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3 yrs ago
Current Finally, we have returned...
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6 yrs ago
I haven't logged into this for so long so I guess this merits some words of inspiration.... Benis.
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8 yrs ago
Why are we still here... just to suffer.
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8 yrs ago
Skidaddle Skiddodle, your d!ck is now a noodle!
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Bio

Come from NS, still doing RP's there. So far enjoying myself in this site.

Most Recent Posts


James E. Carter & Aden Robertson

Co-write between @InfamousGuy101 & @Terrans


Carter had drifted down the corridor with the low hum of the engines filling the quiet. The laughter and clinking glasses of the party faded to a faint echo behind him, replaced by the steady pulse of the ship. Maybe it was the drink getting to his nerves, the noise, or maybe it was the unease still gnawing in the back of his mind, but his steps had carried him further than he’d meant to go. Past the cabins, past the lower stairwell, down toward the hold.

He stopped at the last turn, the air was cooler here, behind the sealed door lay the crates of gold, every ounce of promise and trouble they’d dragged out of that castle. His fingers brushed the latch, hovering there as his thoughts turned. He could almost see the bars stacked in the dim light, each a possibility of new life. He recoiled then, turning around and ready to head back.

Then a faint sound broke the stillness, metal shifting, or maybe the thumping of a boot against the deck. Someone was in there. Carter straightened, the fog of drink thinning in an instant as his hand slid to the door handle, pushing it open just enough to slip through.

The hinges creaked faintly as he stepped into the hold, eyes adjusting to the lamp glows spilling over stacked crates. And there stood Private Aden, half-turned, the faint glow of a cigar in his hand, and his other hand near his holster.

Aden’s hand brushed the grip of the Krausser. The slightly worn metal and wood a second away from drawing.

Recognition and sense however took hold; the scout letting his hand fall away and sticking his cigar back in his mouth.

“Carter.” A few puffs as he eyed the captain.” What brings you down here? Away from the revelry you started?”

Carter’s gaze flicked briefly to the pistol at Aden’s side before settling back on the man’s face. He gave a small, easy shrug.

“Could ask you the same, Private. Though I figure you came down here to clear your head some. Can’t blame you for that.”

For a beat he went quiet, thumb brushing the edge of his belt before he spoke again.

“Listen,” he said, his tone softer, “about earlier with the toast. Didn’t mean to put you on edge if I did. Just words to pass the glass, that’s all.”

“Just words….” Aden let out a scoff. Gaze flicking from Carter to the gold. “Just like this is just metal right?”

Carter gave a low scoff of his own.

“Maybe,” he said casually, “Words only carry as much weight as what a man does with ’em. I got called a war hero back home, got medals, parades, speeches about sacrifice and honor. All hollow as tin when you know what it really cost.”

He took a few steps closer, his eyes moved past Aden’s to the open crate. The gleam of the bars reflecting in his gaze.

“Funny thing, though,” he murmured, half to himself, “men would bleed, kill, and build empires over it. But like you said, it’s just metal. Doesn’t feed a man, doesn’t keep him warm. Yet here we are, guarding it like it’s holy.”

He let the thought hang, then he seemed to wake himself up from his own thoughts as he looked back to Aden, "Any thoughts of what you'd do with your share?"

“Share?” Aden sounded surprised. “I’m a private of the Empire that owns this gold. Most likely I will exit this ship and be either charged for desertion or given orders for the front. Wherever it might lay.”

“Can’t fault you for duty, Private. World’d be a steadier place if more men kept to theirs.”

He glanced again at the gold, “Still, let’s not sell ourselves short. That pile there didn’t just haul itself out of the castle. If it weren’t for you and the others on this ship, it’d be melted down into bullets or sitting in some Communalist vault by now. That’s worth something, hell, if there’s any justice left in this world, it ought to count for more than a pat on the back and new orders.”

He leaned against a crate, “Don’t see you getting hauled up for desertion either. When I was in the city, most soldiers either bolted or switched sides soon as the tide turned. You stuck it out and are still here. That says more than any uniform ever could.”

Carter then made a snall shrug as his eyes moved to a longing distance, the faintest grin returning, “As for me… I’m no hero. Just a man trying to make right what’s gone wrong. Gold like this, my share of it at least, means putting food on the tables of the families my crew left behind and getting a fresh start of my own. New ship, clean slate, it's truly a breathtaking thought.”

