'A Better Title.' Part 2 by ebonezer

"'He' is a she." Mantichorus gently corrected Teela. "At least, it is if it's the person I'm thinkin' of."

"How so?" Glico asked.

"While Soul and I were constructing the EMP gun, cannon, whatever y'wanna call it, I noticed the name on the package: T. Locke. Ran with a group a while back, and one of its members was a Tiffany Locke." Mantichorus explained. "Nice group. Don't like the UAP much, but..."

"...Not many do, at the moment." Soul supplemented.

"They trustworthy?" Teela asked.

"I'd trust them with my life." Mantichorus solemnly replied.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A/N: UAP is the Union of Allied Planets, as they are refered to in Ariel.

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"To do just the opposite is also a form of imitation." -Georg Christoph Lichtenberg, Aphorisms.
--------------------------------------------------
"Blessed is the man who, having nothing to say, abstains from giving us wordy evidence of the fact." -George Eliot, Impressions of Theophrastus Such.

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Monday, November 15, 2004 4:49 AM

GLICO

"All right, I'll get ready." Glico walked back into her now smashed up fighter and grabbed a .45 and strapped it to her hip.
"Ready, Manti?"

------------
No plot advancement.

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Monday, November 15, 2004 7:18 AM

The Man They Call Soul...

Soul sauntered back inside Sidere and emerged a few moments later, pulling on his grey duster coat overtop the plethora of guns that he now had strapped to his body. As he reached the bottom of the ramp, he noticed the trio of Teela, Ebo and Glico staring at him.

"What?" he asked. When none of them responded, he added, "never hurts to be prepared." He saw Glico give an approving nod.

"That's more true than I care to admit," Manti added as he strode out behind Soul, himself armed as well. "We may have lost that Alliance ship, but this is a backwater world, and trust me, it has it's unpleasant suprises." He turned to Teela, who was still staring at Soul with a slight grin on her face. "So what now, Captain?" he asked her.

______________________

But if your hand touches metal, I swear by my pretty floral bonnet, I will end you.

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Monday, November 15, 2004 5:07 PM

"I'll guess we'll go then. Where we meeting 'em Ebo?" Teela asked.

Ebo pulled a piece of paper out of her pocket and read it aloud, "Um...Lorence district of town, little bar called...well, it doesn't actually have a name, so to speak, says there's a big plastic horse out front though," She eyed the weaponry on everybody else, "Hey, who wants to loan me a gun?" She asked hopefully.

"Is your shooting anything like your flying?" Manti asked.

"Everything I do is exactly like my flying."

"Then no. No guns for you."

"Probably keep 'er away from knives too," Soul added.

Ebo stuck her tounge out, "Are you guys my parents now or what?"

Teela rolled her eyes, "If you guys are done, we got some perfectly ligitamate business to attend to."

-----------------------------------

Four out of five dentists reccomend calling Ebo a girl.

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Friday, November 19, 2004 6:17 AM

Mantichorus ran up the ramp.

"Where're you going?" Teela asked.

"Gotta get m'coat." Mantichorus muttered in reply.

"Tch." Teela sighed, crossing her arms. "How in the good gorram am I gonna get any buisness done like this?"

"Sorry." Mantichorus said, sprinting down the ramp. "Best to be prepared." He pulled his brown overcoat on. "OK - listen for the names Tiffany, Claude, Sid, Vince, and Barry. If I'm right about our contact, anyone of those names will lead us right."
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A/N: I'm sure at least Soul'll get that... Sorry Square-Enix...
Oh yeah, gotta few ideas about where I want to take my character on planet, so at some point could we split up on this rock? Cheers for bein' accomidating.

--------------------------------------------------
"To do just the opposite is also a form of imitation." -Georg Christoph Lichtenberg, Aphorisms.
--------------------------------------------------
"Blessed is the man who, having nothing to say, abstains from giving us wordy evidence of the fact." -George Eliot, Impressions of Theophrastus Such.

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Friday, November 19, 2004 5:30 PM

The Man They Call Soul...

OOC: Nice FF7 reference there, Manti! If you feel the need to saunter off on your own, it's fine with me. Just come back to us!

________________________________________

Teela led the group at first, but as they neared the town, they all began to move closer together as they approached the first of the run down buildings.

"What happened here?" Soul asked as they began to pass husk after husk of burnt out buildings.

"Whatever it was, let's just pray that it's over now," Glico responded.

Ebo stared at the written directions in her hand, turned the paper upside down, then squinted at it, until Teela grabbed it from her. The Captain glanced over the paper for a few seconds, looked around her, and pointed off to their right. "This way," she stated confidently.

The group turned as one and followed Teela further into the ruins of the town. Soul kept one hand on the butt of one of his revolvers and saw Manti and Glico doing the same.

At least we'll be ready if something bad goes down here.

______________________

But if your hand touches metal, I swear by my pretty floral bonnet, I will end you.

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Friday, November 19, 2004 8:20 PM

Ebo eyed the armed members of the group keeping their hands on their weapons. She wasn't one for weapons as a general rule, but now that she didn't have one, she wanted one. Sort of like the flu shot shortage of 2010 on earth that was, people that had never had any need of flu shots before had been poinding down the gates to get one once they wern't to be had.

She twisted the ring on her right hand, at least if she hit someone it would hurt, her mother had told her never to hit a person with a closed fist, but it can, on occasion, be hilarious.

She looked up, "Hey, there's a red plastic horse. Cute, in a rigid kind of way..."

Teela gestured to the other side of the narrow street, "Theres another one over there too, only white. Directions say which one is the bar we're looken for?"

"You took over the navigating, remember?" Ebo jestured to the paper in Teelas hand.

"Your handwriting is terrible."

Ebo snatched the paper back and read it over, "I think its the red one."

"You sure?" Manti asked, skepticly

"No. Someone spilled coffee on that part. I think I remember writing 'red horse' though."

"Oh good. This should go reaal well..."

-----------------------------------

Four out of five dentists reccomend calling Ebo a girl.

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Monday, November 22, 2004 12:08 AM

Mantichorus squinted. After being on the ship so long, he was having difficulty re-adjusting to natural sunlight. He spotted movement. It was only an old man... so why did he feel as if hell was about to open it's mouth and swallow him?

"Hey!" He called out to the old man. "You gotta idea which of these is Tiffanys, old timer?"

The old man's head shot up. "You know Tiffany, son?" He asked suspiciously.

"Sure do. She told us that she had set up on this rock, and said to stop by the next time we were in the area. Unfortunately, she just said her bar had a horse out front." Mantichorus gestured helplessly at the two horses.

The old man chuckled. "Yeah, it's confusin', ain't it? Another bar opened up, and copied the horse. Hers is the red."

"Ha! Told you!" Ebo smirked triumphantly.

"Thanks for the assist'." Mantichorus smiled at the old man and nodded.

"Don't think nuthin' of it." The old man held up his hand and shook his head.

"Let's go on in." Teela said, and the crew of Sidere sauntered into the bar.

* * * * * *

"Can I help you?" A female voice asked as the crew of Sidere entered.

"I think it's more of if we can help you." Teela said. "Are you the T. Locke that ordered something from Jerry on Dayton?"

There was a pause. "Yeah. You must be Teela, right? Jerry told me to expect you."

"Hi, Tiffany." Mantichorus said abruptly.

There was a second pause. "Manti?! What the go-se are you doin' here?!" A woman in her early twenties stepped out into the light.

"He's part of my crew." Teela replied. "Helps keep my ship flyin'."

"I see..." Tiffany replied, nodding her head. "Long time, Manti."

"Yeah. How're yourself and the others?" He replied.

