IC : The Cleansing White Hand, Now with less players! Options

[Climhazzard]

"Okay lets go to a coffie shop and hammer out the details. First let me go back in and get my friend."

[FrostyNSO]

Koe

[ Spoiler ]

You get a decent night of sleep and wake up alone in the guildhall the next morning. After preparing yourself for the day, you give Crimson, the Red Rovers' leader, a call. He answers his phone quickly in his usual manner. "What's up?

Justin and Giles

[ Spoiler ]

The girl agrees "Yes, let's find someplace else to talk." As you go to go back in and find Giles, you nearly run directly into him as the back door swings open. He laughs and pushes you back. Alarmingly, you notice his focus, though not active, is in his hand.
"They weren't too happy to see me, and they're gonna be out here shortly. I told them we would settle it out here." Giles explains hurriedly. "It would be best if you guys got out of here before they find you, Justin. I can hold them off.

[Qillin]

" Hey Crimson, It's Koe. I'll be going out of town tonight for a good month or so. I was wondering if one ofj you boys could give me a ride to the airport. I'll havfe quite a bit of gear and might need a larger car then mine. And as for my car you can use it if you need too. I mean you Crimson and not the gang as a whole" ;o)" Think you could spar someone?"

[FrostyNSO]

Koe

[ Spoiler ]

Crimson laughs. "Yeah, I'm sure we can find you a truck or something. You may not wanna drive around in it all day, and be extra sure to obey traffic laws." He pauses for a moment. "We can get a couple guys on it. Just tell me where you want the truck dropped off. They'll be sure to leave it unlocked for you. One thing though, It always helps motivate the boys when I can give them a little incentive. Got anything I can slide their way for this? Oh and while I'm thinking of it, where's that help you guys were sending? We're getting spanked down at the Everett docks."

[Qillin]

"A truck sounds great. I could probably send something your way, hows 250? As for your help I believe there is a guy on the way. Might want to check with Giles on that one. I haven't seen the guy for 2 days. As for the truck i could use it be like noon if thats possible."

[FrostyNSO]

Koe

[ Spoiler ]

Crimson agrees to the amount of :nuyen: 250 for his men and tells you that they'll drop a truck off at the corner of 8th and Wilson, in Everett. After getting off the phone with Crimson, you call around for the equipment you were going to be needing. While you locate most of it in normal sporting goods stores, the other, more rare items you need to find specialty stores. Luckily, being close to Mount Rainier in the pacific northwest, Seattle does have one or two mountaineering/ski places where you are able to pick up the 'hardcore' equipment. Luckily, being all legal, you pay normal price for everything. Around noon, you go to the designated location where a blue pickup truck is waiting for you with a broken passenger-side window and the keys left in it. Having already located the equipment you need, you spend the next 2 hours driving around and picking it all up. With everything together, barring any other last minute issues, you can safely say, gear-wise, your set.

[Qillin]

Koe will get a good meal in and then head to the airport to check in and secure his gear on the plane.

[FrostyNSO]

Koe

[ Spoiler ]

You find yourself a nice restaurant to get yourself a good, square meal, before leaving for a place which may not have many. After taking your time with the delicious meal, you head to the airport a little early to ensure that there are no difficulties getting a ticket or getting your gear checked in.

The abundant traffic heading into Sea-Tac slows things considerably, and being in a likely stolen truck, you park the vehicle somewhere inconspicuous and ditch it, grabbing your gear out of the back. Luckily, all your equipment fits into both rucksacks...barely. Though you know it will get better when you're actually wearing some of it, for now, the task of hauling it is daunting. Still, you feel a pleasant feeling watching those stuck in traffic within the airports labyrinth of drives and parking lots watch you walk by, making better progress than they.

Making your way through the port, you find the South American Airlines desk and claim your ticket. You tell the youthful latin girl at the counter that you are there to pick up a ticket purchased by a Mr. Malexzhigeir, and suprisingly it works the first time. With ticket in hand, you proceed to baggage, and check in your items, including the survival knife and micro-flare launcher which you had with your gear.

