Ship's Log

036-1106 - Regina/Regina (1910) - Claim Jumpers

The crew's work on getting the ship ready for space is interrupted by Jellico. He has found a job for them in order to gain some cash for desperately needed repairs.

Pekka Tannenil, a unkempt belter who has stayed apart from civilisation a little too long, is looking for bodyguards to protect his brother Vlad and their mining site while he tries to get the wheels of bureaucracy in the Office of Claims Assessment to turn and have their claim examined. Jellico has already accepted the job which will pay for a new jump govenor at worst and a ship's boat if the claim is as Tannenil claims. Pekka distributes photos of their find - a large, bird-like alien skull buried in the rock of the asteroid next to a skull which is obviously human. The Tennenils believe this to be remains of The Ancients, the forerunner race which peopled this region of space before wiping themselves out in a period of total war about 300,000 years ago. The find is proof, they reckon, that the Ancients seeded humans throughout space - just like it says in all the space operas on the tri-D. If the skulls are of Ancient origin, the site is potentially worth millions of credits.

For a stake in the outcome of the assessment, the crew agree to the job. They equipment themselves with air, water and rations ("and explosives," squeals Hal) before jumping a shuttle to the asteroid belt around the second start in the system. The shuttle is evenly divided into two types of passenger: the old hands who sleep through the trip for the most part, and the greenhorns - newcomers - bright eyed and looking to make their fortunes by a lucky strike in the belt.

Two days later, the shuttle arrives at the IPS (Industrial Processing Station) Montana. After passing through the lock and into the main section of the station, they find themselves in a foyer that leads to the offices of the various mining companies and government agencies which manage the belt, hotel accommodation, a general store and diner.

They send Vlad the message that they have arrived and sit down to a working man's lunch to wait. After some time, a dishevelled belter siddles up to the table.

"You must be the security ma brother sent me," he says. "Best be gittin' back to the find, I reckon. I don't wanna leave it unprotected-like."

"You said it'd take you four hours to get here," says Ed Mosley. "How'd you shave a full half hour off the trip?"

"Err. Umm. You know," stumbles Vlad. "A bit of extra thrust here. Cuttin' it fine round the boundary markers there. You know."

"I see. Let's go collect our stuff and we can be off."

Ed whispers his suspicion to the others on the way to redeem their equipment from the baggage claim. During this time, Benito strikes up a conversation with their employer.

"You must be feeling pretty good about the strike. Pekka showed us the photos. I'm told you don't often see such a large lode of iridium in one place. I guess it's worth a fair bit."

"Yep. We're pretty darned happy with turning up that much iridium in one place."

"Liar," says Benito calmly and floors the imposter with a quick one-two into his guts. Hal gives him a good kick in the ass when he's down.

The crew head back upstairs to the diner and find the real Vlad Tennenil looking for them. He's a wiry looking man who has been a belter for a very long time. His skin looks as if its turned to leather in the dryness of an environment suit alternately bathed in UV and cold. He is also a dead ringer for Pekka. They tell him of their encounter with the Vlad impostor.

"I knew them Murdoch boys were up to somethin'. We'd better get back."

The crew attach their equipment with cargo nets to the load points on the hull of the oldest, most 'well-used' launch any of them has ever seen. Random pieces of metal have been welded over faults and damage in the hull. And many of these patches have themselves been patched more than once. Throughout the four hour trip, Ed Mosley expects to hear the depressurision sirens any minute - if they work.

As they approach the Tennenil's asteroid, an amorphous lump of stone no more than 200 metres on its longest dimension, they are hailed by Dan Murdoch, the youngest but smartest of the three Murdoch brothers.

"You're approachin' claimed terrority, Tennenil. Better back away. Don't wanna resort to violence, we don't."

"God danged claim jumpers! Get off my rock," Vlad screams into the comms channel.

"As far as I know, we found us an empty asteroid. Its ours now due to the law of finders keepers. Haw haw haw!" Dan cuts the comms channel.

Through the viewport, Hal can see a mining launch landed on the surface near a pressure tent and other equipment. Three men are rifling through the gear taking anything useful that they find and flinging the rest off the asteroid into space.

Vlad turns on the crew, breathing fire. "You git them varmits off my claim and I'll double yer money!"

The crew discuss the matter quickly and soon come up with a plan. Hal and Ed clamber into their vacc suits and step into the airlock carrying a crate of explosives and a bag of electronic timer-detonators. They open the external airlock door and float out on tethers as Benito radios the Murdochs. Vlad fumes quietly in a corner.

"Mr Murdoch, I don't think you understand the situation. We can wait up here forever. We're currently taking bets on what will run out first: your air or water. Are you sure you don't want us to come down so we discuss this like adults?"

"I reckon not. We claimed this rock fair and square. Well, ... kinda."

"Ok," replies Benito. "If that's the way you want it."

He signals to Ed and Hal. Ed passes Hal a detonator set for five minutes. She plants it in the explosive charge and tosses it towards the asteroid. Whistling a happy ditty, she hauls herself back into place on her tether.

"How much training have you had in demolitions," asks Mosley trying not to let his nervousness show.

"Absolutely none," she replies. "I just like things that go bang."

At the five minute mark, there's a small, silent bloom of yellow and white gas above the asteroid surface.

"Either set the timer to six minutes or throw it harder," says Benito, putting down his binoculars. "It went off a couple of hundred metres above the surface."

"Right-o"

The next stick of explosive is timed about right. It explodes on the surface about 40 metres away from the pressure tent and the Murdoch shuttle. Instantly, the comms channel crackles to life. Benito's vision through the binoculars is obscured by a cloud of fine asteroid debris.

"What in tarnation are you folks up to!" shouts Dan.

"It's a little trick we like to use that we call 'rain of fire.' Since you are unwilling to discuss this matter, you have left us no alternative."

An explosion on the surface of the asteroid creates a plume of dust and debris.

"OK. OK. We've changed our mind," says Dan. "You wanna come down and we can talk about this?"

"I don't think," says Benito. "We don't want to talk any more. We're quite happy playing this game."

Another explosion rocks the asteroid so close to the Murdoch shuttle that clanging of debris against the hull is audible over the comm link.

"But you'll kill us!"

Like Atlas of legend, Benito shrugs. "These things happen."

It takes only a few more explosions to bring Dan back to the comm-link.

"Ok. We'll deal."

The Murdoch brothers are packed off back to their territory and Vlad, examining his manhandled and purloined gear, curses them. The extent of his vocabulary shocks and amazes the crew. Hal takes notes in an effort to improve her swearing.

While they wait for Pekka to bring the Claims Assessor, Vlad shows them the find. Ed Mosley is impressed with the antiquity of the bones buried in an asteroid formed around half a million years ago. Hal wants to touch the alien skull to magically receive the being's ancient wisdom while the others laugh at her.

"It happens all the time in the Tri-Ds!"

Four days later, Pekka arrives with the assessor, marshall and deputy. The assessor is impressed with the find and reports it immediately to the IISS (Scout Service). Vlad and Pekka are promised a large finders' fee. The brothers pay the crew, including a large bonus, which they use to buy a second-hand ship's boat at the IPS-Montana. They travel back to Regina in style.

On their return Jellico has the ship registered and loaded with cargo.

"Now, let's find that Marquis and his bitch and hurt them. Sir Mosley, lay in a course for Jenghe."

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