Privateers, Pirates and Mercenaries!

Talvis considered the captain for a moment, and then replied "I understand your concerns, and I agree the offer is quite suspicious. As I said, this is likely either part of some larger power play or an ambush- but considering the current state of affairs, I didin't have much of a choice," He motioned upwards at the lighting; normally, Talvis personally oversaw the maintenance of each and every conference room in order to put on the best appearance possible. Here, however, several light fixtures were off; though the Hades' Gate had been able to escape the PCG ambush several months ago without any major system damage, the PCG Arondite had been able to damage several of the vessel's capacitors- and with the dry spell in missions, Talvis hadn't been able to gather enough funds to get them properly repaired. "The contact was, as I said, intentionally extremely vague. He made no mention of who operates the convoy nor his identity or allegiance. I would've pressed him, but that would've almost certainly driven him off- and we could certainly use the windfall,"
    Talvis stood up and slowly walked to another side of the table, his eyes focused on the map the entire time, before continuing: "I would advise you should, indeed, 'stay on your toes'. Regardless, we go with our usual plan," Talvis tapped a button, and the holographic projection changed into a 3D map of the area. A red line wound it's way through the map, indicating the convoy's route, followed by two more blips- on on the route and one close to a nearby purple cloud. "You and the Wreker* will strike here," he said, indicating to the first blip, "and drive them to the second blip. There, the Hades' Gate will be waiting- and then it's just a matter of killing and looting. If that fails, the Wreker's FTL inhibitor has recently been repaired; both of you are to lock them down until the Hades' Gate gets there. Standard procedure. Understand?"

[OOC] *The Wreker is a pirate ship I should really upload- but it's late, so meh. I'll try to post something brief tomorrow on it.[/OOC]

"Understood. With your permission I'll go and prep my crew. We've got some repairs to do to our boarding craft. Old parts and all that. We've got a enough money in the Dark Flame's treasury that we should be able to buy the parts needed. My best negotiator is headed to the trade center on the Chesapeake Bay and if he can't get a good enough price I also sent our personal strongmen, Jayne and Mxy."

OOC 
I'm too busy with visiting family out of state, preparing for VBS, and then running my station at VBS to get in on this, this month. Sorry. I'll try and get something up for Sir Ashley at the end of the month or in early July. 

Also, I feel like if the Hades' Gate met the Arondite, the HG would get its tail kicked. Big and tough as she is, if she came into pitched battle with J-red on one of his deadliest ships, I don't think it would come out in functional condition. 
End OCC

"Good; inform me when you're finished. Dismissed,"

[OOC] It's OK; TBH, we probably wouldn't really be able to get to you for a while anyway, so it would pretty much just be you and your subplot. While it's a shame we won't see more of your work, it's stil early, andyour character hasn't really entered the plot yet. Long story short: no bige deal, you can always get back to us when we're not busy. [/OOC]

Captain Hawkins strides out of the conference room. "IQ, this is Hawkins, beam me back aboard."

Light swirls around the pirate as his atoms begin to fade, and within moments, he is reformed back on the bridge of the Dark Flame.

"IQ, what's the status of the repairs on the Aluminum Mallard?"

"Engineering reports that they should be done in twenty minutes or so."

"Excellent, have Maverick, Jayne, and Myx returned yet?"

"Coming aboard now, I think that there might be a merchant with a broken arm now though... that makes me happy."

"Have them drop off the parts with the repair crew and then have all my officers meet in the conference room, you have the conn still, but make sure you're listening in. We've got a big job to do."

{OOC} Ok, so I don't really feel like writing out a whole conversation explaining what's going on to my crew, plus there's not really any need to. {/End OOC}

Captain Hawkins concludes his meeting with his officers and then contacts Captain Talvis.

"Captain, we've completed repairs and my crew has been briefed. We're ready when the rest of the fleet is."

OOC: Quick post before I leave for the weekend.

