Discoveries, Convictions And
      Understanding

    Monday, 088-1114: 10am
Off To The Order House
     At ten in the morning, Colinne, Jocelynn, Aiden, Fesic and Sekea had visited the Order house on the Ghandi station for the Order of the Tower and Sword.  They'd met with one of the Knights, Sir Phlio Elyand, who'd explained the purpose and services of the Order house before taking them on a tour.  During that, they'd been brought to the Order house's weaponsmith.  The five were each now waiting to speak to one of the smiths, to discuss a custom-designed weapon.  In the suite, Mikah and Zimzod were working with Rol on his physical therapy, which also gave Mikah a chance to work with Zimzod on his PT too.  Zimzod was pleased because he could feel it.  He was almost ready to fade from physical therapy to regular workouts.  When Rol snarked, "Show off", Zimzod smiled and said "I got the damn pain to prove it!"

When the smiths arrived, Aiden said he hoped to get two weapons.  First, he asked about modifying his LAG, hoping the weapon could fire dual types of ammunition, like his snub pistol.  He also wanted a gyrostabilizer added to the weapon.  Examining Aiden's snub pistol, the smith enjoyed understanding the ideas the Grand Duchess' smith had created.  Still, the smith said doing that would demand a redesign of the weapon's chamber and receiver groups.  Added to that, the trigger group would have to be re-worked so the user could choose between ammo types.  The smith said Aiden would be better served with an entirely new weapon, to which he could transfer mods like the gunCam, comm dot, etc.  Aiden could then sell off the old weapon so that he wasn't overloading his storage space on the ship.

With the new weapon design, Aiden would have to have "dual-file" magazines allowing him to load five rounds into each of two ammo files.  Especially since the LAG could handle Ball, Discarding Sabot, High Explosive and Flechette ammo types.  He wanted ten magazines, allowing him to load five of two types or load a single ammo type into both.  Doubling his ammo load.  When Aiden asked about having a silencer made specialized for that weapon, the smith said he didn't work on appliances like that.  He gave Aiden five recommendations which included both InstellArms and Mordor Arms.  Aiden would have to shop for those specifically.  The smith warned Aiden that using a silencer would shorten the range, increasing the round's "fall off".  So it would be a negative at range, which was why rifles were used.

The cost of the new LAG would be four hours of his time, to take measurements, and Cr 2,000 along with Cr 30 per magazine(Total for 10: Cr 300).  The Gyrostabilizer would cost Cr 500.  Considering the DNA system on his snub pistol, the smith offered Aiden a trigger system that would 'taste' the DNA of anyone trying to fire the weapon.  If the DNA didn't match Aiden's, the trigger group would lock up, denying anyone else the ability to fire the weapon.  The smith told him that would cost an additional Cr 300.  Aiden was good with that, and asked how long it would take the smith to deliver the weapon?  The man said it would take him a week, with any other projects he and his crew wanted.  So Aiden agreed to the Cr 3,100 price.

Next, Aiden asked about a customized sniper rifle, and said he wanted a gyrostabilizer and duplicates of the gear he had on his existing LAG.  He also wanted the sniper rifle customized to how his body acted and reacted when he would use it.  The smith said that would be another four hours on the range.  Aiden also asked about a specialized scope to help him understand and compensate for the conditions down-range to help his aim.  The smith was familiar with such scopes and said that buying one could cost anywhere from Cr 1,200 to Cr 5,000 - depending on who was selling them and how much they charged?  When Aiden again asked about silencers, the smith saw he hadn't learned when they discussed the LAG.  The smith reminded him that would cut the weapon's range and badly affect each shot's down-range accuracy.  So, he again recommended against using one with the weapon.

Considering the total cost, Aiden found he had to decide between a shorter-range gauss sniper rifle or a longer-range rifle that fired conventional rounds instead of needles.  A base gauss weapon would cost him Cr 4,500.  A more conventional weapon would cost Cr 3,000.  In the end, Aiden went with range and asked about installing a dual-feed chamber, like his ordered LAG and existing snub pistol.  That told the smith Aiden wasn't a trained sniper.  Blowing that idea away, the smith explained that a sniper wasn't one to rely on ammo magazines and shifting needs.  Most often, each round would be loaded individually, without a magazine.  Each round would be selected specifically for the target engaged.  One rarely used more than a single shot, and rarely two, before they had to get the 'duck out of fodge' avoiding counter-sniper fire.  The total cost ranged from Cr 4,700 to 8,500 in the end.  Especially where the scope and any software were considered.

Also sitting in with Aiden, Colinne had a smaller collection of weapons and really only wanted her gauss pistol customized.  She'd not asked for that to be done in the Denotam system.  Nodding, the smith asked if she wanted him to have his people find her a micro-gyrostabilizer that would fit the weapon.  Colinne asked how much the add-on would cost and was told it depended on who was selling it and how much they charged?  Nodding, Colinne figured it was worth paying for it if they found one.  It could help her hit someone before they hit her, and be worth its weight in platinum!  Colinne also wanted to have her pistol DNA encoded, like Aiden had mentioned.  That would secure her pistol by locking the trigger group on that weapon.  To modify that weapon would be Cr 800 and the cost of any scope they found, along with four hours of her time on the range.  Accepting that, Colinne handed over the pistol because she had it with her.

After settling what she wanted done to the pistol, which the smith said would take a few days to deliver, he asked about any other interest Colinne had?  Colinne admitted it might be good to have a general use shotgun to clear decks or fire birdshot into darkened areas where opponents might be hidden.  She'd want the shotgun to be customized like her gauss pistol.  Colinne also wanted to add the gunCam, commdot along with a gyrostabilizer and DNA security kit.  Considering that shotguns had a wide range of slugs they could fire, Colinne also asked about having two ammo feeds, like Aiden's snub pistol.  That would let her load a variety of ammunition types from non-lethal to poison or chemical delivering loads.  Nodding, the smith said he could make a weapon "whole" for her including those options for Cr 3,350.  That included a scope with light-intensifying and Infrared modes and a gunCam.

Asked what he wanted, Fesic regretted not having had his weapons customized with the others on Denotam.  He wanted gyrostabilizers for all of his weapons.  He was told the concierge would look for the micro-stabilizers for his pistols.  Fesic was certain he'd only use the snub pistol gifted by Duke Luis in court or special events.  But, he also remembered shooting the fake officer during the reception for Emkir's father on Regina.  So he still wanted it customized.  He'd only spend four hours on the range with one of his two snubbies, letting the techs use that data for both pistols.  Fesic also wanted to upgrade the scope on his laser rifle and add a matching scope to his accelerator rifle.  Fesic ended up asking for scopes that provided Light Intensification, Infrared, telescopic scopes with distance measuring and x-ray target designators.

Fesic wanted DNA trigger locking security on his laser rifle and snub pistols.  On his Accelerator rifle, he wanted a "DNA tester and taser".  He also wanted a strap large enough to sling over his shoulder or over his laser rifle battery pack.  He asked that the strap's clip be able to "appear to have broken", so it would look like it had fallen.  He could then drop it during retreats and hope someone picked it up and got zapped.  That would cause confusion between his buddies and help them make a counter attack.

Finally, Fesic liked Colinne's idea for a bullpup shotgun, just to clean decks and pump birdshot or slugs into the darkness where enemies might be hiding.  He also wanted it to have a gyrostabilizer, scope, DNA trigger lock and dual ammo feed, like Aiden's snub pistol.  The smith said he could run two-tube magazines running under the shotgun barrel which held eight rounds each.  The shotgun would have to be made from scratch, customized and allow a fire selector that also provided for ammo selection.  The shotgun would cost Cr 7,000.  In the end, Fesic was spending Cr 21,700.

Sekea had also watched as the smiths took notes on Aiden's pistol and was told he should really look to improve and "standardize" the scopes on his weapons.  But, they reminded him, that was not a thing they did.  If he wanted to deal with his scopes, he could shop on his own.  Three of his four pistols didn't have micro-stabilizers, so they said they could have their suppliers look for those for him if he wanted.  Sekea said he did want that and thanked them.  He also asked for recommendations on where to shop, and was told to check InstellArms, Mordor Arms and three other local sellers.  When it came to what Sekea wanted them to make for him, Sekea asked if they could modify his two snub pistols to fire different ammo types like Aiden's.

The smiths said they couldn't modify his existing pistols to do that, so they'd make him two new pistols instead.  They talked over his ask saying they could easily do that after looking at Aiden's pistol.  They said the modified weapons would cost him Cr 1,000 per pistol.  Accepting that, Sekea asked about magazines, because he'd have to buy custom-made magazines for the weapon.  And, if he wanted more in the future.  Sekea also asked about the weight of each magazine?  He settled on buying six of those.  They'd cost him Cr 25 each.  Together, buying two of the weapons and the six magazines cost him Cr 2,150.