"Fine, fine. Barry's retired. His brother and sister-in-law were killed in an accident. He left to take care of his niece. Zoe, I think he said her name was." She sighed. "Sid's got engaged, but he's still gonna fly us from place to place."

"What do you need an EMP cannon for?" Soul asked abruptly.

"What...? You OPENED it?" Tiffany's cheeks turned red with fury.

"No choice. Alliance bearin' down on us, needed to see what they wanted." Ebo shrugged.

Tiffany sighed. "We're startin' to actually FIGHT the Alliance on it's own terms. We're collectin' a petition of planets who want to remain Independent of the UAP." She replied quietly.

"Noble cause." Glico nodded.

"I think we can do business." Teela said, almost asking Tiffany if she disagreed. The other woman smiled and nodded.

"This way."

* * * * * *

"So... what pieces do we need?" Teela asked.

"Not so much pieces as oil." Mantichorus replied. "Machinary needs lubricatin' more than anything. One or two odds 'n' sods needed otherwise."

"How many credits do you think you'd need?" Teela asked bluntly.

Mantichorus looked into space as he did some quick mental arithmatic. "Two hundred should be more than enough - we'll get it cheaper here than a core world as it's not entirely legit, so I can haggle it down."

"As cheap as you can." Ebo said concernedly. "That only leaves us about two hundred credits for food."

"Thrift is my middle name." Mantichorus assured her.

"Jeez, your parents were cruel." Ebo joked.

"Here's the money." Teela said, and handed Mantichorus the cash. "We'll meet back at Sidere in a few hours. Dong ma?"

"Completely." Mantichorus nodded. With that the crew dispersed. None of them saw the man step out from a doorway across the street. He looked in the direction that Soul had gone, then the route that Mantichorus had taken. He lifted a radio to his mouth.

"This is Herald: I've sighted the target. I've also spotted ex-operative Soul. Please advise." There was a pause.

"Follow Mantichorus. The target takes priority. Dong ma?"

"Completely." Herald replied, and set off after Mantichorus.

* * * * * *

Mantichorus turned down an alleyway. He'd been stuck on this rock for a month once, and had learnt all of the twists and turns of it's streets. This was the quickest way to the market... Was being the correct word. He scowled as he almost walked into a brick wall.

"Someone's been doin' some redecoratin'." He muttered, and then heard the dull click of a gun being primed.

"Alias Mantichorus, by the authority of the Union of Allied Planets, stand down." A familiar voice barked.

Mantichorus stuck his hands in the air and turned around slowly. "Hello, Herald." He sighed, looking Gabriel Tam straight in the eyes.

--------------------------------------------------
A/N: Duh-duh-dunnn! Yes, Simon and River's dad was part of the Expendables! Will someone come and help me out here?

--------------------------------------------------
"To do just the opposite is also a form of imitation." -Georg Christoph Lichtenberg, Aphorisms.
--------------------------------------------------
"Blessed is the man who, having nothing to say, abstains from giving us wordy evidence of the fact." -George Eliot, Impressions of Theophrastus Such.

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Monday, November 22, 2004 5:55 AM

The Man They Call Soul...

"...crrk...Manticho...crrk...authority of...crrk...stand down..."

Soul stopped dead in his tracks when he heard the voice. He spun around, drawing his gun, but there was no one there. Then where had the voice come from?

His eyes widened as he raised his free hand and rubbed a spot behind his left ear. Was it possible? Did the implant still work? He knew that when most Expendables were "retired", the implant was removed, but then again, he hadn't exactly left in the normal way.

If it was the implant that he was hearing, then that meant that there was an Operative nearby. The implants only worked within 500 yards of each other. But what was it that he heard? Something about Manti?

He closed his eyes and prepared himself to do something that he had determined to never do again. Something that while it would help him find Manti and the Operative, it would also let his former superiors know exactly where he was. Then again, if it really was an Operative here, then odds were that Soul's presense was already public news.

Keeping his eyes closed, he concentrated hard and reached within his mind. At one time, Interfacing had been second nature to him, but after neglecting the implant for so long, he was a bit rusty. Still, after a few seconds he felt the all too familiar rush as his mind connected to the implant and from there he mentally Interfaced into the Cortex.

What was the Earth-that-was expression? "Just like riding a bike." Yeah, that was it. He searched for the link that would connect him to Ballard's orbital satelite network, and finding it, he called up a 3-D layout of the area 500 yards around him and began a search for the source of the signal. Within seconds the source had been triangulated, and Soul called up a closer view of the area. It was coming from a street just three blocks over, and from the looks of it, the signal was stationary. He was about to pull out when he took a closer look at the signal and noticed the I.D. code and-

Soul's eyes shot open as his mind pulled back from the Interface. Herald? Here? His thoughts swam with the possible implications, and then-

Manti! Oh God, no! Not again!

He pulled out another revolver and broke into a dead run.

______________________

But if your hand touches metal, I swear by my pretty floral bonnet, I will end you.

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Monday, November 22, 2004 6:57 AM

Mantichorus gritted his teeth. Herald. Damn. "Come to drag me back to the lab?"

Unflinchingly, Herald took a step forward. "Dead or alive - but they would prefer alive."

"Not necessarily..." Mantichorus offered, seemingly calm, while his brain ran through the possibility of being able to embed one of the shuriken he kept in his pouch in some part of Herald's anatomy. He guessed any such attempt would merely piss him off. "If you, you know, missed the brain..."

Herald smirked. "Nice try, Alias Mantichorus. No, they want you very much alive, so as we can have a better look at--"

"Better look at what?" A voice said behind Herald, as the dull click! of a gun being primed echoed through the alley.

Herald sighed. "We were going to overlook your... 'unfinished work', Soul, but if you interfere, your family will be paid a visit."

"Shut it, Gabriel." Soul said calmly. "Manti?"

Mantichorus sighed. "I've undergone 'enhancement' at the hands of the UAP bio-tech department - basically, I'm a low level pre-cog."

Soul stared for a moment, then replied, keeping his gun on Herald; "You're psychic?"

"Slightly." Herald replied. "He was chosen as he had a strong instinctive streak - he was able to subconsciously determine how to avoid bullets in close-quarters. From that, it was easy to make him fully pre-cognitive."

"But I'm not." Mantichorus replied, looking Soul straight in the eyes. "From time to time, I get bursts of things that may happen - when I do, I blackout. It happened back on ship."

Soul nodded slowly. "How'd you escape?"

"One of the researchers developed a conscience halfway through the project." Herald spat. "Before they left, they released him." He glared at Mantichorus. "Do you know where they are?"

"Even if I did, I wouldn't tell you." Mantichorus said shaking his head... and... "Oh...shit..." He fell face down into the dirt.

Herald gaped, and Soul saw his chance. He dived at Herald, and brought his gun down in an arc across Herald's temple. The Expendable spun once in a way that was vaguely comedic, and then hit the dirt.

"Nice one..." Mantichorus groaned, pulling himself upright. He put his hand to his nose and wiped the blood away. "Always get a damned nosebleed with the blackouts." He grinned shakily.

"You OK?" Soul asked.

"Hell, no. But I'll survive." Mantichorus sighed. "Still need to get the parts and oil." He said wearily. "Oh, and..."

With that, Mantichorus knelt beside Herald, and whispered something in his ear. Soul could only half-hear it, but it sounded like Herald had a daughter, and Manti was saying that it wasn't too late.

"Well?" Soul asked, as Mantichorus stood up.

"Unless he does something to change things soon, he'll have a kid who they'll f**k with so much, I'll look like they never touched me." Mantichorus sighed. "Hell, Soul, we better get that stuff, or the captain'll have my guts for garters."