Not much later, you find yourself on a flight to Chile. Hours pass, and you eventually land in Santiago. Though the flight was comfortable, and the in-flight meal passable, you are eager to get up and walk around somewhere other than a crouded aisle. Checking your ticket, you find to your dismay that your connecting flight's departure time is dangerously close. On the plus side, your baggage gets shipped by itself, saving you the time of checking it out and back in again. With no time to spare, you board a small twin-engine prop plane which transports you further south to Punta Arenas. You share the plane with none but your luggage, which is uncerimoniously stacked in the seats adjacent to yours. The cold in the unpressurized cabin is biting, but not overpowering. Certainly nothing near what you will experience later. You gather from the surroundings, that this must be some sort of private carrier, also given the lack of security. A short flight later, you land in Punta Arenas.

Carrying your own luggage, you disembark the small plane onto what looks to be a small, poorly-maintained airfield. Not wanting to waste much time, you make your way accross the tarmac, to the "airport"s terminal. Quickly passing through, you grab a taxi, luckily finding one who speaks English. You tell him to take you to the harbor, and he proceeds to drive you there through the quaint city of Punta Arenas. Though small in contrast to a city like Seattle, it still has it's share of bustle, though not so much to have lost it's charm as a backwater South American city. In about 15 minutes, you arrive at the port. You pay the driver his fare, including a small tip, for which the total amounts to :nuyen: 14. In the harbor, you see many sailboats and motor vessels parked along wooden, almost rotting piers. One of the piers has a sign posted.

Embarcadero 11 - Estrella Ártica "Arctic Star"

Further down the pier, you see what appear to be dock workers, taking a break. Judging by the locations of boxes and the small crane, you judge that they must have just finished loading the vessel. At the entrance to the pier, you see a young, though grizzeled, latin man smoking a cigarette and checking his watch. On his head, a dingy red beanie sits atop unkept black hair that pokes out beneath it. He wears a grungy flanel jacket and slightly ripped blue jeans with cowboy boots to top off the ensemble. Either a dockworker, or a crewmember...

[Qillin]

" Hello Sir. do you speak English? i'm looking for the ship the Arctic Star. I have booked transport on it. could you help me?"

[FrostyNSO]

Koe

[ Spoiler ]

The man speaks in fairly good English to reply. "That is Arctic Star right dere," he says, "We transport supplies, no passengers."

[Qillin]

"Well then take me to you Captain, for he should know that I would be coming"

[FrostyNSO]

Koe

[ Spoiler ]

"No dice, chinaman." he says sternly. "The only way you come onboard is you work. Can you work, maybe then you get to talk to skipper."

[Qillin]

"I only wish to speak with your Captain. If I can't come onboard, get you Captain to come on shore. You can tell the Captain that Mr. Malexzhigeir sent me."

[FrostyNSO]

Koe

[ Spoiler ]

"I am sorry my main man," The latin man continues. "The only man the captain is expecting is our new cook. If you not the new cook, then you not talking to the skipper."

[Qillin]

"If that is the only man he is expecting, it can only mean that I'm your new cook. I'm sorry I should have introduced myself, I'm Mr. Ishie." Koe will slightly bow to the man.

[FrostyNSO]

Koe

[ Spoiler ]

"Well good to see you man Mr. Ishie. If you're the cook then you are the cook. Go to the boarding ramp where that man is smoking." The latin man points to the loading ramp leading from the pier to the boat itself. "That's Miguel, the crew chief. Tell him you the new cook."

You thak the man and make your way over to Miguel. He greets you and you explain your situation to him along with that you are the new cook. He answers kindly. "Well the skipper told me to be expecting a chinaman, so I supose you are our new cook. Come right along and I'll show you the galley, and your quarters." He leads the way, and you follow, lugging your gear all along. He continues talking as he shows you through the ship. "Being cook, you got a room near the galley since guys may want you to make meals at any time of the night. It isn't much, but it should be enough for you to stow your gear and still have a clear bunk." He opens the hatch to your quarters and you are greeted by spartan, though slightly dingy digs. A pair of bunks are built into the wal, and there is a small trid in the corner. You drop off your stuff and head to the galley with Miguel. "Here is the galley," Miguel begins. "You will be spendng a lot of time here. Be sure to be courteous, and give large portions. The kitchen is fully stocked. By the way, you won't be meeting the skipper until later when he comes to eat, he's pretty busy right at the moment. You'll recognize him though. He's a big Protuguese and e's always wearing a Budweiser hat." Miguel guffaws loudly. After showing you a few more features of the medium sized vessel, including showers, bathrooms, rec room, etc...he takes his leave, but adds as he is leaving you. "By the way, you'll get your pay when we arrive near Halley. :nuyen: 1000 as promised."