Jocelynn asked about a hand weapon that fired different types of slugs "and" also had a laser barrel.  It would not only demand designing a weapon like Aiden's, with a single chamber and barrel fed from a magazine with two files.  It would then need the barrel for a laser pistol, and the added mechanisms of a laser weapon added to it.  It would also have the required cable connection for a laser power pack.  She also wanted the same type of DNA taster and taser mechanism Aiden had on his snub pistol.  The idea intrigued the smiths enough they said they could play with it.  Of course, they also said the scope was something she'd have to find while shopping on her own.  Jocelynn also told them about the blades she'd bought on Denotam, and asked if they could be hilted, refined and honed?  She also wanted them to custom mold the grips specifically to her grip, each in a different color of fancy polished wood?

While they finished up with the designers, Colinne figured they had connections on-station and mentioned she was looking for a decompiler.  Not saying why she was looking for the software, she used the excuse that she was the new ship's computer officer and wanted a package able to crack the third-party software already installed.  Hearing that, the smiths told her the Order House had a concierge, and said she should ask them for help with that.  Taking note of what Colinne needed, the concierge said they'd let her know what they found in a day or so.  Colinne thanked them and left her contact data for them to call.

Sekea also worked with the concierge to connect to the station-net and check the sales sites of the five venues the designers suggested he check out to see what scopes he wanted.  Of course, the first two were InstellArms and Mordor Arms.  The other three venders recommended were named "Eipshar Laleku", "Neaarge Irkar" and "Bieprjenshkre".  The person he worked with first connected to InstellArms, and it seemed to Sekea they would have to navigate to a "help me specify" or do a search.  However, the systems at the InstellArms venue automatically determined the address of their computer was coming from the Order House and a professional I-A concierge answered the connection quickly.  That showed Sekea that I-A had identified the Order house as "special clients".

Greeting each other, the Order House worker told their concierge they were calling on behalf of Sir Sekea and the I-A agent asked if they could hold a moment?  That surprised Sekea, but didn't seem to be unusual to the Order House worker.  Very quickly the agent came back on line and split the screen with a woman Sekea recognized as the concierge they'd assigned to him by InstellArms.  The two asked how they could be of service and Sekea told them what he wanted in scopes for his weapons.  Nodding, they started working on queries to their systems while Sekea talked.  They asked a few questions and got some clarifications before they came up with three "brands" of scopes which the InstellArms people said were "the best".

Of course, Sekea heard, the most 'expensive' brands while doubting they were 'The Best'.  Still, those were the recommendations and Sekea decided to look into them.  The first was, of course, InstellArms' internal brand, and were manufactured in their own factories across the Imperium.  Next, was a scope called "StrikSpotter" made by the Neeikar corp.  Finally, a third called "Detector" was made by the Burrett corporation.  Both Neeikar and Burrett were well known and respected, but generally only sold in the Lanth subsector.  A secondary search showed the models were reviewed well.  Burrett had released a model some years back which made a big slash all across the sector.  Sadly, the firm wasn't ready for the surprise popularity and when calls for more units showed how limited their sales and customer service divisions were, the units released were bought up but the company's continued sales fell short instead of being capitalized on.

Next, they connected with Mordor Arms, who's representatives were very pleased to meet with Sir Sekea, if only by computer.  Of course, their sales intelligence data said the entire crew of the Upgrade shopped heavily at InstellArms, and they hoped to chip some of that volume off for their coffers.  They also said they handled consignments for a lone custom weapon designer who'd managed to get himself noticed for his work and inventiveness.  When Sekea asked, he was invited to visit their shop and check out the small collection of his custom work they had on display.  Sekea was told the man's name was "Gamotwtu Fre".  Sekea said he looked forward to visiting their venue.  The three other sellers were two Imperial dealers, Eipshar Laleku and Neaarge Irkar, and Bieprjenshkre an ex-patriot Zhodani scavenger.

Eipshar Laleku sold throughout the Lanth and Lunion subsectors, and had an ironic sales record with those worlds that had shifted from the Sword worlds Confederation to the Border Worlds Confederation at the end of the Fifth Frontier War.  Neaarge Irkar sold well in the Regina quadrant, including the Regina, Aramis, Lanth and Rhylanor subsector.  Still, they were both niche sellers with limited venues in various systems in the subsectors where they sold.  There was a brief and unfortunate historic note for one Neaarge Irkar location in a system that was over-run by the invading Vargr.  Gathering their staff and families in the venue, they were hit hard by vargr ground pounders who'd heard the sales venue was there and wanted to loot it.  History says the staffers and others taking refuge in the building held off the assaulting vargr, burning up much of the supplies they had.

Then, the vargr brought in a truely massive force with heavy weapons and began blowing holes in the structure.  Not a single man, woman or child survived after the structure's defensive systems were shattered.  Ironically, surviving Imperial units were able to attack the murderous vargr when their military discipline collapsed into unrestrained looting.  Sadly, despite the counter strike, more vargr were landed from the invading fleet, and the world's defenders were overwhelmed, either killed or captured.  Those who survived were rescued along with the fiercely abused populace when Imperial fleets moved in to relieve the system and destroy the vargr forces there in detail.

The fifth recommended venue was called "Bieprjenshkre", and Sekea learned it was owned by one expatriate Zhodani who had left the Consulate because he preferred living in the Imperium.  Sekea was surprised the man had managed to get the permits needed to open one weapons sales business much less a small chain of them!  While that chain did deal in newly manufactured and common personal weapons, they also specialized in refurbished weapons that had been salvaged or "recovered".  Hearing that, Sekea thought about Colinne's Zhodani gauss rifle and thought she might have an interest in collecting other "captured" weapons.  Admittedly, Sekea was curious about Bieprjenshkre, just because of the Zhodani connection, but he certainly wanted to visit Mordor and their collection from Gamotwtu Fre.

In the end, the prices from InstellArms fell a bit short of Mordor's prices, and Sekea couldn't tell if that was a 'lure tactic' or not?  Still, the custom weapons were a real draw for him and he planned to visit them.  Eipshar Laleku seemed to have 'middle of the road' prices and stock.  Neaarge Irkar seemed to be able to match InstellArms' prices but had a more limited stock.  The ex-pat Zhodani seemed to rely on the cache of his past to support his higher prices!  Despite the fact it seemed the man felt his customers should pay for his brand on top of his actual stock, Sekea figured it was worth visiting the shop they had on station.  Where both InstellArms and Morder confirmed they had many brands to offer, the three other shops admitted they had to check their stocks to see what they could offer Sekea.

While the others had concentrated on their weapons, Fesic found a chance to order some of the practice locks his lock picking class said he should buy.  When he showed the Order House people data on the devices, they started looking for him and quickly found all five devices recommended.  The cost of the five units ended up coming to Cr 3,500 including delivery to his hotel.  Fesic was very pleased with that while he looked around at the others to see their reaction.  At the time, and thanks to a pause in the conversation, Fesic and others in the space heard Aiden asking one of the concierges if the station had "on call" brothel services?  Hearing that, Colinne started laughing and quickly turned away hoping Aiden wouldn't realize she was laughing at him.  Privately, she just hoped Aiden wouldn't catch any strange diseases.

Having dealt with that kind of request before, the concierge didn't react at all, except to ask if Aiden had any particular interests in companionship or performance?  The question was so average that is spoke volumes how often workers in their office had fielded those sorts of requests.  Aiden only answered, "Nothing specific.  General for my height and, or, species."  The concierge nodded and Aiden added, "Just information.  Nothing more."  Overhearing, just like Aiden had listened while they checked the weapon sellers, Sekea asked if a system like Ghandi would also have automated or even android sex services or parlors where species-replicant "dolls" running expert-systems could approach convincingly realistic performances.  The concierge confirmed "android-staffed" shops existed, providing sex services on-station.  Low cost, medically safe electronic 'droids of any gender for spacers who's lives often lacked the chance to connect with real partners.  Even on stations or worlds, a 'morally open' partner could be difficult to find.  So, such services were common across the stars.  Even where sophont prostitution was illegal.

When, out of curiosity, Sekea asked how common these things were on Ghandi station, the concierge only reminded him that "expansion to the stars" only increased isolation.  Because of that, the sales or rental of masturbatory appliances had also expanded.  From simple hand tools to finely-sculpted anatomically correct androids programmed with expert systems and database referent software giving them the ability to behave like a sophont companion.  It was just one of the many situational twists between spacer morals and planet-side or station-side living.  It was also a variable where the morals of any given society shifted from more liberal to more conservative.  Some worlds had even taken religious "breeding commands" to heart leaving the females there almost without rights where it came to procreation.  Other worlds had either religious orders or the corporations which grew out of them to assist families or individuals with procreation.

Back at the hotel, Zimzod had transitioned from PT to gear maintenance, while also enjoying heckling Rol.  It was Zimzod's favorite method of encouraging others to work harder.  Rol only reacted with a "Bring it on" attitude.  Mikah was surprised Zimzod didn't grab his KCr 10 dildo and chase Rol around the suite threatening to stick it on Rol's forehead if Rol didn't escape him.  When that got boring, or Mikah pushed Zimzod away so she could get Rol to work at exercises, Zimzod turned to watching vids.  That left Mikah working with Rol because the other "medics" on the crew had left her with Zimzod and he was proving to be distracting instead of helping.  Of course, Mikah blamed Jocelynn, because she had two patients and not one was wrapped in gauze.

