Fastest Ship in the Verse! Speak with the captain!

[jem]

Jem watched as Noah nodded and took his pay. Coyt had provided Jem with a crew long enough to make a reputation for the small boat, but both knew the crew was at best, temporary. Paid long enough so they could make their way elsewhere. Jem needed to find his own crew, one that planned on staying for the long haul, not from job to job.

Noah gave his thanks and Jem watched him leave, haversack thrown over his shoulder. He had hoped that Noah might stay. Guy was a good cutter, knew how to handle the machinery. But Noah was a wanderer at heart, something Jem could relate to - to a certain extent at least. Jem wandered the universe. Noah couldn’t even make a small ship his home for long. Too cramped. To constraining.

Jem took another look at the cutter class ship, smiling. She announced her loyalties and he knew some didn’t like it. He didn’t care. The brown lettering pronounced the ship was decidedly Independent. War may be over, and even then Jem was reluctant to admit that. But his leanings weren’t. It was best if everyone knew that from the start. Jem wasn’t going to lie about what or who he was.

He stepped off, listening to the men yell around him, some explaining their ship’s qualities and how it was the fastest in the verse. Jem only shook his head at that. His was smaller, but she was obviously the fastest in the lot.

He then noticed the group of small boys. And smirked. Perfect. Kids like these were no different than the ones on Othello. They knew the ins and outs of this place.

Jem grabbed the wages from his last job and crouched down, going eye level with the youngest. He smiled at them. “Ni hoa. How you all like to make some quick cash?”

The oldest, maybe twelve shrugged. “Duo shao qian?”

Jem shrugged. “Five each?” There were three.

The kid looked at him. “Ten.”

Jem smiled. “Pian yí dian.”

The kid shrugged. “Nine, then.”

Jem grabbed the money. “I’ll give you twenty five, but you share it.”

The kid nodded. “Ok.”

Jem pointed to the one ship, the one Jem would have the most competition with for crew members. “I need one of you to go tell the dock officer that that man just hit you. I want tears for twenty five. Big tears. Your friends I need to have go look for people who are interested in a ship. Mine’s the Recluse. Tell them it’s fast, I need all positions besides pilot and medic. That it’s virtually unbreachable. Any other questions, come to me, the captain. Name is Jem Cole. Also I’m looking for a few passengers. Three at most.” He counted out about half. “You do all that, and you get the rest. Maybe even a bonus.”

The kid nodded. “Right. We’ll sell your ship, mister.”

Jem smiled as he watched them run off, the youngest begin his hysterical bawling. He then grabbed a chair and papers, putting up a notice about needing crew and accepting passengers, two first class at most, and one for a pod. Rent was negotiable.

He then sat down, placing his tea shades over his eyes. Watching the man who was yelling about his ship being the fastest confronting a very angry dock manager and a tearful eight year old.

[Ari Deschain]

Ari shouldered her travel bag and hefted her toolbox, staring back at the Atlas for the last time. Her face was impassive, but her stomach rolled over and her heart clenched. This was the pain she got for joining up with a crew long-term, and making that crew into her own version of an extended family. It was easier to be the rough and playful but detached girl that most knew her as than to open her heart to others and get hurt for it.

Ryan. He'd disappeared first, following some kind of fight Murdo had started. The whole crew had been affected, and they'd all wanted Murdo's blood. However, Stoot had gone alone in the night, leaving her a note saying how he didn't want her to get hurt, the rest of the crew to get hurt. As soon as she'd found the note, she'd hightailed it over to Murdo's. He feigned ignorance, saying he'd seen neither Stoot nor Hannigan. The lies fed her anger, fueled her fear, and she'd let her temper get the best of her. Now Murdo was dead, and she'd not be able to torture him for information. She hadn't the stomach for torture, anyway.