Justin and Giles

[ Spoiler ]

Giles looks at you confidently, but the girl seems suprised. She looks at you quizically. "So what, you have a bodygouard too? You're not going to leave him to handle those guys himself are you? They are skilled mages."

"I will be fine." Giles reassures. "Getting Master Blake out of here is more important than my life." The girl looks irritated.

"You cannot be serious," she says to Giles. "If it means anything to you guys, I'd rather not be involved in this, but it's your friend." Directing her gaze at Justin, she asks clearly. "What do you want to do?"

[Qillin]

Koe bows to Miguel and thx him for the tour. Then Koe will go to the kitchen to get familiar with it and search around to see what all there is to be cooked.

[ Spoiler ]

Koe hasn't had to do much cooking for about 10 years now, since he really started doing well in shodowrunning. He will have to relearn much of it.

[FrostyNSO]

Koe

[ Spoiler ]

Though it had been a long time since you last cooked, you are a sharp guy and think you remember many of the basics. You take a look through the kitchen and see that it is fully stocked with foods of all types. You find a makeshift cookbook composed of many scraps of paper with recipes on them. Taking a look through, you see that the recipes are almost all items found on the galley menu. This would be easier than you thought.

[Climhazzard]

"You are correct, I have to stay to help a friend in need" replys justin. Justin goes and grabs his focus and prepares himself for a battle.

[FrostyNSO]

Justin and Giles

[ Spoiler ]

You activate your focus and shrug off the slight feeling of drain as the elegant laser takes the form of a deadly blade. A moment later, Giles activates his focus, the blade of white-blue light coming to life before him. The girl jumps back, a look of confusion, fear, or just plain astonishment on her face.
"You use the same weapons their most powerful mages use!" She blurts out. "Where did you learn that? What is going on here?"
Her questions may as well have been rhetorical, as the scarred man and his young companion emerge suddenly from the back door into the alley. The scarred man holds his companion back as he sees the lightsabers in your hands. The scarred man takes a good look at Justin and orders his companion:
"These are a different kind of adversary. Get back to the guildhall. Tell Graf that the "One" is here." With amazing speed, the scarred man draws his own focus, igniting it as his companion scrambles away. Rather than a single blade, two blades, red like the ocean sunset extend from either end of the focus. He addresses Giles. "My quarrel with you can wait. I want the "One"."
"Then your quarrel with me will be settled here." Giles responds defiantly.
"If that is how you would have it. Though it dosn't need to be this way..." The scarred man tells Justin. "You can join us. We can end this pointless war...Come to us, and we'll end the suffering and madness that for so long has held our Orders back from being truely great."

Koe

[ Spoiler ]