Jocelynn had ordered what she wanted and was listening in on the other calls.  Especially the calls being made to the weapon sellers.  Jocelynn was really marking time until the uniform she ordered was ready for fitting.  Of course, when she asked about that, she mentioned her crew had a meeting scheduled for 1pm that afternoon.  Checking the time, the staffers said the uniforms would be done, and could be tailored quickly enough they could be worn to the meeting.  At first, Jocelynn ignored their point of view about the prestige of the Order in wearing the uniform and didn't feel good having them rush on her behalf.  So, she waved off the offer.  When they said they only wanted to be certain she knew what they could provide for her, she admitted she was impressed but didn't want them pushing for her.

Past that, Jocelynn did ask if they had an in-house security or investigative service?  The concierge said they didn't but could refer her to trusted services.  He then asked for more details on what she wanted to have investigated?  He also wondered if this was an issue she was hesitant to go to Imperial investigators about?  Jocelynn only said it wasn't anything like that, but she felt it wasn't anything they'd put a priority on, or take seriously.  Jocelynn then explained about trooper Cadman's ID popping up on her battledress on Denotam.  So, she was hoping to hire someone who could look into it.  The concierge reminded her that sort of thing would be handed to an intelligence/hunter merc team.  He added those teams would expect a mission salary and reasonable expenses including renting or funding a starship.  When Jocelynn realized she wasn't up for that kind of billing, even if she was now "rich", she realized she should perhaps leave it to the Imperial Navy after all.  She also accepted that they wouldn't likely update her, so she might never know what they found, if anything.

Jocelynn still thought it might be a good idea to have investigative contacts in the future.  In case they were needed.  When she asked the concierge for contact details for some of the services they used, he suggested something else.  He reminded her any service they connected her to would only be useful in "that" system.  Instead, they suggested she check in with an Order House in the system where she needed help.  They could give Jocelynn a better lead on a service which could help locally, in that system.  There would also be larger firms that had their own out-system teams, but an investigation like what Jocelynn had suggested would be much more expensive, and also risked being identified by the Imperial Navy as "stepping on toes".

Jocelynn accepted that, and admitted she only knew about the events on Denotam.  Hearing that, the concierge admitted few orders had an Order facility on Denotam at all.  That was because, despite it being a major hub for traffic between Regina, Frenzie and Garda-Vilis, the traffic was much less than the volume between Lanth and Regina.  There was still a facility that supported members of any Order who visited.  Not that Order per se, they would give directions and contacts for any services they couldn't provide.  They also said there were a number of systems with reasons why Order Houses wouldn't be present, or clearing house facilities like the one on Denotam would exist.

With those who ordered uniforms still waiting to be fitted in them, and the time nearing 11am, Sekea suggested they have lunch at the Order House.  Jocelynn agreed, because she'd been to other Order Houses and knew how well they served along with how little they charged.  The menus offered everything from food commonly available on Ghandi station to food only available at the higher end restaurants, and even some things not available from other venues.  While they "could" build a Cr 50 meal, they could easily pay only Cr 20 or 30 for a meal.  After the meal, the fittings took place and they were asked how snug or loose each preferred their uniform?

Sekea said he wanted his uniform to hang loose, in case he gained weight or wanted to hide something underneath.  Fesic said, essentially, the same thing about his uniform.  Jocelynn agreed with the others.  So, while that work was done, Aiden loaded up with Cr 40 of delicacies, Sekea went full out and paid Cr 50 to try everything they felt was a lunch-time treat.  Jocelynn spent Cr 30, Colinne also spent Cr 40 and Fesic spent Cr 20.  After the meal and fittings, they left for the hotel in order to change before meeting the Count and his people.  Sekea had them push the tailoring so they could change and travel with the rest of the crew to the meeting.  That way, he could wear his new uniform.

Judgement From On High
     When the five shoppers finally got back from the Order house, and before those who wanted to wear their new uniforms could change, Mikah called the crew together.  Mikah told them the meeting was likely to be the Count and his people scrutinizing their stories about what happened and how the AI got loose?  Because of that, Mikah wanted to be sure they were all on the same page and gave the same answers about what happened.  She didn't want anyone forgetting something and describing the event differently.  She was especially concerned because she'd heard a concerning number of variations while they'd visited the Admiral on the carrier.  She didn't want there to be multiple versions in front of the Count.

Mikah then went over the story with the crew to make sure they remembered what they'd done.  Even Fesic had promised to toe the company line.  So, Mikah let them split up and get ready before the car the Count's seneschal would be sending arrived.  Thanks to the emphasis they'd put on getting Rol working, he could shower by himself.  Everyone on the ship's "medical staff" were pleased with that, and there wouldn't be any more sponge baths.  He was pleased that meant he could stand for all those mandatory moments, and could also remain standing for even more.

At last, they were all clean and fancy and had a few minutes before the Count's car arrived.  As normal, Zimzod holstered pain and misery where each of the others had a single sidearm of choice.  Finally, when they arrived and made their way through security, they were led into the meeting room and given seats.  Except for Rol, who had their gravChair.  They were all called to rise when the door at the back of the compartment opened and the Count stepped in.  He was followed by his legate, The station's Executive Director and Security Commander, Admiral Irsiism and a small group of seneschalate workers.  To Mikah, not seeing an extra and unexplained civilian in the group meant no one from IRIS.  Which also suggested those in the room didn't "know about" IRIS.  Still, that felt good.

After the Count and his team were seated, he invited the others to sit, but also invited Sir Rol to shift over to a neutral table in the space since he wasn't present during the events in question.  A seneschalate officer said the request to move was for clarity and did not suggest any pejorative considerations on the hearing.  Understanding that, Rol moved to a table position to suggest he was an observer, which was correct.  Still, Mikah made it a medical requirement that Rol stand through as much of the meeting as he could, as his doctor.  So, Rol did his best.  Mikah made it a point he could sit when he felt he had to, but should stand again whenever he felt he could.  He eventually made it half way through the meeting.

The meeting opened, as all such do, with introductions.  Next, the Count himself explained they were looking into the events which had led to shutting down the station and many ships in that region of space.  The Count continued to say there had been a number of damage claims, Injury claims and a large number of panic-induced claims and a huge number of financial claims owing from financial losses from claims from sales losses, stock and structural repairs (Including InstellArms), disrupted merchant shipping scheduling and more.  The Count described that as a wave of claims ranging into the hundreds of millions of Credits.

When Mikah interrupted the Count to say, "Well, that should be on the people who caused that damage.  Sorry", she was told they were investigating everything.  She was also told they had to provide a background and basis before determining who was responsible for each item or for compensation.  Pushing past that, Mikah continued to up-end the meeting by saying the ultimate responsibility for the incident belonged to the people who snuck an electronics lab into the station's engineering spaces under the nose of the station's security.  Her tone also suggested the station security and their leadership were to blame.  She went further, to place blame on the unknowns who created the AI which drew her crew into the chain of events.  After the Count let Mikah finish her rant, he thanked her for her statement and reminded her there would be time for her testimony and input during the process.

From that point, the Station's Executive Director was asked to explain what his people had gathered and knew about the events leading up to the transition into a state of crisis.  That included a bald-faced admission that at least one secret compartment had been constructed within the station's engineering compartments in the past.  The culpability of the Director was slightly reduced because that could have happened at any time in the centuries, and under the directorship of other officers, since the station went on-line.  In fact, the station "officially" went on line before construction was completed, and again, centuries ago.

With the meeting back on track, the Count nodded at the data the Director gave, which did initially gloss over the communications from their crew.  That done, the Count said a number of building blocks led to the incident and then turned to the Executive Director.  Count Kybe continued, "The first of these blocks is on you and your people Director.  How is it that any party managed to build and hide a lab on your station without your people learning of it?"  The Count admitted the installation may have happened decades or even centuries before.  But, every compartment aboard the station should be receiving continual maintenance over the decades.  So, how was it no one had even once scheduled and tracked maintenance of that sector of the station without it being noticed?  The answer, from the Director, is that his security people had been scheduling "invasive" inspections of every compartment on the station to insure there were no further hidden compartments.  He also offered no excuse for the failure to find this one before it led to grief.

The Count accepted that response for the moment, and the fact the Director admitted his investigation would not "be ending imminently."  Turning to the Admiral, the Count said he'd assume the Imperial Navy would have a wider array of tools and experts who could help examine all the equipment, and even materials ripped from the equipment or even the structure of the secret lab.  He hoped they could learn details from the chemistry, minerals and other indicators helping figure out who was behind the compartment?  The Count also hoped Naval experts could help find out who was behind the virus that was released?  The Admiral nodded, saying he had already begun to organize teams his commands could spare to work with the station teams.  The Admiral also promised to create a 'longevity plan', ensuring any future Admiral rotated into the system would be aware of the work, and fully informed a replacement team or transfer those people already working on the case from one fleet to the other.

On the sidelines, except when he was answering the Count, the Admiral looked bored with the proceedings and a bit annoyed he had to be present in the first place.  Especially since he reported to none of the authorities in the system.  All that activity ate up the first hour of the meeting and, except for Rol's seating and Mikah's outburst, they didn't mention Mikah's crew at all beyond glossing over their comms and "exploration" activities.  Still, some including Aali were thinking, 'Saving the bomb shells for last' in a grim mental track.

