Gilded Endeavors

Year: 3230

In the year 2842, mankind discovered the secrets to hyperdrive engines, and began to explore what they believed to be the final frontier. During one of their expeditions they encountered a race of humanoids vaguely resembling mythic elves with blue skin. These creatures called themselves the Tenaux (Ten-ow) and were relatively peaceful and highly advanced. First contact was led by the scientist Kelly McPherson, and it was through an exchange of gestures and sounds they eventually were able to translate each other's words. There were a few minor militant actions by the humans and Tenaux, but they were resolved and eventually the aliens let the humans in on the wider galaxy, introducing them to many other races, and eventually establishing humanity as a member of the Galactic Confederation, the government that regulated the races and kept the peace amongst the member races. Besides the Tenaux and humans there are six other races who are members of the Counsel- the Hizu, a long lived race similar to praying mantis about four feet tall with green skin, the Kranzik, a barbaric race of humanoid cat people that the Hizu "ascended" & the reason for Directive Zero (Don't introduce schematics to spacecraft to underdeveloped races) the Daavrik, a race of humanoid canines who are much more civilized than the Kranzik, the Stavok, a race of lizard people,  the Ursis, a race of four armed bear people, and the liquid breathing Scalis, which basically look like walking fish people which breathes liquid oxygen. There are also a myriad of other races that are within the galaxy and don't have a seat on the Counsel, but are affected by it. There is occasionally war between the various factions, as it is a confederate government, but they don't usually last long.

In the year 3230, war between the humans and Scalis over a newly discovered star system is brewing. Many unscrupulous and enterprising captains are beginning to take advantage of that, as in many human controlled systems, Scallic imports have been banned out right, and vice versa. This creates a black market for dealing with those sectors, and many captains are setting courses to keep "free trade" routes open. This led to the foundation of an intergalactic underground ring of smugglers and pirates. They are known as... The Free Trader's Guild.
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This RP follows the story of the captain and crew of a ship in the FTG, and their various exploits across the galaxy.

Character Sheet
Name:
Age:
Species:
Appearance:
Inventory:
Specialty: (Some certain skillset(s) useful to the crew of a starship)
Biography:
Other:

OOC and CS submission thread;
https://ffhouse.rpg-board.net/t20-ooc-gilded-endeavors

The helm of the ship was relatively quiet since Melissa had sought refuge there away from the rest of her crew as the ship underwent its final rundown before taking off for another system. The cargo, which mostly consisted of illegally purchased firearms, was being shipped to some rebel group on a planet Melissa really didn't care about. The only hitch in the plan was that the meager government forces had put something of a blockade up around the planet, and Melissa didn't have the credits to purchase a stealth system for the ship. So they were left with the fact that they were likely going to be boarded, since most of the government ships were smaller than her freighter. Her funds had been, for the most part, put towards her crew, with the credits not given to her crew going towards mandatory repairs on the ship. If they had completed the job they took, the payout was very comforting, and she wasn't opposed to losing one or two of her crew in the combat with the 'enemy' as it'd be more for herself and the rest of the crew. Kicking her legs up on the console, she sighed to herself and closed her eyes.

Kalin passed a cloth over the Blade of Mars, which now shined radiantly under the ships fluorescent lights. He'd taken residence in one of the aft cabins in the crew's quarters section, mostly for privacy reasons, although Kalin didn't consider himself a very reserved personality. However, the unfamiliarity of the crew and the situation caused him to reason much differently than usual. The captain of the crew was very interesting in particular. Kalin shrugged and turned his attention to polishing his most prized possession, losing himself in it's magnificence.

"Jan, could you help me?" The bearded young man struggled to lift the box of belongings from the ship's corridor, as his Kranzik companion watched in bemused half-interest. The ears of the feline alien perked up as he limped over, an expertly wrapped bandage around his left shin, an injury received from a drunken patron in a seedy bar. Regardless of the pain, if there were any, Jan obligingly picked up the other side of the box. 
Gently leading into the bare quarters, Alecksey guided Jan with hand motions to help him place the luggage by the small metal desk shoved in a corner. Musing to himself, Alecksey realized that there was no chair. He would have to use the box itself. Breathing slightly heavier from the exertion, he sat down on the bed, surveying his spartan surroundings. Tapping a knuckle against the metal plating of the wall, the man sighed. Another day on the run.
The Kranzik stood idly by, before looking out the door, his tail waving to-and-fro as he too regards his surroundings. Wholly uninterested, as any drug-addled mind may be, he wanders out the door, humming tunelessly to himself. Alecksey lets him go; only when the leaves wear off does Jan really need supervision.

