Thea's Diary: Entry 1139 (Mao 2518)

Well, that's a nice howdy. Dylan could have at least warned me as to why he was callin. So I git down there and he's a waitin with a couple locals from the sheriff's office. They were upset over me shootin at that feller in the bar. Had ta go in for questionin.

Reckon I should probably start where I left off. On our way back to the ship I'm askin the taller fella how he figures Jasmine (that meh lien dun jyah jee's name) earned her way into crew by givin them a bag of credits. Looks like money can't buy ya smarts, but can help ya look the other way. By the time we got back to the ship I was ready to pack it in, but Jasmine had some explainin to do. She hauled out the typical repressed woman bit. Typical. Of course the rest fell for it hook, line and sinker. I'd had enough and hit the bunk after readin a little.

Next mornin I find myself down at the sherrif's to explain what happened in the club. I recounted what happened as best I could. Spent some time in the lock-up for "assault", but he had it comin to him for insulting mei-mei. I had me a cunning plan going for makin a break when Dylan had some fancy pants lawyer come and get the charges dismissed. Well, except the assault charges, which was a fine. By the time I got back Mel, Dylan and the rest had gotten their first bounty. I can't wait to hear Mel tell the story. She seemed pretty thrilled with having gotten a bounty. Of course it'll have to be during break as we've got plenty of work to do around the ship.

Current Date: Mao 1, 2518

March 28, 2518 is the last day of March (or Yin) so make sure if you're writing after the fact you use Mao 1. Next game will pick up sometime in Mao.

Thea's Diary: Entry 1138 (Tiger 2518)

Dear Friend,

Why did I sign up for this job? I mean, I love Mel like the sis I never had, but I'm startin to wonder if this is the right life for me.

So, today the Captain headed off to gamble away what little funds he last left in the hopes of raisin some money for the debts. Could the big poof be any more frivolous with his money? Thank The Lord that Pa taught me to handle my money better than that. Any how, Mel and I stayed behind to work on ship a little. Nothin major, just routine maintenance. I have to say, I love that mule. Nothin quite like the tractors back home but kinda got a familiarity to it.

So, Cap's been gone for a while when he shows up with two city slickers carrying some gal. He looked a little nervous about somethin but couldn't gather quite what. I was hoping his luck at cards had finally changed and he brought them here to pay up, when he started showing them around the ship. Looked like he was plannin on sellin the rest of his silly "shares" to them. I'm still not quite sure what the heck I that means, even after he coned me into buying some. So, when he calls Mel up to the bridge, I figure what's coming next and try to head to my bunk but he wants to run a "Crazy Ivan", so I head back to the engine room. I'm so glad Mel's so good as what she does. So, I'm back there hanging on for dear life when that sketch gal comes wandering in looking for one of the fellas. I send her up to the bridge and she gets in a huff cause I'm workin and can't hold her hand. Like I got time for that. Don't know who spit in her bean curd, but looks like she ain't savin none of her charm for me, not like I care.

After a spell, Mel puts 'er down, I need to talk to her about those landings, and the Cap gets to jawin with these fellers about buying a stake in the ship. Meanwhile the bit of fluff starts messing around in the kitchen, helping herself to our food and making a right mess of the place without even having the decency to ask. Just like city folk. Never ask us for nothin. Just come in without askin and takin whatever they want. And on top of that she was just ruinin my fresh fruits. Why would anyone want to go around messin up good food like that? Ain't like we'll be able to get nothin fresh further out. Fresh stuff is hard enough to find on the border, let alone on the rim. I just hope my garden starts growin more soon or I may starve. I miss apples fresh off the trees and Ma's home cookin. Mel's a right good cook, she just tends to over cook the eggs and bacon. Any how like I was sayin, I tried to talk some sense into the captain, I mean really what did he know about these folks? Like I was really going to believe that gal was related to the younger guy. Guess it don't matter what I reckon, cause he sold his "shares" and now the ship has new owners. What a bubn dahn. Cap insisted that I take them to get their stuff and they spent the night on the ship. I made double sure to lock my bunk and spent some time readin my Bible and tendin my garden before rolling out my mat.

Next mornin I reckoned I was feelin a mite better. About ran into Egg on the way to breakfast. Odd duck, but still seems mostly harmless. Got to the galley late and was rudely reminded about yesterday's mess. The old guy looked pretty calm and peaceful, but the younger guy was stewin about somethin. At least Mel had managed to make some breakfast so I had somethin to eat. Cap and the city slickers had some money stuff to take care off, and the new gal wanted to go with. Mel was being all sweet, as usual, and offered to show her around and do some shoppin. I reckoned I'd get some more grub and maybe try to find some different lettuce seeds. They ain't cheap, but looked like I might have to go hungry from time to time from now on. Peace at last once they left. Egg gave me a list of things to get for him, which at least meant more time off the ship, and I headed out to the park. It's so nice to walk on grass again. If Mel weren't so darned thrilled to be flyin again, I'd ask them dandified fellers if they wanted to buy my shares while they were at it. I have to say it was a nice trip. I'm gonna miss Santos a bit. I was right and those lettuce seeds were a pain to find, but I figure they'll be worth every credit in the end. I thankfully got back before the rest and headed to the galley to put the stuff away. The rest came in soon after with the Captain lookin pleased as punch. I figure the sale went off with out a hitch. Mel started handin out presents, I ain't sure where she got the credits but she seemed right pleased with herself. She gave me the frilliest pink and blue dress I ever laid eyes on. Bet I'd look like a sheep prancin on it's hind legs around the ship in that thing. Reckon I was a little overly harsh on Mel about it, I'll have to make it up to her later, but I can't figure when I would ever wear such a thing. Certainly not around the ship, and I already got me a perdy church dress.