“What’s your plan to get back? I don’t see you being able to buy an air ship so soon after disembarking.” Aden replaced the lid of the crate. Giving it a few shoves to ensure it seated properly.

Carter went quiet, his eyes tracing the lines of the cargo bay in thought.

“Fair question,” he said at last, “But that’s my business to sort once we’re on solid ground. All I want is my finder’s fee and I’ll see to the rest myself. Commonwealth’s got an embassy in Mitteland, and if not, there’s always someone who’ll trade coin for passage.”

He pushed off the crate, brushing a bit of dust from his sleeve. “This isn’t my war, never was. I plan to keep it that way once we land. As charming as some folk on this ship can be…” he smirked faintly, “while others make a man remember why he prefers the sky.”

“Well you’ll be carrying a small fortune in gold.” Aden redid a latch. “Mighty tempting for whoever takes such passage. Especially with the times of today.”

Carter grinned slightly as he tapped the worn grip of his holstered Harlan .45 with the flat of his palm.

“Tempting, sure,” he said humoringly, "but I don’t carry this 45. for show.”

"Anyone keen to try their luck’ll find out quick I’ve got a stronger sense of ownership than they do of self-preservation, speaking of which... what's that there you carry?”

Aden glanced down slightly to his pistol.

“Krausser P-15.” Aden said unapparent the leather. Pulling the pistol out with a gunslingers twirl; a slight from in his face. A click as the magazine dropped out and the round chambered falling out to Aden’s free hand.

“Replaced my revolver a few months before the war.”

The pistol held butt first to Carter.

Carter took the offered pistol with a faint raise of his brow, it felt lightweight settling into his grip. He turned it over once, studying the shape. Slanted grip, tight precision at its lines, sharp knurling at the grip and the barrel stood out from the plate, a peculiar choice.

“Krausser huh,” he echoed, giving an appreciative nod, “Fine piece of work. Smooth balance, good weight for a sidearm…” he nodded to Aden’s earlier twirl, “Seen men lose fingers tryin’ half that trick of yours too.”

With that, Carter reached for his own worn holster, drawing the Harlan .45 with a smooth motion. The metal caught the light, scuffed but well kept. Holding Aden’s pistol in one hand, he deftly thumbed the mag release and cleared the chamber on his own with the same thumb, the motion crisp and unhurried, he had done it countless of times.

“Had this one since my army days,” he said, offering it to Aden grip first as well, “Swapped in a heavier recoil spring to keep her steady on the second shot, and filed the trigger catch for a cleaner pull. Old girl’s never jammed on me yet.”

Aden took the pistol. Giving it another gunslinger twirl and aiming it an imaginary foe on the bulkhead.

“Too much heft for me.” A test fire caused his brow to wrinkle. “Single Action?”

“Yep, she’s a big girl,” Carter admitted, “Single action indeed, the slide hammer cocks back on the follow-through though. Takes a bit of getting used to if you’re used to lighter pieces, but it gives you consistency. You can feel every shot and eventually control the kick and keep her steady.”

A hint of pride crept into his tone as he added, “Best of both worlds, if you ask me. Kicks like a mule but ain't nothing getting back up from what comes out the barrel.”

Aden thought back to the few times he had used his pistol. The desperation for the draw; the hasty jerking of the holster.

“Prefer just pulling the trigger.” Aden passed the pistol back. Both men ending up with their respective sidearms. “Besides I prefer hitting them long before I would have to use my pistol.”

Carter let out a quiet chuckle as he took the pistol back, loading it and sliding it neatly into its holster.

“Fair enough,” he conceded, “Can’t argue with a man who likes to keep his distance. Still, this is what the boys back in the Main swear by and it works for us, so I stick with it, simple as that.”

“Though now that I’m a rich man, or soon to be, maybe I’ll treat myself to somethin’ finer. Always wanted to see what the fuss was about the Equaterra hunting rifles, figure if I’m ever gonna hunt again, might as well do it proper.”

“Don’t think I’ll take up hunting.” Aden replied. Hand touching the pocket his notebook was stowed in. Among his journal entries and sketches was his shot log. Clean mathematical calculations of his shots taken.