Pursing her lips, Melissa sighed to herself quietly as she sat comfortably in her chair. At times she certainly had too much to deal with on her mind, and sadly breaking in a new crew wasn't on the top of the list. The top of her list was marked with economic survival instead of successful smuggling. She had dumped almost all of her wealth into purchasing the ship and everything required for it to operate, and she also paid the wages of the crew. Thankfully on the agreements they weren't to be paid until a job was complete, which gave her leeway on the wages she could supply to them. Leaning back in the seat, she smiled to herself as she dozed off into a light nap, contempt at the moment to sit and dream until it was time to head out. Her ears twitched from time to time as she registered the faint sound of work and talking being done throughout the ship, but other than that she paid no heed to what was going on.

Ryan

As I wipe off a slight sheen of sweat on my brow I laid down the mini screwdriver on the worktable next to me sighing. Glancing down I stare at the small panel open in my left arm. I flex my fingers watching each one individually then frowned as my index finger juddered. "Hmm" Sighing again I pick up a small device off the table top. It was a mix of a welder and a laser. Leaning forwards slightly and then enhancing my vision my double I set to work fixing the faulty parts, a faint crackle could be heard if you were close by. As I worked I thought about where I was, still could not be believe it. I chuckled lightly shaking my head. "It's certainly going to be interesting to say the least.."

Kalin found himself wandering the tight corridors of the ship soon after finishing the polishing job on his sword. He figured knowing the layout of the ship's levels would come in handy if he found himself in a tight situation. He walked around casually, getting to know the hardened faces and exuberant characters of the people he would share this home with until the end of their, or his own, life. An oblivious-looking Kranzik; maintenance staff hard at work; stoic and tough security guards. They all brought Kalin a sense of false pride he had not felt since fleeing his homeworld. The thought left his mind as he came upon the helm of the ship. His palm pressed against the keypad, which glowed a radioactive green upon a second of processing. The steel door slid open to reveal a wide room with what looked to be a Draavik sitting in the captain's chair. It took him a step into the room to realize it was indeed the Captain. "Domina-" Kalin cursed himself mentally as he uttered the words used to address his old master. "I-I mean, Captain. Apologies." He muttered, standing tall and emotionless as he waited to be acknowledged- a habit taken on bitterly.

Melissa's ears twitched as she heard the approach of another, their heavy steps signifying their approach. Opening an eye as she heard them stop before the door, she watched the door slide open and reveal one of the armed guards she had hired. In her opinion they were brutes, whether they were intelligent or not. So she merely raised an eyebrow as she was called another name as the man stumbled across his words. Upon the man's inquiry she tilted her head slightly to the left as she regarded him. "That's alright." She responded quietly, wondering why he had wandered up to the bridge. The last she could recall, at least from her sporadic memory, he hadn't been listed as a pilot. She could've been wrong and it wouldn't surprise her if it was actually there, but nonetheless she was still genuinely curious as to why he had appeared. "What brings you to the bridge?" She asked curiously, opening her second eye as she gazed at him.

Ryan

Finishing up on repairs I sigh and close the panel, flexing my hand again then lean back in my chair. "Suppose I could explore the ship for a while, nothing else to do.." Standing up and yawning slightly with a stretch I blink a few times then leave the room. Wandering around the corridors, I began to familiarise myself with the ship layout in case I need to go somewhere or in a more unfortunate situation learn where to run to defend in case we get boarded. As I walked I looked at the bits of tech here and there making notes along the way mentally. If need be I could certainly tweak thing or upgrade them here and there.

"Tut, tut, truu, tut, tut..." the words, no, more a bored beat, fumbles out of Lekalis' mouth as he sits below a window in a hallway of the smuggler ship. His mind is distant, lost eyes seeing better days than these dogged ones.
He can't help but note and learn about the passerbys, as some part of his cybernetic brain works without his will, to fulfill some unspecified variable within the coding. Most follow the same line of being orphans or nobodies, some are fighters or disgraced nobles and soldiers. Lekalis' can feel his duty, his rifle, pressing against him; leaning on him like a lover. He continued mumbling the beat as more people sneer and walk around or over him. Or they simply walk in. Most of them just walk on, moving like spokes on a wheel. Lekalis smiles, pulling on his scarred hide, as his thoughts drift to being back at the mining planet, with friends and he idly carresses the foregrip of his rifle.
"Tut, tut, tru... tut, tut, tru."