Soul nodded, and after a moments pause said; "What shall we tell the others?"

"I'll tell 'em... or you can if I lose m'nerve." Mantichorus replied. He took a step and almost fell over. Soul moved to support him, but Mantichorus waved him away. "I'll be fine... What about your wife and kid?"

"I'll give them a wave." Soul replied. "I have a cousin on one rock which you can't even see the stars through the atmo. They'll be safe there." He paused. "Oh, and by the way... 'Alias Mantichorus'?"

"Didn't want my family to suffer for my actions. Adopted Mantichorus as soon as I left my home rock." He explained. "Might go and say my real name on ship later."
--------------------------------------------------
A/N: Yeah, I'm psychic - vaguely. Gabriel Tam will mellow with age, which is why he's so different here than when you see him in the series. I'm goin' to write a tie-in with this from Gabriel's POV after Simon does a runner. I hope no-one has a prob' with me bein' psychic? Oh, and the shuriken were the other things that I kept in my pouch along with the encyclopaedia. Phew.

--------------------------------------------------
"To do just the opposite is also a form of imitation." -Georg Christoph Lichtenberg, Aphorisms.
--------------------------------------------------
"Blessed is the man who, having nothing to say, abstains from giving us wordy evidence of the fact." -George Eliot, Impressions of Theophrastus Such.

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Monday, November 22, 2004 2:21 PM

Ebo, Teela and Gilco moved back to the ship at a steady clip, Ballard really wasn't what you might call "welcoming" or "a good place for three women (even if one was heavily armed) to hang out."

As they aproached the ship they noticed a shortish man with a long grey beard sitting on a quad with a large-ish package on the back. There also seemed to be a parrot on his shoulder.

"Can I help you with something?" Teela asked.

"Could be you can. I hear you're in the shipping buisness."

"Word travels fast around here."

"I overheard at Tifanies. I got some merchandise that I would liked moved as discreetly and quickly as possible."

"As possible," the parrot echoed.

Teela eyed the bird for a second then said, "Where's it goin?"

"Banning. I've got a rich coustomer there waiting for his merchandise. He's not a patiant man."

"Ebo?" Teela asked, "Can we hit Banning with the fuel cells we got?"

Ebo thought a moment, "Should be fine, so long as we get paid enough to refuel once we're there." She added.

"Pretty Polly!" the bird squaked.

"Shut up you!" the man yelled at the bird, "We can pay real good. This client of mine is well to do, and willing to pay heartly for this cargo. This is some rare stuff you got here," he patted the box, "Many men would kill for riches such as this."

"Lovely," Teela smiled.

Gilco laid a hand on her sidearm, "We'll just try and kill 'em right back."

They talked price for a few minutes then the man loaded the box onto Sidere and rumbled off on his quad.

-----------------------------------

Four out of five dentists reccomend calling Ebo a girl.

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Tuesday, November 23, 2004 5:31 PM

The Man They Call Soul...

Supplies in tow, (and in bags) Manti and Soul made their way back through town in the direction of Sidere.

Soul turned to Manti. "So if Herald is here, and he's obviously in communication with someone, then it's safe to assume that he's not the only one who knows that we're here."

Manti nodded. "That's probably a safe bet." He turned to Soul. "That was a quick rescue back there. How'd you find me so fast." He paused. "For that matter, how did you know to come looking in the first place."

Soul grimmaced and explained to Manti about the implant. "While I may not be able to see the future, I can see the present pretty gorram well if I want to. The only problem is, every time I Interface, they can track me. Even if Herald never let's anyone know that we were here, when I Interfaced to find you, I sent up a red flag so high I'm suprised that there isn't a ship here already to bring us in."

Manti looked up into the sky as if he was expecting a ship to drop in on them. "I might be able to help you with your implant," he said to Soul.

"How?"

"I've picked up a few tricks over the years, including how to hack the Cortex while covering your tail. I think I can mask your signal so you can Interface all you want, and no-one will be the wiser."

Soul nodded, impressed. "If you can do it, be my guest."

They passed the last of the burnt out buildings and out into the dry field where Sidere sat waiting for them. Soul paused. "I think that for right now, we shoul keep our secrets, well, secret."

Manti looked at him without responding.

Soul continued. "It's not that I don't trust them, it's just that I really don't want to be dragging anyone else into the mess we've gotten into."

Manti looked over at Sidere, where a large crate was being unloaded into the cargo bay. "I think the girls have got us some cargo, and if our track record keeps up, they just got us into another mess." He looked back at Soul. "We can tell them when the time comes, but I'm done hiding from everyone." He grinned. "Besides, Ebo's kinda cute, don't ya think?"

Soul's mouth dropped open as Manti laughed. Soul shook his head and the two of them turned and continued towards Sidere.

"I wonder if Teela's got any more passengers?" Soul thought out loud.

Manti chuckled. "On this rock? Well, you never know."

____________________________________________

OOC: Okay boys and girls, if it's okay with the gang, I think we could stand to pick up a passenger or two before we leave Ballard, so...anyone need a ride?

______________________

But if your hand touches metal, I swear by my pretty floral bonnet, I will end you.

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Tuesday, November 23, 2004 8:14 PM

Ebo stood in front of the box, staring at it.

Soul looked over her shoulder, "Is there someting especialy special about this box that I'm missin?"

"Thats what I'm tryin to work out. Parrot-dude says there's something really shinny in there. At least, he talked like there was something shinny in there," Ebo took a long pause, "Suppose we could take a peak?"

"No," Teela said, stepping between Ebo and the box, "This time the box stays closed."

"But-"

"It says closed!"

----------------------

ooc: Just killen time till we get some passenger types really. But i got a shinny idea for whats IN the box that I'm sort of setting up for.

-----------------------------------

Four out of five dentists reccomend calling Ebo a girl.

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Tuesday, November 23, 2004 8:53 PM

"Tzao-goa!I gotta get offa this planet!", Jazaf whispers to himself. Looking down he checks his bag and runs a silent

checklist in his head, positively sure everything is in it's proper place he looks around at the ships docked.

"Now where in this Gorram..."his eyes stop at a firefly class spaceship,he wonders if they would allow a 'tourist' such as

himself stay onboard for a spell.Looking around, he spots a few people crowded around a box in their cargo hold.

"It stays Closed!!!"

Jazaf laughs nervously 'okay, there is the Captain no doubt about that.' he thinks to himself.

Shoving the nervousness aside, or as best he can, he hoists the bag on one shoulder and walks toward the crew.

"Um... Excuse me"

----------------------
OOC: Hi, newbie to this role-play forum thing. Just got into the Firefly series... but it was SoS' fault! heh

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Wednesday, November 24, 2004 8:48 AM

The Man They Call Soul...

OOC: Wassup Jazaf!! Welcome aboard, man! And Ebo, whatever idea you've got, let's run with it! BTW: anyone know what's up with Teela? Where's she been?

_______________________________________

Soul stepped back from Teela, completley agreeing with her order to leave the box closed. They had had more than enough fun when they opened the last box. He looked over as Manti chuckled and made his way off to the engine room with the oil.

Teela called behind him. "I wanna be ready to go in fifteen minutes!" she shouted.

Manti waved his hand behind him. "Yeah, yeah."

Teela turned to Ebo, apparently to order her around too, but Ebo threw up a quick salute.

"I'll get us ready, boss," Ebo said. She turned and ran for the stairs behind Manti.

"Um...excuse me," came a voice from behind them.

Soul turned around and saw a man standing just inside the cargo bay, a bag hung over his shoulder and a look on his face like he was in a hurry. Teela strode over to him and struck up a conversation. Another passenger, then. Well, it wasn't like the ship was crowded yet. There was a transaction of a sort between the stranger and Teela, and then a nod on Teela's part signfied, at least to Soul, that Sidere hat acquired yet another straggler.