And shots hit.

“Spilled enough blood so far. Don’t see any sign of it letting up soon.” Aden gave a sigh and another puff of the cigar. “Killed a lot of people for Inbur. And I’m not even Inburian. What a world.”

Carter’s expression softened, his posture easing as he leaned a little against the crate beside him.

“Yeah,” he said quietly, “I get that.”

He rubbed his thumb along the ridge of his nose, “Did my time for the Commonwealth. They called me a hero too... pinned a few bits of tin on my chest, threw parades, speeches, all because I dropped bombs on a city full of civilians...” He gave a long silent stare for a moment then a humorless smile, “Never felt like one, not once. I didn't come out of a war with pride, just a longer list of ghosts and things I wish I'd done different.”

His gaze shifted to Aden, "So yeah... What a world."
Huzzah!
James E. Carter & Arkadios Andreaou

Co-write between @InfamousGuy101 & @Dyelli Beybi



Carter’s mind continued to race, the liquor's warmth sharpening edges he might otherwise have ignored. Too easy to picture Volodar whispering poison into Arkadios’s ear, bending a fair man’s judgment toward the sort of highborn arrogance the elf wore like a second skin. Carter could still hear that first sneer, an "uncultured Mainer", clear as the day it was spat.

He knew better than to leap to conclusions but gold had a way of turning people into their worst and Zoe’s talk of ministers and royals, Itzi’s doubts, Mitunbaal’s own insight, it all wrapped in his head until the thought of leaving his cut in other men’s hands felt like a fool’s gamble. His share was owed, he felt it was at least, he’d done more than enough to earn it, same as the rest.

Still… Arkadios had shown himself steady, a cool headed leader amidst this disparate crew. It was best to speak plain with him before suspicion soured into something worse. Better that than jumping the gun, quite literally.

As fate had it, the two men rounded the corner just then, returning from wherever they’d slipped away. Carter straightened from the wall, smoothing his features into a casual half-grin that didn’t quite hide the qualms behind his eyes.

“Was beginning to think you two’d fallen clean off the side,” he said, tone easy with a bite of humor.

His gaze settled squarely on Arkadios, “Would’ve left us in a real sorry state without your hand at the tiller.”

Arkadios gave a slight shrug, his expression inscrutable, "I'm sure you would have managed to find your way to one of the cities in Mitteland. We are over the border now."

Carter pushed off the wall and gestured back towards the dining hall.

“Captain, if you’ve the time, I’d welcome you for a drink. Good to share a glass with the man steering us straight.”

Arkadios paused, then inclined his head politely, "I can have a drink, though I will keep to the one. I would like to have a clear head for once we are landed."

“Fair enough, Captain. I understand wanting a clear head, god knows I’ve spent enough nights with the opposite.”

Once at the bar Carter got a hold of a pair of clean shot glasses and unstoppered a squat bottle he’d tucked aside earlier.

“Nordisles stock,” he explained as he poured, the golden liquid catching the lamplight. “Half mead, half Inburian wine. Smooth enough to go down easy.”

He slid one glass toward Arkadios and raised his own, and tipped it forward with a quiet clink, “To your health, Captain and to the Communalists’ defeat.”

He downed his shot, savoring the warmth in his chest before setting the glass aside. For a moment he simply leaned on the bar, then he spoke.

“There’s something I’ve been meaning to ask. I know you’re not a man to leave this continent or its fight anytime soon. But say one day the war is over, the Communalists gone to dust… what then? What’s a soldier like you plan to do when the guns finally quiet?”

"I'm a career soldier, Mister Carter," Arkadios remarked, "When this war ends I will retain my commission... provided we win... and I will return to barracks with the Regiment until such time as I decide to retire. I will try to ensure my unmarried sons and daughter find suitable matches and will live out my remaining days in my house in my village. I may even purchase an automobile."

Carter nodded along as Arkadios laid out his future in that steady, deliberate way of his. For all the liquor humming through his blood, he found himself almost admiring the man’s outlook. A clean vision, ordered, nothing more.

“Can’t fault that,” he said after a moment, “Sounds like you’ve got a damn sight clearer plan than I ever managed.”