Of course, there was still a slim chance Stoot and Ryan could be alive, but she knew in her heart they probably were not. She had no pilot skills, and hadn't the moxie to be a captain. Mechanics and guns. The two things she knew how to do, and knew how to do well. Besides, the Alliance had taken possession of Hannigan's ship. It was registered in his name, and he'd not left any sort of will saying who he would leave it to. He'd not even had a crew list, so the Alliance were hard-pressed to believe she'd really been riding with them. It was easier to claim the ship as their own and tag her as Independent scum just trying to get herself a free ship. So the Atlas was gone, too. She still had Stoot's jacket, the one she'd borrowed on St. Alban's. It would remain in her possession; he had succeeded in stealing her heart, something no man or woman had done in a very long time, and part of the tragedy of his loss was that she'd never been able to tell him how she'd felt.

As she was musing, wallowing in the loss of her friends, really, a kid ran up and tugged on her jacket. She glared at him none too kindly; her mood was not the best at the moment. "Do I know you?" He explained to her about the Brown Recluse, as he'd obviously been instructed to do. His words were hesitant and he kept sliding his hand in his pocket, no doubt fingering his payment. She sighed and followed his pointing finger to see a small ship, but a good model. Cocking her head, she narrowed her eyes at the brown lettering and a small smirk, a shadow of her old self, surfaced. An Independent ship. That was a good start.

She pressed a small box into the boy's hand, an apology for being rude. It had a few strawberries in it. Then she approached the man who obviously with the ship in question. "Hear you're lookin' for crew, yeah?" Setting down her toolbox and bag, she crossed her arms. "Name's Ari Deschain. Veteran Independent, damn good mechanic. I can shoot too, if'n it's guns you're needing." Straight to the point. Her demeanor was not as friendly and playful as it would have been under normal circumstances, but she did offer him the ghost of a smile.

[jem]

Jem was watching the other captains scramble to sign up a makeshift crew or gather passengers. His own ship had room for maybe three at most. But then, that wasn’t where they made most of their money. He honestly didn’t need a large ship, with all the doot de doos. Just something that kept the pirates at bay and kept whatever people he had inside safe for another day. The dock boys were doing his biding, going from drifter to drifter, telling them the jobs available. He needed people who knew how to work this ship, and how to treat her.

He occasionally talked to a few, most hired guns. A couple of people who might look promising. Two who asked too many questions to be considered serious candidates. Greenhorns were alright, but he needed people with wits about them. Other wise this ship was going to be doomed like many others. He needed people who were prepped for the life.

He watched a few ladies, whether they were ‘actual’ companions or not, he wasn’t sure. One looked a little too worn and wilted. The other could have been. She carried herself like a lady, face held up high away from the dust, though her dress was already streaked with some.

Jem sat there impassive at all the goings on around him. Or rather, looking impassive. He wasn’t used to being planet side for very long. And so he was nervous, watchful.

He saw the woman long before she came to him, talking to one of the dock boys. He was obviously fumbling over words, after all Jem had given him a lot of info. But kids had this way of pressing adults like few other people could. They were also good judges of character generally.

Seemed this one picked a winner. Jem watched as she took out a box, offering it to the kid who practically tripped when he ran off with it. It was something a younger Jem had done when he came to the docks. Jem shook his head, clearing it before straightening slightly , though he remained seated and didn’t remove his shades yet. One think he’d learned from an old gambling’ friend. Never let them see what you got until you knew what they had.

"Hear you're lookin' for crew, yeah?"

“En,” It was almost a lazy response. But he was studying her. Not like most men did, but accessing. She obviously carried herself well, this wasn’t some delicate flower. There was a heaviness, though, despite that. Like someone up there had given her a burden she could barely carry. But he couldn’t ask that yet.

"Name's Ari Deschain. Veteran Independent, damn good mechanic. I can shoot too, if'n it's guns you're needing."

“I’m needing a lot.” He shrugged, smirking. “Name is Jem, Jem Atticus Cole.” He sat up. “You want to introduce yourself to the Rec first? Not a lot mechanics are used to her kind.”

Jem grabbed the papers, but left the sign out as a ‘welcome mat’. He headed into the cargo space and the suite.

“She’s a cutter, magnetic grappling hooks. Plasma beams. She’s meant for the more delicate work, but she has the advantage only two have ever been known to be captured. She can tear into most ships like they were cardboard. You know how to deal with these kinds of ships?” Green wasn’t something he was going to hold against her. But he needed to know if she needed to learn anything.