The voyage goes smoothly. Over the next couple days, you feel that cooking is almost second nature to you, and you have received quite a few tips to boot. You learn over the course of the trip that the crew consists of 18 sailors and 4 officers, including the skipper. 6 sailors on shift, with an officer at the helm. The skipper seems to have no set schedule. A surly man of heavy build, he has a look of long life on the sea. You learn much about the lives and personalities of many of the crew and officers, though only so much as one can expect to learn over a short while. Being the ship's cook, you are able to build a good rapport with them and learn much of your destination.
Many of them have made the trip many times, though none have ever stayed there any longer than was needed to off-load and pickup cargo. The crew is very tight-knit, having been on the same ship for a number of years. Before doing the Arctic run for the past year, they worked a privateer vessel in the phillipines, hunting pirates, as it were. The Arctic Star was a new ship, and though the pay wasn't quite so lucrative, the job for them was easy going, and they liked it. Not only did they make trips to Halley, but other antarctic stations on the cntinent as well. Often though, they would talk in the galley of the "good ol' days".
It turns out, there are no "rental" stores at Halley. With the danger inherant to the place, there is high probability that a rental might not come back. Instead, they sell equipment, allowing the buyer to sell it back to them upon their return if they wish, of course, making a profit in the proccess.
The base itself has about 200 permanant residents, and on top of that, a few dozen tourists during most of the season. Much of the base is constructed underground. Most of the non-essential parts of the base are nicer living quarters set up for the hotel restaurant that operates there. It includes recreational activities and facilities, as well as a guide service for patrons wishing to brave the cold for a day or two.
Away from the hotel, your shipmates tell you, is a bar run by some of the permanant residents called "Silap Innua", after the spirits you learned of in the guildhall's library. It is considered a rough place by all accounts. Popular with isolates (the term for people who live in antarctica to get away from civilization) just visiting, orichalcum hunters as of late, and some of the more skilled "but dangerous" (your crewmates tell you) guides on the continent, it is the place to go if you are looking to score anything illegal, or unsavory. Firearms are hard to find on the continent, and are very valuble, as is narcotics.
They tell you there is always something unusual going on in the antarctic, you'll just have to see what's new when you get there. The Arctic Star usually transports supplies to the bases, sometimes picking up passengers to take back, or freight in some instances. This has ranged from ice samples for some of the scientific research going on there, to more recently, orichalcum before it dried up. Despite popular assumptions, there isn't much of a fishing industry. Most settlements have to be built far from the water and shifting ice, too far for a regular industry. Some temporary camps will set up to fish a few days to get food (to eat or trade), but move often. Some attempted whaling enterprises, but found it was easier to base themselves in Chile or Argentina instead.

[Qillin]

Koe with his newly found knowledge thinks that his boss had put him on this ship for a reason and the information his has learned will be of much help later on. Koe asks how often they make port at halley's base for Koe will eventually need a way home. Koe will make sure his bags are packed and ready to leave ship when they arrive.

[FrostyNSO]

Koe

[ Spoiler ]

You are awaken at 4 a.m. by the buzzing of the hardwired phone in your cabin. Picking it up, it's the Skipper. Assuming this is call for breakfast, you tell him you'll be in the galley shortly, but he stops you. "We ain't eating in the galley this morning, we're eating at Halley. Get your stuff and get ready to depart." He orders. "Oh and by the way, If you wanna make an extra :nuyen: 100, we could use some help off-loading the supplies. Whaddya say?" You agree and he tells you to report up top in 30 minutes.
You studiously get your things together and clean up a little, arriving "up top" in cold weather clothes and ready to work. Not sure what you were expecting, you see the godly expanse of the antarctic ahead of you, the sapphire water creating a stunningly beautiful contrast in the pristine environment. On shore, you see a makeshift pontoon dock, anchored to the ice by sturdy poles. Near it, you see 4 heavy duty ice-tractors, one of them with what appears to be a large nailgun assembly, no doubt the machine which drove the 10-foot icepoles into place which now anchor the dock. Behind it, is a large sled trailer with a winch....probably where the dock was carried.
You help the crew of the Arctic Star toss the cargo netting over the side to the waiting zodiac inflatable boats below. Utilizing a crane on the ship, they lower the crates one-by-one into the zodiacs, which ferry them to the dock to be moved onto trailer sleds. You help out by getting crates into position and helping to prepare the rigging.
After an hour, the skipper orders the cargo netting rolled back up and proceeds to move the boat out to a distance where it would be safe to anchor. While this is happening, the workers on the shore pack up the crates and the temporary dock along with the zodiacs, save for one. After anchor is dropped, the remaining zodiac makes quick trips back and forth, ferrying 12 of the crew of the Arctic Star, including yourself to the waiting snow tractors. After loading up the final zodiac, everybody hops in a tractor and they begin moving their way towards Halley. At least that's what they tell you. All you can see is a bleached wasteland.
Inside the tractor it is toasty warm, and you hear the varios conversations of the crew and the workers from Halley. One conversation in particular catches your ear. One of the workers asks the skipper:
"Hear anything about a storm? We almost called off the operation this morning from looking at the satellites....What happened, I mean it was crystal clear out there just now."
The skipper just laughs and finally replies. "How long you been working this place, son?"
"This is my first month."
"You'll learn."
With that, the tractor convoy continues it's push accross in single file. Travelling single file ensured that whatever you were passing over was secure to cross, since the guy ahead of you made it, usually you would too. You were in the first tractor today.
Suddenly, a shrill, buzzing alarm comes to life in the cabin, casting blue light on everybody's pale faces. "Crevasse!" the driver shouts into his radio, immediately bringing the tractor to a halt. "Looks like a big one, we'll need to find a way around." As he gave his order, the workers all piled out, grabbing long iron rods from under the bench seat in the back.
"Grab a rod, you need to probe around and find the edges of the crevasse, and find where it ends and is safe to cross." The captain orders you, passing you one of the six-foot rods.