“I was a soldier too. Commonwealth put me in uniform when the last war with the Confederacy boiled over. Got my share of medals for it too, but it didn’t take me long to realize I wasn’t cut for barracks life or marching drills. Figured I’d rather see the world than stay, so I signed on with traders instead...”

His eyes narrowed slightly, but his tone stayed friendly, conversational, “Still… hearing you talk about your family, your sons, your daughter… can’t help but wonder. When you talk of providing for them, making sure they’ve got something solid to inherit, I reckon part of that must be what’s stacked down in our hold right now, isn’t it? That gold.”

"They have the education and connections to make their way in the world," Arkadios replied with little apparent concern, "As for the gold - I will take no share of it. I am an Officer in His Imperial Majesty's Army. It is my duty to collect the gold and return it to His Imperial Majesty's Government. I am already paid for the privilege of serving. I have no right to expect additional recompense simply because some of His Majesty's gold reserve passed through my hands."

Carter gave another small nod, “Can’t say I don’t respect that, Captain. Duty’s duty....”

He rolled his glass between his fingers before setting it down, “For the rest of us however that share’s no small thing. I’ve got debts to square with the Company for the ship I lost, and more important, families of my crew who never made it out, they deserve more than a letter and a prayer. That gold means I can see them looked after proper, and maybe even put down roots of my own. Shipping line, small but mine. Something worth building instead of just drifting.”

He leaned back a little, “You said yourself you’re paid for your service. Well, as a private man who was burnt from this war it only stands to reason that me and the rest get ours. We hauled that haul through hell. The vast bulk’s going back to the royals and ministers either way, and I’d wager it won’t be spent half as wisely as folk like you could manage.”

"You have personal debts for a lost airship?" Arkadios raised an eyebrow and chuckled, "Might I suggest filing for bankruptcy before you get paid."

Carter let out a dry laugh, "If only it were that simple, Captain. The ship itself was insured, the Company’ll write it off and slap the papers across some clerk’s desk but the fittings I put into her... reinforced gaslines, the extra lift valves, half the bloody engine work... those weren’t in the ledger. Came out of my own pocket to keep her skyworthy. The Company won’t cover a copper of it.”

He reached for the bottle, pouring himself another splash though he didn’t lift it just yet, “And you know how higher ups work, they’ll need someone to point the finger at when the insurers start asking why a full cargo’s gone up in smoke and the passengers are unaccounted for. Who better than the captain who signed off on the assignment?”

For a moment his eyes dropped, lifting up his brow with a sunker glare, “So yeah... My life’s in ruins unless I make it right. My crew’s families too, Evig’s not gonna look after widows and orphans... Not a chance. They’ll be lucky if they even get word of how their sons and brothers died. That gold… that’s the only way I can see them made whole.”

He finally took the drink, setting the glass down with a quiet clink, “That’s why I’ll fight tooth and nail for my share. Because if I don’t, there’s nothing left but ruin.”

"I would simply not pay," Arkadios replied, his expression deadpan, "Though I suppose you did sink some of your own funds into the ship which I would recommend against doing to any assett that doesn't belong to you."

Carter gave a short laugh, “Hindsight makes a fine damsel, doesn’t it? I should’ve left her the way she was but truth is, Captain, those modifications kept us flying when the work was lean and the competition was cutthroat. Extra lift meant we could haul heavier cargo than the next man, reinforced gaslines meant we could take routes through rougher skies without springing leaks every other week. Those jobs paid better, and those jobs kept my crew fed.”

He paused for a moment, “Maybe I was a fool for sinking money into a hull that wasn’t mine, but I’ll tell you what, it worked. Until the war rolled over Inbur and chewed us all up in the gears.”

Arkadios paused, looking confused, "Do you not get paid a salary? Are you saying you get paid on commission?"
Carter shook his head, “The Company kept us on a salary of sorts. Enough to keep the pantry stocked and the coal bins filled but nothing to set a man ahead. Regular pay’s fine for a man who never leaves the docks, but when you’re out in the wind and storm, risking the whole damn hull every trip, it don’t stretch far.”

“Where the real coin came in was commission work. Special hauls like fragile goods, high value cargo, or routes no one else wanted to fly. That’s where the modifications paid for themselves. We could carry more, get there faster, take jobs others wouldn’t touch. Inbur was one of those jobs as a matter of fact.”