Having completed their consideration of 'How the lab came to be present', there was a period of what could only be guesswork on "who" had created the virus.  Or, what their intentions had been?  Sadly, that could only be speculation because the virus had left no elements of its code behind for analysis.  The ultimate agreement was that all the experts felt the virus had some planned use which was 'hopefully' lost when it was accidentally released in the recent event.  Of course, the asterisk on that was that they feared the designer or design team may well have kept a copy secure and hidden on or off the station and even have sat and taken notes while they did nothing to stop their creation from wreaking havoc.  Even as the crisis was growing, it was possible they took no actions to prevent the software infecting a ship entering jump.  Such a ship could easily carry the virus to other systems while they did nothing to stop it.

The next step was to examine the involvement of Lady Mikah's crew and how that led into a discussion of the Station became aware of the budding crisis along with their actions in response to those notifications?  When the Dame's Jocelynn and Colinne made the first calls, they were logged by station security with an urgency of "We'll send resources when they become available."  Security pointed out it was a station and criminals couldn't get a kidnapped child off-station or out-system without significant effort.  The Count had one of his officers explain they only had to inject the child with depressants and pack the child into cargo to move it onto their ship and smuggle it out without notice.  So, the Count categorically rejected their argument and suggested better training and response in the future.

During those parts of the meeting, Jocelynn and Colinne were questioned in detail to understand what they had been hearing and what they felt they understood at the time?  There was some minor questioning of Jocelynn on why she'd waited more than a day from the initial contact to the point she and Colinne gave Mikah information which caused her to prefer action over convincing the station's security to act.  The tone of those comments were, to an extent, forgiving in the case of Jocelynn and Colinne, and accusing in the case of the Security team.  Jocelynn and Colinne's answers were also accepted unchallenged.  From there, and with a proper understanding of the framework of events leading to the release of the virus, they were ready to discuss the actions of Lady Mikah's crew in the passages around the lab and within the lab itself.

They moved from there to the point Mikah and her crew started making the decisions to act on their own.  Part of that was based on how they were communicating with the expert system they believed was grafted to the virus, which annoyed the crew because they were certain it had been an AI and saw no willingness to admit that was the case.  Colinne and Aali were the best at explaining 'stent to stent' communications, though that was helped by specialists from the County Government who also had and used stents.  Next, they spoke with Colinne, who sometimes vaguely described her computer work to locate the source of the broadcasts.  Of course, that touched on the sore spot created when station central denied such a location could exist instead of sending teams to investigate.

Another sore spot became a trampoline when Mikah had called for unaccompanied access to the engineering compartments and got it simply on her noble titles alone!  Like military command roles, access to sensitive locations on any government facility should never be handed out based on their titles!  The Count let it be known this seriously bothered him and he wanted an accounting both from Station Central, who made the decision, and station security, who appeared to have rubber stamped it.  The Station's director again accepted responsibility for his team and announced new training was being put in place immediately to protect against this happening in the future.

It wasn't until they came to the point where it was proven there WAS in fact a lab where Mikah had claimed it to be.  That was when security got any recognition for realizing they should drop a few of their low priority issues and get a team in to work with her crew.  Still, an officer of the seneschalate pointed out that the team could not would not arrive soon enough to prevent the ultimate disaster.  So, they still shared that blame at the very least.  From there, they worked their way forward until Mikah reported she and her team were entering the lab.  That was followed by the station tech working with her asking her if she thought she should wait for back up?  Everyone quietly listened as Mikah said she they wouldn’t need back up to search the compartment and find a girl.

There, all eyes turned to Mikah and she was asked why she didn't feel she needed backup?  Mikah explained that she'd been getting reports from her crew that the entity was in dire distress.  She also forcefully pointed out they had no idea what kind of entity it was, now they'd realized it wasn't a Human girl.  Because of that, Mikah said she felt it was imperative, as a doctor, to make sure the entity had a fair chance of survival if it was under such dire circumstances.  She finished saying, "So, I opened the box." in a tone of absolute certainty of correctness.  The Count listened and nodded, then picked up a flimsy from the table in front of him as if to check some cursory words on the film.

Clearing his throat, the Count then asked, "This is the same Doctor Mikah Kirlim who has, on occasion, been on record as having shot members of her crew for incidents of annoyance?"  When Mikah defensively said, "No" the Count read a report from the Regina system, where she'd shot Sir Zimzod Egosion in the foot while struggling over a gift gauss rifle.  When Mikah argued that Zimzod had assaulted her, Count Sokne read from the report dated 133-1112 that detailed a struggle over a gauss rifle gifted to her by Duke Bondal a'Plena of Vilis.  The report also had a list of the minor damage caused by the wound and had enough details to dispute Mikah's claim of an assault.

When Mikah rejected his reading in favor of her "interpretation" of the events, the Count agreed to let her have her own version of her memories and decided to move on.  The wider interpretation was that Mikah was trying to inflate a minor struggle which had led to an accidental shooting into an assault against her person, where she was forced to use a firearm to defend herself.  Those who cared to be "exact" in their definitions had to admit neither Mikah nor the Count were correct in their use of the incident.  Moving on, the Count pronounced that it was at the moment Mikah chose to open the box without backup that led to the virus making the jump from that box to the station's computers.  And, that moment and action was the soil from which all the panic, damage and injuries grew.

The Count continued that her statement had to be examined because that action shared with the failures of Station administration departments to allow the rest of the events to happen.  When Mikah, somewhat acerbically, said, "And I told you why I opened the box", the Count responded, "and I accept your testimony" with an air of finality.  The next step was to separate Mikah's crew except for Rol into individual interview rooms in order to question them each separately on their memories of the event.  The result appeared, to the Count's people, to seem as if the stories all matched in unbelievable and incredible detail.  Almost as if it had been rehearsed.  That or it actually happened that way and there was an incredibly small variation in the words used where one person could have said "picked up" while another would say "lifted" and a third would say "grabbed from the table".  Happily, no one felt like computing the odds on that coincidence.

The final decision was that, despite her sensibilities as a doctor, Lady Mikah might have been able to wait for backup.  Especially since she knew backup was on the way already.  Because of that, they decided that Lady Mikah was "in part" responsible for her decision to open the box without waiting.  Certainly, a part of Mikah's mind was dwelling on some future imagined date where the Count might have been shot in the leg and only had her there to help him.  The fantasy in that small vengeful bit of her mind imagined her looking down at him and his bleeding leg while asking, "So!  Do you want me to wait for back up?  I think I should!"  Of course, only a mind reader burning PSI could have located that errant fantasy while it played out.

Reading the decision his officers produced, the Count made it clear the station staff bore far more responsibility for the events than her one decision had.  But, the Count said he still had to find a way to punish Mikah and her crew.  With that, before Count Sokne said another word, Mikah knew they were gonna be paraded out in Court to be given more work.  She could smell it coming almost as if she were a high-powered Zhodani pre-Cog.  The Count continued, "I am going to punish you by making you heroes."  That confused people like Sekea, who'd not been through this process already.  Those who had been to this party before just let their heads sink a bit while anticipating what was coming.

Before he could lower the boom, Mikah begged, "Please don't.  Please, no."  But, the Count continued, "You are going to announce, that, out of the goodness of your hearts, that you will help the citizens of Ghandi to restore their station.  And help its people recover."  While the crew sat in silence, the Count said his people had done an extensive review of their resources and noticed they had gone from near paupers the last time they'd visited the system on 077-1113 to amazing wealth a year later.  Over five hundred million Credits!  When Mikah snarked, "There's more where that came from", the Count made it clear he didn't care.  That had others in the crew releasing held breath when they realized no one was gonna hunt down the source of the money and start making arrests.

The Count said he was grateful she had managed to find ways to use her new ranks and titles to enrich herself and he didn't have, or want to use, the accountants needed to backtrack and investigate her fortune.  But, at the same time, he expected Mikah to announce she would donate MCr 50 of those funds to help the people of the system make repairs out of the goodness of her heart.  He continued that Mikah would tell the locals that she and each member of her crew would be volunteering to three days of service.  The Count would then graciously step in and say Sir Rol would not be volunteering for that service due to the fact he had only just been cloned and had to undergo physical therapy.  he continued, "We, in this room, will know it is a fine and a sentence to public service, but everyone else in the system will believe in your charity and heroism."

Mikah was told she would "serve her time" in one of their hospitals treating the wounded and sick, along with Sekea.  Aali, Fesic and Jocelynn would work with repair crews fixing and repairing damage.  Zimzod would report to the same repair teams, but would only spend half the time working before being transported to a rehab facility.  Aiden would spend his time shuttling people to points along the station's length for repair and "supply movement" work.  Colinne would work in the Station Central communications group, taking calls and dispatching support, security or other services.   Rol would be sent to one of the station's rehab units to continue physical therapy while the others worked.