After the presents the captain wanted to go dancin. Everyone thought it was a good idea, so I went and put on a nice blouse. Cap said I looked right perdy. Bet he was just tryin to make me feel better, but he ain't so bad at times. Mei-mei looks nice as always and seemed pretty excited to go. The club was packed, and Mel and the Captain were off dancin and havin fun. Mel offered me a drink from time to time, but someone had to keep an eye out for trouble, especially as I don't really trust these new fellers yet. Of course trouble found us. At least he just seemed to be after the new girl. Now, she ain't done nothin to put herself in my good graces, but somethin about a guy pullin a knife on a gal is just wrong. Only thing I can't figure out is how I just managed to grazed him. Thank The Lord that one of us has enough smarts to bring their guns. Any how, next thing I know the place is going as crazy as a chicken coup with a coyote in it. Mel knocks one guy flat on his ass and another opens fire. Next time I go to a club with her, I need to remember my body armor. Thankfully I hit the ground in time, then was able to get a good blow in with my knife while Mel had him distracted. I ain't quite sure what happened to the other guys, but by the time I turned around it was over. I told Mel to find the Captain while I went lookin for my gun, and then we hightailed it out of there. That little tramp has a lot of explaining to do. She wants to get herself killed, I figure that's fine with me, but leave the Captain, Mel and me out of it.

What I really couldn't believe was that meh lien dun jyah jee was still with us headin back to the ship. I wanted to ask Mel why we were letting her trail along, but they were both helping the Captain. I could tell she already had her hooks into the younger fella, so I had to ask the tall one, which of course would have been easier if someone had bothered to tell me that he's deaf!

Shit. That's the captain callin. I best get goin or I'll be humped.

Mel's First Letter to Ma and Pa O'Malley

27 Yin 2518
Dirtside Terminal 7

To the O'Malley Farm
Route 372

Dear Mom and Dad,

By the time you read this, your little girl will have shipped off into the black. It's what I've dreamed of doing since I was a little girl, and in any case, it seemed like the perfect time to leave Santos. I'll come back and visit after things get better for me.

Let's just say that if I stuck around in town, me and Smitty would be together, and I know that you wouldn't approve of that! :) You heard the news about him and Sheriff Taylor down in Otoba. I got mixed up in some of that too. I can't tell you what happened, or it could come back to you, but what they say about me isn't true. Don't believe a word of it. I'll have to live with the stories, but since they can't hurt me off world, I figure they're just stories, right? I'm still your little girl, same as when I lived with you in the farm. Living in Otoba didn't change me any.
I would swear on the family Bible, that I took nothing that wasn't earned in blood or toil.

Joe told me his news, that Lizzy is 4 months along, and maybe I can come back in a few months to see them and the baby, but I'm just going to have to miss the wedding. Please tell him and Lizzy just how sorry I am to miss their big event, and that I have to do this.

Captain Herron signed me up to a ship called the Lazy Swan. He seems like a great captain, and I love him all to pieces already. Kind of like Uncle Earl. He drinks like him too, actually, but don’t think he drinks when he's working on the ship! I signed up with my friend Thea. You know her, the outdoorsy girl from my time on Otoba. I brought her and Smitty up to the farm one time for a weekend. She's watching out for me, and I'm doing what I can to liven up her life, too. The other day, one of the investors gave me money to buy something nice for her, and I got her a frilly dress. I don't think she liked it much, though. Maybe I should have just stuck to a buck knife, or something. She and I aren't much into dressing up, but we really should have an interesting life, plowing out into the black. If I don't find a new man, I keep telling Thea, I'll let her track one down and trap one for me!

So, we spent the last few days trying to line up investors, and as luck would have it, the second to last day that we could afford docking fees, we found a few! They seem like nice folk, although one of them seems to bring trouble with him. Our last night dirtside, we went out dancing, it was a lot of fun! Danced with the captain until my feet hurt. Cap'n doesn't seem to have no limit to what he can do, really. Then, something kind of strange happened, these hooligans came and tried to break up the party. Maybe they didn't like one of our passengers. I was whooping it up in the blue skirt you gave me last birthday, and the next thing I know, I ended up putting a fist to one of them's jaw. I'm not a mean girl, Mama, but they really did deserve it. Honest! I didn't start this one, but me and the others ended it right quick!