The man walked further into the cargo bay. Soul strode over and stuck out his hand. The man looked at him cautiously, and then grabbed his hand firmly.

"So," Soul said, "what's your name?"

______________________

But if your hand touches metal, I swear by my pretty floral bonnet, I will end you.

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Wednesday, November 24, 2004 12:57 PM

"uh...Jazaf"

"Well Jazaf, welcome aboard Sidere! My name is Soul"

Soul went on to point out the other members of the crew.

"So where are you headed?" Soul asked

"Anywhere I can..." Jazaf said underneath his breath.

"Mind repeating that?"

"Uh, I mean... that is I haven't decided yet. I have...", Jazaf rummages thruogh his bag looking for his money pouch, "only

55 credits to my name. But I would be more than willing to work off the rest of the charges. I'm pretty sure that I can

fit in somewhere.." Jazaf notices some shady looking men walk past the cargo bay door and instinctively brings hid bag closer.

Soul notices the odd movement but pushes it to the back of his mind. "Well, let me talk it out with the rest of the crew."

"Sure."

Jazaf watches as Soul walks deeper into the ship. Holding his bag tighter he whispers 'No one on this gorram mudball is

gonna take you away from me.'

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Wednesday, November 24, 2004 2:47 PM

"Teela? We're good to go. You ready?" Ebo shouted into the comm and the engines roared to life.

"Yeah," came the broken reply, "We're good to go."

Down in the passanger dorm Soul poked his head in the door to Jazafs's dorm, "You might want to hold onto something."

-----------------------------------

Four out of five dentists reccomend calling Ebo a girl.

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Thursday, November 25, 2004 6:37 AM

"Teela? We're good to go. You ready?" Ebo's voice came over the comm. The reply came shortly.

"Yeah. We're good to go."

Mantichorus looked at the engine. It would work, and that, in his opinion, was enough.

He hit the comms with a slightly vicious grin on his face. He hadn't felt this good in ages. "Our Father, who art in Heaven..." he said, completely deadpan.

"Manti, shut the hell up!!!" Ebo replied, sounding pissed off.

Mantichorus shook his mirthfully. He really shouldn't torment his crewmates. That Jazaf... Guy obviously had history, but then, who didn't?

He hit the intercomm again. "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Sidere. 'Cause sometimes, runnin' away is the only option."
--------------------------------------------------
A/N: Look at me take this plot nowhere.
--------------------------------------------------
SAFFRON: "Durran... This isn't what it looks like..."
MAL: "Unless it looks like we're stealing your priceless Lassiter, 'cause that's what we're doing. Don't ask me about the gun, though, 'cause that's new."
DURRAN: "Well. I appreciate your honesty. Not, you know, a lot, but --"

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Thursday, November 25, 2004 6:04 PM

Teela was in the kitchen doing kitchen-y things (picking up everything that had fallen down durring a shaky take-off) when Manti poped his head in, "Uh...Teela, you might wanna come down to the hold."

Teela raised an eyebrow, "Why?"

He scratched his head, "Well, you know that box we picked up?"

"Ebo opened it didn't she."

"Little bit, yeah."

They found Ebo sitting amid a pile of shreaded paper closely examining something.

"What did I say about opening the box?" Teela asked, suddenly feeling as if she was scolding a child.

Ebo gave her a blank look, "I dunno, wern't you listening either? Do you know what this is?" She handed a small, flat, plastic box to Manti.

He looked at it for a moment then opened it and let out a low whistle, "This is really incredible."

Ebo stood up, "What is it?"

"Its a-oh man, whats it called a CD. An incredibly rare artifact from Earth that was. These are worth a lot. I mean, a lot a lot."

"Whats it do?" Teela asked.

"It stores music. You need a special player to make 'em work though, and the players are even more rare then the CDs. What else is in there?"

Ebo began pulling more things out of the box. More CDs, a gameboy, an camera, DVDs, a palm pilot, and a rock.

Soul and the new passenger who's name Ebo couldn't remember (sorry) wandered in and marveled at the artifacts.

"This is fantastic," Soul was saying, "a large fourtune in Earth that was artifacts."

"Yeah, but what's with the rock? Seems sort of out of place, dontcha think?"

---------

OOC: I couldn't resist. Everytime I see Trash i wish they would spend more time on the Earth that was stuff. So i figured we could marvel.

I'll let someone else deal with putting us in peril.

-----------------------------------

Four out of five dentists reccomend calling Ebo a girl.

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Thursday, November 25, 2004 8:15 PM

Jazaf steadied himself "Huh, i thought we would've had a smoother ride." thinking aloud.

"Well i better take a look see in my bag to check for any damage."

The bag wasn't very large, but it was big enough to carry more than a few items he had 'procured' throughout his stay.

Placing five items on his bed he checks them for scratches or any other damage.

"Lessee here, CD player.....good, My novel of The Tale of Two Cities ......Damn.. the cover is torn" he frowns and

puts the book along with the cd player into his bag. The third item He picks up is about 44 inches in length and

brings a deep grin to Jazaf's face. "I wasn't about to let you go" he speaks to the item, "without you some

unfortunate soul would have cut me inta two pieces. My darling Sword" He removes the sword from it's sheath and looks

it up and down. The blade still ran slick from the edge to the tip where he thrusted it into his attacker before he left

the Red Mare to get to the docks. Entranced by the creature cut into the grip, he heard it was called a dragon, he

couldn't help but wonder at what kind of inspiration these creatures were. Shaking his head, he replaces the

sword into the sheath and continues. "ok now onto the next one, oh yeah, heh heh the passcodes for the Magistrates abode.

Good times. Oh well, never look to the past, gotta keep moving forward." The last item was a Velvet bag, it felt good

to the touch, He remembered lifting it off the Magistrates' Wife after he pulled a heist in their house. Opening the bag,

he looks inside and pulls out a jade stone carved to look like an animal from the earth that was. "Now what the Gorram

hell is this thing." After thinking over it for a while he gives up, packs it all back into his bag and hides it in his room.

"I guess it's about time I made myself useful around here"

So he leaves his room to find a task on the ship.

----------
OOC: Heh, i saw Ebo's post and I couldn't resist.

-----------------
Do you know what the chain of command is? It's the chain I go get and beat you with till you
understand who's in rutting command here.

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Thursday, November 25, 2004 8:30 PM

Ebo shook a CD, "So to get the music out you need a..."

"CD player," Jazaf said trotting down the stairs, "I got one."

"You do?" Manti asked, surprised, "How'd you manage to pull that off?" Jazaf gave him a look. "Right. Don't answer that."

"What should we listen too?" Ebo asked, "Oh? How bout these? The Firefly's. That would be strangly apropriate," she read the back of the case, "hey look. Lead guitarist has got the same name as me."

"Woah now. Wait one gorram second here," Teela interjected, "This is some expensive stuff we got right here. Lets not fiddle with it. Breaking it would be not good."

Ebo was about to protest when an alarm went off, "Gorram poximity alert," she mumbled, dropping the CD back into the box. Teela cringed as it hit the bottom with a crack.

Ebo jumped up and dusted off her pants, "I'll be back. I'd take it as a kindness if you didn't have fun without me."

-----------------------------------

Four out of five dentists reccomend calling Ebo a girl.

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Sunday, November 28, 2004 1:10 PM

A few minutes later Ebo stuck her head out of the top of the stairwell and shouted down to them in the cargo bay.

"Uh, we almost just ran into some big fancy Aliance ship." She began down the stairs.