While all the others kept their silence as the boom came down, Colinne made it clear she was quite satisfied with the punishment, and found it correct.  Mikah made it clear they'd pay the MCr 50 fine from ship's funds, since all the crew had collectively wouldn't pay more than MCr 10.  And doing that would demand they sell off Zimzod and Jocelynn's Battledress suits.  And that was NOT gonna happen.  Of course, being punished meant they were not gonna get a friendly hearing if they asked Count Sokne for help getting Rol permission for battledress.  After leaving a moment or two for comment, the Count asked, "Is everyone in agreement this is a fair settlement?"  Mikah let a less than enthusiastic "shur" slide out the side of her mouth while the others were much more respectful in their answers.  Jocelynn did complain a bit that she wanted to work in the hospital, but it was pointed out she had no certifications for that.  The meeting ended about three in the afternoon and they were told they'd be given updates later on where they had to report to the next three mornings.

Another Introduction To The Order House
     Free to do whatever they planned or wanted, Sekea suggested they go shopping, because he was excited to see what types of scopes were available on-station?  Jocelynn said she had things to do on the ship, mentioning the boxes from InstellArms specifically.  In fact, she had other plans on the ship related to an order she'd secretly placed with InstellArms and a prank she'd planned on Mikah.  Sekea nodded at Jocelynn and said he really wanted to check out the scopes offered by InstellArms and Mordor Arms.  He also wanted to go to the shop owned by the ex-pat Zhodani, just to see what they had on offer?

Rol said he had to deal with his uniforms now his body form had changed from that of a 39 year old body to one of a cloned 18 year old .  So, he wanted to go to the Order House.  Aali suggested he order new uniforms, because he'd bulk up from his current stature as therapy toned his muscles.  Zimzod had gone with Rol because he wanted to talk to the weaponsmiths too.  Mikah considered which uniforms she had and decided she wanted one for the Order of the Sword and Tower.  She also decided she could get rid of her Imperial Navy uniform after she stripped the brass, tags and decorations from it.  When Aali suggested she see what the Zhodani scavenger would pay her for the uniform, she refused.  She wouldn't go there at all, because - Zhodani.  Aali also wanted to go to the Order House.

When Mikah, Zimzod and Rol got to the Order house, they signed in and started with the uniforms.  Zimzod wanted a uniform of the Order, and was told he could have one made and tailored for Cr 250.  He also bought a lapel pin for Cr 5.  Mikah also wanted a Uniform for Cr 250 and lapel pin for Cr 5.  While they couldn't make uniforms for the Order of Caranda's Sword, they could make her a uniform for the Order of the Knight Defenders of Lunion.  When she asked for a uniform appropriate for a Knight Commander of that Order, they charged her Cr 450.  They apologized since the Caranda's Sword uniforms were too new, and suggested she get a uniform for that Order the next time she returned to Regina.

Rol decided to get all new uniforms and keep his old uniforms in storage just in case.  He also wanted uniforms for the Knight Victor, Companion of the Order of the Tower and Sword, Order of the March Protectors of Rhylanor and Colonel of the Lunion Planetary Marine Corps.  He was told he'd have to travel to Regina to get uniforms for Order of the Knights of Caranda's Sword and that of the Primary and Knight Commander of the Order of the Unfallen.  The Uniforms of the Knight Victor cost him Cr 250, the March Protectors of Rhylanor cost Cr 450.  The Lunion Colonel's uniform cost him Cr 500.  Rol got a lapel pin for the Tower and Sword for Cr 5.

Aali knew, better than the others, how "just the right turn" of an impression worked when politicking.  And, she also knew how often the crew had to be in spaces where politics happened, or was the reason for the gathering.  That told Aali she should have a uniform for each organization she was allowed to.  Because of that, she wanted a uniform for a Knight Victor and Companion of the Order of the Tower and Sword which they charge Cr 250 for.  She also wanted one for the Order of the Knight Defenders of Lunion.  That cost her Cr 450.  Aali also bought a lapel pin for the Tower and Sword for Cr 5.

After Zimzod talked to the tailors, and while Mikah and Rol were working with them, Zimzod sat with the weapon smiths.  Zimzod had some ideas where he was limited, because the tech didn't exist for some things and other things he'd been told the Imperial Nobility would have the Imperial Navy take away from him.  Still, it had been a unique experience to be in a room with ALL the Dukes and Duchesses of the Spinward Marches and the Arch Duke to be told there were guard rails.  Now, he had something to aspire to, because the Grand Duchess Delphine had not been there.  So, he had to "collect the entire set"!

Showing they'd done their research, they asked what the weapon of his deepest and darkest dreams would be, within the limits of the high nobility of the sector?  Zimzod told them he already had a recoilless automatic 12-gauge shotgun he'd bought.  What he hoped they could create for him was a grenade launcher to mount under the barrel.  He also wanted that connected both to a hopper with five grenades and to his HUD.  Finally, he wanted to be able to use his HUD to see a target designator that would show where his fired grenades would land.  Reviewing Zimzod's existing armory, they reminded him he had a grenade launcher installed on his Battledress.  Zimzod nodded, but said he wanted the new unit because he wouldn't always be in his armor.

Accepting that, they said one part of the weapon would be a 'Trajectory and Fire Control' software package that would be designed by hired programming specialists.  They reminded Zimzod the programmers would have to both write and test the programs.  Because of that, the shop couldn't guarantee the software wouldn't have one or more possible glitches.  While Zimzod said he planned to test the weapon, there were so many variables they warned him he couldn't test exhaustively it in all situations.  Zimzod just nodded and brushed that away.  Besides, it would just point to where the electronics thought the grenades would land, and grenades were rarely fine-tuned weapons.  Adding to his order, Zimzod wanted a pair of "dummy" grenades with no explosives.  The solid thrust fuel would be reloadable, so he could use them to "zero" the electronics on ranges from time to time.

When Zimzod asked if they could have an auto-feed from a five-grenade hopper, hanging off his hip.  Asking more questions, they said they could look into either a less rigid pneumatic system or a more rigid spring-driven system.  Attaching the hopper to his hip would also cause issues moving through enclosed or very thin portals.  It would also widen the silhouette of his body in combat.  Zimzod said he hoped for a "U-shaped" spring-operated tube magazine that wrapped around the weapon, which would also force it under the launcher itself, creating what would look like is a pontoon-like appearance.  They did recommend Zimzod not stick with the hopper design he suggested.  They suggested he have a two-down and two-up hopper with one on the bubble.  That way, the hopper would only be seven or eight inches down from the base of his weapon.  It would keep his silhouette narrow and also allow him to use the weapon in most situations.  In the end, they'd play with the idea and get Zimzod a price.

Beyond the uniforms and weapons, Zimzod noticed the Order house had a shop that was advertising Terra-DNA coffee!  Checking that out, Zimzod saw the price was KCr 10 per pound.  The price was a bit of a statement since, back on 299-1112, Zimzod had bought coffee on Rhylanor at Cr 2,000 a pound in an Order house of the Knight Defenders of the Marches.  That said, 'The further out you got, the more expensive it became'.  So, nearly a year and a half and five jumps closer to the Imperial border had multiplied the price five times!  And, that was advertised as "Cheap for Order members".  Considering the rise in the price and the fact few in the crew had the 'acquired taste' to enjoy the stuff, Zimzod decided not to spend the cash.  Still, it also suggested someone had created an enclosed Terra-normal coffee plantation somewhere within 40 parsecs of Ghandi.

Zimzod next looked at the selection of cigars the shops had.  He was certainly impressed with the variety, including two types he'd smoked on Regina.  He also recognized some brands from Rhylanor, Lanth and Lunion.  Zimzod also saw they tended to be in the one to "more" thousand Credit range.  Especially since he had a good-sized collection of cigars already.  Looking at the booze, Zimzod remembered they had 68 one-liter bottles of the iced berry cider and suggested they have a party that night.  He was reminded that wouldn't be good because it could lead to them showing up hung over to their community service punishment.  And, that wouldn't be a good thing.

When Rol asked what Zimzod and Mikah thought of what the house had, Zimzod asked about top drawer whiskey?  he was told the "top shelf" would be KCr 50 bottles of whiskey imported from Terra.  That also meant the contents were a number of years old, since it would have to have been "top shelf" before the trip of just under two years between the Terra and Ghandi systems.  That was 121 parsecs away at Jump 3 over 44 jumps.  So 88 weeks including time in jump and a presumed week between each for resets.  The best whiskey from the local system was priced as Cr 2,000.  Acting on that, Zimzod pointed Rol to the whiskey as a preference.  Nodding, Rol bought four bottles for Cr 8,000.  He bought three for the ship and the fourth for himself.

More Making Others Rich
     When most of the rest of the crew arrived at InstellArms, concierges for all of them came out of the woodwork as if they'd made an appointment to visit.  The scent of snake oil was obvious as they wondered how they could help the crew members?  Sekea told the lady who came to him that he was looking for combat scopes for his weapons.  He went into a bit of detail to make sure she didn't point out the standard hunting or general scopes.  Eventually, Sekea did go with a more pedestrian scope that provided LI/IR/UV and 20x telescopic modes controlled manually for Cr 7,000.  The concierge asked if he wanted an ultraviolet added and Sekea said yes, agreeing to an additional Cr 1,000.  Sekea then bought four more of the sights so all his current weapons had uniform systems which could connect to his HUD for a total of Cr 32,000 more.