"Are you saying your salary needed to cover routing vessel maintenance?" Arkadios looked astouded by this proposition, "And you installed modifications to do off-the-books work?"

Carter let out a short breath through his nose, “Not what I said at all, Captain. The Company handled basic maintenance, our wages weren’t paying for new gas valves or fresh canvas.”

He paused for a moment as he looked at the nordisles bottle, “What I did pay for were the extras. Reinforced lines, stronger lift cells, rigging modifications. Things that weren’t standard issue but made her fly better, safer, and most importantly, worth more to the clients. That’s how we got the commission work because we could haul more, go further, take the jobs others couldn’t. Nothing under the table about it. Just making my ship more capable than the next one in line. Some of us hoped we could eventually pay it off from the Company and go independent... Fantasy now.”

For half a heartbeat, he smirked to himself, off-the-books work, hell, if they only knew… but gave Arkadios a steady look, “Point is, it was an investment. It was paying off until the war chewed it all to pieces.”

"Be that as it may though, I'm glad to be of service to the Inburian cause even if briefly," He raised his glass to Arkadios, hoping for a clink.

"Thank God we all made it out of that city alive," Arkadios raised his glass in response

Carter's clinked with Arkadio's in that moment. The conversation had eased the edge off some of his doubts, the Captain was a good man, straight-backed and collected, the kind that meant what he said about duty and country. But Carter had lived long enough to know that good men didn’t always get the final say and still felt that once the gold reached the hands of admirals, ministers, and royals, honor had a way of turning into ledger entries and excuses.

He turned the glass in his fingers, watching the shallow remnant of amber light twist across the surface. Good man, that Arkadios, he thought. Shame the world don’t pay much mind to good men when there’s gold involved. Still the tension in his shoulders eased, he’d keep his eyes open, play his hand smart, and make sure he and the rest got what was due.
Mark A. Lopez



Mark kept at the consoles, toggling power levels and rerouting as the ship shuddered faintly from the impact out in space. The reactor spike from Lockman's shot had kicked a transient across the bus; a handful of sensors hiccupped and vomited noise before settling.

"Crazy fucks..." He swore under his breath and kept moving.

“All right, cutting extra coolant and air to the boarding tunnel and cargo corridor now,” he said into the open channel, “Should keep people from fainting and slow the spread of heat. Lights are down to emergency in nonessential decks.”

He pulled up the drone feeds. About a dozen of them were live and obedient, cameras spitting grainy video as they crawled forwards out the cargo bay and the boarding sides. The bots were not impressive, tracked and short stubbed, no more than 4 feet with scuffed paint and patched plating with the ship's designations and marked as "Exploration Rover," but their flares and powered claws were ready.

“Vitiafa, Ren, listen up,” Mark spoke over comms, “I’m assigning a handful of rovers to the boarding tunnel and some more to cargo. They’re configured for flares and claw routines but that should keep some bugs distracted if worse comes. I can manually pilot one at a time into a hot spot, but I need eyes and calls from the ground. Tell me when you spot bugs or someone falling in the lane. Call the drone number and target quadrant. I’ll take the rest.”

A warning chirped on the console as a sensor line spat static, then recovered.

“Transient spike from the det. Some local feeds just melted for a second. If I lose a camera, bark at me and I’ll switch control. I’m running systems and drones at the same time, so hit me fast.”

He grabbed manual control for drone alpha and eased it toward the cargo lip. The little unit wheeled, camera zooming in on a cluster of civilians being shepherded toward the ramp. One of the dock workers was bracing a stamped metal barricade, Ren’s loader clanking in the background.

“Cargo bay, I see your lane. Drone alpha on visual. Moving to hover near the left ramp to push back anyone trying to climb the barricade,” he said, fingers nudging the joystick. The rover's claw extended and gave a demonstrative shove at a loose crate, sending it a harmless meter and clearing a narrow path.
@InfamousGuy101

Zoe Spyrou


"Oh, I'm sure they will," Zoe said, with an offhand wave in the direction that the officers had retreated earlier, "Its not their gold anyway and there are state actors with more of a say over what we do with it than our officers. There are Generals, Admirals, Ministers and Royals, for a start."