"Did they hail us?" Teela asked.

"Nope. It was really wierd. We litarly almost hit em, and didn't get so much as a blip of static from their direction."

----------------

OOC: I'm not really going anywhere with this. Just tryin to get the story moving again.

-----------------------------------

Four out of five dentists reccomend calling Ebo a girl.

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Monday, November 29, 2004 7:15 PM

Jazaf stares blankly at the crate of Earth-That-Was artifacts as the crew discuss the ship. His ear twitches as he absently listens in.

"What are the odds that we'd run into two of them?" Teela said as her hand comes to her forehead as if she had a headache.

"I would say two in a very, very big number"

"ha ha very clever Soul"

"Well I thought it was" Soul says smirking slightly.

"Ok stop for a minute!" Teela interjects, "now last time it was some kinda Alliance Officer, Ebo, I need you to scan the ship for heat signatures tell me if there is a living soul on board that ship"

"Gotcha boss"

Ebo goes back to the bridge. "So if there isn't anyone on the ship we keep on moving right?"

"Yes, Jazaf we keep on moving 'cause the sooner we land the sooner we get paid."

"I need to get on board that ship. If that's an Alliance scout ship out there the computer on it's bridge has something very dear to me"

------------
OOC: Heck, I just wanna make a few of my characters skills known but I can wait till we reach the next planet if you want me to

---------------------------------------
Do you know what the chain of command is? It's the chain I go get and beat you with till you
understand who's in rutting command here.

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Tuesday, November 30, 2004 10:32 AM

The Man They Call Soul...

Soul rubbed his head as a headache began to form. The six of them were crowded into the bridge watching as Ebo finished the scan on the Alliance vessel.

"Hmm, odd," Ebo muttered.

"What's odd?" Teela asked.

Manti interjected before Ebo could respond. "We've had too much odd if you ask me."

Soul wanted to chuckle, but he felt that the effort required would just increase the pain in his head. He knew that the pain was the side effect of Interfacing for the first time in a long time, but the dull roar in his head irritated him none the less.

Ebo turned away from the console. "You were right Teela," Ebo said. "It's a Scout ship alright, and i'm not getting anything over there as far as heat signatures are concerned, save for a barely functioning life support system."

"I need to get over there, then," Jazaf pleaded.

Teela looked over at Jazaf briefley, and then passed her eyes over the rest of her crew. "Does anyone have any objections to taking a peek?"

No one objected.

Teela sighed. "I was afraid that no one would say otherwise."

"What about Reavers?" Glico asked.

Teela chuckled at that. "They're only fairy tales."

Don't be so sure, Soul thought, but he didn't speak his view aloud.

Teela turned to Ebo. "Can you get us docked with that ship without killing us?"

Grinning, Ebo spun in her chair and grabbed the controls. "What, don't you have faith in me?"

Soul leaned over to Manti. "Do you know how to pray?" he asked.

"I'm a fast learner," he replied.

Ebo stuck out her tongue at them.

"Here we go."
____________________________________

OOC: "Shrek and Donkey off on another whirlwind adventure!"

______________________

But if your hand touches metal, I swear by my pretty floral bonnet, I will end you.

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Tuesday, November 30, 2004 4:44 PM

OOC: OMG, Soul you're funny.

------------------------------------

Ebo watched the rest of the crew members grab onto stable objects and rolled her eyes, "Jeeze, you guys are such babies," she said as she reached up to flip three switches on the console above her head.

Once they were safely docked the crew moved back down to the airlock in the hold.

"We gonna need suits to get in there?" Teela asked.

"Nope. Its fully presurized." Ebo said, pushing the button on the control panel.

The main doors slid open.

"You sure?"

Ebo yanked open the second door and entered the Aliance ship. When she didn't turn blue and explode she said, "Yeah, I'm pretty sure its ok."

"Alright," Teela said, clapping her hands, "What are we looking for?"

-----------------------------------

Four out of five dentists reccomend calling Ebo a girl.

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Tuesday, November 30, 2004 7:23 PM

"I need to make my way to the bridge,hopefully this ship has enough power in it to maintain the computers." said Jazaf, "However, there might be some supplies still unused somewhere in here."

"I'll help ya find the bridge." Glico
piped up. Jazaf twitched a bit, "No, no. I'm pretty sure I know where to head."

"Really? Cause I wanted to check the navigational charts to see where this was headed."

"Really Really. I'm good." Jazaf half-shouted, as he was already headed towards the front of the ship.

"Did he seem a bit antsy to anyone just then?"

"Yeah, like he's got something to hide. Glico, you follow him and see if you can find out what's so important on the ship's computer that he would want to do it solo." Teela said.

As Glico went off to find Jazaf, Teela and the rest of the crew searched the ship for useful supplies.

The bridge was easy enough to find, it was only two corridors away. Jazaf sat in front of the computers and went to work.

'Where is it?' Jazaf thought,'I know I planted it here somewhere!'

Glico watched from a distance, she was sure Jazaf was too absorbed in his work to notice her as she tried to sneak through the shadows for a better view. Glico whispers in to the intercom "He seems to be searching for something in the computers'files."

"Finally! I found you." Jazaf said with a sigh, "Okay, copy....and delete."

Seeing Jazaf found what he was looking for, Glico makes her way out of the room as silently as possible, she whispers yet again into her intercom "He's got what he wanted, It looked like it was some kind of program."

"Do you know what it's called?" Teela questioned.

"Nope, but I was able to make out an Alliance symbol on the lower left-hand of the screen when he opened it."

With his work done, Jazaf took the wafer thin disk out of the computer and headed back to the Airlock.

---------------------------------------
Do you know what the chain of command is? It's the chain I go get and beat you with till you
understand who's in rutting command here.

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Saturday, December 4, 2004 10:21 AM

The Man They Call Soul...

"Okay, we've got a locked door here," Manti said from behind the group.

Soul turned around. After searching the ship for the past ten minutes, he was beginning to lose hope that there might be anything worth salvaging on the scout ship. Ebo stood beside him.

"Where's Teela?" Soul asked.

Ebo pointed over her shoulder. "She's back there somewhere. I think in the galley."

"So do I get some help or what?" Manti said impatiently.

"What? Oh, sorry," Soul said. He made his way over to the door.

"Can you open it?" Ebo asked.

Soul reached into one of his pockets and pulled out a small tool. He jammed one end of it into the edge of the door's control board and pried the panel open.

"Now that's a mess of wires," Ebo said.

"Which one do we cut?" Manti asked.

Underneath the panel there were at least thirty different wires visible, with no indication of which one to cut.

"I have no clue," Soul said. Manti and him stood there for a moment, staring at the tangle of wires.

"Will this help?" Ebo asked from behind them.

Soul turned as Ebo held out a small key card.

"Where'd you find that?" Manti asked.

"Around," Ebo replied defensivley.

Soul took the card and shrugged. He grabbed the panel, now hanging by the wires, and turned it over so he could see the card slot.

"Well, here goes nothing," he said.

He slid the card through the reader and stepped back from the door. The reader beeped, and then with a loud hiss, the door slid open, revealing the dimly lit room beyond.

"Well?" Soul asked no one in particular.

Manti just looked at him.

"Oh, you babies," Ebo mocked them. She pushed past them and strode into the room.

Soul sighed, and Manti and him followed Ebo inside.

______________________

But if your hand touches metal, I swear by my pretty floral bonnet, I will end you.

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Saturday, December 4, 2004 11:40 AM

Ebo took a few steps into the dark room and set off a motion sensor, which turned the lights on. She saw somwthing move out of the corner of her eye. Her lighting fast pilot insticts kicked in and in a flash she was hiding behind Soul screaming, "Spider! Did you see that?! It was huge! Monster spider! Kill it! Kill it!"