My traveling companions seem nice. There's this crazy little witch doctor that is shipping out with us, Thea, the Cap'n, and me. We're the crew. Then, we got these investors. One of them is a little woman who thinks she can cook omelettes out of syntheggs better than your little Mel!! I tried not to show her up too bad, but Mom's little tricks go a long way! She seems a bit kwong-juh duh, if you know what I mean, but she was nice enough. She brought a pile of money to the Captain, so we like her plenty! Another of the passengers is a quiet fellow with a short haircut who doesn't hear so well, I think they called him "Major." I've been searching the net to find out if he is an old Independent hero or something. Wonder if he knew Caleb in The War. He seems to be the politest fellow you ever did know, with a quiet, calm way about him, and he enjoys a good cup of tea, which is always a good thing in a traveling companion. I reckon he's a businessman, or stockbroker by profession these days, maybe shipping out to do some speculating on other worlds. Ultimately, he and this Martin fellow write the checks, so maybe we'll fly these guys to meet clients, or move cargo. Maybe they are taking us on as a safari ship. Always sounded pretty exciting, the idea of landing and hunting and camping out! In any case, they both seem important and wealthy!

I don't know what the story is with our new companions, but I know that it will all work out. It usually does! I really feel terrible about running away from Santos. I know what Dad always says about running from your troubles, but I don't think that the bastards who came after me would see from my eyes. Bottom line, Fahng-sheen. I can take care of myself, and I'm with friends.

I love my new job. The ship isn't a 'KV-115 Cruiser, or nothin', but she can make it all the way out into the black, and that's saying something. All new parts, and fittings. Everything looks shiny, although the last pilot didn’t really know much about hooking up the command panel. Still, Captain has punched her up something fierce. I don't know why you'd use it for hauling freight, though, Don't need that much power to haul livestock, but I'm up for whatever he's got planned, I think. Here's my big chance to see those planets that we only hear about on the newslinks, so I'm looking forward to taking it.

The other day, to show off to the investors, your little girl flew around Santos four times! Barrel Rolls, loops, and an Ivan! What more could a girl ask for?!
I didn't even bother looking for home. Too high up! I'm still learning all of the switches, since it's a later model than I studied on, but all those night classes at the Otoba annex paid off! They think I can fly, anyhow, they let me at the controls! Don't know whether that scares me or not.

If I get to Hera, I'll drop in on on Caleb. Who knows? Send all my love to Joe, Josh, Marty, Danny, Will, and Freddie, and their families from their little sister. Tell Marty that I'll be taking his advice, and smack Danny on the back of the head for his! Don't ask him, he'll know what it's about!

Best of wishes from out in the black,

Your loving Mel

Dylan's Diary, Yin (Tiger or March) 27th, 2518

Well, what an exciting couple of days!

First off, the business with Somers is concluded. He's got his money, so no more jobs for him and no more threats of bodily harm, at least from that quarter. The man is a creep. The ship is now in safe hands.

Second, the new buyers seem nice. I'm glad I went with them, rather than trying to find someone on Persephone like Ma said. Major Hong is kinda cute, even though he's a little old. And deaf. He's also got that aloof demeanor. I'll bet he's a cold fish.

Martin is just dreamy. I can see why Jasmine went for him. I'd have made a play, if she hadn't been on his arm. I know, not good to mix business and pleasure, but damn! he's got that mysterious-guy-thing going for him. I'll be he's a demon in sack. Wonder if Jasmine will share?

Jasmine, though, is the new girl. She's obviously got some kind of problems. Some guy came gunning for her while we were at the Hoe Down, and brought some bully boys with him. I almost got shot! If that's the kind of stuff we're dealing with on a regular basis, then I think our days of running weapons might look like a piece of cake.

I mean, when we meet the girl, she's all damsel in distress. Beaten up, crying, running to Martin for protection. Good move, but still a little over the top, you know? And she got Martin mugged, could have gotten him killed! Then she's all ingratiating while I'm trying to conduct business, and MAN can she cook. Thea doesn't seem to like her much. Course, Thea doesn't like anyone. Mel took a shine to her, though.

Then she goes shopping with Mel (or gives Mel money, or something. I'm not sure). Then, once the investment business is concluded, we go out to party, and she's all demure and wall-flowry, and these guys come in to kick ASS! Luckily, M & M had it handled, but dang! That coulda been bad.

Speaking of our new jobs, we're now going to be going after bounties. Both Martin and the Major seem really competent in that area. Maybe it'll give Thea somewhere to place her anger. She almost shot Jasmine! It was intense! I can't believe she shot at that guy when he was holding a knife to her neck! I think I was celebrating a little too hard. I can't believe I got so drunk!

Whoo! living with these guys is gonna be FUN!

The Introduction

Cast of Characters:

Martin Reynolds: Bounty Hunter and part owner of the Lazy Swan
Jungmao Hung: Bounty Hunter and part owner of the Lazy Swan
Melissa "Mel" O'Malley: Pilot of the Lazy Swan
Thea Janssen: Mechanic and Deck hand of the Lazy Swan; Also a good wilderness tracker.
Jasmine Blank: Cook for the Lazy Swan, also a finiancer for the current owners
Dylan Herron: (NPC) Original and current part owner of the Lazy Swan, Captain, Pilot
Egg Shen: (NPC) Doctor for the Lazy Swan, likes Traditional Chinese Medicine