Aiden had asked the concierge team at the Order house to look into the pricing and tech for high-end silencers and suppressers for his weapons.  Given they'd less than a day or so, they'd not yet reported on their search.  So, Aiden asked the InstellArms people the same question.  Just like the people at the Order house, his concierge said she couldn't recommend silencers for the rifles, but did have models to show Aiden if he was dead set on buying something like that.  Nodding past that, Aiden asked about weapon scopes.  His ask went beyond Sekea's where Aiden asked for additional software capabilities to test conditions and offer the shooter updates that may or may not include an x-ray designator predicting the impact point of a fired round.

The concierge said she could show him a number of electronic targeting aids that jacked into the sensors of an already existing scope, or scopes modified to have ETA's built in.  A number of those items had in-built miniaturized sensor suites working to confirm conditions at the strike point, and feed to algorithms correcting the shooter's aim point.  They also had electronic systems which added distance measuring gear, both for itself and to "manage" the detonation of an explosive round.  The latter of those worked with in-weapon-built micro-tracking to signal an explosive or package-delivering round to activate or detonate.  In the end, Aiden wanted one of those scopes for both his "to be delivered" LAG and sniper rifle.  The concierge charged him Cr 20,000 each for the two and tagged them to be part of the order he'd previously placed for both weapons.

Aiden was disappointed they didn't sell that kind of scope for hand weapons, because there was generally not the space to let micro-computers do their work.  Colinne ordered the same class of scope Sekea had bought for her gauss rifle.  That provided LI/IR/UV and 20x telescopic modes controlled manually for Cr 8,000.  Fesic had no scope on his laser rifle, and a scope with DME and electronics on his accelerator rifle.  He decided not to upgrade the accelerator rifle but spend Cr 8,000 on a scope with LI/IR/UV and 20x telescopic modes for his laser rifle.  He also decided to buy two scopes to make his snub pistols sighting uniform.  Again, that was Cr 16,000 for two scopes matching the unit for his laser rifle.  Fesic asked for a case of 20 incendiary hand grenades, but they only had 10, which they sold him for Cr 300 total.

After shopping at InstellArms, Aiden, Colinne, Fesic and Sekea looked for a place charging Cr 20 per plate that looked clean for dinner.  Those at the Order house decided to eat there, then hit the house's bar and meeting rooms.  Mikah paid Cr 50 on her dinner, Zimzod spent Cr 30, Rol spent Cr 40, Aali spent Cr 30.  On the ship, Jocelynn had foil packs for lunch and dinner while she worked to decide what to do with the new InstellArms gear and how to sell things off?  She figured she could set up lists for each of the re-sellers to see what each would pay for items?  She also made sure not to include the stolen gear on the InstellArms list.  When Rol drifted his chair into the Order house's bar, he saw forty or more members of the Order and others clustered around one of the bar's larger vid.  They were making rude and ribald comments about the transmission as the Count discussed the "grace, charity and love of Lady Mikah and her crew."

As they listened, they heard comments like, "What are they covering up?" or "Someone needs to curry favor in a system somewhere."  "Money hides any level of incompetents" and the like with many laughs.  They were all sure the party line being given was a fraud and they could be certain some of them had also "been there" at one point in their lives.  There were also some saying they'd heard of Mikah and her crew doing really odd things.  Having a feel for the crowd, Mikah stepped forward to tap someone in the crowd on the shoulder.  When that man turned around, Zimzod was giving him a flat glare and asked, "Were you there?"  Into the growing silence as others in the room turn to see them, Mikah smiled and asked, "So.  What's happening guys?"  Zimzod's glare swept the men and women in the crowd while he repeated, "Were you there?"  Aali couldn't keep from laughing at some of their faces.

One of those who was presumably more comfortable with the situation happily answered, "Why, no!  We weren't there.  But, now you get the chance to tell us first hand."  The smile on his face and his voice was bold and forceful.  And his expression said he expected them to tell the crowd a really great lie.  Because no one expected them to tell the actual truth.  He then asked why her crew were giving away all that money and spreading around all the services?  Mikah angrily answered, "You can think whatever you want, I really don't care."  Still, they seemed to really want the story, whatever she said.  So, Mikah decided to give them a show.

She knew they wouldn't believe her crew had found a fully sentient AI, and knew the news hadn't broadcast that either.  Because of that, she started by saying, "Well, I'll tell you what did Not happen and the two AI robots we had to fight off in the station's engineering spaces to save it."  Some of them were obviously laughing while the eyes of others glowed as they raptly listened.  The man who'd 'demanded' the story was leaning back in his chair and seemed to be wishing he had a bucket of popped corn.  Just like when they walked in, some were telling jokes and laughing at the story Mikah gave them.  But, since Mikah was making it up herself, she didn't care.

Some had started honestly listening, but Mikah drove things so over the top that even they were certain the tale was a put-on job.  And, some thought it was a sad one.  Still, Mikah gave them 'action crescendos' and she even got cheers.  Even if some of them were laughing as they cheered.  Especially when she talked about her team armoring up and chasing the one android through space.  Cat calls rose when she described the android as a nude, five-foot six brunette woman in open space.  There was a brief bump in Mikah's enjoyment of the situation when she saw one of the Knights had been filming her.  Still, she was making things up using only fragments of the earlier events so that didn't matter either.

Over the entire event, they had been openly paying for the crew's drinks, and then Rol raised his glass and called out "Shots for everyone!"  A cheer went up, forcing Mikah to take a break while orders were called to the bar.  Some just had a tasty drink while others ordered high end stuff.  So, the shots eventually cost Rol Cr 750 for the 45 drinkers.  When the shots were poured, Rol gave a toast to space and all the things they haven't seen.  Still, Rol was surprised when another of the Knights called for shots all around on himself.  Then, that man raised a toast and called out, "To The Emperor!"  The bar nearly shook as the responses roared and everyone drank.

Over the laughs, cheers and toasts, there were dark spots.  One of those was a man from a different Order, who'd worked for and earned his title and position working for Naasirka.  That was the foremost computer, electronics and molecular circuitry firm in the Imperium.  Also, one of the top fifty firms in electronic design research in the known universe.  Some of their designs competed with low-end tech from the Darrians before the Maghiz.  Learning about that man's past, Zimzod recalled that time in the Risek system where he and Zach had tried to get a Naasirka tech to make a house call and Zach had managed to get into a dirty politician's home system while they worked to find a cure for a terror-planted disease.  So, screw Naasirka!  Hoo Rah!

The other Knight only chirped in a few times, saying what Mikah claimed had been ridiculous.  And, the crazy claims only proved Mikah was spreading nonsense.  Mikah smacked him down, snarking, "Get a sense of humor guy.  Maybe you need another drink."  Following that, Mikah got laughs and a few cheers when she called a bar 'droid over and said, "Give him another of what he's drinking, on me."  That was a Cr 5 bill as Mikah was surprised he wasn't buying expensive booze.  Finally, Mikah was done and got cheers and welcomes.  While things settled down to drinking and returning to hanging out, the man who'd been recording Mikah came over to them.  He introduced himself as Sir Dovid Fensane, from the Nasemin system in the Aramis Subsector.  He said he got his start in the Imperial Scouts and was now a TAS reporter.  And, he added, he'd like to interview them.

Before they could answer, he said he was good with taking the Dawnstar Horizon off the table.  Turning to Rol, he said, "And Jesedipere."  Mikah didn't listen to anything past "TAS", and threatened him not to put what he'd recorded on the air.  That was despite the fact their Order welcomed members of other Orders so the place wasn't a private or privilege compartment.  She continued, "You're obviously a Knight of some Order or you wouldn't be in the place, but that was a story out of whole cloth for entertainment!"  Sir Dovid agreed the story she told was fiction but still wanted to interview her and her crew on other subjects.  He also promised, on his Honor as a Knight, that he had no intention of putting her story into a report.  He said he only wanted to share it with, but not copy to, his co-workers for the laughs.

After Mikah blew the reporter away, their little group split up.  Zimzod was recognized for his career with the Imperial Army, which had been highlighted by some wherever he appeared, along with his title.  So, he was drawn into a group telling old war stories that also wanted to hear some of his stories too.  Rol ended up 'surrounded' by sycophants who wanted him to talk about winning the Starburst for Extreme Heroism while they bought him drinks.  For that reason, the only drinks he'd paid for was the toast he'd bought the house.  They also wanted to hear about the fight with the Duchess' assassin, because much of that was broken up and barely explained.

Mikah drew a number of people who really wanted to learn about the stories being told of her crew.  Lucky for her, a lot of the stories were free to be told.  And she enjoyed it when some asked why she kept referring to Rol as a war criminal.  Shocked, she'd drew back and asked, in a demanding tone, "haven't you read Sir Jeremy's book?"  That got laughs from more than the number of questioning reactions and people learned not to ask what she wouldn't answer any other way.  When someone asked about Tremous Dex, Mikah nearly exploded with enthusiasm, starting her comments almost shouting, "OH!  Tremous Dex was Great!"  She then went into a stream of mostly true narration where she only periodically pumped up the actions of herself and her crew.  And, where some of those listening had moments of doubt, Aali was there to have her back and assure people things did play that way.  Inviting a few of the Knights to visit the ship and see the nameplate ripped from the Cedna, along with sensor tape of them crippling the Krama Vjera.