Soul looked around, "Where'd it go?"

"Behind that box," Ebo panted, "Gaa! There's another one!"

Manti looked around, "Jesus, they're everywhere."

Shivers ran up Ebo's spine as she saw that the room was filled with dozens of spiders. She pulled Soul and Manti back through the door and slammed it shut.

Ebo shuddered, "Who's bright idea was it to open that door?" The two men just looked at her, "Oh right. That would be me. Lets go see if there's anything else on this boat." She turned a took a few steps before realizing that they wern't following her. "As in, anything else, not in the scary spider room."

The men wern't listening to her, "Why is there a room filled spiders?" Manti asked, more thinking out loud then expecing any real answer.

"Probably its the reason everybody left. Probably we should do the same." Ebo said.

Manti didn't listen and continued with his train of thought, "Forget the spiders. Why was that door locked? Think there's something valuable in there?"

"I bet they were just trying to keep the spiders in. Probably we shouldn't mess with it." Ebo said.

"All the same," Soul said, "We should probably see whats in those boxes. Just in case."

"Didn't you SEE the spiders?" Ebo pleaded.

Manti opened the door, "You can stay out here Ebo."

"But-"

"Don't worry," Soul said, "We'll tell you if we find anything."

They started into the room. Ebo stood there for a moment and tried to decide what was worse, a room full of spiders or missing out on all the fun. After a moment she ran into the room after them, "Hey wait up."

-----------------------------------

Four out of five gynecologists recommend calling Ebo a girl.

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Sunday, December 5, 2004 12:43 PM

Ebo looked around at the spiders, "So the spiders are guarding something then?"

"No," Manti laughed, "That would be dumb." He looked around, then noticed shatterd glass on the ground on the corner, "There," he pointed, "Their terrarium must've smashed."

"Why were they shipping spiders?" Ebo asked.

Soul shugged, "Spiders are rare in the Core. Zoo's and rich folks will pay top dolar to have a creepy crawly all their own."

"What are you kidding me?" Ebo sqished a spider and made a face at the crunchy noise it made, "They should come out to the rim. We got spiders a plenty out there." Another spider came closer and she jumped up on a box to get away from it. "This is disgusting. Find whatever your looking for fast-like so we can get out of here."

-----------------------------------

Four out of five gynecologists recommend calling Ebo a girl.

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Sunday, December 5, 2004 11:32 PM

OC: Y'know, for a second, I read 'shipping spiders' as 'worshipping spiders'.

--------------------------------------------------
IC:
Mantichorus looked around. "Ever hear of a film from Earth-That-Was called Arachnophobia?" Soul gave him a blank look, while Ebo just glared at him. "Right, sorry."

"Manti, just hurry up so's we can get out of here." Ebo whimpered from on top of her box.

Manti and Soul searched the room, when...

"How stupid are we?" Soul suddenly asked.

"How'd you mean?" Mantichorus asked, uncomprehending.

Soul turned to Ebo. "Look. Box."

"Ah. Right." Mantichorus nodded.

"No way in all of Hell are you gonna get me off of this box." Ebo scowled at the two men. Soul and Mantichorus glanced at each other.

"Sounds like a bet to me." Mantichorus shrugged.

--------------------------------------------------
SAFFRON: "Durran... This isn't what it looks like..."
MAL: "Unless it looks like we're stealing your priceless Lassiter, 'cause that's what we're doing. Don't ask me about the gun, though, 'cause that's new."
DURRAN: "Well. I appreciate your honesty. Not, you know, a lot, but --"

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Thursday, December 9, 2004 12:02 PM

The Man They Call Soul...

OOC: I've only got 2 seconds. I'll post later. I'm just trying to keep this from dissapearing into the archives.

______________________

But if your hand touches metal, I swear by my pretty floral bonnet, I will end you.

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Monday, December 13, 2004 1:51 PM

The Man They Call Soul...

Soul thought for a moment. How to get Ebo off of the box...

The solution came to him in the form of one of the larger spiders dropping from the celing and onto Ebo's head. The pilot screamed, falling off of the box as she scrambled for the door.

The box, however, in Ebo's frantic dash to escape the spiders, was pushed along the floor until it collided with the far wall. The lid to the box snapped in half at the sudden impact, and clattered to the floor.

"Well, that was easy," Manti remarked.

Soul nodded in agreement as the two of them made their way over to the box. Ebo could still be heard screaming outside the door.

"This better be worth it," Soul said as he pulled out a small flashlight and shone it into the box-

-And screamed at the face that stared back up at him.
____________________________

OOC: Dun dun dun... I don't quite have an idea of where to go with this, so anyone can have fun with this if you want.

______________________

But if your hand touches metal, I swear by my pretty floral bonnet, I will end you.

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Monday, December 13, 2004 6:35 PM

While waiting in the airlock for the rest of the crew Jazaf heard a scream, He froze. Not even a second had passed when he heard yet another scream.

'Hwai' He thought to himself. 'I hope they didn't find the Gorram...' He couldn't finish the thought.

Once he entered the room he heard the screams coming from he cursed aloud.

"Ai ya duh liou mahng! Not now! not yet!" Jazaf rushed forward and put the head back into the box and shut it as best he could.

"What in the nine gorram hells was that!" Manti shouted.

"Something not meant for your eyes." Jazaf said with his back turned.

"So this ship is familiar to you then?" Soul questioned, recovering from the shock.

Jazaf didn't answer. He just stood there.

"Ta ma duh! Why did you guys just let the spider attack me!! I could've.." Manti waved his hand to silence Ebo.

Manti placed a hand on Jazaf's shoulder and spun him on his heels. Looking at Jazaf dead in the eye Manti said, "Now you are gonna tell us who is in the rutting box and how you became familiar with the layout of this ship."

The color drained from Jazaf's face. It was clear that Manti's presence disturbed him more than the secrets he had been hiding."Ok, I'll tell you"

"I killed the man in the box a few months back."

"Where's the rest of him?" Soul prodded

"I.... sent the body to a rising gangster, to get him off my back. It was supposed to prove that I don't just talk a lot, that I can back up my words with action."

"A new gangster? Someone like Jerry"

"No. No one like that. This guy... he makes Jerry seem like a two-bit con man. This guy pushes a lot more than just contraband and word is he's into some guy named Sun-Tzu."

"So what's his name?"

Looking down to the floor jazaf says, "Adelai Niska."

---------
OOC: Hope I spelled the name right. had this on the back burner for a while now.
---------------------------------------
Do you know what the chain of command is? It's the chain I go get and beat you with till you
understand who's in rutting command here.

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Monday, December 13, 2004 7:04 PM

"Spiders attacked me and I was standing on a rutten dead guy. This day just gets better and better," Ebo mumbled, "And to top it off, we toss Niska into the mix. Someone remind me why I got out of bed this morning..."

"Wait, back up," Soul said, holding up a hand, "Adelai Who-ska?"

"Niska. Who in the 'verse hasn't heard of him?"

Soul raised his hand. Manti's folled a few seconds later.

Ebo gave them a look, "I would have thought that you of all people would...huh. Hey, this is cool. I know something you don't know." She grinned, "I think I got out of bed for this moment."

"Who is he?" Manti asked.

"Shhh, I need to savor this." Manti gave her a dark look, "Right, consider the moment savored! Niska is sort of a newbie to the mob scene. Early 20s, I think. Anyway, he'd been skating through life, leaving a trail of dead bodies wherever he went-"

"Out in the rim thats nothing specail," Soul inturuped.

"He killed David Walker." Ebo barely noted the surprise registuring behind the two mercs. cloesly guarded expressions.