*Turtrell arrived at the Chesapeake Bay station before too long, and immediately docked and began unloading supplies. Meanwhile he strode off to make contact with the Hades Gate's crew members looking to sell supplies and aquire materials for the ambush at hand. As usual, moved indiscriminate throughout the crowd, avoiding searching glances and cameras, but remaining normal looking enough to not be picked out from the crowds of buyers and sellers. He seemed to drift aimlessly among the merchants, and allowed himself to be pushed aside by others, it made him seem more like just the people that filled the area as a crowd, part of the water, and not a fish. Fish got caught.*

<OOC>I'll join in, if you don't mind.</OOC>
*An application is sent in with the following data:*

Name: Tom Juris
Age: 32 Standard Years
Race: Human
Ship: None (at the moment)
Equipment: MSI F6 DMR, light plate armour, 22mm custom three-sided knife
Good: Marksman, linguist, strategist, computer technician
Adequate: Hand-to-hand, medium craft maintenance
Bad: most social skills, heavy weapon use, ground vehicles
Bio: Not much is publicly known about Mr. Juris, as he has a tendency to keep to himself, but he will open up when he wants to... or when he needs cash. After his first ship, Strength Under Fire, was destroyed by an "official" patrol craft, Tom Juris decided to distrust most legal systems and instead invest in the merc life. This choice has paid off for him, but not enough for him to purchase a new ship. Once he's got enough cash, though, he plans to get a good one and spend the rest of his life exploring the stars.

Talvis felt Captain Hawkin's presence as h walked down the hall. Though his Betazoid-half was never expressed very strongly, he still retained some of the pyschic powers associated with that race. When the captain's mind vanished completely -indicating that he beamed out- Talvis contacted his man in the hull repair alcove. "Lieutenant," he ordered, "Ask around, get some estimates on the cost of getting our hull and weapons back up to scratch," When the junior officer replied to the affirmative, Talvis cut the link. By this time, he had returned to his chair and was now reclining slightly; he began to sort through the various offers, deals, and info of note passed on to his central database by the men on the ground.

[OOC] So, Arik, how much is this all gonna cost? [/OOC]

*Tom Juris browsed from merchant to merchant, hoping to find the tool set he needed to repair the more delicate electronics in his armour. It had been disabled by a shot to the power pack on his last... outing, and he needed it fixed before a decision was made on his application - which, although it wasn't strictly the best way to deliver to a potential employer, he was sure the bright, colour-changing notification displayed on each of their personal devices would at least get their attention.*
*With a grin of amusement tucked under his mask of indifference, Juris purchased a micro toolkit and a pair of replacement power packs from the robed, dark-skinned merchant at the stand, then strode off to a more private corner to make the repairs.*

[OOC] No, really; I'm kinda waiting on the cost estimate for all this.  We need some basic repairs, and I may end up buying some stuff... so should I just make all that up, or do you have a plan, ooooor...? [/OOC]

Fast forward! I'm gonna skip the space station part and just have you guys go to the battle for the moment.



Upon leaving warp at the assigned destination, you find that your scanners are barely functioning. All around, the swirling, pinkish gases of a nebula can be seen, washing over the blackness of space and filling it with breathtaking color.

Visually, you notice a group of starships. Four aging, otherwise-nondescript Klingon space freighters sit idly in space, surrounded by a formation of thirteen Birds of Prey. Noticeably, two of the freighters have smoke trailing off of their warp nacelles (cuz space flames ), probably indicating they've been damaged.

The ships don't seem to immediately detect your presence, most likely because of the nebula's sensor-distorting effects...

[OOC] OK... what's the state of our repairs? Is everyone without a ship on the HG, or what? I'm a bit confused now.   So everyone who was on the station in now on the HG and will get paid afterwards. The HG is combat-ready and sufficiently repaired. That's what Arik said on the chat.  So who's doing what?

Also, we still need a name. I was thinking "Eden's Corsairs", but I'm open to other suggestions. [/OOC]

{OOC} I'm aboard the Dark Flame, right? I assume I warped in along with the Hades Gate and a few other ships.

At any rate, Eden's Corsairs sounds cool to me. Just one question, why "Eden's" Corsairs. I'm not arguing against it, I'm just curious as to why we're from Eden. Doesn't sound like a piratical place to me. Eden was a paradise.

[OOC] That's the point.  [/OOC]

[OOC] I have no idea what I'm doing. [/OOC]

{OOC} @ Mighty - If you say so, you're the cap'n. {/end OOC}

OOC: So, I'm gonna try and handle this as in-character as I can. Let's see how it goes. Also, I dunno how this'll turn out, but I think I'm actually going to keep you at a character level. So instead of saying, for example, "The Hades Gate fires at the ships", you'd have your character tell the crew to open fire. We'll see how it works (I've never tried this before ) and if it's not good, or if you guys don't like it, we can change later.

Tetra:

Onboard the bridge of the Hades Gate, the bridge crew, almost comically orderly and efficient for pirates, go through the basic procedures for combat readiness.

Various officers reported to Talvis in turn, coming in from an exotic assortment of species and dialects. "Captain, sensors have picked up the ships' signals through the nebula. They seem to have noticed us- Four Birds of Prey are inbound."
"Guns charged and at the ready, Captain!" "We's got Shields'r up, Cap'n!" "Impulse drives at the ready." "Hull integrity's at 95% and holding fine!"