Spending the rest of that evening at the Order house getting to know people, they eventually learned the man who'd raised the toast to the Emperor was Baron Sir Miriorbsiv Forsen, Knight Captain of the Order.  And he admitted to Mikah that he'd have stepped in if things had truely gotten out of Order.  He wasn't the Knight who controlled and managed the Order house, but he did work for her.  He also assured them he knew and understood the politics behind the events but he also had a fief on-station and appreciated what Mikah and her crew had done for his people.  He'd also been roughly told what Mikah's people had done and knew things would have come apart if they hadn't.

The Baron also said he'd like to learn the real details behind what happened if she and her crew felt free to talk about it.  Mikah agreed to talk in the next days and got his contact data.  She did tell him it would have to be in the evening if it happened in the next three days and the Baron nodded understandingly.  She was careful about that, because Sir Dovid was always on the fringes of those listening to her.  Despite her feelings towards him, Sir Dovid felt he'd managed to get what would perhaps be the most conclusive details on the actions of Mikah and her crew when fighting pirates in the Tremous Dex system.  So, despite Mikah, he was pleased.

Purchases And Promotions
     Having left InstellArms, following Sekea to Mordor Arms, Fesic got a pop-up message on his comms that workers from InstellArms had just returned his vacc suit to the hotel.  The hotel staff would hold it until Fesic returned to claim it.  Fesic was pleased, because he'd only had the HUD on his suit's helmet adjusted to add visual modes.  If he wanted, and responded to the hotel, they would have a staffer return the suit to their suite.  Fesic sent a text response asking them to put the suit in their suite.  Finally, they got to one of the main entrances to Morder arms and saw the army of 'droid and sentient sales hawkers outside the venue.  Those did a number of things, including waving display electronics in front of potential buyers.  What few of those people considered was that the units would have cameras feeding facial recognition software.

So, added to all the audio-video advertising, the many cameras feeding Mordor's all-seeing eye caught some faces from Lady Mikah's crew!  Triggered by that, a number of the workers display tablets were suddenly ordered to move forward to greet the crewmembers and "Make certain" they were asked what they were interested in and escorted inside to the sales floor.  While they couldn't use any kind of coercion, the workers were each told there would be a penalty of they didn't somehow convince those from Mikah's crew to walk into the venue.  Seeing the sales team advance, Fesic quipped, "One does not simply walk into Mordor."  Aiden then finished, "Yeah.  You need a lot of Credits to spend."

Inside and looking around, like InstellArms, the Mordor Arms venue was the size of several large theme parks.  Unlike those parks, the only "rides" available were for staff or 'high-end customers'.  A small stream of carts rolled up to where they'd entered, making sure they knew they qualified.  They also knew that 'high-end customers' meant those who were expected to spend a lot.  When Sekea was the first to step up and address the on-coming sales wave he said he'd heard they contracted with a specialty weapons designer and wanted to see what they had from his gear.  A woman from that group quickly sidled up to stand very close to Sekea, claiming him as Her customer and made sure he knew they only had a small collection Gamotwtu Fre.

When the others were up to see truely unique designs, they all piled into the carts with the sales people rushing to claim each of the crew for their own.  Different than InstellArms, these were either the bottom or the hungriest of the 'in the trenches' sales people.  Only the hungriest or those who were forced to would work the "outside sales clouds" just beyond the venue doors.  While Aiden rode with his rep, he asked about building an "ammo box" of his preferred ammunition types for simplicity and storage?  The seller misunderstood, thinking he wanted a box containing ammo he wanted to have on record corporate-wide.  Of course, that would demand he regularly buy his ammunition from Mordor "Only".  So, they were up for helping him design one of those!  Any discount would start with a second order, because a single box wouldn't provide "discount quantity".

The truth was that he wanted an ammo storage box he could use to organize his stateroom.  When he finally said that clearly, the sales agent he was with went over various ideas with a drawing app on the data tablet.  Aiden was offered ammo storage that would be customized to span the draws under his stateroom bed, or fit into the bottom of the stateroom armoire and stack, or even fit the bottom of the locker Aiden had in the cargo bay.  Those would also be designed to stack and could also allow space for the stocks of any long arms stored there.  Aiden was also given a strategy that stored a chunk of ammo and all his long arms in the cargo bay locker and only his pistols in his stateroom.

After that, Aiden said he wanted to check out their collections of machine-part built handguns.  They all agreed to do that after checking out the Gamotwtu Fre collection.  Arriving at the collection space, they saw there were sixteen items on offer in five sections.  Section 1 had Handguns, and the first item was a twist on the advanced tech laser pistol Mikah already had.  She'd bought it for KCr 30, with one battery on 298-1112.  She'd also bought four more batteries for Cr 5,000 each.  The designer had apparently managed to both build new batteries and rebuild both the battery bay in the grip and the weapon's wiring.  The weapon would be used with half the physical battery inside the grip and the rest projecting out.  And, the "new design" allowed the pistol to be fired "ten times" before loading a new battery or recharging.

The new and unique design was priced at Cr 300,000!  The weapon also had a sleek scope built to fit the curves and flow of the pistol and included an x-ray laser aim point designator and a distance measuring circuit that also measured degradation due to smoke, haze or aerosols between the shooter and target.  Added to that, the weapon came with a "mountable" wire-frame stock, allowing the pistol to be used to fire the weapon more accurately at unusually longer ranges.

No one there was interested in the laser pistol, but Sekea knew Mikah might like it because she already had a similar weapon.  He even texted her and took and attached pictures of the weapon and batteries.  When Mikah got his text and looked at the pictures, she texted him back asking if it had additional batteries?  Sekea then asked the saleswoman about more batteries and was told those were the only batteries made as far as they knew.  The saleswoman said she could give anyone who bought the weapon the designer's contact information, but couldn't promise he'd make more of the batteries.  When Mikah got that answer back, she told Sekea to buy the weapon for her and she'd pay him back.  Sekea then fronted the cash for Mikah for the weapon and batteries.

There was an actual moment of shock on the saleswoman's face when Sekea said he'd buy the weapon.  She was near the bottom of the pay ladder, and had just sold something at a price many times more than the total value she'd sold before!  The commission from that lone item would pay her more than she'd made if you added all her years of work together!  There was gonna be a party!  But, that was later, because the selling wasn't done and the paperwork hadn't been completed.  So Sekea continued shopping while the woman's mind recovered.

The second item looked like a standard semi-automatic snub pistol for Cr 50,000 that was advertised to be more reliable and precision engineered not to fail in combat.  Some parts of the weapon were designed to be "self-sealing".  The weapon also came with a special cleaning kit.  That contained instructions to deconstruct the weapon beyond cleaning any normal weapon, and how to properly clean and maintain that pistol.  The third item was a tripod selling for Cr 3,000.  A tablet playing a video next to the tripod showed the device, activated with a thumbprint touch, telescoping and folding down to a five inch long by four inch wide and thick block that would fit in a pocket.  That could be attached to the grip of any handgun to stabilize it when firing.

Before Sekea could move on, the sales woman completed "that" sale.  Sekea then said he wanted the advanced snub pistol for himself, and paid the Cr 50,000.  The saleswoman was stunned and processed the next sale quickly while her eyes glowed and she was ready to buy Sekea a drink before spending the rest of her commission on toys and herself.  With that sale done, Sekea asked about weapon accessories and was brought to another section by a very excited young seller.  There were two groups of accessories, one of which were combat augments and the second of which were cleaning and maintenance accessories.  The saleswoman skipped the maintenance and cleaning gear for the combat accessories.

Sekea ignored all the gear in that section except two things.  The first was a fold-out expanding ammunition magazine which could connect to a semi-automatic snub pistol and hold as many as 100 rounds!  Internally, the magazine was spring-pressure driven, and engineered to feed rounds through the possible turns the device could be bent into if it weren't simply used in a "straight" configuration.  A disclaimer was posted with the device saying if a firing user had the system folded out in a "stick" configuration, there was a slight risk of an ammo jam.  And, the risk of a jam increases the more a user folds the stick into a more compact form.  Still, it was certainly a mod that would confuse enemy combatants who were used to counting rounds at Cr 12,000.

The second item were a set of sights using a video camera based miniature computer.  The sights were able to handle distance measuring, down-range environmental issues, counter-armor measures and x-ray laser target designation.  That was all provided on a video screen surrounded by Green/Yellow/Red LED lights surrounding the screen.  Another feature let the gunner program the weapon for the type of ammunition they planned to use, further dialing in the ability of any round fired to strike and wound their target.  Sekea asked and was told the system would cost Cr 75,000 by a sales woman who was effectively vibrating as he considered buying it.  The system came with a certification it had been robustly tested under a massive number of combat conditions.