Jazaf picked up the story, "Upon killing the biggest, baddest mob wolf, Niska sort of became him. Took over his empire, you might say."

"Word on the street is that he's more brutal than Walker ever was," Ebo added.

"I find that hard to beleve," Soul said.

"Believe it," Jazaf said darkly, "I've met him. Looked in his eyes. There's nothing in there. Nothing human. Nothing with any kind of soul. Creepy doesn't even begin to discribe it."

Ebo scratched her head, "So why didn't you send him the head too?"

-----------------------------------

Four out of five gynecologists recommend calling Ebo a girl.

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Tuesday, December 14, 2004 2:44 AM

"Well, Niska's not the only mob boss whose starting to make his way in the 'verse. Thought it might be wise to keep a back-up in case." Jazaf said, looking at the assembled members of Sidere around him.

"Think we better tell Teela and Glico 'bout this? Yeah." Ebo grinned slightly nervously as a spider started to crawl towards her, and bolted out the door. Jazaf followed, and as Soul was about to leave, Mantichorus laid a hand on his shoulder.

"How 'bout we try that mask we spoke of earlier, and see what your ex-employers know about Niska?" Mantichorus asked, with an eyebrow raised. Before Soul could answer, Mantichorus brought his foot down hard on one of the larger spiders, creating a satisfing squish!-sound.

--------------------------------------------------
SAFFRON: "Durran... This isn't what it looks like..."
MAL: "Unless it looks like we're stealing your priceless Lassiter, 'cause that's what we're doing. Don't ask me about the gun, though, 'cause that's new."
DURRAN: "Well. I appreciate your honesty. Not, you know, a lot, but --"
--------------------------------------------------
The Doctor: "I loathe bus stations. Terrible places. Full of lost luggage and lost souls."

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Tuesday, December 14, 2004 5:30 AM

The Man They Call Soul...

Back on Sidere, Soul sat on the table in the medbay while Manti fiddled with a small handheld computer.

"So what exactly is that thing?" Soul asked.

Manti grinned. "It's an interface of a sort, just not as sophisticated as the one in your head. I should be able to use this to change the 'signature' that your interface uses when it logs onto the Cortex."

Soul nodded, both appreciative and impressed. "Seems like you've picked up a few useful skills since you were released from...well, wherever they had you when they weree messin' with your brain."

Manti grimmaced, and Soul realized that his last comment could have been phrased without mentioning the past that Manti apparently wanted to forget.

"Sorry," Soul said. "Shouldn't have mentioned that."

Manti shook his head. "Don't worry about it," he said. Then he grinned. "Besides, it does have it's advantages. I did get that warning about Ritchie."

Soul grinned back. "Well, let's get started then."

"Lay back," Manti said.

Soul looked at him quizically.

Manti sighed. "This might knock you out, and I really don't feel like picking your heavy ass up off of the floor."

Soul chuckled. "You're the boss."

"Actually, I'm the boss," Teela said as she came into the room, "And I'd love to know just what in the diyu I'm missing out on here."

Soul looked at Manti and the two of them filled Teela in on everything that had happened. When they finished, Teela simply shook her head.

"Niska," she mumbled. Then she turned and headed out the door. "I've gotta find Ebo. That girl has a tendency to fly us into all sorts of trouble."

After the Captain left, Manti turned back to Soul and raised the device to the side of Soul's head.

"Now this might sting a little..."

______________________

But if your hand touches metal, I swear by my pretty floral bonnet, I will end you.

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Thursday, December 16, 2004 6:43 AM

"Now this might sting a little..." Mantichorus said, as Soul lay back on the operating table. Soul tensed. "On the count of three..." Soul relaxed. "One--" Mantichorus activated the procedure.

"Yow!" Soul yelped, and fell unconscious.

Mantichorus exhaled slowly. He had to be careful - one wrong move could give Soul brain damage. He prayed that there would be no distractions - other members of the crew, pre-cog flashes, or anything. Several tense minutes passed. After about half an hour, Mantichorus picked up a hypo, and injected Soul.

Soul came to almost instantly. "Whuh? Why'd you go on 'One'?" He asked groggily.

"You'd have started to tense on 'Two' and be fully tense on 'Three'. More likely to do yourself some damage like that." Mantichorus explained. "Right - I haven't been able to mask your signal. The tech was too advanced for me at the moment. But I have managed to reroute it several times before it gets to you. You'll experience a few seconds lag, but it'll be practically impossible to trace."

--------------------------------------------------
SAFFRON: "Durran... This isn't what it looks like..."
MAL: "Unless it looks like we're stealing your priceless Lassiter, 'cause that's what we're doing. Don't ask me about the gun, though, 'cause that's new."
DURRAN: "Well. I appreciate your honesty. Not, you know, a lot, but --"
--------------------------------------------------
The Doctor: "I loathe bus stations. Terrible places. Full of lost luggage and lost souls."

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Friday, December 17, 2004 8:16 PM

"I'm gonna go find Ebo," Teela said, "Girl has a way of flying us into all sorts of trouble," she clomped out of the kitchen and towards the bridge.

Teela clomped around for a long time before she found Ebo, asleep, in the lounge.

Teela clapped her hands and yelled, "Spider!"

Ebo snorted awake, "Is it Kwanzaa?" she mumbled.

"Where are we going?" Teela asked.

"Huh?"

"The ship. And those on it. What exciting new lands are we heading off too?"

"Oh. Um. I can't remember. We're on course though. Boldly going off to lands where we have to deliver parrot-guy's goods."

"You sure?"

"Yes...No...I'm sorry, what were we talking about?"

"Maybe you should go back to sleep."

"If you insist."

-----------------------------------

Four out of five gynecologists recommend calling Ebo a girl.

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Tuesday, December 21, 2004 5:50 PM

So, this is the real you....
"Gorramit!" Jazaf whispers through clenched teeth. Still shaken from seeing the head of the man he killed.

Jazaf's held is head in his hands. 'What was his name?!' He could barely remember, all he knew was that man was sent from Niska.

He remembered that when he heard Niska's name a chill ran down his spine and he killed the messenger as swiftly as he could manage.

He cut off the head, packaged the body, bribed the mail officials and sent his 'present' to Niska with a note saying: You don't have to put mer in a near-death situation to meet the real me.

Subconsciously, his right hand touches his stomach and traces a five inch scar that trails along his upper torso.

Suddenly he was back in Niska's Hideout strapped down to an examinating table. Crying his eyes out and telling Niska everything he knows.

Niska looks down disapprovingly and says "So, this is the real you, what a shame. You talk so much yet you cannot back up what you say."

Niska walks around the table, a knife in his hand and continues, "I thought there would be more to you" and with that inserts the knife.

A soundless scream erupts from Jazaf's lips. He looks around and realizes that he is still on the Sidere. He quickly reaches into his bag and grabs some pills, pills meant for nullifying any and all pain.

As Jazaf succombs to his medication one thing skips through his brain, the name of the man, the head in the box, Neal Statkins.

---------------------------------------
Do you know what the chain of command is? It's the chain I go get and beat you with till you
understand who's in rutting command here.

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Wednesday, December 29, 2004 11:32 AM

The Man They Call Soul...

Soul wandered up onto the bridge. Sidere was detatched from the Alliance ship and they were continuing on their way to Banning with the Earth-that-was artifacts. Ebo was down in the kitchen with the others, so the bridge was empty for the moment. He settled down into the co-pilot's chair and stared out into the black.

He thought of his wife, then. Of his son. Of the fact that once again because of him, they had to move away from their friends and hide. All because of Soul.

Gorram...