As the second song concluded she stepped back with a charming smile and small nod of the head, "Well Mr Carter, it is always a pleasure... but I suppose I should mingle a little."


James E. Carter



Carter watched Zoe slip back into the throng, her words lingered with him much like those of Mitunbaal. Admirals, ministers, royals, a whole ladder of hands just waiting to rake across the pile they’d bled to haul aboard and the soldiers were probably more than eager to just bring it over to them, he doubted much of it would actually be used for the war effort.

It left a sour taste in his mouth. He wasn’t much for politics but there was one principle he’d kept his whole life: a man’s owed for his labor. And this had been no small task. He’d risked his hide for a treasury that wasn’t his nation's, a country that had never flown his flag and he’d kept this creaking beast in the sky when every gust, bullet, and fire threatened to tear her down. If that didn’t earn a share, then what did?

Even one bar was enough, more than enough, if it meant seeing his crew’s families made whole again and owed debts paid. But he wasn’t fool enough to think the officers would part with it out of charity.

He gave Zoe a proper nod then slipped from the dining hall. The music and laughter dulled behind him as his boots carried him slowly through the corridors, eyes scanning for anyone. Where had they gone, those two? Tucked away somewhere, whispering up plans while the rest of the crew danced blind?

His mind ticked between options: seek them out and drag the truth into the light… or head down to the hold to carve out his and everyone else's share now before command chains and state orders found their way aboard. One way or another, the gold would be spoken for.

And Carter knew damn well he didn’t like leaving his fate in other men’s hands.
Mark A. Lopez




Mark's hands moved fast, trying to get the ship ready as fast as he could. He cut power to the tertiary rings and water heaters, pushed lighting down to emergency and essetials, and fed the spare into the maneuver busses and the local defense bus. The reactor curve bowed a little, then steadied. Green bars climbed where they needed to.

He finally managed to keyed into the weapons subnet, eyes narrowing as he scanned for ports. Point defense nodes came up on the schematic, little icons meant for asteroid scraps and stray debris. Not much in the way of teeth from what he could see but built to spit out metal and plasma at rock, not monsters. It'll have to do.

Next he rolled the drone bay online. Mostly remote maintenance units that had been reconfigured on the fly months ago; they had good servos and were overbuilt for exploration work. He flashed the payload manifests; flare launchers, mounted for signalling and debris marking, checked out. Augmented grasp servos read 120 percent torque. Cameras warmed up to their individual fees, no offensive mounts, but a flare in a bug swarm draws attention. A shove from a powered claw could push a loader out of the way or maybe even tear through a metacer's shell.

"These should come in handy, still a bitch to remotely control..."

He muttered to himself, if these things had been automated the whole job would take two minutes and a cup of coffee. But Eden hated the word AI, and automation had been gutted system-wide. So here he was, stuck manning bots that should have been able to think for themselves.

He flipped comms open and spoke fast.

“Bridge, Lopez in engineering. I’ve rerouted nonessentials to maneuver and defense. I’ve hotseated some of the point defenses to engineering. I can hold them here but I need someone on the bridge to call shots if we take heavy contact.”

“Ginny, I’m launching drones as sentries. They’re fitted with flareguns and reinforced claws, they aint weapons, but they should hold their own for a bit. I’ll pilot them from here, but I need a visual patch to your channel if you want to use them for reactor recon.”

“Cargo and boarding teams, keep volatile crates staged in the AL and keep people off the ramps. I’ll try to draw any swarm away from the loading lanes.”

He hit the launch sequence. The bay doors cracked, and one by one the drones blinked awake on his feeds. Cameras flared to life. Small, squat machines, paint scorched from past jobs, their flare barrels gleaming up.

Mark took a breath, he thumbed the manual control and felt the first response from the front drone as if it were an extension of his arm. It squealed as servos wound up, then rolled forward under his guide, the others were on a sequence program so they would follow Lopez's commands in unison. A dozen of them began to march out.

Watching the drone lumber out toward the cargo lip, this was enough to buy time, perhaps save some more people. He didn't like trading time on hope, but alas.

"It is what it is..." he spoke to himself.
@InfamousGuy101

Zoe Spyrou


James E. Carter



Carter let Zoe’s hand settle into his, guiding her into the first sweep of the new tune. It was a livelier piece than the last, all bright brass and staccato strings, and he let its rhythm carry his boots across the floor with practiced ease.