Sekea wanted the toy but didn't want to be greedy, so he turned to those with him and ask if any of them wanted it first?  Aiden said he was interested in the folding snub pistol magazine but wanted to know if it also worked with other weapons?  he was told it was designed for a snub pistol, but could also be connected to a standard "single feed" snub rifle.  Hearing that, Aiden bought the magazine for Cr 12,000 as the celebration bells in his salesperson started ringing.  When Fesic said he thought the sight was a bit pricey, and Colinne kept quiet, Sekea bought the sights.  When he said that, the sales woman with him considered the party that night "might" include Sekea if she was drunk enough and he liked the idea of bedding her.  Of course, she didn't say that so Sekea never know what was on the table for him.

The next "section" contained automatic weapons and the one thing they saw was a submachinegun that "looked like" nothing special at all.  That was except that it was engineered from tungsten and ceramics, to help resolve issues like the heat created during automatic fire.  On a tablet next to the weapon, a video played on loop showing the weapon was tested while firing 3,000 rounds.  That test was conducted on the hottest location on one of the hottest desert worlds in the domain!  The weapon also had a gravshoe sculpted into it, which changed and enlarged the silhouette of the weapon.  It also countered the recoil a combatant had to deal with while firing the weapon.  The weapon was priced at Cr 120,000.

Thanks to his eidetic memory, Sekea remembered Mikah had both carried and used a submachinegun in his presence.  So he called her and sent her images and a description of the weapon.  Mikah asked if it took normal SMG ammo then told him she'd pay him back so he should buy it for her.  When Sekea announced he'd buy that for his captain, his sales woman decided he could do "anything he wanted with her body" that night, but - again - didn't say that out loud.  She also didn't mention she was gonna call all her friends to celebrate with her and send "brag pictures" to the other sales persons, to gloat!  Mikah knew she'd have to transfer all the gear off her current SMG, and planned to sell the older weapon.

The second to last group of items were high-energy weapons.  Everything in that display demanded permission from the Imperial Navy before the buyer could buy or own the weapon.  Without that, no buyer could even put an offer on the weapons displayed there.  Added to that, they looked over the items displayed and saw each price listed was no lower than one million Credits.  All of them were more expensive than they could afford without pooling funds, or getting a loan from the ship.  Because of that, there was not anything they even considered.

A last class of weapons on offer were listed as "Zero Gravity" weapons.  But, what the smith had done was to work with electronics techs and re-sculpt gravshoes into the design of regular slug-throwing weapons.  So, slug throwing weapons that couldn't normally be safely used in zero-g without bracing suddenly had no recoil at all!  He'd also sealed the "gas operational groups of the weapons, so they wouldn't fail to work in vacuums.  Seeing a .45 caliber pistol on the table for Cr 90,000, Sekea called Zimzod.  When Zimzod reviewed the information Sekea sent, he decided he was good with what he had, and passed the weapon.  Nodding, Sekea called Jocelynn next, because he was well aware "every" weapon she used was a zero-g weapon.  So, she might want a variation in her load out.

Reviewing what Sekea sent her, Jocelynn wanted the weapon and said she'd send Sekea the money to buy the .45.  Next to him, his saleswoman nearly exploded while she could feel her commission check making the leap from normal space into jump!  She could only hope she'd be promoted from "door staff" past "Floor staff" to the higher rank of actual concierge work.  Or even Corporate accounts.  Meanwhile, all the gear they'd bought was specifically combat oriented, and they had to pay to move the weapons to the ship.  Since Jocelynn was working aboard the ship, she'd be able to receive the gear.  Sekea paid the Cr 50 since one of the items was his.  He also called Jocelynn to warn her the stuff was coming.  Jocelynn was happy because she'd be the first of the crew to handle her new toy!

An Evening Surprise
     Done shopping for the day, Aiden, Colinne, Fesic and Sekea returned to the hotel.  Mikah, Zimzod, Aali and Rol stayed at the Order house into the evening.  Toward that late evening point, Mikah got a call on her comms.  She answered it and found herself talking to Jocelynn.  When Mikah asked what was up, Jocelynn asked, "Can you come by the ship on your way back to the hotel?  There are some things I want to go over with you here."  Mikah agreed to stop by, and planned to take a separate cab since the others had gotten themselves into other conversations.  So, Mikah let them all know she was leaving and grabbed herself a Cr 10 AI-cab.

On the way over, Mikah called Jocelynn saying she was coming and Jocelynn said she'd meet her at the ship's airlock.  That was instead of the cargo bay.  When Mikah arrived and asked what was up, Jocelynn said she just wanted to show Mikah something.  Jocelynn then led Mikah back into the lounge, as if on the way to the cargo bay.  Stepping into the lounge, Mikah immediately saw the lights were a bit dim in the compartment and she saw a figure it seemed she recognized.  Then, she heard a voice she knew she recognized happily saying "Welcome Lady Mikah."  That voice belonged to Terin!  Recognizing that, Mikah grabbed her laser pistol and opened fire!

Hitting "Sir Terin" square in the chest, Mikah shouted, "No!  You're dead!  Stay Dead!"  Despite the fact both Mikah and Jocelynn could tell Mikah's shot had done significant damage, "Sir Terin" continued to stand in the shadows while smoke wafted off his wound.  Half a second later, he said, "Now, that's not very nice Lady Mikah."  Lowering her weapon slightly, Mikah growled, "What the hell?"  Knowing something wasn't right, Mikah did her best to look at the figure more closely.  Despite the shadows, Mikah could see a hole burned widely into the chest suggesting the "impact" of her laser had been widened somehow.  She could see protrusions from what seemed to have been ribs where the sternum was - gone!  There was even blood, or what seemed to be blood, oozing down the man's chest.

The math in her head settled as she recognized Terin's face and his sardonic smile.  She realized the figure was an incredibly good and detailed doll made to look like Terin!  And the two sentences had sounded exactly like Terin!  But, it wasn't moving.  Ordering the lights up, Mikah realized the figure was a ballistics gel dummy made to look like Terin.  Including some now missing organs and bones!  So, an expensive ballistic gel dummy!  Mikah also realized Jocelynn, standing beside her, was about to die from holding back her laughter.  Mikah was also very satisfied when she saw her snap shot had burned through the doll's sternum and melted away the space where the heart would be, and the top-center portions of its lungs and its bronchial tubes.  This doll was D-E-D dead!

Turning to Jocelynn, Mikah said, "Hold on." and Jocelynn listened because she wanted to see what would happen next?  Leaving the lounge, Mikah went back to her stateroom to get her coral sword, which she hadn't brought to the hotel.  Mikah brought the weapon back and took a prepared stance while gauging her space from the dummy.  Then, with Jocelynn watching, Mikah put all her strength into a swung for the doll's neck.  It took Mikah three swings to finally whack the head off the dummy.  She then turned to Jocelynn and cried out, "OH, THAT WAS GREAT!  Thank you Jocelynn, that was great!"  Jocelynn was actually surprised Mikah was happy because she'd mandated "no more pranks!" after Aiden's play on Fesic that had splashed all over Sekea.

When Jocelynn realized she was in the clear, she put her arm around Mikah's shoulders and said, "I bought two more of them."  Hearing that, Mikah literally squeed in joy!  Jocelynn then told Mikah how she'd come on the idea, because she'd looked into lifelike test dummies.  Then, she explained the other ideas she had before she settled on surprising Mikah.  They then talked about the three, because they could drive a rod into what was left of the first dummy's chest to re-mount the head.  Then, they could use the three as target dummies on a range.  Mikah smiled and said, "Almost everyone in this crew would enjoy shooting Terin."  Jocelynn agreed and they talked about bringing the dummies to a rented range.  Mikah even talked about using her new submachinegun on them.

After all the crap Mikah had dealt with over the day and the week before, Mikah hugged Jocelynn and said, "This is the perfect end of this day!  Thank you!  Especially since Jocelynn had been certain Mikah would ether have shot the dummy or shot her for pulling the prank.  Mikah said, in a faux serious tone, "No more pranks after this!  This was a good prank."  Jocelynn admitted she'd wanted Fesic to see it so she could turn on him and say, "And that's how you pull a prank!" but she had to be sure only Mikah was there and no one else ruined the surprise.  She wanted to make sure no one said or did anything that would have changed Mikah's reaction.

At that point, Jocelynn realized the ship's security system was active.  Including the interior cameras!  That meant the whole prank had been captured by the forward-angled lounge camera.  So Jocelynn could capture when she set up the dummy, with its back to the camera.  And then, she could capture Mikah's face when she first saw the dummy, and fired on it.  When Jocelynn said they could capture the clips to show the others when they went back to the suite, Mikah told her to hold onto the idea.  Mikah suggested they wait until after their "public service", bring a couple of bottles of the berry iced cider and go out for dinner and have a party.

    Monday, 088-1114: Late evening
Where everyone is at the end of the session:
     Mikah and Jocelynn: On the ship, about to return to the suite
     Aali, Zimzod and Rol: At the Order house, about to return to the suite
     Colinne, Aiden, Fesic, Sekea: Back at the Suite

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Next: Punishments, Purchases And Explosions