He stared out into the black, willing away the thoughts and regrets that tore at him. He hated himself for what he had done in the past, but even more so now that he was trying to make his life right. Not because he didn't want to make things right, but because it seemed like every decision he made only seemed to make things worse for his family.

He shook his head. That wasn't why he had come to the bridge. He had no time to wallow in self pity. He needed to find out what was known about Adelei Niska, and exactly what they were getting themselves into on Banning.

Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and focused on his implant. Just as Manti had said, it took him a second or two longer than normal to interface with the Cortex, but once he was in, he didn't sense the tracers that always followed his signal. Manti must have done good, he thought.

Time to go to work. He reached out with his mind into the vast expanse of the Cortex. So Niska, who are you?

______________________

But if your hand touches metal, I swear by my pretty floral bonnet, I will end you.

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Saturday, January 1, 2005 7:52 PM

Ebo trotted into the bridge to find Soul slumped in the co-pilots chair. She chirped a greeting but got no responce. She looked at him quizzicaly for a moment, then shugged and sat in her chair thinking the bridge was a wierd place to sleep but hey, she'd done it herself many a time.

She quietly hit buttons and fliped switches and to her horror found herself beggening to like the simple effeciancy of Sidere. "Piece of go-se," she mumbled as she reached for the com. She was about to speak into it when she realized that her voice echoing through the ship would probably wake Soul up. She didn't really want to wake Soul up, poor guy didn't look like he got a great deal of sleep. Besides, she figured there was a good change he'd kill her if she took him by surprise.

Instead she hit the auto-pilot and trotted down to the kitchen to tell Teela that they'd be landing soon.

-----------------------------------

Four out of five gynecologists recommend calling Ebo a girl.

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Thursday, January 6, 2005 5:33 AM

OC: I can't think of anything to add to the story, but I just thought I'd say happy belated birthday Soul, on some undisclosed date in December.

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SAFFRON: "Durran... This isn't what it looks like..."
MAL: "Unless it looks like we're stealing your priceless Lassiter, 'cause that's what we're doing. Don't ask me about the gun, though, 'cause that's new."
DURRAN: "Well. I appreciate your honesty. Not, you know, a lot, but --"
--------------------------------------------------
The Doctor: "I loathe bus stations. Terrible places. Full of lost luggage and lost souls."

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Tuesday, January 11, 2005 7:45 PM

bump!

-----------------------------------

Four out of five gynecologists recommend calling Ebo a girl.

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Friday, January 14, 2005 7:25 PM

As Jazaf awoke he could feel ship entering the atmosphere. It was a slight rocking at first but then it escalated into a shakedown so fierce, Jazaf wondered if the vessel would hold.

'Glad I woke up before we entered the atmo.' Jazaf breathed a sigh of relief.

Then, turning his attention to his grumbling stomach he went to the kitchen. On his way there he passed Soul.

The man looked deep in thought, so Jazaf decided not to bother him. He just watched Soul walk back to his cabin.

Over the intercom system he could hear Ebo talk as if she were imitating a fellow pilot,
"Attention All Passengers, We are making our final approach on Banning and we will be landing in about 15 minutes. The Crew here on Sidere would like to thank you for choosing us above all others. Thank you and have a nice day."

Jazaf chuckled and shook his head as he continued to the kitchen.

---------------------------------------
Do you know what the chain of command is? It's the chain I go get and beat you with till you
understand who's in rutting command here.

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Tuesday, January 18, 2005 10:35 AM

The Man They Call Soul...

Soul sat gingerly on the edge of his bed, everything he had just learned swirling around in his head. It was all a jumble of information, but none of it made much sense. It just all seemed like too much coincidence. Taking Wilkins on board, the showdown with the Alliance cruiser, Herald showing up in an attempt to capture Manti, the Earth-that-was cargo to Banning, the run in with the floating Alliance ship with Jazaf's "message" to Niska...just too much of a coincidence. They were attracting way too much attention.

What was going on?

He shook his head to try to gain some clarity. He focused on the info that he had been able to track down about Niska, and most of it cooberated what Jazaf had said earlier: twisted, demented, power hungry, and a stiffler for vengance. There were spotted reports of Niska's location over the past several years, but nothing for the last six months. Almost as if the Crime Lord had dissapeared...

No, that wasn't the case. Then what was the connection here? What was the common thread running through everything?

His head hurt. He heard Ebo saying that they were touching down on Banning, so he rose, grabbed his gear and headed to join the others at the airlock.

______________________

But if your hand touches metal, I swear by my pretty floral bonnet, I will end you.

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Tuesday, January 18, 2005 1:58 PM

"...Oh, and please put all tray tables and seat backs in their full and upright position," Ebo finished, then added as an afterthought, "It is costomary for passengers to tip the pilot. Money is best, but if you don't have any, she will accept sexual favors."

She hung up and wondered if she should warn them to hang onto something. Suddenly, the ship jumped and Ebo figured that they had probably figured that out already.

She landed and trotted down to the hold, whistling some tuneless song. She pushed a button on the control panel and took a deep breath of fresh air as the doors slid slowly open. Banning might not be an ideal vaction spot, but the air was sure nice.

The people, not so much.

As Ebo turned back towards the infirmary she heard the unmistakeable click and whir of a gun being cocked. Then another and a third.

"Son of a..." Ebo muttered and put her arms in the air. She slowly turned to face three ragged looking men poiting the buisness ends of their guns at her.

"Hi!" she said with fake cheerfulness.

The man in the center, a short guy in a hat grunted at her, "We've come for your cargo."

"What cargo?" Ebo asked, trying to be swave.

"That cargo," he jestured at the box lying open behind her, still open and with packaging poking out of the top.

"Oh! THAT cargo. Right..."

-----------------------------------

Four out of five gynecologists recommend calling Ebo a girl.

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Wednesday, January 19, 2005 4:28 AM

As the ship landed with a jolt, Mantichorus came groggily to. Out of habit, he checked his nose. Not bleeding. He looked up at the mirror. Nope, no caked-on blood. He'd just fallen asleep, like folk do. He stood up and stretched. Then he paused.

Voices.

He recognised one as Ebo's, but he didn't recognise the other. Grabbing his pouch, coat, and the revolver Soul'd given him, he went to march off to the cargo bay, when he paused.

Someone behind him.

He spun on the spot, and drew the gun ready. Soul started.

"What are you--"

Mantichorus put his finger to his lips, and then whispered. "I can hear voices. One of them's Ebo's, and the other ain't so friendly soundin'."

--------------------------------------------------
Barret: "I been here since the beginnin', an' I still don't know what the hell's goin' on either."
--------------------------------------------------
The Doctor: "I loathe bus stations. Terrible places. Full of lost luggage and lost souls."

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Thursday, January 20, 2005 9:55 PM

"Do you think they could be the contacts for the cargo?" Jazaf asked, just as soft.

Manti took a glance and then a second."Hey Jazaf you got something on your...." then made a brushing motion across his chin. "Oh." Jazaf wiped the rest of his snack from his face.

"Could be but they could just as easily want to take over the ship."

"Jazaf, you got a weapon?" Soul asked

"Yeah I got one"
"Then go get it and meet me and Manti above the cargo bay."
"Gotcha."

Jazaf headed back to his cabin. Once there he grabbed his Katana and strapped it across his lower back. Then he rummaged through his bag for a gun. As he checked his gun he noticed he had no bullets.

"Gorramit. I'll just have to ask one of the others for some ammo." Jazaf thought to himself as he headed back to the Cargo bay.

---------------------------------------
Do you know what the chain of command is? It's the chain I go get and beat you with till you
understand who's in rutting command here.

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Monday, January 31, 2005 11:32 AM