Sighing, Lekalis pushed himself to his feet; using his rifle as support. Some part of him didn't exactly know what to do with this freedom, this idleness; he'd been given orders since he was born, to simply sit about was increasingly strange. Some part of him made him wander, a part that yearned for freedom, the freedom he now had. 
His rifle was held firmly in his hand: he'd never gotten around to getting a sling, or strap, or one of the fancy magnetic-locks the actual mercenaries had. This smuggler's boat was quite well and full of them, not being one to judge, but Lekalis felt that this ship was ready to fight. His augmented eyes were flooding him with information, which his cybernetic brain attempted to sort and organize as quickly as it could. The feeling was stinging, but relieving; like a cyst filling then finally popping it. He noted possible escape routes and ventilation openings as key locations to utilize in the case of defeat in a fight. Also who had the most profitable gear to loot and sell.
It was like a fist in his face, when an almost entirely cybernetic man passed Lekalis. They'd passed eachother awhile ago, but the information only just registered. The mercenary's arm alone would make him rich; Lekalis' held himself up on a wall as he turned and skimmed the received data until it stopped on the man who had the most delicious arm.
The immediate dossier Lekalis could recall gave little up on the man besides his designation on the ship, what weaponry was checked out on him, and where he was born. The name came later, as the man seemed to wander farther and farther away.
Not one for greed, Lekalis still couldn't help but memorize everything he could about that man; from his armor and hair, to his gait and subtle habits in movement. If he died, Lekalis wanted to be the first to know... With an axe handy, preferably.

The tall woman in the green fur coat had taken over the galley almost immediately upon setting her equipment down. She waved the others out. She was one of the few crew members who didn't seem to be a member of the security, though in a pinch she could certainly handle herself if that massive halberd she had leaning against the wall behind her was any indication of that. She took one of her many knives out and a manual whetstone- she had a laser one, but always found the rasp of the manual stone against the blade so much more satisfying, and would often sharpen each of her knives- including the ones she used for cooking- and her halberd in order to relax and comfort herself. Being among an unfamiliar crew was more than enough a reason for her to do it. The Valhallian woman smiled as she listened to the sound of the blade drawing across the stone, and once she determined it was sharp enough, she moved on to the next one.

His well geared feet had him move throughout the ship without abandon. In due time, Lekalis stumbled into the strangely, almost-empty galley of the ship.
A singular woman sat at a table, a strangely medieval decour and aura about the she, Lekalis couldn't help but stare for a moment. Albeit, she WAS the only real being within the room.
Lekalis gorged himself on her dossier. A curious thing that, such a primitive thing decided to join such a dangerous and unseemly job.
Maybe she was easy to manipulate. Lekalis felt that, if that were the case, they may have something in common

She continued to scrape the knives until they were all sharpened. She seemed to be ignoring the new comer, however, beneath her long black eyelashes she was carefully studying the man. Once the last knife was sharpened to her satisfaction, she set it aside with its brothers and sisters. She then picked the halberd up and began to sharpen it too. When she had turned around, it became apparent that she was also armed with a blaster, which hung in its holster against her bared thigh. "Can I help you with something?" she asked, not even pausing in her strokes.

As though it had only just occured to him, Lekalis jumped at the sound of the woman's voice. Sure he'd handled various persons of either sex, though that time felt like another life entirely. Yet, habits from that life had apparently carried over; his hand went up and rubbed the back of his neck. He smiled, friendly in the way it awkwardly stretched his scars. His other hand waved, but it had a gun in its clutches. 
"Hello!" He said, too loudly and to a question. 
He 'uhh'd for a moment, as though he'd only just begun to speak before letting out a building sigh through his mediocre nose.
"I... do you need something?" Lekalis tried again, letting his rifle-in-a-hand go back to his side. He had no eyes to tell the lady, though his posture was akin to a dog with no master. He made a few steps forward as he talked, some still-human part of him, vaguely intrigued by the bared flesh; blade or no. Bumping his knee on a chair stopped him, still a decent distance away...

She didn't pause in sharpening the halberd, but did take time to analyze this.... creature? She supposed she could say. He was certainly human enough, but was covered from head to toe in a thick layer of bandages. What the hell sort of person would do that to themselves? But upon a closer inspection she could see that he used it to cover up what appeared to be thousands of scars. Each had its own story, she thought. She could probably talk to him about it later, when she was more comfortable with him. Though, she could clearly see he was uncomfortable enough around her. Especially when he bumped his knee into the chair. 

"What sort of aid could you lend me?" she asked, her eyes never seeming to leave the blade of her halberd. Once it was nice and sharp, she laid it to rest within reach to eye the man more critically.

"Anything, really. I... can sharpen your... blade? Or I could give you a massage, I can..." He rubbed his knee with his free hand as he moved past the troublesome chair, finding a place within talking distance... more importantly, outside of the glaive's reach. The woman's appearance in itself was striking; a curiosity amongst the wild difference, even to Lekalis' rather brief time to analyze the hectic fashion sense of the universe. It was uniquely romantic, an enticing barbarous theme about the garb the she wore.

"... I can do lots of things." he decided to say in finality. His body was quivering, though the bandages at least gave the appearance of being still. His coat folded beneath him and he handed off the gun to be set at his side, barrel pointing upwards and the butt on the ground; leaning haphazardly against the chair. It only stayed there for a moment, before he became restless with his hands and picked the rifle back up and set it upon his lap. Fidgeting with the safety and bolt, occasionally checking the screws that held the scope in place.

