t ask). Jami, in return, shared a few tales of her own travels. Most of which involved them being someplace they weren’t supposed to be. I worried slightly about that; she would either be bored by life on the Grayswandir or happy to relax. I hoped it would be the latter.
Varan had a bit too much to drink, and I overheard him inviting Jami back to his room. She declined gracefully, saying she didn’t want to “get too involved too quickly.” I could tell he was disappointed, and he headed off soon after. Do’rex had already left, and Saahna was long gone. Jami and I were the last to leave.
The first air-cab landed, and I offered it to her. She nodded and started getting in, then stopped and looked back.
“You’ve got a good crew, Captain. Glad to get to be a part of it.”
“Wait until we’ve got a few Jumps behind us,” I said with a smile. “Then see how you like us.”
“I’ve already got a good feeling. See you tomorrow, Captain.”
I gave her a copy of her off-kilter salute. “Welcome aboard.”