[Qillin]

Koe goes and digs in his bigger bag. Pulls out a small gizmo and turns it on and walks over to the Captain to show him the reading. " I picked this thing up for this such thing. If i'm reading it right maybe those guys shouldn't be walking over there. "

[FrostyNSO]

Koe

[ Spoiler ]

You show the crevasse detector to the skipper and he nods in approval. "Well let's get to work then." While the others use the rods, probing for the crevasse's edges, you effortlessly use your reader with the skill of a seasoned guide, easily drawing a line marking the edges of the crevasse with your rod. After a few minutes, the others stop probing, leaving the searching to you. A short while later, you find a suitable path around, and mark it with a neon red pole provided to you by one of the workers. After making the neccessary preparations, the convoy gets moving again, taking special care around the huge crevasse and making it's way to Halley. Once back in the tractor, the Skipper gives you a nod of approval. "I knew you were gonna be good luck when we signed you on."

As the tractors move on, you notice the weather progressively worsening. What started out a clear, crisp day worsens into a terrible storm. The progress of the tractors slows to a crawl, as the powerful winds shake their considerable bulk like tin cans. Though it is warm and comfortable inside the cab, the storm is strong, and even the seasoned men inside seem nervous. You can only wonder how things are back with the ship. The driver looks back at you after checking his wind gauge, laughing, but with a hint of worry in his voice that not even he could notice. "120 knots" He says, relating to you the windspeed.

The storm does not relent, but after 4 hours, you arrive at Halley, the station barely visable through the blowing snow and ice. In front of the tractor, you can see what look to be large cargo doors opening to a brightly lit bay. The tractors pull in, and after the cargo doors are firmly sealed behind you, everybody hops out of the wind tossed tractors. Around the bay, you can see other vehicles, including what you guess to be automated snowtrains. The skipper approaches you, producing a certified credstick. "Thanks for the help. Here's :nuyen: 1,100, just like we agreed. i hope you find what you're looking for down here." He says appreciatively. "This is the freight area. From here you can go to the residential areas, where the Silap Innua bar is, you can go to the hotel resort, or the marketplace district. Best place for a meal and a warm bath would be the hotel resort, but it could be a bit pricey. Good luck!"

Justin and Giles

[ Spoiler ]

You hold off on your attack as the young companion rushes back into the Alabaster Maiden. Nodding to Giles, you take up an offensive posture.

The scarred man smiles slightly as you ready yourself, moving into a defensive stance. As he is about to settle in, Giles leaps forward to attack, quickly moving close in to the scarred man, engaging him is very close combat. Seeing your opprotunity, you leap into the fray. Blades flying and clashing with abandon, you notice how easily the scarred man seems to engage both of you simultaniously with little effort. Despite this, Giles doesn't relent with his attack, signalling you to do the same.

[Qillin]

Koe will say by to most the the crew (the ones that he got to know better) and the captain. Then he will lug his gear over to the hotel and try to rent a room for the night. nothing to big he just needs a bed and a shower. after checking in he will take a shower and then try and get a good meal at the hotel restaurant.