2 March – 10 March, WY602 – Myrr, Roberts – Yang, Whistler

After querying orbital traffic, the crew chooses to head to Jarilo to improve their chances of getting off-planet. They convince local traffic control that they’re bringing in troops from the Guardian base on weekend liberty. Din uses Tomoe’s identity and credit to launder some petty cash on anonymous credsticks for the Marines to spend at local bars and restaurants. The crew splits off into small groups and moves into the city to seek passage.

Aidan, Daniel, and a few others encounter Charity Cartwright – Aidan’s older sister and Jack Cartwright’s first wife – at a bar. She’d been sent to get the Marines off-planet. After a brief discussion, the crew agrees and are shuttled up to Charity’s ship, the Independent Trade Consortium freighter ITC My Eyes Are Up Here, Asshole where they are billeted in tight quarters but are safe and well-fed. The Asshole jumps to Whistler.

Upon arrival near Yang, Asshole docks with a smaller inter-system craft and welcomes aboard Harvey Detweiler, IBI’s Chief Financial Offer and head of HR. He brings employment contracts to the Marines and investment contracts to the crew for an endeavor codenamed “Project Sea Otter”. Several of the Marines sign on to IBI, but the majority want to be returned to their families. Harvey takes the Marines with him and tells the crew that Jack will meet them when Asshole docks at Trinity Station.

Upon arrival, the crew receives instructions from Jack and takes their leave of the ex-Mrs. Cartwright. They proceed to their fairly nice rooms in a fairly nice hotel and rest until evening, when they meet with Jack in a conference room. After pleasantries and a meal, a number of points are discussed:

• There hasn’t been enough time to thoroughly analyze the data that Aidan and Angelica have turned up, but Jack has people working on it. It is clear that there is new technology at play, and it seems very closely related to the phenomenon that Aidan encountered in Solace while he was in the Scout Service.
• There was a break-in at a University of Grove gravitics research facility just before the crew escaped, and it’s possible that those attacking them think they events are linked. Jack has dispatched a message to Fleet Admiral Halsey inquiring.
• So far, absolutely no charges have been filed and no arrest orders have been issued for the crew (including from Myrr – Julian ensured the Swamp Chicken made it back to Colonel Feldman). There’s no reason to believe that the attackers are using any official means to get hold of the crew.
• The Hamster was IBI’s only jump-capable ship, but Jack has an investment opportunity in mind if the crew is willing to “think creatively”. He has a number of pick-ups required to get the necessary parts to effect a repair on what he hope will be the crew’s next vessel. The first pickup is on Korolev in six weeks, and he’s leant the crew the IBI A Series of Unlikely Explanations, an atmo-capable light freighter, for their use.

The crew parts ways with Jack and prepares for the trip to Korolev.