[Ari Deschain]

The man didn't get up when she introduced herself, didn't remove his glasses. Ari was not intimidated. She'd read him with or without being able to meet his eyes. Body language was just as telling. It was obvious he was guarded, but she could also tell he was uncomfortable. Perhaps he just didn't want to be recognized. It was no matter to her. She'd taken jobs with shady characters and refugees from the law before; she was no stranger to laying low. Also, she could almost feel him regarding her with interest, deciding if she was worth his time, although his monosyllabic response hid that interest well.

He leaned forward, finally, and introduced himself. She stuck out a hand. "Good ta meet you." He suggested offhand that she probably didn't know much about the ship. It was true that she wasn't as familiar with it as she had been with the Atlas' model, but she was confident and a fast learner. A natural mechanic, she ate, drank, and breathed her job. "If I'm bein' honest, Jem, I only been inside one o' these."

As he got up and walked into the ship, she quickly hefted her belongings and followed. She'd be damned if she was going to leave her best tools and the only things she owned out on the docks. However, she set her load down just inside and gently ran her hand along the inner wall of the cargo area. "She's gorgeous, though," she whispered. Ari couldn't help it; she had a powerful love for good machines. Jem began describing the workings of the ship to her and she began to smile. This ship was enough of a challenge to occupy her otherwise exhausted and unhappy mind for quite some time. Familiarizing herself with the Brown Recluse could be just the project she needed to help regain her old self.

Her gray eyes met his as he asked her about her experience, and she reminded herself she did not have the job yet. Shouldn't get her hopes up until he actually hired her. "Like I said, I've only had the priviledge o' bein' in one of these once. But, I'm a right quick study and I've not met a ship nor a problem I couldn't fix." She bit her lip and tried not to look worried.

She wondered briefly if she should mention her sight problem, how she was almost blind in the left eye, but decided against it. It was her policy not to tell; she could perform just as well as if she had the full function of both eyes. No one ever noticed anyway, unless she had to wear her eyepatch for some reason. Besides, she had enough strikes against her in that she didn't know a whole lot about the ship.

[phantomseige]

Leighton watched as a cargo ship at the docks loaded its unmarked and most likely uninspected cargo. It looks spaceworthy, which was good, and poor, which meant that Leighton could most likely pay for a secret trip away from Persephone. He was considering how much to offer when a kid tugged at his jacket.

"Hey mister," the kid said, "You lookin' for a ride?"

"That's my business," Leighton said. The kid looked at the bags Leighton held, taking particular note of the medical bag.

"You a medic, mister?"

"Doctor," Leighton corrected, hoping to avoid any connection with the doomed Atlas.

"Well mister, I think you should be taking that ship there." The kid pointed to a salvage ship across the way. Leighton gazed at it. It looked well kept. Not exactly your run-of-the-mill 'get away from the Alliance' ship.

"I don't think that ship is going to be what-" he stopped himself when he saw Ari. "You know what, kid, you might be right."

Leighton patted the kid on the head before walking towards the ship. He took a glance at the console for the dock, and saw the name "Brown Recluse". As he approached, Leighton spotted another man, talking to Ari. He waited until he could politely intrude, and then offered his hand to the captain.

"Are you the captain?" he asked. "My name is Leighton Sacheverell - Doctor Leighton Sacheverell." He smiled and nodded at Ari, "and hello Ari," he added with happiness. "A child told me that this is my ship. I'm wondering if he's right."

[Ari Deschain]

Ari looked up with surprise as Leighton joined them. A quick smile crossed her lips, genuine too. She didn't smile as often nowadays, and the motion felt gratifying. Leighton had been a recent addition to the crew of the Atlas before things had gone so terribly awry. She and Leighton had not been too close, they hadn't had the time to really get to know each other, but she'd liked him well enough and he had this endearing way of standing out in a crowd without quite meaning to. "'ello, Doc. I was kinda hopin' I'd catch you around." Truth was, if she'd gotten the job today, she would have immediately struck out to find the medic and tell him about the Brown Recluse. After all, she still thought of him as crew.

[ooc:] figured I'd make a post. been a while since Jem's been on.