The woman listened to the man's offer, coldly and calculating. While his offers were certainly enticing- especially the massage, she had just watched him bump into a chair. She doubted he was dexterous enough to actually do anything. And besides, she enjoyed softer hands than his bandaged wrapped ones. She watched him fidget with the rifle next before saying anything.

"I've already sharpened all my blades," she said plainly, "And you seem a little too jittery to be effective at giving a massage." She paused for a moment to eye his hands, "However, can you chop vegetables?"

"Yes!" he replied, as per now tandem, a little too eagerly.
Lekalis moved his rifle to set upon the table, and fished into his satchel from within his coat. His fumbled a little, finding the datum box soon enough, due to a rather sparse packing.
"I can cook... decently..? I haven't tried... cutting vegetables, but I'm sure I know how." he mused, a queer confidence in the data-coil set within the box. His free hand went back and rubbed over the ports where he would insert the piece, more out of a nervous habit than any real worry. 
"T-to be fair, I've yet to work with vegetables... I've only used, ah... meats and pastas and... you know? the works." he felt a little excited at being able to do something that doesn't demand violence. At least, to anything that would bleed liquid excessively and/or scream. Though, that was entirely subjective, vegetables could probably do all those things given correct circumstances.
Lekalis' mind whirred as he opened up the combination-secured box and pulled out a sort of reinforced, plated and bolted vacuum tube that looked rather idle in its current unglowing state.
"Plug this in, and I'll know how to cook... mostly everything?" he shrugged and made to smile, the scars again pulling queerly across his face.

Keira listened to the man fumble with the words and describe the things he could cook. She found herself raising an eyebrow. What sort of man doesn't know how to at least chop the vegetables? She shrugged and put the thought away - for now. She eyed the strange device that the man handed her. Though Valhalla was advanced in most respects, there were apparently still some devices that escaped her planet's notice. She took the device and examined it.

"What is this?" she asked, moving to do as the bandaged man asked.

"Data coil, that one... S'cooking... on the tape?" he pointed at the tape, as he'd said, which had 'cooking' scrawled unto it with some rudimentary ink.
"T-the ports, in the back of my head... The pointy bit goes in and, well... Thing whirr and I know how to cook lots of things." he nodded and shifted in his seat, he nodded and turned to the data-box, closing it and snapping the lock shut then shuffling the number roll lock before sliding it into his satchel once more.
"I've seen a lot of them..." he mused, his voice distant and steady now, his eyes seemingly fixuated on the data coil. "... I only could afford that one" he pointed at the coil and then patted his satchel, "... And another." He was calm as he watched the woman handle the coil, it would make him useful again. He shivered and nodded, nervousness returning as worries played out that the woman might drop the coil.
"I can put it in. And then lead me to the vegetables." he nodded and smiled as he held out his hand.

Ryan

Walking through the hallways I could hear the faint sound of talking. "Ah so there is other life here." I grinned to myself as I followed the sound of voices and what I could of sworn was scraping metal? Frowning slightly I kept walking, navigating the corridors until the voices got louder and I turned a corner and came upon a large room which I knew to be the galley. In front of me I saw two figures talking to each other. One a tall female in the green fur coat who I has seen earlier my inbuilt data system telling me some info about her. Another was a I think male and seemingly covered in bandages. I gazed at the two for a bit going through the information that was at hand about the two. After some moments I stepped into the room. "Hello there."

The woman handed the ... data coil... back to him and nodded. "Alright," she said. "I suppose you tech-reliant folks would use something like that." She turned to the new comer and nodded to him politely. "Hello."

Lekalis frowned at the comment, he wasn't reliant... Or, at least, so he believed. The thought dominated his mind as the new, walking fortune of a machine entered the room. Lekalis scarcely noticed the figure; taking the data coil and nodding, letting his face go to a neutral outlook.
He didn't bother to look at the man named Ryan. Lekalis knew plenty of Ryans, they liked to get stuck in impeccable situations, where a squad of buddies has to try and bail them out because their mother got worried. Always, always, always. Lekalis simply turned and, with the data coil in one hand, the other probed the back of his skull. And upon feeling one of the holes that held a direct funnel into a boxy-metal tumor on his brain, he began to slide the data coil in.

Kalin eased slightly as he answered, "I thought it would be a good idea to familiarize myself with the vessel's layout in case of an emergency, sir." Kalin often scouted his surroundings before completely settling in. A random raid or pirate attack would surely leave the majority of the crew in shock, while he'd be prepared and ready to defend himself. "Again, I apologize for the intrusion." He said, "I suppose I'll be on my way."