Her words about duty and fleeting moments lingered with him longer than he expected as he cast a side glance toward the hall, still no sign of Volodar or Arkadios. He forced his attention back to Zoe with a half-smile.

“Can’t deny it’s been one hell of an adventure,” he said, his vice lighter, “I’ve sailed with all kinds of crews… traders, soldiers of fortune, even smugglers on a few desperate runs... but this lot? Nothing quite like it. Maybe it’s all the clashing temperaments crammed into one hull.” He lifted a wry grin.

He spun her beneath his arm, letting her skirt flare before he caught her back into the step, “Of course… heading back to the Main is still on my ledger,” he exhaled through his nose, shoulders settling a touch “there’s debts I’ve got to settle over yonder, my crew... the ones who didn’t make it out. Their families are owed more than sympathies and my share of the gold ought to see them made whole and levy me a good sum while at it, that is if the military keeps their side of the deal.”

His tone stayed casual, but there was a hint of suspicion regarding the military men in the ship and what they were up to. He was no mind reader, but he could read between the lines and most importantly notice when trouble was amidst.
James E. Carter



Carter’s eyes lingered a moment longer on the empty hallways at the edge of the room, neither Arkadios nor Volodar could be seen. That knotted something in his gut. Those two were sharp men, the sort who didn’t waste steps and both had a habit of watching him like they were waiting for him to slip. Maybe it was the gold, maybe it was the fact he wasn’t one of their soldiers, but he could feel it, the distance and distrust.

Part of him itched to go find them and hopefully clear the air before it curdled into something worse. After all he’d done to keep this floating heap in the sky and the gold out of Communalist hands, he wasn’t about to let some silent grudge fester and tear the crew apart from the inside.

But just as he made to leave, a voice like silk cut through the music.

<Snipped quote by Terrans>

Zoe


"Mister Carter," she said by way of introduction. There was the not-so-subtly implication she was hoping he would ask her for the next dance.


He paused, jaw tightening a fraction. Of course. The woman who’d brought them all into this affair in the first place weaving soldiers, smugglers and half a dozen other kinds of trouble into her grand little venture. He’d seen her working the room all night, light on her feet and heavy on charm. Whatever her game was, she was good at it.

For a heartbeat he thought about brushing her off, slipping away to hunt the two missing officers before they could scheme up something quiet. But he caught the glint in her eyes of playfulness and a certain expectation. He exhaled, shoulders loosening just enough.

“Miss Zoe,” he greeted with a similar tone to hers.

“Seems tonight’s a night for swapping partners. Fair warnin’, though my last dance ended in philosophy so forgive me if I step a bit more carefully.”


Mark A. Lopez




Mark hunched over the engineering console, more systems came online under his touch and the alerts coming through from the boarding tunnel and the cargo bays hadn’t stopped since Vitiafa’s first call. Security getting antsy. Metacer confirmed on the station. Civilians already pressing against barricades.

He could hear the chaos even down here in the bones of the ship—through the bulkheads and faint vibrations in the deck.

“Alright you son of a bitch,” he muttered at the console, punching in another sequence, “wake up for me.”

The main reactor’s power curve stabilized and coolant pumps surged to life. Life support, shields, and inertial dampeners flashed green in turn. They were flight-ready but the lack of clear defense systems bothered him, even if Ginny was right he still wanted to see if there were any.

Mark leaned back, rubbing a hand across his jaw, “All dressed up and nowhere to shoot…”

He keyed in another search, pulling up the subroutines for auxiliary systems. Anything with teeth, anything that could pass for guns. It didn’t make sense, no way a ship this size, this new, was flying without some sort of defense grid. Even just point-defense turrets to swat rocks or pirates.

“C’mon, don’t tell me you’re all bark, no bite,” he said under his breath as the terminal processed.

Over the comms he added, his tone dry but focused, “Drives are heating up, systems are hot. Still looking for any kind of defensive package. A ship this advanced has to have something, even if it’s just glorified fireworks. I’ll keep digging, but be ready... we can move the second the bridge calls it.”

He glanced once more at the flashing diagnostic lines, then muttered to himself, “God help us if she’s just a floating tin can.”
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