*Action* - "Trading and Bounties"

Who: Captain Jed Calvert
Where: Drive Room
When: As the French inspection continues
Calvert sat cock-eyed in his Captain's chair.
Captains of JMC starships normally didn't have a Captain's chair,
especially not in the `Star Trek' sense. They normally just kept to
their office which adjoined the Drive Room, and only came out to pass
orders and verbally abuse the staff.
But Calvert liked to be where the action was, he didn't like all the
red tape of writing his orders in triplicate and filing them, he
always thought commanding a starship should be fun, living on the
edge, making decisions by the seat of his rather ragged leather pants.
Having a Captain's chair on the bridge mainly meant he could keep a
close eye on the events.
But today was a slow day. Jed absent mindedly twiddled a loaded pistol
around on his finger. The gun could easily have gone off and shattered
the Drive Room's Plexiglass window, but everyone in the room was too
scared of asking Jed to stop.
More reports came in of the French's weapons search, so far Jed's
crate of smuggled weapons was safe. But Jed knew it was only time
before they did find it.
Jed went into his office for some privacy before contacting Peter and
Kevn. "Howdy partners!" he shouted down their personal intercom.
"Listen guys, I think these hear gorram Frogs are getting close to the
good stuff, so how `bout you do me a favour?"
He heard some reluctant moans from both Peter and Kevn.
"Shut ya traps and listen, or I'll kick yer off this sorry boat! I've
arranged a deal with a contact of mine on New Wales, I need you to get
the crate to him in return for a small package that he has for me. Can
you both do that?"
There was a silence on their end.
"Alright, let me put it another way. If you don't do this I'll strap
the contents of that crate to you both, then write `French men have a
tiny penis' on your foreheads and hand you over to the French okay?"
"But the French armada is right outside sir, how are we supposed to
get past them?"
"Don't make excuses pardner or you'll be pushin' up snakes!" Calvert
commanded. "I'm sure you'll find a way. And if you screw up and
incriminate me or this ship in any way I'll use your employee record
as toilet paper, and you'd be on your own, got it?"
Marwood and Kevn agreed and Calvert dusted his hands off as a job well
delegated. He had every faith that giving his employees impossible
tasks actually improved morale and productivity.
Before Calvert could return to the Drive Room however he got a
transmission from somewhere offship. Reluctantly he accepted the call,
all the while wondering who could be calling. He still had enemies
around these parts of space.
His communication screen blinked on and he saw a rough, bruised face
that looked like it had been once used as a doormat for an extremely
fat person. This guy looked like the love child of Vinny Jones and Ron
Perlman, if that love child had become a boxer.
"Jeddy!" The man said in a gruff, powerful voice.
Jed recognised the man. Titus Balsac. When he used to live here as a
smuggler and trader, Titus represented one of the most powerful gangs
of illegal trading. Jed had done plenty of work for him in the past,
but they had parted on bad terms.
"Titus." Jed said flatly.
"Long time no see, Jeddy boy!"
Jed knew to be careful when talking to Titus. The man represented a
lot of power, and had a lot of muscle working for him. If Jed got
Titus as much as angry, Titus could just click his fingers and a
hundred bounty hunters would be chasing Jed down.
"There's a reason for that Titus. You shot me."
The comment hung in the air for a few moments. Titus did that for the
effect of intimidation. After a tense moment he laughed.
"Well you shot me too Jeddy. But that's okay, it was a long time ago."
"Well in that case I might just do it again!" Jed said flippantly. But
instantly that comment might have just pushed the line too far. Titus
grimaced, and looked like he was about to click his fingers, but paused.
"I'm in a good mood today Jeddy." He said. "So I'll let that one slide."
Jed breathed again. "What job? I have a starship now Titus, I'm not
pulling your smuggling runs again."
"Oh don't worry Jeddy. This is only a small favour."
"I'm sorry Titus, I'm not in the busin-"
"Three thousand."
"What?" The comment threw Jed off balance. It caught the attention of
his greed gland.
"Three thousand. No… let's make it four."
"What do I have to do?"
"There's someone on your crew I want. He'd make a good bounty from his
rich friends. You're not squeamish about selling one of your crew for
money are you Jeddy? Not gone all soft have you?"
Jed's answer was so quick it was almost instantaneous. "Partner, For
four grand you can have my own mother!"
"I heard you sold her for two?"
"It was a time when was desperate for the money." Jed admitted. "So
who d'ya want?"
"Seymour Niples."
"That annoying British bastard? Done!"
Jed thought about it for a second. "Oh, but he's just been captured by
the French."
"You have three weeks to get him to me." Titus said before the screen
went off.
Jed rubbed his large stubbly chin. Now all he needed was some kind of
rescue party.
<OOC – okay everyone I have a plan for getting Seymour and Eric back
from the French, I could do with volunteers, but don't start yet.>