Nik:
A burly humanoid, ugly, with multiple scars across his face and bare, muscular arms, wearing a blast-vest crisscrossed with ammo belts and a huge projectile rifle rested on one shoulder, sauntered up to Tom, noticeably limping slightly in the process.
"Y' must be Mr. Juris. I'd be Garrin, Boarding-master. Y'll be riding with me today; and if y're as tough as y'look, it'll be a pleasure fightin' with y'. Get equipped and head to the boarding shuttle bay."


J-Red:
The sensors aboard the Dark Flame beep in warning: The pirate fleet has been spotted, and a small group of the Klingon escort ships have broken off and are heading their way.

"Open comms to the Hades Gate!" Hawkins yells. "Captain, we've got four bogies inbound! The Dark Flame is moving to intercept, fighters are on the catapults and weapons are charged."

Tom looked up from his datapad, and rose as Garrin addressed him.
"Good to meet you, sir," he replied, "and I'm sure the pleasure of fighting alongside you will be mine." After a quick glance around the area, Tom grabbed his leather bag, slung it over his shoulder, and tightened a few straps on his armour, then secured his datapad on one of the calf plates.
"Shall I follow you to the bay, or would you like me to head down on my own?"

Talvis nodded at each officer in turn. "Prepare the coaxials, get targeting solution on those freighters. Have the Wreker close and begin FTL jamming. All other weapons are to target the incoming squadron," He paused, and then ordered "All batteries, focus on the lead three. Hawkin, you take the last ship- I want it disabled, not destroyed. Understood?"

With his orders complete, Talvis pressed a button on his command chair, automatically sending out a hail on all channels- "Attention prey, this is the Eden's Corsairs flagship Hades' Gate. Surrender or face annihilation,"

"Aye sir!" Hawkins says, closing the comms. "Gunnery crews, aim at non-vital ship systems, I want targeting solutions in five seconds! Fighters be ready to launch on my command, you will target engine systems, and enemy fighters and missiles ONLY."

Nik:
"I'll show y'there."
Soon after, Tom finds himself in a expansive area, looking to be a former cargo bay but with a somewhat makeshift-looking hangar door expanded over most of the deck floor. Two dozen large boarding shuttles, each one mounting a unique jury-rigged set of grappling arms and boring equipment, probably salvaged from mining probes, on the front of its hull. Garrin leads you and two dozen other over-armed misfit pirate marines onto the nearest shuttle, while other groups pack into three more shuttles...


Tetra:
A return transmission is sent back to the Hades Gate, in which the convoy's commander gives a brief oration stating that they politely refuse to surrender, all the while adding in choice Klingon complements to the pirates' bravery, honor, and military prowess after ingeniously sabotaging their helpless cargo freighters.

Meanwhile, the four Birds of Prey open fire, with the Hades Gate vibrating noticeably with each hit. The Hades Gate returns fire, though the total fire output is oddly less than expected.
"Sir, several of our portside weapons are malfunctioning. Probably due to damages incurred from our last battle."
"Forward shields at 85% and remaining steady!"
The four incoming Birds of Prey continue firing, forming up into something close to a straight line, just slightly staggered so that the ships behind can still fire, and heading at full acceleration for the Hades Gate.
"Coaxial gun targeting solutions acquired. Weapons are 60% charged."


J-Red:
The Dark Flame opens fire on the rear Bird of Prey, shots lighting up its shields brilliantly, which partially collapse soon later, allowing a few shots to fly in, dealing some damage to one of its wings. In particular, its cannon on that wing ceases to fire, indicating likely damage.
Meanwhile fighters scramble, flying in for the Bird of Prey...

Talvis turned to navigation and ordered "Twenty degree starboard, get the broadside cannons firing. Engineering squeeze every once of extra power you can into weapon- I want every gun firing a full efficiency. Weapons, inform me when the coaxials are ready to fire," he hit his combadge, linking him directly to boarding captain Garrin. "Garrin, be prepared to assault on a moment's notice- you're going in hot,"

Tom has been through similar situations before, so he slips back into his old, familiar pre-combat routine as he waits for his next order - check straps, tighten armour, load rifle, loosen knife, and the like, while keeping an ear open.

"Shock cannons, target the warp nacelle on the Bird of Prey's port nacelle! Sub-Shock cannons target weapons systems! Pilots, attack the starboard nacelle! We want this ship intact!"